Unfolding Communities

Introduction

The Bad Neustadt Jewish community built a synagogue in 1892 on Bauerngasse street.
In 1938, on the first day of the Jewish New Year holiday (September 26), the community leaders were ordered to clear out the synagogue immediately; the German army appropriated the building for grain storage. Thereafter the community held its prayer services in the school building. Later, in 1940, the synagogue’s metal objects were confiscated for scrap.


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The Opening of the Synagogue

Article from the Rhön- und Saalepost, 1892 describing the opening of the synagogue.


Translation of text needed.


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View of Bad Neustadt, approximately 1900.

The Synagogue is visible between the two towers on the left.

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Dedication of a new Torah Scroll. November 1932
Article from the magazine "The Israelite" of 10 November 1932. "Neustadt (Saale), November 8 (1932)

Note: This is a Google Translation. The original text on the left is yet to be translated manually

"Our community was fortunate to celebrate a rare nice event, such as the oldest members can not remember. such a here seen to have; nice because the celebrationלכבוד המקום ולכבוד התורה (in honor of the place and the honor of the Torah), wore a simple, but very privileged nature. Our verehrliches parishioner, Mr. Sigmund vine. and his wife Rosa nee Stein from Eschwege have recently found by the Sofer (scribe), Mr Kormann, Frankfurt am Main, a wonderful sefer (Torah scroll), let a true gem of Jewish art of writing customize, and our religious community available. At the Bar Mitzva her youngest son Norbert gave the founders on Shabbat Parshat Noach (Noah Torah reading on Shabbat with, ie reading from Genesis 1 from 6.9 to 11.32; Shabbat was on November 5, 1932) their sacred trust for initiation.
Friday afternoon, before the service, the Sefer (Torah) was ceremonially picked up in the home of the founder. After the singing of the ויהי בנסוע הארון by Mr. Weinstock, accompanied by his three sons, his relatives, the entire religious administration and many members of the community, on a flowery way his treasure to the synagogue. There sang to greet our Lord Kantor a nice מה טובו ('How beautiful ...') and reciting the Psalms 19, 111, 112 and 149 - The main celebration took place the following morning. Our wonderful church was filled to the last seat. Devoutly followed the prayer the solemn worship. The highlight of the atmospheric celebration was the sermon by our cantor, the head teacher Mr. Wahler. Starting from the proposition 5th Moses 31,19 "Now therefore present yourselves therefore write this song on" reasoned the skilful orator in profound ways the general obligation of Toraschreibens, the founders wished to meet this huge Mizva, God's richest blessings , thanked on behalf of the religious administration of the municipality named for the precious gift and gave his great joy expression, now to be able to make out such a beautiful Sefer Torah the. Mr. Wahler thanked the vine family and concluded with a heartfelt speech to the Barmizva. "

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A page from the Bad Neustadt Memorial Book from the Synagogue. 1937

From: Yad Vashem Archive.
http://collections.yadvashem.org/photosarchive/en-us/65059.html

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Torah Scroll from the Bad Neustadt Synagogue

During the war, a number of sacred Torah scrolls and Hebrew relics were hidden by a priest and buried in the cellar of the local Catholic church.
After the war the scrolls were presented it to U.S. army chaplain Rabbi David Lefkowitz Jr. (1911-1999), who was stationed nearby at Bad Kissingen. This scroll was transported the the U.S.A where it was in active use  from 1946 till 1982 at the B’nai Zion Synagogue in Shreveport.

Thanks to Rabbi Rabbi Jana De Benedetti - B'nai Zion Congregation. Shreveport, LA

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Rabbi David Lefkowitz, Jr. (1911-1999)

V-E Day, 9 May 1945.



Kindly provided by:
Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz, daughter of Rabbi David Lefkowitz, Jr.
Parsons Professor of history emerita, Smith College.

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A clipping from a Dallas newspaper

"Three Faiths Are Repairing Nazi Damages." It is undated but clearly from soon after the war.
It tells of the "sacred scrolls and Hebrew relics" hidden by Jews at Bad Neustadt, most of which were "buried by priests in the cellar of the local Catholic church. Captain [David] Lefkowitz [Jr.] was called in to examine these things and found them to be rare and ancient documents, some of which are not to be found in the United States. A total of 17 scrolls and over 600 testaments have been returned so far."
Also remarkable "was the discovery of a pretty 18-year-old Jewish girl and her mother, sole survivors of the purge which had eliminated every other Jew from the vicinity. The girl, Anne Elizabeth Stein, had passed herself off as a Catholic so successfully that she had not been ferreted out with the other 60 families of the town.

Clipping and information from the Collection of
Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz, daughter of Rabbi David Lefkowitz, Jr.
Parsons Professor of history emerita, Smith College.

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Article in American newspaper

October 11, 1946
describing the events leading up to the reopening of the Bad Neustadt Synagogue.

Clipping and information from the Collection of
Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz, daughter of Rabbi David Lefkowitz, Jr.
Parsons Professor of history emerita, Smith College.


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Article in American newspaper

Describing the events leading up to the reopening of the Bad Neustadt Synagogue.

Clipping and information from the Collection of
Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz, daughter of Rabbi David Lefkowitz, Jr.
Parsons Professor of history emerita, Smith College.


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Rededication Services of the Jewish Synagogue

The program of the 9th Air Defense Command, United States Army, "Rededication Services of the Jewish Synagogue" 1930 Hours, 2 November 1945, Bad Neustadt A.D. Saale, Bavaria Germany.
 
Rabbi David Lefkowitz Jr. is listed on the program: "Rededication of the Synagogue and Unveiling of the Memorial Plaque". Likewise he is among others, including Chaplain Floyd S. Smith, on the Rededication Committee.

Kindly provided by:
Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz, daughter of Rabbi David Lefkowitz, Jr.
Parsons Professor of history emerita, Smith College.

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After the war

Although the synagogue, was reopened after the war by Jewish displaced persons, in practice there were no jews left to use or run it.
During the 1950s it was converted into residential apartments.
Today it is a doctor's clinic.

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