The Synagogue 'Ohel Jacob' ('Jacob's Tent') in Munich is one of the main reference point of Jewish life in Germany and Munich. It was built between 2004-2006 and is part of a larger complex that includes also the Jewish Museum and the Jewish Center. An underground tunnel unites the synagogue to the Jewish Community Center, a memorial for the Jews killed in Munich. The official opening took place on 9 November 2006, the 68th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
The synagogue was designed by Rena Wandel Hoefer and Wolfgang Loich, who also designed the new synagogue in Dresden. It includes a cubic structure of travertine stone, the typical stone for many houses in Jerusalem, topped by a glass cube. The glass roof, separated by lines that form the Maghen David ('Star of David') signify the journey of Moshe Rabbeinu and the Jewish people through the desert, but can be also read as a symbol of hope for the light that conquers the darkness. The main portal, featuring in Hebrew letters the 10 Commandments, was manufactured in Budapest.
The synagogue has a capacity of over 550 worshippers. More than 4,000 Jews were killed in Munich. After the war, many returned. Jews from the former Soviet Union that arrived in Germany after the fall of communism decided to settle in Munich too, bringing a new dynamic to the local community. The synagogue was often targeted by anti-Semitic threats.
The original main synagogue in Munich was destroyed in 1938, and its ground is used nowadays as a parking area.
The public memory reminds very often the old places of worship and former Jewish businesses, as everywhere in Germany. Old and new history meet on different sides of the time and probably a new future is still possible.
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