Belz Great Synagogue
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| Belz Great Synagogue | |
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| Basic information | |
|---|---|
| Location |  Jerusalem, Israel |
| Religious affiliation | Orthodox Judaism |
| Rite | Sephard |
| Functional status | Active |
| Leadership | Rabbi Yissachar Dov Rokeach |
| Architectural description | |
| Direction of facade | East |
| Year completed | 2000 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 6,000 |
The Belz Great Synagogue, (Hebrew: בעלזא בית המדרש הגדול; translit: Belz Beis ha-Medrash ha-Gadol), is the largest synagogue in Jerusalem which was built by the Belz Hasidic community with philanthropic help from their supporters and admirers around the world.
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[edit] Planning
In the 1980s, Rabbi Yissachar Dov Rokeach (II) of Belz spearheaded plans for the huge synagogue to be erected in the Kiryat Belz section of Jerusalem. The building, which would have four entrances accessible to each of the four streets of the hilly neighborhood, would be an enlarged replica of the structure that the first Rebbe of Belz, the Sar Shalom, had built in the town of Belz. It would include a grandiose main sanctuary, smaller study halls, wedding and bar mitzvah halls, libraries, and other communal facilities.
[edit] Construction
Funds for this ambitious multi-million dollar project were raised among Belzer Hasidim and were supplemented by various fund-raising projects throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
Like the original synagogue of Belz which took 15 years to complete, the new Belz synagogue that now dominates the northern Jerusalem skyline also took 15 years to construct and was dedicated in 2000. Its main sanctuary seats 6,000 worshippers. The ornate wooden ark, an item for the Guinness Book of Records, is 12 meters high and weighs 18 tons. It has the capacity to hold over 100 Torah scrolls. Nine chandeliers, each standing at 18 feet high and 11 feet wide, each contain over 200,000 pieces of Czech crystal. In stark contrast to the majestic synagogue, the simple wooden chair and lectern used by Rabbi Aharon of Belz when he came to Israel in 1944 stands in a glass case next to the ark.
[edit] Building layout
The main sanctuary is used only on the Sabbath and holidays, while weekday services take place in the underlying smaller rooms of the complex. Under the main sanctuary are multiple floors. The floor directly under the main sanctuary hosts a large number of small synagogue rooms known as shtieblach where services for shacharis, mincha and maariv are held up to every 10 minutes. In an adjacent wing is also a large hall used for tishen. Below the shtieblach are multiple floors with dormitory-style sleeping quarters for Belzer Chassidim from outside of Israel, who come to visit the Rebbe for Jewish holidays such as Rosh HaShana, Yom Kippur or Sukkos. There are also large rooms for other functions, such as seudas shlishis on Shabbos afternoons, weddings and bar mitzvah celebrations.
