Unveiling the Largest Jewish Educational and Cultural Hub in Post-Holocaust Germany in Berlin

72

Berlin Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal once shared a vision of constructing the most extensive Jewish educational and cultural center in Germany since the Holocaust. Despite initial skepticism, his dream has now become a reality, five years after the first foundational stone was laid.

Teichtal, the chief rabbi of Berlin and leader of the local Chabad community, exudes pride as he steps onto the balcony of the brand new, arching, blue-tiled edifice. The building overlooks an amphitheater, a garden, a playground, and an area still populated with containers and construction materials, destined to become a sports field.

“Germany’s narrative about Jews is transforming,” Teichtal reported to The Big Big News this week. He emphasizes that the perception of Jewish history in Germany, too often dominated by Holocaust memories and antisemitism, needs to change. “Our Jewish campus is about the future, joy, learning, and cohabitation,” added the 50-year-old rabbi.

Situated in Berlin’s Wilmersdorf district, the Pears Jewish Campus is set to officially launch this Sunday. Over 550 students from the Chabad community, presently dispersed throughout the city in various buildings, will consolidate on the campus at the commencement of the upcoming school year in late August.

The campus will host a range of amenities, including a movie theater, a music studio, a library, a kosher deli, and a grand indoor basketball court and gym convertible into a lecture hall or reception space. A kitchen for the school cafeteria and a large-scale catering kitchen, equipped with a bakery, are also part of the elaborate facility.

Jessica Kalmanovich, a mother of two Chabad school-going children, expresses her family’s excitement about the campus inauguration. Born in Kazakhstan and relocated to Germany in infancy, the 31-year-old identifies the campus as a significant landmark for Berlin’s Jewish community.

The campus architecture stands in contrast to other Jewish establishments in Germany, which often remain concealed behind walls due to fears of antisemitic attacks. The Pears Jewish Campus, enclosed by a glass fence, aims to encourage openness and joy, states Teichtal.

Teichtal’s journey to Germany to rejuvenate Jewish life there, a stark contrast to his upbringing in Brooklyn, New York, was fraught with personal history, as his great-grandfather was a victim of the Auschwitz death camp, and he lost over 60 relatives in the Holocaust.

However, with his wife Leah, he sought to “bring light to the darkness.” Nearly 80 years after the Holocaust, Berlin’s Jewish community, while not as large as before, is thriving once again, with an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 Jewish residents. Teichtal has been instrumental in this rejuvenation.

Berlin’s contemporary Jewish population comprises descendants of surviving German Jews, Jewish emigrants from the erstwhile Soviet Union, young Israelis and American Jews attracted by the city’s dynamic culture and affordable living costs, and Ukrainian Jews who have sought refuge in the wake of Russian aggression.

The new Jewish campus, sprawling over 8,000 square meters (86,000 square feet) and costing 40 million euros ($43.7 million), is funded by a mix of federal and state governments, private firms, foundations, and donations. Teichtal clarifies that the facility is intended to cater to all, irrespective of their religious affiliations.

Teichtal sees the new campus as a platform for fostering dialogue and dispelling prejudice and ignorance. He adds, with a hopeful smile, that the inauguration of the Jewish campus does not signify the end of his mission. More plans are in the pipeline, including expanding the synagogue and building a nursing home, which he trusts will materialize with divine intervention.

---

Big Big News’s religious content is supported through a collaborative effort with The Conversation US, funded by Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP holds sole responsibility for this content.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Pears Jewish Campus

More about Pears Jewish Campus

• Chabad in Berlin
• Jewish life in Germany
• Germany’s handling of antisemitism
• Jewish Community in Berlin
• History of Jews in Germany