Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue
8 03 '41 "S 34 52' 17" W / -8.06131, -34.87132
Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue (Hebrew: , "Community of the Rock of Israel") is located in Recife , State of Pernambuco , Brazil. Its facilities now include the Jewish Cultural Center of Pernambuco, in the historic district of the city.
The synagogue in Recife (1636) was first established in the Americas, during the domination Dutch (1630-1654) of northeastern Brazil. Its first rabbi was the Luso-Dutch Isaac Aboagye da Fonseca (1605-1693). After the expulsion of the Dutch in 1654, the synagogue is no longer used as such.
Its ruins, dating from the seventeenth century, were recently identified and preserved, and are today of the Jewish Cultural Center of Pernambuco. You can see the remains of the original floor and walls, and a mikveh well preserved, used for ritual baths. The collection also contains information on the history of the Jewish people in Pernambuco and artifacts recovered during the archaeological exploration of the synagogue. The present facade dates from the nineteenth century.
The first Jews arrived in New Amsterdam, now New York , founding the first Jewish community in North America, were refugees from Recife, members of the synagogue Kahal Zur Israel.
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