History of Oradea - Jewish Community

Jewish Community

The chevra kadisha was founded in 1735, the first synagogue in 1803, and the first communal school in 1839. Not until the beginning of the 19th century were Jews permitted to do business in any other part of the city, and even then they were required to withdraw at nightfall to their own quarter. In 1835 permission to live at will in any part of the city was granted them.

The Jewish community of Oradea became divided into Orthodox and Reform congregations. While the members of the Reform congregation still retained their membership in the chevra kadisha, they started to use a cemetery of their own in 1899. In the early 20th century, the Jews of Oradea had won prominence in the public life of the city; there were Jewish manufacturers, merchants, lawyers, physicians, and farmers; the chief of police (1902) was a Jew; and in the municipal council, the Jewish element was proportionately represented. The community possessed, in addition to the hospital and chevra kadisha already mentioned, a Jewish women's association, a grammar school, an industrial school for boys and girls, a yeshiva, a soup kitchen, etc.

The following are among those who have held the rabbinate of Oradea:

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• Joseph Rosenfeld (Orthodox);
• David Joseph Wahrmann (Orthodox);
• Aaron Landesberg (Orthodox);
• Moricz Fuchs (Orthodox);
• Alexander Rosenberg (Reform: removed to Arad);
• Alexander Kohut (Reform: removed to New York, 1885; died, 1894);
• Leopold Kecskeméty (Reform).

According to the Center for Jewish Art:

The Oradea Jewish community was once the most active both commercially and culturally in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In 1944, twenty-five thousand Oradean Jews were deported to concentration camps, thus decimating this vital community. Three hundred Jews reside in Oradea today. In the center of the city, towering over other buildings in the area, is the large Neolog Temple Synagogue built in 1878. The unusual cube-shaped synagogue with its large cupola is one of the largest in Romania. Inside there is a large organ and stucco decorations. In 1891, the Orthodox community also built a complex of buildings including two synagogues and a community center.