I THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Put the requiem on hold synagogue now a museum NEW CADILLAC? SEE OR CALL ANDY BLAU BY MAURICE SAMUELSON Manchester (JTA)— Manchester's oldest synagogue is being con- verted from a discontinued place of prayet into a living museum illustrating the history of Britain's second largest Jewish community. It is the Spanish and Por- tuguese synagogue, built in 1873 on Cheetham Hill Road, in the former heart- land of Manchester Jewry. Most of the other old synagogues in the area have been knocked down or turned into factories, in- cluding the nearby Great Synagogue, once regarded as the community's "Cathedral School," but now a gaunt skeleton. The Spanish and Por- tuguese Synagogue has been preserved for posterity thanks largely to the endeavors of Bill Williams, a non-Jewish historian who has devoted himself to chronicling the origins of Manchester's Jews. The opening of the museum marked the com- pletion of the restoration and conversion of the build- ing for its new use. Plans are also well ad- vanced for the core exhibi- tion, tracing the commu- nity's growth and including a wide range of tapes, photographs and artifacts — the candlesticks or prayer shawls brought from Eastern Europe and the tailoring and water proof- ing tools used in the city's garment trade. Manchester's Jewish community dates back to the mid-18th Century when the first temporary synagogue was set up by itinerant peddlers for Sab- bath services. By the end of the century, a settled community had been established and the early 19th Century saw its gradual growth with settlers drawn from other parts of England and from Germany and, later, Sephardic merchants at- tracted to Manchester from Egypt, Lebanon and Tur- key, through their connec- tion with the cotton trade. It was for these Middle East Jews that the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue was built by Edward Salo- mon, a distinguished Victo- rian architect. Eventually, a permanent Conventioneers attend Mass Jerusalem (JNI) — A group of 160 priests, minis- ters and church newspaper correspondents arrived in Israel recently for the "Pil- grimage 1984" convention and celebrated an inter- denominational Christian Mass at the Mount of Beautitudes. Tourism Minister Av- raham Sharir, who wel- comed the delegates, noted that 315,000 Christian pil- grims visited Israel last year, "or about one out of every three tourists who ar- rived in 1983." exhibition in the synagogue's ladies gallery will document the commu- nity's origins and the museum will also be equip- ped to mount visiting ex- hibitions. The organizers have de- scribed the museum as the first of its kind outside Lon- don. In fact, it will be the most important Jewish museum in Britain, since the Jewish Museum in Lon- don consists of only a single room of artifacts in Adler House, the office of the chief rabbi. Other large provicial communities, such as Bir- mingham, Liverpool and Glasgow, are believed to be keen on copying the Man- chester initiative. Manchester. Jewry's major contribution to the wider Jewish community is personified in its many dis- tinguished sons, and in its strong Zionist atmosphere. It was in Manchester, be- fore and during World War I that Dr. Chaim Weizmann, then a university lecturer, established himself as the foremost Zionist activist of his day and formed many of the connecttions which led to the British government issuing the Balfour Dec- laration on Nov. 2, 1917. in BIRMINGHAM at CRISSMAN CADILLAC RES 661-9146 CALL BUS 644-1930 1350 N. 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Weds. & Thurs., April 4th & 5th, 11-12:30 & 2-3:30 Canada urged to pursue Nazi war criminals Los Angeles (JTA) — The Simon Wiesenthal Center has urged the Canadian government to immediately reopen the case of former Nazi war criminal Jacob Luitjens and those of at least 125 other former Nazi criminals currently in Canada. The request was made in a telegram last week to Canadian Solicitor-General Robert Kaplan following his disclosure that Canadian authorities are considering new legal avenues in deal- ing with former Nazi war criminals residing there. Luitjens left his science post at the University of British Columbia in Van- couver when it became known that he fled after World War II to avoid serv- ing a 15-year sentence for collaborations with the nazis. The 74-year-old Luit- jens has successfully avoided extradition to The Netherlands due to a loqphole in the existing treaty between The Hague and Ottawa. Garin members join IDF Jerusalem (JNI) — The first garin nahal (pioneer- ing settlement group) of the Conservative movement in Israel was sworn into the Is- rael Defense Forces March 14. The 12 male members of Garin Noam, together with Garin Nitzan, a civilian group of immigrants, will settle the first Mesorati kibbutz, Hanaton, in Galilee later this year. ly feminine classics from • i ng 100°/0 Unque British Khaki, made of long-lasti natural fabrics. West Bloomfield Maple at Orchard Lake Road 851-9660 `PACE Lathrup Village 11 Mile at Evergreen 424-8750 G8 gS H IONS 67