Just when we thought that we had seen everything there was to see in the Western Wall area – we’d been in the spectacular Western Wall tunnels, explored the latest archaeological digs, taken guests through the Chain of Generations and, of course, toured the Southern Wall excavations thoroughly – along comes my sister and says, “You haven’t been to Ohel Yitzchak yet? You must see it – it’s just…well, outstanding!”
So, intrigued, we walk over to Rehov Hagai (right outside the Western Wall Plaza on the northern end, in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City) to find the latest project undertaken by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. The foundation has initiated most of the sites mentioned above and does so with little publicity and fanfare.
We hear that they started conducting services and family celebrations in Ohel Yitzchak long ago. We discover a beautifully reconstructed synagogue on the site where two shuls were located in the 19th century, and where they’ve carefully replicated all the features of the original house of prayer, using the most elegant and expensive materials.
“You get the feeling that you’re in an old-style house of prayer, but smell it: It looks and smells completely new,” whispers my daughter as we take our place behind the mechitza.
The two-story building has a high dome, walnut colored, old-styled benches, many faceted pane glass windows with a geometric design, marble flooring, and scalloped designs along the newly painted walls and ceiling.
The bima, Holy Ark, and chandeliers are obviously copies of the ones featured in photos of the first Ohel Yitzchak built in 1891. There is a library and a small simcha hall next to the women’s balcony. Under the men’s section, extensive excavations are continuing which, being so close to the Kotel tunnels, will probably reveal dramatic discoveries from the Second Temple period or even earlier. Stay posted.
As the service begins, we note that the acoustics are excellent, no doubt due to the fact that the dome is very high, and the width of the building is not great. The building is also very well maintained. Later, we learn that Shalom Dayan was the man originally responsible for the high standard of order and cleanliness. The roof has also been renovated and offers a unique panoramic view of the whole area, but not at night of course. When we take a peek after the davening, a guard shoos us off, either because there’s no railing yet or “the neighbors might not like it.”
Why did it take several decades to rebuild this historic synagogue?
So many other Jewish institutions and homes in this area were reestablished after 1967, after the Old City was once again accessible. For the answer to that question, we have to delve into some historical background. The site, so close to the Temple Mount, was once a Turkish hamam (sauna).
A Hungarian kollel (yeshiva for married men) purchased the property in 1875, and a copy of the deed still exists, signed by the head of the kollel, Rabbi Natan Yosef Goldberger, and his colleague, Rabbi Yitzchak Prague (both students of the Hatam Sofer).
They established a yeshiva called Or HaMeir and shared the facilities with a matza bakery and a mikveh. In 1891, a Belz Hassid named Yitzchak Ratzdorfer donated money to build two synagogues on the second floor – one for Hassidim and one for Perushim. These were the original Ohel Yitzchak. The synagogues were renovated and expanded in l917, and photos of these shuls hang in the entrance hall of the men’s section today. Interestingly enough, the man who funded the expansion was named Yosef HaCohen Moskovitz. The man who funded the modern, newly rebuilt Ohel Yitzchak was Irving Moskovitz and his wife, Cherna (no relation, however).
In the entrance hall, there is a plaque that gives a history of the site, beginning with the Temple period and the Roman Conquest. “This location has seen it all,” says a member of the congregation.
Hard times fell on the Jewish residents in Old Jerusalem in 1921, in 1929, and again in 1936 when successive riots against the Jews resulted in numerous deaths, assaults, and property destruction. Many families left the Old City and moved to the new part of the city, and most of the houses of study and houses of prayer were abandoned, including Ohel Yitzchak. The synagogue and yeshiva moved to the Hungarian Compound in Mea She’arim. They managed to transport most of the furniture and equipment to their new quarters. Again, two synagogues for Hassidim and for Perushim were relocated to Mea She’arim. There are still members of the shuls there who remember praying in the original site in the Old City as children. Arab squatters took over the building, and until l948 they even paid rent to the Hungarian kollel.
During the War Of Independence, the place was desecrated and the second floor was completely destroyed. Only the eastern wall remained (from which the architects in 2007 were able to replicate the shape of the windows, the wall decorations, and other structural features). After the Six Day War, the Hungarian kollel, called Shomrei HaChomot, wanted to return and renovate the site, but the municipality wouldn’t permit them to do so because of structural dangers. One of the first Jewish settlers to return to the area was Chanoch Ben Arza, the son-in-law of the well-known religious writer Eliyahu KiTov. He opened a book shop in what was left of the ground floor of the building, where he also distributed his father-in-law’s books. Ben Arza ran the shop for 40 years until his death several years ago.
With the promise of funding from the modern-day Moskovitz, and improved methods of building, the Western Wall Heritage Foundation came to an agreement with Shomrei HaChomot to lease the property “until the Messiah comes.” Thus they were able to resurrect the synagogue in its most dignified and aesthetically pleasing form. The yeshiva was officially reopened as a synagogue in October 2008.
The man in charge of special projects for the Foundation, Yechiel Pomerantz, who provided most of the information for this article, explains why his organization feels great satisfaction in this renovation: “Ohel Yitzchak, like all shuls, is called a Beit Mikdash ma’at [“a small Temple”]. It’s only fitting that it should fulfill what the good Jews in the 19th century intended – that it should stand as near as possible to the real Beit HaMikdash [Temple].”
We note that the synagogue serves residents like us from the Old City, visitors to the Kotel, and yeshiva boys studying nearby. Its entrance is off of the main artery that leads from Damascus Gate to the Western Wall, up a small flight of stairs that connect the northern Kotel entrance with the Arab market. The entrance, like the rest of the synagogue, is very elegant and traditional. “It could easily be mistaken for the entrance to an old shul in Geula or Mea She’arim, don’t you think?” says my daughter. “Just much more handsome.”
It’s somewhat off the beaten track, I note, and easily missed. Right now, I understand from Yehiel, that the foundation is happy to keep it low-key, since any new changes in this section are sensitive, politically and security-wise.
Nevertheless, I have to agree with my sister that Ohel Yitzchak is a gem waiting to be discovered by lovers of Zion who, like us, enjoy exploring the nooks and crannies of Jerusalem. Moreover, I have to agree with the Western Wall Heritage Foundation people as well: It is a fitting place of worship that fulfills the dream of the Hungarian kollel leaders of more than 130 years ago.■