Small Synagogue after renovation [PHOTOS, VIDEO]

The Small Synagogue is a prayer hall situated near the Synagogue under the White Stork. It was established in the building of the Jewish Religious Commune in 1945. After 1968, it was the only active synagogue in Wroclaw. Today members of the commune pray there regularly. Inside the hall there is the Aron ha-kodesh, with Ner Tamid (eternal light) hanging on its right side. The silver lamp decorated with deers’ heads is a masterpiece created by the Wroclaw goldsmith Carl Gottlieb Freytag. It was established in 1811 and returned to Wroclaw last year thanks to the efforts of the Jewish Religious Commune, the Bente Kahan Foundation and sponsors. In the language of Hebrew symbols, deer stands for tender love and devotion and is a sign of going towards God and his blessing.

The preparation and furnishing of the Small Synagogue is not finished yet, but we can already admire the plafond decorated with floral motifs.

On Sunday the Jewish holiday of Khanukkah started. It lasts eight days, with one new candle being lit on each successive day. Khanukkah is one of the most joyous Jewish holidays. The name Khanukkah comes from the Hebrew verb ‘khanuká’ (to dedicate, to inaugurate). On Thursday, Khanukkah candles will be formally lit.

Khanukkah is the Festival of Light – Jews light candles for eight days in a row in order to celebrate the miracle that happened in the Temple in Jerusalem during the Jewish rebellion led by Maccabees against Greeks. At that time, when Jews regained the Temple in Jerusalem, only a small jug of kosher oil was found; although it seemed to be enough only for one day, it miraculously lasted for eight days until new resources of kosher oil were prepared to light the Menorah. The most important ritual of this festivity is the kindling of the lights of a characteristic nine-branched candelabrum called ‘hanukiah’; one of these branches – shamash – plays an auxiliary role, because other candles are lit after it from left to right.

The holiday includes popular games, and games of chance are also allowed during that period. The most popular Khanukkah game among children is dreidel – a four-sided spinning top, the sides of which are imprinted with four Hebrew letters ‘n’, ‘g’, ‘h’ and ‘f/sz’, which are the first letters of the sentence: 'Nes gadol haja szam', which means: 'A great miracle happened there'. Children receive gifts, too. Traditional Khanukkah dishes are fried in oil in order to commemorate the Khanukkah miracle; they include potato pancakes called ‘latkes’, doughnuts and angel wings.

The renovation of the Small Synagogue was co-financed by the Association of Jewish Religious Communes in Poland, the Wroclaw Branch of the Association of Jewish Religious Communes in Poland, the Bente Kahan Foundation, the City of Wroclaw, and the Taube Foundation for Jewish Life & Culture.