The Jews of Beirut

Its stucco roof is shattered. The Ten Commandment tablets at the building’s peak have crumbled and graffiti has been spray-painted in the sanctuary. Nonetheless, the Maghen Abraham Synagogue still stands, having survived more than a decade of Civil War street battles and the near-complete disappearance of Lebanon’s Jewish community. Visible from the sea amidst shiny skyscrapers, the abandoned synagogue is a decaying monument to Beirut’s once-thriving Jewish Quarter, which it once anchored. One of over a dozen synagogues that existed in Beirut—and one of several abandoned synagogues that remain scattered across Lebanon—Maghen Abraham may yet be restored if funds can be raised. In the meantime, its shell evokes both a destroyed past and a ruinous future waiting to be fulfilled.