The Sternberg Centre for Judaism

Judaism

Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

, in East End Road, Finchley

Finchley

Finchley is a district in Barnet in north London, England. Finchley is on high ground, about north of Charing Cross. It formed an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, becoming a municipal borough in 1933, and has formed part of Greater London since 1965...

, London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, is a campus hosting a number of Jewish institutions, built around the 18th-century Finchley manor house

Manor house

A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...

.

It was originally founded to facilitate a number of Reform

Reform Judaism

Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...

 and Liberal

Liberal Judaism

Liberal Judaism , is one of the two forms of Progressive Judaism found in the United Kingdom, the other being Reform Judaism. Liberal Judaism, which developed at the beginning of the twentieth century is less conservative than UK Reform Judaism...

 Jewish institutions, attached to the Movement for Reform Judaism

Movement for Reform Judaism

Movement for Reform Judaism is the main organizational body of the Jewish Reform community in Great Britain....

 (formerly: Reform Synagogues of Great Britain) principally through education and cultural means. The centre was opened in 1981 by the Manor House Trust and is now named after Sigmund Sternberg

Sigmund Sternberg

Sir Sigmund Sternberg, is a British philanthropist, businessman and Labour Party donor.-Early life:Sternberg is Jewish and was born in Hungary. He emigrated to Britain in 1939 and was naturalised as a British citizen in 1947.-Career:...

. The founding organisations are: Leo Baeck college and the Akiva School, the first Reform Jewish day school in England (also opened in 1981). Later the (Masorti

Masorti

The Masorti Movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in Israel and other countries outside Canada and U.S. Masorti means "traditional" in Hebrew...

) New North London Synagogue also located there.

The centre also hosted the Jewish Museum, Finchley until 2007; the offices of RSY Netzer, The Zionist Youth Movement for Reform Judaism, are also located there.

New North London Synagogue

The synagogue, which is affiliated to the Masorti

Masorti

The Masorti Movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in Israel and other countries outside Canada and U.S. Masorti means "traditional" in Hebrew...

 movement, was founded by followers of Louis Jacobs

Louis Jacobs

Rabbi Dr. Louis Jacobs was a Masorti rabbi, the first leader of Masorti Judaism in the United Kingdom, and a leading writer and thinker on Judaism...

, and located to the Sternberg Centre site after some years of nomadic exstence. The congregation, which now has about 2,400 members, has recently raised over £6m. to construct a new synagogue building on the site, which was opened in 2011. The synagogue's rabbi is Jonathan Wittenberg

Jonathan Wittenberg

Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg is a Masorti rabbi, the Senior Rabbi of The Assembly of Masorti Synagogues UK. He is a leading writer and thinker on Judaism. He is Rabbi of the New North London Synagogue, with approximately 2400 members.-Personal life:He moved to London in 1963...

.

Leo Baeck College

Named in honour of Leo Baeck, the inspirational twentieth century German Reform rabbi, Leo Baeck College was founded in 1956 as a rabbinical school for training Liberal and Reform rabbis. Today, the college is a centre for the training of rabbis and teachers, an educational consultancy, helps the development of community leaders, provides access to Jewish learning for all through interfaith work. It is a degree awarding institution, specialising in Hebrew and other Jewish related subjects. It is based at the Sternberg Centre, East End Road, in North London.

Jewish Museum, Finchley

Originally opened as the Museum of the Jewish East End, founded by David Jacobs in 1983, the museum's main intent was the preservation of the heritage of London's East End, an important and large community which has since largely dissipated. Renamed the London Museum of Jewish Life in 1990, and subsequently amalgamating with the Jewish Museum in Camden Town

Jewish Museum (Camden)

The Jewish Museum London is a museum of Jewish life and art in the London Borough of Camden, on the northern fringes of central London, England.-History:...

, the museum diversified to include the history of other Jewish communities in London, and is also active in Holocaust and anti racism education.

The Finchley museum closed in 2007 and moved in 2009 to an enlarged building on the Camden site, which will release space for the expansion of the Akiva school.

See also

• History of Church End Finchley - includes a history of the old Manor House at the centre of the site.

External links

• The New North London Synagogue.
• European Judaism Special Issue on the 50th anniversary of Leo Baeck College.
• 50 years of Leo Baeck College: An overview 1956-2006
• Leo Baeck College
• New North London Synagogue on Jewish Communities and Records - UK (hosted by jewishgen.org).