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Germany excels at restoring synagogues destroyed by the Nazis. But can they foster new Jewish life?
I was in the pews when Munich reopened the Reichenbachstrasse Synagogue—the city’s only surviving prewar synagogue—last month. It is an exquisite restoration and a bevy of politicians showed up. Germany’s Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, fighting back tears, promised to protect Jewish life; so did Bavaria’s Minister-President Markus Söder and Munich’s mayor Dieter Reiter. The celebrated pianist Igor Levit, who is Jewish, played Mendelssohn and Schubert and wiped away a tear of his own.
It was unmistakably a state occasion. The speeches were solemn, the security heavy and the messaging familiar: “Never again.” “We owe you this.” “Jewish life belongs here.“
Projects like saving the Reichenbachstrasse Synagogue politically legible: they are blueprints, permits, ribbon-cuttings and, a price tag you can print in a press release. They are also finite. What isn’t finite is the work of actually keeping Jewish life alive inside the walls the state has paid to refurbish.
The cost of renovating Jewish life in Germany is not cheap. The €14 million (roughly $16.5 million) project was paid for by the German government, the state of Bavaria and the city of Munich, with the non-profit association that led the rescue effort covering the remainder. It is admirable that so many actors came together to make this restoration possible. Yet recent history provides a few cautionary tales.
Particularly since the 1980s, numerous synagogues have been polished, though not necessarily brought back to life, with public funds. In Erfurt, Essen, Görlitz and Augsburg, architectural restoration has often stood in for restoring Jewish life.
Perhaps the strangest and most glaring example of this is Berlin’s Neue Synagoge, whose Moorish façade dazzles and gold dome glistens since 1995. However, the massive sanctuary—once the largest in Europe—was never rebuilt. Berlin’s Rykestrasse Synagogue, lovingly restored between 2004-2007 is a notable exception; it is currently Germany’s largest functioning Jewish house of worship, but its small community is dwarfed by the enormity of its interior.
Unlike a city like Görlitz (which has roughly 30 Jews), it makes good sense to foster new synagogues in Munich and Berlin, the cities with the highest Jewish populations in Germany, according to the Central Council of Jews in Germany. With sufficient support (including, naturally, engagement from Munich’s Jewish Community, which owns the building), the new Reichenbachstrasse Synagogue could become a revitalized spiritual home for Munich Jewry.
Designed by the Bauhaus-trained architect Gustav Meyerstein, the 550-seat Reichenbachstrasse Synagogue originally opened in Munich on Sept. 5, 1931. It was vandalized in the Kristallnacht pogrom of November 1938, patched up by survivors, and reopened in 1947 as Munich’s main synagogue—until the community moved in 2006 to Sankt Jakobs Platz, a nearby central square.
Its renovation is full of beautiful, resonant choices that display a painstaking attention to detail. The curtain for the ark that will house the Torah scrolls is woven from original fabrics by the Bauhaus textile master Gunta Stölzl—a gift from her grandson, Ariel Aloni, who flew in from New York to make the donation. The new stained-glass windows were fabricated by the Munich glassworks firm van Treeck, the same company that was contracted for the original windows back in 1931, according to Meyerstein’s designs.
Yet amid the talking points of German responsibility to safeguarding Jewish life, there was no credible plan presented for the building’s future.
Plenty of rabbis were present, yet none spoke. No prayers were recited. The evening was billed as a reopening, not a rededication of an active Jewish religious space. Rachel Salamander, a renowned German-Jewish literary scholar who spearheaded the shul’s rescue, made a point of saying that the Reichenbachstrasse Synagogue had been “restored as a house of worship—that is its primary purpose: to be a house of God.” But concrete details on when or how that might happen were not forthcoming.
When I asked around at the reception (where the food was provided by a non-kosher caterer), nobody could tell me who will be davening here regularly, what the prayer schedule is, or how the community intends to avoid turning this restored synagogue into yet another monument to Jewish life before the Holocaust.
A synagogue is not a “kulturelles Hotspot” (as Munich’s mayor bizarrely said he’d wished it would become) and Jewish life is not a series of German politicians wearing polyester-velvet kippot for the cameras. A flourishing shul is the outcome of operating budgets, clergy contracts and volunteer rosters. Jewish life means a space for prayer, study and conversation, and rabbis and scholars to facilitate it.
None of this is as telegenic as a chancellor’s tears. All of it costs money—the unglamorous kind that never ends. It is also bureaucratically irksome, and, in a country where antisemitic incidents nearly doubled in 2024, according to data compiled by the Federal Research and Information Point for Antisemitism, not without its challenges.
If the politicians who spoke so eloquently last month mean what they say about safeguarding Jewish life, they cannot stop at new pews, stained-glass and Bauhaus textiles. If “never again” is to be more than a rhetorical flourish, it has to be cashed out in regular prayer, in teaching, in the messy conviviality of a real congregation.
I have a selfish stake in all this: I live in the neighborhood. Sitting in the renewed sanctuary exactly a week before Rosh Hashanah, I imagined praying there; I imagined the awkward, happy collisions that define a living shul—the bar-mitzvah kiddush where the rugelach and schnaps runs out, the evenings when congregants in their holiday best cross paths with revelers in lederhosen and dirndls. (As Salamander pointed out, the Jewish High Holidays often coincide with Oktoberfest, as happened this year.)
If the Reichenbachstrasse Synagogue becomes a house of prayer again—regularly, reliably—then Merz’s tears will have meant something. If it doesn’t, then we have mounted yet another memorial to Jews where a shul ought to be.
The post Germany excels at restoring synagogues destroyed by the Nazis. But can they foster new Jewish life? appeared first on The Forward.
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Austria Uncovers Hamas-Linked Weapons Cache Amid Surge in Anti-Jewish Incidents
A pro-Hamas demonstration in Vienna. Photo: Reuters/Andreas Stroh
Austrian authorities have uncovered a weapons cache linked to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas intended for attacks on Jewish communities in Europe, amid a surge in antisemitic incidents and a government warning that anti-Jewish hate is on the rise.
On Wednesday, the Antisemitism Reporting Office of the Jewish Community of Vienna (IKG) released its new report on anti-Jewish outrages, recording 726 incidents in Austria in the first half of 2025.
The Jewish community in Austria has faced a troubling surge in antisemitic incidents and anti-Israel sentiment since the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Austrian Jewish leaders have consistently called on authorities to take swift action against the rising wave of targeted attacks and anti-Jewish hate crimes they continue to face.
According to the newly released report, antisemitic incidents peaked at 808 from the first six months of 2024, with this year’s first-half total slightly lower but on pace once again to far surpass pre-Oct. 7, 2023, figures if current trends continue.
In 2023, before the Oct. 7 atrocities, 311 cases were documented, with current figures having more than doubled since then.
Of the incidents reported this year, five involved physical assaults, eight were threats, 78 involved property damage, 203 were hate-related communications, and 432 involved offensive behavior. The vast majority of the incidents were classified as “Israel-related antisemitism,” with roughly half the total outrages involving either Holocaust denial/distortion or antisemitic “othering,” defined as treating Jews as outsiders.
In the face of a growing wave of anti-Jewish hatred and a hostile climate, the Austrian government is set to unveil its revised National Strategy to Combat Antisemitism next week.
“If we are to preserve Jewish life in Austria, it demands protection, solidarity, and a firm stance every single day,” Secretary of State Alexander Pröll said in a statement.
“We need to send a clear message – the current statistics are a wake-up call,” he continued. “Antisemitism is still deeply ingrained in Austria and is becoming more and more normalized.”
The new report also warns that the declining willingness to report antisemitic incidents, with those affected “increasingly suppressing their complaints,” suggests the actual extent of the issue may be far greater than what is currently documented.
“We need to confront violence, hatred, and incitement with greater resolve,” Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said in a statement.
“Antisemitism targets not only Jewish people but also the core values of our democracy,” she continued.
Meanwhile, Vienna authorities on Thursday uncovered a hidden arsenal linked to Hamas, reportedly intended for “potential terrorist attacks in Europe” targeting Jewish communities.
The Austrian government confirmed that the Directorate for State Security and Intelligence Service (DSN) has been conducting an internationally coordinated investigation into a global terrorist network with ties to Hamas.
During the investigation, Austrian authorities uncovered evidence suggesting that this group had brought weapons into the country for potential terrorist attacks in Europe, and identified a possible suspect.
Earlier this week, London police arrested a 39-year-old British citizen who allegedly has “close ties to the weapons cache,” the British Interior Ministry confirmed in a statement.
“According to the current state of the investigation, Israeli or Jewish institutions in Europe were likely to be the targets of these attacks,” the statement read.
Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner praised the investigation, saying, “The mission is clear: zero tolerance for terrorists.”
“The current case shows once again that the Directorate for State Security and Intelligence has an excellent international network and takes consistent action against all forms of extremism,” he said.
Hamas issued a statement denying any connection to the criminal network, calling the allegations of its involvement “baseless.”
Last month, West Point’s Combating Terrorism Center released a study detailing how Hamas leaders in Lebanon have been directing operatives to establish “foreign operator” cells across Europe, collaborating with organized crime networks to acquire weapons and target Jewish communities abroad.
According to the report, the Palestinian terrorist group has expanded its operations beyond the Middle East, exploiting a long-established network of weapons caches, criminal alliances, and covert infrastructure that has been quietly built across Europe for years.
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Blood Spilled After Anti-Israel Mob Breaches IDF Event Near Toronto Metropolitan University
Anti-Israel mob moments before it shattered glass door to storm Jewish event featuring IDF soldiers near Toronto Metropolitan University. Photo: Provided by witness of incident
Members of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Students for Justice in Palestine chapter on Wednesday led a mob that spilled blood and caused the hospitalization of at least one Jewish student after forcibly breaching a venue in which the advocacy group Students Supporting Israel had convened for an event featuring veterans of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
The former soldiers agreed to meet Students Supporting Israel (SSI) to discuss their experiences at a “private space” on campus which had to be reserved because TMU denied the group a room reservation and, therefore, security personnel that would have been afforded to it. However, someone leaked the event location, leading to one of the most violent incidents of campus antisemitism since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel sparked a surge of anti-Jewish hostility in higher education.
By the time the attack ended, three people had been rushed to a local medical facility for treatment of injuries caused by a protester’s shattering the glazing of the venue’s door with a drill bit, a witness, TMU student Ethan Elharrar, told The Algemeiner during an interview.
Seconds after pro-Hamas agitator, captured from behind in this still, shattered a glass door with what students described as a drill bit. He was attempting to invade the event. Photo: Screenshot
“No one should have known where this event was, but they were setting up when a couple of girls with keffiyehs walked in yelling ‘baby killers!’ and ‘free Palestine!’” Elharrar said. “Then more started coming in, and then we closed the door trying to make sure no one could come in, and then these individuals in masks then began banging on the door and trying to open the door.”
He added, “One of the individuals had a weapon he used, a drill bit. He used it to break and shatter the door … Two individuals were transported to the hospital because of this. One was really badly cut all his arms and legs, and he had to get stitches. Another is afraid to publicly disclose her injuries because she doesn’t want anything to happen to her.”
Five people have been arrested and charged with forcible entry, unlawful assembly, and obstruction of a peace officer, according to Toronto police. The suspects are reportedly expected to appear in court in early January 2026.
In a statement, the university said it was “deeply concerned” about what transpired.
“TMU condemns acts of aggression, intimidation, or violence,” it said. “The actions that took place on Wednesday are unacceptable and do not reflect the values of our community. Our thoughts are with any students who may have been injured during the incident.”
Aftermath of the breach. Photo: Screenshot.
Elharrar said Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) was continuing a pattern of anti-Jewish intimidation and harassment, one to which the university had declined to respond with disciplinary measures because it is committed to dealing with the antisemitism crisis as a “political issue,” Elharrar said.
“Our universities don’t care, and it comes down to our government, which won’t do anything about it,” he continued. “They don’t want to support us. I’ve had maybe a dozen calls with the human rights division at the university, and they told me specifically that they won’t help with anything having to do with Israel.”
Injury sustained by event participant. Photo: Screenshot.
On Wednesday, Hillel Ontario director Jay Solomon, who serves Jewish TMU students, told The Algemeiner that his organization has been pushing for the school to be more proactive in defending the campus Jewish community, but to no avail.
“For quite some time Hillel Ontario has been calling on the administration take action to prevent antisemitism and ensure that Jewish students on campus are safe and able to learn, work, and study on a campus that is free from harassment, and unfortunately the actions of the administration have been inadequate,” Solomon said. “What happened is another illustration of the very challenges that we’ve been warning them about for some time now.”
Wednesday’s incident is not the first time an SJP group attempted to storm a Jewish event this academic year. It also happened last month, when masked pro-Hamas activists nearly raided an event held on the campus of Pomona College, based in Claremont, California, to commemorate the victims of the Oct. 7. massacre.
Footage of the act which circulated on social media showed the group attempting to force its way into the room while screaming expletives and pro-Hamas dogma. They ultimately failed due to the prompt response of the Claremont Colleges Jewish chaplain and other attendees who formed a barrier in front of the door to repel them, a defense they mounted on their own as campus security personnel did nothing to stop the disturbance.
Pomona College, working with its sister institutions in the Claremont consortium of liberal arts colleges in California (5C), later identified and disciplined some of the perpetuators.
“Given the gravity of the alleged offense — and the published statement that has raised significant concerns about similar disruptions in the future — I have initiated an interim campus ban for both individuals, pending further inquiries, and in line with our policy,” Pomona College president Gabrielle Starr said in a statement. “The alleged behavior here is serious, and to ensure an appropriate adjudication is reached, the college is committed to maintaining a fair process.”
She added, “I assure you that Pomona hopes for — and will advocate for — an outcome that ensures our campuses are free of the kind of targeted harassment we witnessed.”
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
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Kanye meets with Orthodox celebrity rabbi, says he wants to ‘make amends’
After years of virulent antisemitic comments, the American rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, told an Orthodox rabbi on Tuesday in New York that he was ready to “make amends” for his actions.
“I feel really blessed to be able to sit here with you today and just take accountability,” Ye told Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto in a video posted on social media.
Pinto is an Israeli rabbi who serves as the chief rabbi of Morocco. He has previously counseled celebrities including Lebron James and was jailed in Israel in 2016 for bribery.
Ye first appeared to distance himself from his antisemitic record, which included a song praising Hitler and several tirades on X that included a 2022 vow to “go death con 3 ON JEWISH PEOPLE,” in May when he declared on social media that he was “done with antisemitism.”
Since then, the incendiary rapper has been relatively quiet on social media. During his meeting with Pinto, he appeared to cast blame for his actions on his struggle with bipolar disorder.
“I was dealing with some various issues, dealing with bipolar also, so it would take the ideas I had and taking them to an extreme where I would forget about the protection of the people around me or and myself,” Ye said as the two men held hands.
Explaining his experience with bipolar disorder to the rabbi, Ye said it was like someone “left your kid at the house and your kid went and messed up the kitchen,” adding that it was his responsibility to “go clean up the kitchen.”
“It’s a big deal for me as a man to come and take accountability for all the things that I’ve said, and I really just appreciate you embracing me with open arms and allowing me to make amends,” Ye said. “And this is the beginning and the first steps, and the first brick by brick to build back the strong walls.”
Following Ye’s appeal, Pinto responded through a translator, who told Ye, “The Jews live on this way of if someone did something wrong, you can regret and fix it,” adding, “From now on, strong things and good things, you are a very good man.”
The two men then stood from their chairs and hugged.
“A person is not defined by his mistakes, but by the way he chooses to correct them. This is the true strength of man: The ability to return, to learn, and to build bridges of love and peace,” wrote Pinto in a post on Instagram of the interaction.
Two hours before Ye reposted the meeting with Pinto on his X account, he posted an advertisement for a planned concert this January in Mexico City. The post was his first since making an identical announcement in September.
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