United Synagogue
The United Synagogue is the largest umbrella body for Orthodox Judaism in Britain. It is structured as a charity which serves the British Jewish community in the broadest possible way. One of the largest charities in the British Jewish community, it provides much of the infrastructure for the British Jewish community and supports 56 centrist Orthodox Jewish member synagogues. With more than 36,000 members, it is also the largest synagogue body in Europe. The work of the charity includes KLBD, its kashrut department, nurseries, marriages, the United Synagogue Burial Society, Tribe programmes and summer camps for young people, its Chesed team supporting vulnerable people and the highly-respected London Beth Din. The charity also supports the work of the Office of the Chief Rabbi. The spiritual head of the United Synagogue is Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis KBE, the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth—a title that bears some formal recognition by the Crown.
History
The United Synagogue was mandated by an Act of Parliament in 1870, granting formal recognition to a union of five London communities:- Great Synagogue
- Hambro' Synagogue
- New Synagogue
- Central Synagogue
- Bayswater Synagogue, New Cross, Brixton, the Great Synagogue, East London, Hammersmith, Cricklewood, Egerton Road, Lofting Road, and Dalston. The charity has reinvested these funds in new synagogues in areas of Jewish growth, especially in Hertfordshire and the north-western suburbs of London, such as Borehamwood, Edgware and Barnet and in recent years has embarked on a number of ambitious projects redeveloping new community centres at South Hampstead and Highgate. New communities have been seeded in Hatfield and Mill Hill East.
Much of the previous formality of the United Synagogue, such as the wearing of clerical canonicals by its clergy and waistcoats and top hats by its wardens, has disappeared. The synagogues use modern Hebrew vernacular for prayers. The Finchley synagogue, one of the largest of the existing communities, holds an annual religious service to commemorate Yom Hazikaron, Israel's Remembrance Day for its fallen soldiers and victims of terror and the Independence Day of the State of Israel, attended by the Chief Rabbi, the Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom, and a senior member of His Majesty's government.
Maintenance of cemeteries
The United Synagogue also looks after more than a dozen cemeteries throughout England. Some of these in the East End of London and West Ham have closed and are no longer in use but the charity has the responsibility to maintain them in perpetuity. Willesden Jewish Cemetery was consecrated in 1873 and includes the graves of many famous historical figures. Some funerals are still held there today. The main cemeteries in use are in Waltham Abbey and Bushey. Bushey New Cemetery was consecrated in 2017 and was the runner-up of the Stirling Prize for architecture in 2018, the first time a cemetery of any kind has been a candidate for this award. The remains of six unknown Holocaust victims were laid to rest in Bushey New Cemetery on January 23, 2019 in a ceremony attended by more than 1,000 people. A memorial and garden was subsequently built around the grave.
Activities
The United Synagogue powers Jewish life through the critical infrastructure and programmes which the charity provides for the British Jewish community.The work of the charity includes KLBD, its kashrut and eruv team, nurseries, marriages, the United Synagogue Burial Society, the Centre for Rabbinic Excellence, educational resources, Tribe programmes and summer camps for young people, Heritage, the US Chesed team supporting people in need, Accessibility and Inclusion and the highly-respected London Beth Din. The charity also supports the work of the Office of the Chief Rabbi.
The United Synagogue serves its members and the wider community by acting as the foundation body for 11 Jewish schools in Greater London.
Activities are financed mostly from charitable donations, membership subscriptions and the charity's activities.
The charity's accounts state that more than 2,000 volunteers are involved in the charity's work, leading synagogues, running adult and children's programming and supporting vulnerable Jewish families and people in need of all backgrounds. United Synagogue members volunteer for the chevra kadisha, preparing the bodies of members of the charity for burial.