OPINION: Focus on sense, not sensibility – 80% of Holland Road shul members voted to close its doors
Stanley Cohen, chairman and joint life president of Hove Hebrew Congregation responds to Alex Brummer's lamentation at the closure of the 93-year-old community.
The patient’s dead… call sentimentality.
This probably is what we all do, it protects us from reality and comforts us at times of greatest grief and despair.
The narrative that follows however is factual and without any emotional embellishment
I have actively participated in services over the past twenty five years or so, maybe 1,500 or even more. For the past few years I have sat alone in the ‘Box’ not by choice but because there are no wardens in support and there haven’t been for quite a while.
Every Shabbat I sit in trepidation, anxiously awaiting the critical number to arrive before the first Amidah is commenced. Usually I am joined by the core of four or five members who consistently make themselves available for the service.
Additionally there are Rabbi Samuel, Winston Pickett (on CST duty) and myself. Then we await others (typically non members) to add their support. This may happen by 10.15 and we count ourselves fortunate. Rabbi Samuel, as do us all, breathes a sigh of relief and we hear the beautiful tones of his davening to continue the service.
The aliyah of Hagbah is unexceptionally taken by Winston one of the very few with the koyach to do so.
This is not a happy situation and certainly not sustainable.
On to the building. Originally a ‘Ladies Gymnasium’, it was converted to a synagogue in the 1920’s, so dilapidation can be expected. Prone to damp, the walls were covered by wooden panelling in the 1970’s to disguise the problem and unfortunately the source was not rectified.
The roof leaks randomly and buckets abound. Seemingly frequent repair has not provided the answer. A new roof is the only effective lasting solution. This might cost £150,000 and cause closure of the shul for say three to six months.
Decorative plasterwork surrounding the Aron Kodesh is crumbling, after all there is nothing to stop it happening. Walls and ceilings are flaking, the decorator knows the premises well; indeed probably too well.
When it comes to serious expectation members are focused on their final resting place and certainty that the related costs will be met unquestionably by the Funeral Expenses Scheme to which they have subscribed. They are assuredly relieved from concern in that regard. Accordingly substantial funding is required and the necessary provision is reserved for future purposes. This commitment is an unflinching priority.
79 Holland Road, the shul property is abound with commercial disadvantages. City planning is aware of the protective elements in place which act as a deterrent for indiscriminate development. If we are to avoid the fate of eternal upkeep expenditure that has befallen Middle Street synagogue something rather creative has to be put in place, a concept that retains the greater part of the facade allowing preservation of our architectural heritage and we have found this solution.
Should this concept become realised the financial outcome will greatly assist the proposed Benevolent Trust Fund we have in mind to enhance the lives of a section of the local Jewish community in greatest need. I believe these distinctly disadvantaged peoples have been described as “waifs and strays” which perhaps sadly some indeed are.
Very significantly it is our purpose to bring together the two Orthodox congregations of HHC and BHHC (Brighton & Hove Hebrew Congregation, owners of Middle Street synagogue).
This conceived alliance is truly purposeful and will ensure a harmonious unification that has eluded both organisations for, dare I say, generations.
At a gathering of our members on 22nd August, more than 80% signalled their approval to the proposals.
I recently had the privilege of a personal conversation with Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis who offered his blessing for the intentions and conveyed his hopes for a successful long awaited coming together of the two communities.
It is most important to understand that we are not a prisoner to the past; it is not the present that we should dwell upon but rather to realise our attainable hopes and dreams of the future.
- Stanley Cohen is chairman and joint life president of Hove Hebrew Congregation in Sussex. Alex Brummer’s article was published in Jewish News on 30 August.
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