Kehillas Ya’akov-Congregation of Jacob,
351-353
Commercial Road, London E1,
by David Russell, Vice Chairman, Kehillas Ya'akov (Congregation of Jacob)
(Rest your mouse on the
photos to read captions & double click to enlarge)
Kehillas
Ya'akov, or The Congregation of Jacob, is no ordinary synagogue. From
the outside it looks unremarkable, sandwiched as it is in the middle of
a parade of shops on the Commercial Road in Stepney Green. But step
inside, and you enter a fusion of two worlds: one disappeared, and the
other said to be fast disappearing. It is where East European Jewry
meets the Jewish East End of London. And it is where hope springs
eternal. As English Heritage has reported,
Kehillas Ya’akov "is a remarkable survival ...
and is all the more exceptional for continuing in use as a synagogue.”
History
The
East End is the cradle of Britain's Jewish Community. At the turn of
the century, there was said to be as many Jews living in this one
square mile of London than there are in the entire country today -
over 250,000 souls. Sam Melmick has recorded the existence of over 150
synagogues in the area, not beginning to count the multitude of
shtiebls that will have served the Jewish community. But today, there
remain only four synagogues still in use: Sandy’s Row, East London
Central (also known as Nelson Street, due to its location), Fieldgate
Street Great Synagogue and the Congregation of Jacob (or Kehillas
Ya'akov).
Kehillas Ya’akov was founded by Morris
Davis Koenigsberg and Abraham Schwalbe in 1903, probably beginning life
in the front room of Mr Koenigsberg's family house on Commercial Road
(Mr Schwalbe lived a few doors along). The Ashkenazi Congregation
largely consisted of first generation immigrants from Poland and
Lithuania, frum yidden (religious Jews) from small shtetls such
as Stetziver, Kalisz and Vilkaviskis.
The shul (synagogue) originally
was a constituent member of the Federation of Synagogues (though it is
independent today), an organisation established by philanthropist Samuel
Montague MP in 1887 to improve the conditions for worship of the
numerous small and often ill-ventilated chevras (prayer groups)
in the East End. It advanced loans for many synagogue conversions, but
often on condition that chevras merged into larger congregations.
Kehillas Ya’akov thus incorporates Chevra Yisroel (Society of Israel),
Bikur Cholim (Visitors of the Sick) and the Stetziver Synagogue.
What we have also cobbled together is
that our present location at 351 - 353 Commercial Road was until the War
a bootmaker’s premises, being redesigned by Lewis Solomon and Son,
honorary architects to the Federation of Synagogues, and reconsecrated
in 1921.
Interestingly Kehillas Ya’akov was the
first Mizrachi Synagogue in Britain and to this day, the Congregation
remains Modern Orthodox. Most members still live locally though the
character of the Congregation is more cosmopolitan than it once was. The
service is still very much Ashkenazic in style, but the Sephardic
influence can be felt in the soft pronunciation of the Hebrew. The
synagogue is independent, owned, managed and maintained by members of
the community.
Character
Dr
Sharman Kadish, Project Director of the Survey of the Jewish Built
Heritage, has commented that at Kehillas Ya’akov “the congregation
created for themselves an inner space strongly redolent of the world
of East European Jewry which they had left behind.” Today’s
Congregation amplifies this sentiment, by reminding guests also of the
world of East End Jewry that the British community is leaving behind.
But in this latter instance, the abandonment has been chosen not
forced.
On entering the synagogue, one is
immediately struck by the otherworldliness of the space. Maybe this is
just the sentimentality of the author, but one senses the ghosts of
members past peering over the balcony of the upstairs gallery as heads
are bowed for the Amidah. The gallery that encircles three sides of the
shul is accessed by a separate entrance to the main portico and was
formerly used by the ladies of the Congregation, but is today out of use
to the public due to the repair work that is needed to stabilise the
gallery. Instead the women sit behind the men at the back of the shul,
behind a Mechitzah (a curtain partition), praying and talking
quietly amongst themselves when the Shammes (warden) allows.
In the summer, light floods the
Congregation through the glass roof, a feature imported from Eastern
Europe and a feature common in the shuls of the East End as one of the
only means to enable natural light into the building, particularly
important as the synagogue is located in the middle of a terraced row.
As Dr Kadish also comments, Kehillas
Ya’akov is “a valuable and venerable relic of Anglo-Jewish history”
and “one of England’s last intimate folk-art Eastern European
synagogues.” The folk art tradition can be evinced from the wall
painting above the ark. This was crafted by former member, the late Dr
Phillip Steinberg, and features traditional Jewish symbols such as the
Menorah and Arba Minim (four fruits of Succot). It adds to the
folk-like feel of the space, as do the blue walls (to ward off the evil
eye) and simple decor.
But these descriptors do nothing to
capture the atmosphere or personality of the Congregation. One may feel
the cold in the winter months due to the lack of central heating, but
the congregants compensate by extending a warm reception and a dram or
two of whiskey at Kiddush. And it is not only for this reason that we
are known as the Cheers of shuls, as it is here 'where everybody knows
your name, and they're always glad you came.'
People
The
shul is run by Rev. David Brandes, who as well as serving as our
minister is also the warden of the shul. David’s family has a
long-standing connection with the shul. His maternal grandparents
lived on Lucas (now Lukin) Street, where the
Bikur Cholim was located. David today lives just around the corner
from the shul, and it was whilst walking past it nearly twenty years
ago that his interest was piqued, when he saw swastikas scrawled on
the outside wall.
The shul then was run by two bothers –
Morry and Ixxy Lixenberg – and it seems only right today, that David’s
brother, Gerald, plays a significant role as Chair of the shul. Even
whilst ill, the Lixenbergs did all they could to ensure that the shul
remained open, a dedication and commitment that extends to all our
membership today. There are still times when the minyan is schwach
(weak), particularly in the winter when it is more difficult for our
older congregants to attend. But always somehow, we manage to find a
tenth man on a Saturday morning, vital to be able to take out the
Sefer Torah (the scrolls upon which the five books of Moses are
written) to layn (read from the Torah).
We are fortunate as well to have a
direct descendant of one of our founders, Dr Monty Passes, the grandson
of Abraham Schwalbe, amongst our congregation. Monty, now in his 80s,
still attends services as do a number of his mishpacha (family).
Monty is just one of the many congregants helping Kehillas Ya’akov
today, a community where everyone is valued, has a vital role to play
and contribution to make.
Postscript
At the
time of writing two thousand Jewish souls live on in the East End.
Though the demographic is elderly that is reason enough for shuls to
remain open in the area, more so now as young Jews begin returning to
their roots. At last, thankfully, the community at large is
recognising the importance of preserving this fast disappearing
heritage – though there is a real fear this may be too little, too
late.
We can only hope that with the will,
will come the support, to ensure that all the remaining East End
synagogues will not only survive, but will prosper for this generation
and many more to follow. And as Herzl famously once said: Im tirtzu,
ein zo agadah – If you will it, it’s no dream.
I need not remind you that through no
fault of our own we lost for posterity much of our East European
heritage. Let us not stand idly by and allow the loss of our East End
heritage too.
From the address given by Chief Rabbi Sir
Jonathan Sacks at the Congregation of Jacob Synagogue Centenary
Service (June 2003)
“It
is an enormous delight to celebrate with you this lovely moment and I
commend all of you, not for just keeping it going, but for keeping it
strong and keeping the flame alight. For me coming here is like coming
home because most of my early childhood was spent in Commercial Road.
This is a very very proud tradition that you have sustained here. And
what a mechiah (great pleasure) it is that you have kept this
shul alive and more than alive, you have renewed it. I want to give my
congratulations to all of you who have had a share in it. You are
preserving, conserving and renewing something that is unique. May your
great great spirit lift everyone who enters your door. May you continue
to be as warm and welcoming as you are today and may everyone who enters
here to pray feel that they are not strangers here - here where they
belong. May your future be no less distinguished than your past.”
(Rest your mouse on the
photos to read captions & double click to enlarge)
by
David Russell, Vice Chairman, Kehillas Ya'akov (Congregation of Jacob)
