Sim
Shalom
Magyarul 
Our New Synagogue
Welcome to the Website of Sim Shalom Congregation, the first and only Progressive/Reform Jewish congregation in Hungary. We trace our history back to the late 1980s when a group of young Jewish professionals and intellectuals decided to start exploring their Jewish roots. As one of the consequences of the Holocaust, followed by 40 years of Communist rule, they had almost all been raised as assimilated Jews, often not knowing of their Jewish ancestors.
In twenty years that tentative community has grown into an active
congregation. Its members and supporters number 200-300. It has a
full-time Rabbi, founding member Katalin Kelemen. It has a historic
Torah scroll and a beautiful Torah Ark, designed and decorated by
artists in the congregation.
But it has no home to call it's own!!
Images:
Floorplan layout
schematics
Current-exterior Current-interior
Printable PDF brochures: US/letter
UK/A4
For twenty years Sim Shalom has truly been a group of Wandering Jews, wandering in the Budapest wilderness of free and rented meeting rooms and apartments. The congregation has occupied four different premises in the last ten years, each time outgrowing the space, or leaving because of other great inconvenience, so that we've had to move on.
At last we have a chance to have a real synagogue as our permanent
home. We've signed a contract for the indefinite use of
the beautiful, architecturally significant building shown above which is
owned by the Hungarian Government. All we have to do is find the
money to repair and renovate it into a proper synagogue. Sim
Shalom will be the first congregation to build a new synagogue in
Hungary since World War II.
Will you
join us in this enterprise to bring Judaism alive again in Hungary?