Instructions to Jewish communities throughout the Reich to do everything in their power to prevent the selling of synagogues and property held by congregations in localities where the Jewish population is decreasing have been issued from the head-quarters of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Prussia.
The instructions read:
“It has come to our attention that a number of Jewish communities have, during recent months, decided to sell the real estate holdings of their synagogues because of the lack of a ‘minyan’ in their communities and also because of financial and other reasons.
“We advise all those communities which are associated with this body to communicate with us first in such cases. It must be understood that the synagogues must be maintained as long as possible and even under sacrifices. Only when all possibilities are exhausted is the question of selling the synagogues to be raised.”
The instructions advise that in localities where there are not the requisite ten Jews for synagogue services, the synagogues be converted to other useful purposes.
“Under no circumstances, however,” the instructions state, “should a synagogue be leased for profane purposes.”
The association’s instructions also deal with the maintenance of Jewish cemeteries in communities where the Jewish population has been reduced to almost nothing.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
