The Temples and Synagogues in Romania: Jewish, national and universal heritage photo exhibition was opened in Timisoara, on Thursday, November 15th. The event was organized by The Metropolitanate of Banat in partnership with the local Jewish Community, the Timis County Council and the Timis County Public Library „Sorin Titel” and with the support of the Romanian Patriarchate and the The Secretary of State for Religious Affairs. The exhibition took place at the „Deliu Petroiu” Section of the Timis County Public Library – „Sorin Titel”, located in the Bastion Theresia Complex, Timisoara.
The event is part of a series of actions the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania – The Mosaic Cult accomplishes with the Romanian Patriarchy. This partnership began at the initiative of His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, and dr. Aurel Vainer, President of the Jewish Community of Romania – The Mosaic Cult.
At that time, His Beatitude Daniel talked about a peaceful coexistence between the two communities, a goal but also the affirmation of what we have in common. Because we share the biblical tradition that we value greatly, and therefore, both the Synagogue and the Church represent its survival among communities, but also the legacy of spiritual and cultural values passed on from a generation to another.
The attendees included His Eminence John, Archbishop of Timisoara and Metropolitan of Banat, Eduard Kupferberg, the General Secretary of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania – The Mosaic Cult and dr. Luciana Friedmann, President of the Jewish Community of Timisoara.
The exhibition includes 23 photo roll-up banners depicting Romanian temples and synagogues with additional data about their historical evidence and architecture.
The extensive project responds to the intention of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Romania to present the public with its sacred heritage of outstanding historical and religious value but also architectural and artistic emphasis on preserving it and promoting it as national and universal value. For Jews, the Romanian synagogues are places of prayer, of teaching and of gathering. Only 43 are still functional, most of them are declared monuments of national importance.