Harbin to Reconstruct A New Jewish SynagogueHarbin, with Jewish settlers up to some 25 thousand used to be the largest Jewish quarters in the Far East from the 19th century to the early 20th century. The synagogue, as an important place for holding religious services, has played a significant role amongst the Jewish people.Recently, officials from the municipal government of Harbin, Construction Committee and scholars who engage in Jew Studies, gathered together in a discussion for reconstructing the New Jewish Synagogue into a Jewish Museum of History and Culture. The New Synagogue, located by the roadside of the central street in the Daoli District, is now being used as a club of the Public Security Bureau. As reported, it still remains as what it used to be in the past. The municipal government of Harbin will fund part of the fee for its reconstruction and the rest to be pooled in from some other channels. A foundation will probably be set up for the purpose. Opposite the New Synagogue is an old one, which at present serves as a hotel lounge of Harbin Automobile Manufactory but with its facades changed in a big way. However, since the New Synagogue is to be rebuilt, it is believed that the old one is soon to be brought onto the agenda too. "Westerners know little about Jewish people in China, therefore creating a vacancy for the study of Jewish history in the world," said Zhang Tiejiang, a scholar from the Heilongjiang Academy of Social Sciences. By PD Online Staff Yin Zhili |
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