To the grave of tzadik Menachem Mendel in Rimanov chassids from all over the World have pilgrimized for years, leaving little pieces of paper with vows and prayer written on them in the cracks of the ohel walls. This year however, for the first time in over 60 years, the chassids could pray not only at the ohel, but also in the Rimanov synagogue, which only two months ago had been a ruin. For a couple of months now the Rimanov synagogue, one of the oldest in Poland, is again the property of the Jewish community, since the local authorities transferred its ownership to the Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland. The Foundation decided to rebuild the synagogue. Restoration works started in March 2005. The top parts of the walls and the roof have already been reconstructed. Doors and windows have been put in and the floor has been laid. In the Rimanov synagogue the Foundation for the Preservation of the Jewish Heritage in Poland intends to organize a center of education and dialogue between religions.
(from the Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper)

» back