Changing Jewish Communities in Germany:
Objects, Spaces and Traditions as Reflections of Religious Transformations after the Shoa

International Online Workshop
July 19/20, 2021

organised by

Bet Tfila – Forschungsstelle für jüdische Architektur, Technische Universität Braunschweig
Braunschweigisches Landesmuseum
Europäisches Zentrum für Jüdische Musik, Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover
Jüdisches Museum Augsburg Schwaben

After the end of the Second World War, Jewish communities established themselves quickly in many places in Germany – in some cases only a few days after the end of the war. The small, heterogeneous Jewish communities often developed under difficult conditions but gave the survivors stability and hope. Approximately 15,000 German Jews lived in Germany by the end of the war – having survived the Shoah or having returned from emigration. The decades of reconstruction of Jewish life took place in different phases that were closely linked to the changing socio-cultural composition of the communities. In addition to the few German Jews and the DPs who had decided to remain in the country, were those who had returned to Germany in the 1960s after a failed attempt to emigrate. The latter group also influenced community life. The transformation process that has taken place since 1945 is reflected in many ways. Its impact on religious practice with its sacred spaces, objects and musical traditions will be in the focus of the workshop.

Contact / Registration (up to July 15, 2021):

Technische Universität Braunschweig
Bet Tfila – Forschungsstelle für jüdische Architektur
Pockelsstraße 4, 38106 Braunschweig
Tel. +49 (0)531 391 2526
E-Mail: Dr. Katrin Keßler