EJP | News | Western Europe | Finland commemorates 100 years of Synagogue

	Tuesday, February 07, 2012 14 Shevat, 5772

News

France

Germany

Western Europe

Eastern Europe

EU-Israel affairs

US 2008 ELECTION

Iran - Holocaust

Conflict in Gaza

Voices

Culture

In Depth

Mideast Crisis

World Cup

On Anglo Jewry

Week at a glance

France Election

EU and Annapolis Summit

News from outside of Europe

Holocaust Remembrance Day

Mumbai Terror

DURBAN II

WILLIAMSON

Stories from our Readers

The Calendar

Links

Finland commemorates 100 years of Synagogue

Updated: 08/Sep/2006 16:55

The synagogue of Helsinki

Page tools

	Email to friend
	Print this page
	Bookmark this page
	Add your view

HELSINKI (EJP)--- The Helsinki synagogue last week celebrated its 100th anniversary, with guests from the Finnish government, foreign dignitaries and leaders of the Nordic country’s Lutheran and Orthodox churches in attendance.

The Synagogue, which is the main sanctuary for the capital city’s 1,200 strong Jewish community also hosted Israel’s Tourism Minister Isaac Herzog and members of the local Muslim community.

Tolerant atmosphere

Gideon Bolotovsky, the Jewish community spokesman, claimed that such a wide ranging guest list showed how well the Jewish community was thought of in Finland.

"This proves that dialogue between different religions works on a very practical level in this country," Bolotovsky told Finnish YLE radio news, stressing the tolerant religious atmosphere in Finland.

Finnish parliament speaker Paavo Lipponen, along with President Tarja Halonon, stressed the place of the small Jewish community in the small Nordic country. "We feel natural sympathy for the Israeli people. You could say that... Jewry in Finland is enjoying special protection,” Lipponen said during his speech at the commemoration.

Finnish Jewish History

The majority of the small Finnish Jewish community – around 1,000 people- came to the country as a result of Jewish conscripts in the Czarist army in the early part of the 19th century being allowed to remain in Finland upon their discharge.

These Jews had strict regulations placed upon them by the Russian occupation, which curtailed their movement and activities. In 1917, upon Finnish independence, the newly inaugurated Finnish Parliament approved an Act concerning "Mosaic Confessors," and on 12 January 1918 the Act was promulgated.

Under the Act, Jews could for the first time become Finnish nationals, and Jews not possessing Finnish nationality were henceforth in all respects to be treated as foreigners in general.

During the Second World War, despite strong German pressure the Finnish government never acquiesced to take legal action against the Jews.

The Finnish Jewish community prides itself on its warmth and vitality. According to the Jewish community website: “Although we are one of the northernmost and smallest Jewish communities in the world, we have a very active community life and a warm heart!”

Daily quote

If you shut up truth and bury it under the ground, it will but grow, and gather to itself such explosive power that the day it bursts through it will blow up everything in its way.

Emile Zola, French writer, who was brought to trial for libel for publishing J’Accuse on 7 February 1898

Day in history

1992: Europe

Signing of the Maastricht Treaty on February 7, 1992, which paved the way for the euro and the common foreign and security policy.
The treaty entered into force on November 1, 1993 during the Delors Commission.
The European Union is formed.