Participatory, egalitarian, a place for children, we are part of the Jewish Community of Berlin and affiliated with the Conservative/Masorti Movement. Wherever you are on your own Jewish journey, we are a welcoming place to pray, celebrate, and learn. We are always glad to welcome both familiar and new faces to join us. Please let us know if you have any special needs so that we can accommodate you.
Shabbat Services
Service times
- Friday evenings at 7:00 p.m. (6:00 p.m. in winter)
- Shabbat mornings at 10:00 a.m.
Jewish guests and their families are always warmly welcome. For larger groups, we kindly ask that you contact us in advance. We are glad to welcome non-Jews interested in experiencing our services. However, please understand that we are a small synagogue and therefore need to be protective of our space. We regularly offer Open Shabbat experiences for non-Jewish guests, usually with an introduction to the service beforehand. Please write to us in advance, explaining your interest in joining us for services: rabbinat.ederberg (at) jg-berlin.org
Following Friday evening and Shabbat morning services, we invite everyone to join us for Kiddush and a shared meal. It is a wonderful opportunity to connect and get to know one another.
We also host services and other activities on Jewish holidays. If you do not find the current schedule on our website, feel free to contact us: rabbinat.ederberg (at) jg-berlin.org
Our synagogue is located on the third floor of the building. At the entrance, you will find shelves with Siddurim (prayer books) in Hebrew, with German, English, or Russian translations, Chumashim with Torah and Haftarah texts, Tallitot and Kippot.
Please let us know if you’re observing a yahrzeit or coming for another special reason. We would be delighted to hear where you are coming from and what brings you to us today.
Participatory
Wherever you are in your own Jewish journey, you will find support and encouragement in our community. Members and guests participate in leading services and in reading Torah and Haftarah.
Please do let us know (spontaneously or in advance) if you would like to be actively involved. As a learning community, we want to learn which topics inspire you, and what you would like to learn or to teach others.
We enjoy inspiring shiurim (workshops) on a broad range of topics. Studying und discussing texts and topics provide wonderful opportunities for us to grow as individuals and as a community.
Egalitarian
Men and women sit together in services and participate actively wherever possible. Men are required to wear a head covering in the synagogue and women are encouraged to do so. Jewish men and women may wear a tallit during the morning service and are required to do so when called to the Torah or when leading services.
A place for children
We love to hear the voices of children during services and want them to feel comfortable and at home at the synagogue. There is a children’s room with books and toys, which kids are welcome to bring into the sanctuary. Children join the Torah procession, and we offer activities for them on Shabbat and holidays.
In all the colors of the rainbow: Meet our Diverse Community
The diversity of families in our community is a source of strength and richness. Within our congregation, all members of a Jewish family are warmly accepted regardless of their own religious background. We value the perspectives and contributions of non-Jewish parents and partners.
When you are celebrating a life-cycle moment with us, we encourage you to invite both your Jewish and non-Jewish family and friends to the celebration.
Talk to our rabbi about traditional and innovative life cycle ceremonies; we do look forward to shaping a celebration that reflects both who you and your family are and the values of our community. Looking forward to celebrate with you!
Please let us know if you would like to be called to the Torah in a gender-neutral way.
Part of the Jewish Community of Berlin
Our synagogue is part of the “Juedische Gemeinde zu Berlin“, the umbrella organization for eight synagogues in Berlin. The community also runs Jewish day schools, cemeteries, and other institutions.
Our synagogue began in 1994 with a small group of people interested in an egalitarian and participatory approach to Jewish religious life. It has grown significantly since then. Initially, our congregation ran as an experimental lay-led group, with Rabbi Gesa S. Ederberg becoming our rabbi in February 2007.
Affiliated with the Conservative/Masorti Movement
We are committed to the observance of our shared Jewish tradition in ways relevant to today. While valuing every individual’s own Jewish journey, we keep Shabbat and kashrut within our communal spaces, according to Masorti Halakhah. Please do not hesitate to ask any questions you may have.
Members of Masorti/Conservative communities from around the world will feel especially at home with us.
Our rabbi, Gesa S. Ederberg, was the founding director of Masorti Germany and is a member of the International Rabbinical Assembly of Conservative/Masorti Rabbis, scheduled to become its president in 2026. She was ordained at the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary in Jerusalem.
Get Involved
We look forward to meeting you! We’d love to hear what you’re looking for in a synagogue community and how you might want to get involved.
Support
Donations from the USA
You’ll find several options via our international umbrella organization Masorti Olami – The World Council of Synagogues. We offer secure methods of payment, with receipt of a tax-deductible donation receipt.
Please make sure to earmark your donation and to let us know about it by email rabbinat.ederberg (at) jg-berlin.org.
Other countries
Please contact us directly if you’d like to donate from outside Germany and the US.
Contact
You can reach Rabbi Gesa S. Ederberg at:
ederberg (at) masorti.de
To schedule an appointment or for other inquiries, feel free to contact the rabbi’s secretary:
rabbinat.ederberg (at) jg-berlin.org
or call +49 30 88028 253
If you are looking for Masorti services in other parts of Germany, would like to order our siddurim, or are interested in starting a Masorti minyan, we’d love to hear from you!
The History of the Synagogue Building
The New Synagogue, designed in the Moorish style, was inaugurated in 1866. It was the largest house of worship in Germany, with its 3,200-seat capacity serving the needs of the rapidly expanding Jewish community. Services were conducted according to the “New Rites and Practices,” including the use of an organ and choir, a reflection of the changing practices of Jews in Germany. The Oriental architectural style of the building expressed the growing sense of security by the Jewish community in belonging to German society and culture, while emphasizing Jewish identity. It was also a historical reminder of Jewish life in medieval Spain, where Jews, Christians and Muslims lived together.
Until services were discontinued in 1940, due to the increasing persecution by the Nazis, famous rabbis and cantors served here, including Louis Lewandowski, Abraham Geiger, Alfred Jospe, Ignaz Maybaum, Moshe Nussbaum and Melwin Warschauer. Rabbi Regina Jonas, the first female rabbi worldwide, ordained in 1935, also officiated at services (though not in the main sanctuary!) and gave lectures here.
On November 9th, 1938, the Nazi government initiated deadly pogroms throughout the German Reich, that also resulted in the desecration and burning of hundreds of synagogues. The Oranienburger Strasse Synagogue was spared destruction, due to the courage of the head of the local police station, Wilhelm Krützfeld, who prevented Nazi gangs from destroying the building. It was later largely destroyed by accident during an Allied bombing raid.
After the war, with much of the once imposing structure in ruins, and a very small Jewish community in East Berlin that used a different synagogue for their services, the East German government demolished the remains of the main sanctuary in 1958, with only the façade, the entrance hall and the vestibule surviving as a memorial. Renovations began in 1988, shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. As a memorial to what had been lost, the large sanctuary was not reconstructed, remaining as an open space behind the building. With its signature gilt-ribbed dome and ornate façade, the synagogue is once again a landmark, visible throughout Berlin. The building was reopened in 1995 as a museum and archive.
We highly recommend visiting the museum during the week and learning more about this site and local Jewish history. The Centrum Judaicum also hosts an extensive archive about German Jewish history and welcomes research.
Additional information can be found on the Centrum Judaicum’s website.
Today, the building also houses classrooms and offices of the Berlin Jewish Community, as well as our sanctuary.