Discovering the Lost History of the Abraham Avinu Synagogue in Hebron

About four hundred years ago, a creaky ship set sail from Spain to the shores of the Land of Israel. A group of Jews expelled from Spain, led by Rabbi Malkiel Ashkenazi, were on board. They disembarked in Jaffa, paid port taxes, bribes, and whatever was necessary to make their way in those times, searching for a place to settle. They found what they were looking for in the city of Hebron. At that time, not a single Jew lived there, yet they feared nothing. They bought land, established a large courtyard surrounded by buildings, and in the center, they erected a synagogue. This community thrived until the 1929 riots, where Hebron's Arabs brutally murdered scores of people, and the British expelled the Jews from Hebron. Thanks to this community, Hebron became one of the four holy cities in the Land of Israel: Jerusalem, Hebron, Safed, and Tiberias. Each of these cities had a fund that collected donations from around the Jewish world to support the inhabitants of the Land of Israel, emissaries of the entire Jewish nation.

The synagogue built by the Spanish immigrants was magnificent, large, and fortified, as was customary in Spain. Here in the Land of Israel, houses were small and ramshackle. The local Arabs rubbed their eyes in disbelief at the sight of such an impressive structure built by the 'Yahud.' But at that time, the Jews were not seen as a threat to the Arabs, who only imposed heavy taxes and tormented them for monetary gain.

Hebron is the city of our forefather Abraham, peace be upon him. Its Arabic name is 'Al-Khalil' – the Friend, named after Abraham, the friend of the Almighty. In its vicinity lies the Cave of the Patriarchs, where the forefathers of the world, from Adam to the holy patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, are buried, making it sacred to all nations. The Hebron community experienced ups and downs. One year, part of the community members traveled on business to neighboring countries, and on Yom Kippur, only nine men remained in the community. All the community's people, their wives, and children were very concerned: how could they observe Yom Kippur without prayers in a minyan? Suddenly, as the sun began to set, a mysterious man appeared and joined them for the minyan. Following the holiday, he blew the shofar and vanished. The next day, the synagogue's gabbai dreamt of the man, who declared, 'I am Abraham, your father, and I saw your distress; thus, I came to join you for Yom Kippur prayers.' Since then, the synagogue has been known as 'Abraham Avinu Synagogue.'

In 1835, the tyrannical Turkish ruler Ibrahim Pasha decided that to build his fortress on the coast at Majdal (modern-day Ashkelon), he required the stones of the Jews' synagogue. He dismantled the ancient synagogue of Gaza and used it to build his fortress! The Jews preserved the synagogue's doors, made of carved wood, and at the first opportunity, transported them to Hebron, where they were affixed to the entrance of Abraham Avinu Synagogue.

The synagogue was considered holy and possessed of special powers. The midwife of Hebron, Bolisa Hannah, would tie a thread from the synagogue's holy ark, pull it over the rooftops, pass it through the window, and place its end on the birthing mother's heart.

In the year 1858, the illustrious kabbalist Rabbi Eliyahu Mani, one of the great scholars of Baghdad and a disciple of Rabbi Abdullah Somech, ascended to the Land of Israel. The Jews of Hebron accepted him as their rabbi. He refused a salary and devoted himself entirely to helping the community. Through his connections in Baghdad, he secured donations for community members. He expanded Abraham Avinu Synagogue, which had become old and cramped, repaired, and adorned it. In 1869, his friend, the esteemed Ben Ish Chai, a leader of the Babylonian diaspora, visited him. In his honor, Rabbi Mani built a special chamber as a synagogue established in purity and sanctity to engage in prayer according to kabbalistic intentions and unifications.

After the 1929 riots, the Arabs turned the synagogue into a goat pen. After the establishment of the State of Israel, the Jordanians completely demolished it, and when Hebron was captured in 1967, there was no trace of the synagogue or the Jewish quarter in general. Only ten years later, experts succeeded in identifying the synagogue's remains, and after a public struggle, they received approval to restore it based on various signs and ancient descriptions. Torah scrolls saved from the 1929 massacre were brought into the synagogue, and houses were also built around it, known as 'Abraham Avinu Neighborhood.'