A Hungarian Temple

When I was in Budapest, I went to the largest temple in Europe, the Dohany Street Synagogue. The temple was built between 1854 and 1859. Designed by Ludwig Forster, the temple was designed in a method similar to churches of the time. Forster did not believe that there was any distinctive Jewish architecture style which could be identified. Therefore, he chose an architectural form used by groups related to the Israelite people. The Dohany Street Synagogue is really unlike any temple I have ever seen. There is a replica of the Dohany Street Synagogue built in Manhattan. It was built in 1870 and is one of the oldest synagogue buildings in the United States.

The Dohany Street Synagogue is a very special temple. It has an organ built into it which is actually used during services. Organs are not usually part of Jewish services as music is not really used during a temple service. Moreover, the is a cemetery built next to the temple. It is highly unusual to have a cemetery built next to a temple. The only reason it is built next to the temple is because of World War II. By 1945 when the Russians had liberated the ghetto, there were around 8,000 to 10,000 people who had died. 2,000 people were buried in the makeshift cemetery next to the temple.

Seeing this temple was an incredible experience. It was something unlike I had ever seen! Going to that temple really showed me that even within a certain religion, it is practiced in different ways by different people and that is just part of the culture. It was a very good experience to be able to go and see a temple instead of just churches. During World War II, so many temples were burned down and destroyed. It is very rare to see temples which survived the brutal Nazi regime. I was glad that I was able to see a temple and not just so many churches throughout Europe. I think that it is always good to see different historic buildings and places and this temple, being the largest temple in Europe, is definitely something I would like to go back and see again.