Synagogue Center Potsdam

The first Jewish community in Potsdam was founded in 1740. In 1743, a burial ground was added on what is now Pfingstberg. Jechiel Michel became Potsdam's first rabbi in 1760. In 1767, the community built its first synagogue in the rear building at Plantage No. 1. At that time, the Jewish community comprised 34 men, 36 women, and an uncounted number of children. In 1851, Dr. Samuel Apolant assumed the office of rabbi at the second synagogue, which had been consecrated in 1802. At the same time, the Jewish Women's Association was founded.
The largest synagogue of the Potsdam Jewish community was consecrated in 1903 on Wilhelmplatz – today's Platz der Einheit (Unity Square). This synagogue had 154 seats for male and 162 seats for female members of the congregation. The organ was played during services by the organist of St. Nicholas Church. During the November Pogrom of 1938, the synagogue suffered severe damage and was almost completely destroyed in an air raid in April 1945. The remaining ruins were demolished in 1957 to make way for housing. Today, a memorial plaque commemorates the synagogue.

Following German reunification, Jewish emigrants from the former Soviet Union settled in Potsdam. In 1991, the Jewish Community of Brandenburg (Jüdische Gemeinde Land Brandenburg e.V.) was founded, with members residing in Brandenburg, Potsdam, and the Ahrensfelde reception center. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. A. Kogan was elected chairman. Two years later, in November 1993, the community, with the assistance of the state's Minister of Culture, Hinrich Enderlein, was granted public corporation status. Due to the steadily increasing membership, the Jewish residents of Potsdam decided in 1996 to establish their own independent community. This was officially registered with the Potsdam District Court in 2000, and the Jewish Community of Brandenburg became the umbrella organization.

In 2005, the state of Brandenburg and the State Association of Jewish Communities in Brandenburg agreed in a state treaty to support the construction of a synagogue in Potsdam. With the laying of the foundation stone on November 8, 2021, this project took concrete form. The ceremonial dedication of the synagogue center for the Jewish community in Potsdam and Brandenburg followed on July 4, 2024, during a ceremony attended by Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

The construction of the synagogue center provided a ritual and cultural center for the Jewish communities in Potsdam. Designed by architect Jost Haberland, the building combines a modern architectural and technical design with a centuries-old tradition of synagogue construction.
The synagogue center was handed over to the Central Welfare Agency of Jews in Germany until 2027, which will take over its operation for this period and ensure its use by the participating local Jewish communities.

The synagogue is named after the one that opened in August 2021. Small Synagogue of the European Centre for Jewish Scholarship at the university at the New Palace, the second new Jewish house of worship in Brandenburg's state capital since the Shoah.