Central Synagogue (Sydney)


The Central Synagogue is an Modern Orthodox Jewish synagogue located in the Sydney suburb of Bondi Junction, New South Wales, Australia. The synagogue is the largest synagogue in the Southern hemisphere and has the largest Jewish congregation in Australasia. It is located in Bon Accord Avenue and extends back to Kenilworth Street. It was constructed at its present location in 1960 after originally being located in Paddington and then Bondi. It was burned down in 1994 by a devastating fire caused by an electrical fault. The synagogue was rebuilt and reopened in 1998. Hineni is the official youth movement of Central Synagogue.

Building

The core synagogue is a two-level atrium. An oculus in the ceiling floods the room with natural lighting. Centrally located on the first floor directly beneath the oculus, the bimah and aron kodesh are positioned in a direct line with Jerusalem. Imported Jerusalem stone adorns the aron kodesh and features prominently throughout the synagogue. Four large windows designed by Australian artist Janet Laurence feature forty-nine veils of glass. Each window represents one of Four Worlds of Kabbalah and the number forty-nine is symbolic of the highest level of spirituality in Judaism. The colours of the windows symbolise the sephirot.
The greater synagogue complex includes multiple halls and rooms, including:
The Central Synagogue was formed as the Surry Hills congregation in 1912 with the aim of introducing Eastern European custom into Sydney, and to arrest the drift from Judaism. The Bondi-Waverley congregation, established in 1918, and merged with that of Surry Hills in March 1921, to form the Eastern Suburbs Central Synagogue at Bondi Junction. The Central Synagogue was firstly an endeavour to provide more accommodation for worship in the Eastern Suburbs, but also, at least initially, intended to provide a less anglicised environment than that found at the Great Synagogue. The foundation stone was laid by the Chief Rabbi of the British Empire, Dr J. H. Hertz.