Twenty thousand. That’s how many Jews there are today in Siberia’s capital, Novosibirsk, which itself has a population of roughly two million. While twenty thousand is only a sliver of greater Novosibirsk, it still represents a “decent congregation.” How many synagogues, then, would we expect to find in the city? Answer: One, and only one. During the seven long decades of Soviet rule, there were precisely none. Synagogues could not function in the open any more than churches. Houses of worship in Soviet Russia were literally driven underground, often relegated to people’s homes. In today’s Russia things are quite a bit different. Anti-Semitism is still a factor, as explained to me by one of the congregants at Shabbat services this week. (I was in fact able to find the one-and-only synagogue and join in the davening on Saturday morning.) One Jewish schoolteacher came to her classroom recently, to find that one of the pupils had drawn a big star of David on the chalkboard, with sinister implication. Security at the synagogue is understandably tight, visitors being required to register their passports at the front entrance. Inside, however, the atmosphere is warm and friendly, fellow congregants being quick to help in finding one’s place in the prayerbook. After services (and the obligatory kiddush), the vodka was flowing, and the food was plentiful and tasty. Who established this synagogue? I wasn’t surprised to find that its “parent” organization is Habad-Lubavitch. The congregational leader speaks fluent Hebrew, so the conversation flowed freely. I found that the synagogue has some five hundred families as members – pretty healthy! And while services are conducted in a side room, that’s but an annex of a large and impressive new building near the city center. Anti-Semitism may still rage in Russia, but the mere presence of a building like this speaks volumes about the future and vitality of today’s Russian Jews. “You’ve come a long way, baby!”
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