Synagogues of Aden
Before the last World War there were seven synagogues in Aden, and the Jewish population numbered several thousand.
In 1858 the Grand synagogue of Aden called the “Shield of Avraham” or “al-Milama’l-kabira” was built. It was large enough to house over 2000 worshippers.
A yeshiva called “Torah ve Hamitzvah” was also built next to the synagogue. The “shulchan Aruch”, zohar, “tikkun Hatzot”, psalms, “the law of Israel” and “Ein Ya’akov” (composed by Ya’akov Havib) was studied at the yeshiva.
While the great synagogue was the hub of the Jewish community, several smaller synagogues also existed. Most notable among these were the al-Farhi synagogue, which house the highly venerated Al-farhi torah scroll and the synagogue of “Shemuel Nissim” which served as the Talmud Torah for boys until the early 1940s.
Another Synagogue was referred to as “Mi’lamat Hanokh”. It was established in Aden by a man named Moshe Hanokh Halevi. He had emigrated to Aden and made his livelihood by the importation of sacred books from Europe.
On the eve of rosh Hashanah in 1924 a new synagogue named “Sukkat Shalom”, popularly known as “Mialamat Silim”, was inaugurated and celebrations continued into the night.
Read more about this topic: History Of The Jews In Aden
Famous quotes containing the word synagogues:
“Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth.”
—Bible: New Testament Jesus, in Matthew, 6:2-3.
From the Sermon on the Mount.