In Nazi cradle, Germany marks Jewish renaissance

Cradle of the Nazi party, site of the first concentration camp, and favorite haunt of Adolf Hitler, Munich now has a new legacy; It's home to the largest synagogue built in Germany since World War II.

The modern travertine-marble temple – unveiled Thursday on the 68th anniversary of Kristallnacht, when German mobs ransacked synagogues throughout the country – is the first phase of an elaborate $110 million complex that has been in the works for nearly two decades.

The project's presence in the heart of Munich marks the growing size and influence of Germany's Jewish population – the third largest in Europe and, in terms of immigration, the fastest growing in the world. It is also heralds an increasing willingness on the part of the nation's Jews to step out of the shadows and set down stakes in German soil.

"Since the war, Jews in Germany haven't been a visible presence," explains Michael Brenner, chair of Jewish studies at Munich's Ludwig-Maximilians University. "Now, they are becoming one."

The Jewish center, located at Munich's downtown Jakobsplatz, was first conceived in 1987 by Charlotte Knobloch, president of the influential Central Council of Jews in Germany.

A 73-year-old Munich native, Ms. Knobloch survived the Holocaust by posing as the illegitimate daughter of a Catholic farmer in the Bavarian hinterlands. Her father toiled in a labor camp and her grandmother died in Auschwitz, Poland, so she understands the reluctance of German Jews to keep to themselves. But she doesn't feel it serves them well.

"We simply can't go on living in a ghetto," she explains. "We have to be a part of German life. Otherwise our children have no future."

As one of half a dozen Jewish leaders and German officials addressing the invitation-only crowd of 800 at Thursday's opening festivities, Knobloch characterized the synagogue's debut as a new chapter in the history of Jews.

"My hope is that the people of Munich will see this place – Jakobsplatz and its ensemble of buildings – as their own," says Knobloch.

The complex, expected to be completed in 2007, will eventually include an elementary school, a child-care facility, administrative offices, an auditorium, a kosher restaurant, apartments, and a Jewish museum. The project will enable Munich's Orthodox community to consolidate its now scattered facilities and give it room to keep growing.

Over the last decade, the city's Jewish population has doubled to around 9,300, almost as large as before World War II, during which virtually all of the city's Jewish residents were killed, deported, or forced to flee. This growth is thanks to a 1991 law that opened the Germany's borders to anyone with Jewish blood. Since then, about 190,000 Jews have immigrated to Germany, bringing the country's Jewish population from fewer than 30,000 to more than 200,000 – although many haven't joined established Jewish communities.

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