With a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony, Hesse’s Prime Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU), State Secretary in the Federal Interior Ministry, Markus Kerber, and other politicians with the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, celebrated the start of construction on the Jewish Academy.
Almost 100 guests from politics, science and culture had gathered for the ceremony in the Senckenberganlage on Thursday.
Theresa White
Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.
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In his greeting, Schuster said that the academy ties in with Frankfurt's cultural heritage. The city was largely shaped by Jewish citizens and is still one of the most important Jewish cities in Germany today. The new academy would open a window for the dialogue between religions, cultures and politics. It brings Jewish perspectives into the debates and is shaped by the spirit of the Jewish school and curiosity. "Shaking complacency, that is the task of the academy."
In their greetings, Bouffier and Kerber spoke of a day of joy, but also warned that anti-Semitism was growing. Only when an event like the ceremony does not have to be protected by a hundred police officers will normality have returned to Germany, said Kerber. The Jewish Academy, whose builder is the Central Council, becomes the first supraregional Jewish institution of its kind after the Shoah. The building was designed by the Frankfurt architect Zvonko Turkali; the project will cost 34.5 million euros, which will be borne by the federal, state, city and central council. In 2024, the Jewish Academy is due to start work under the direction of Sabena Donath and Doron Kiesel.