11 months ago

80 Years After Deportation, Jewish Life Flourishes Again in Miskolc, Hungary

With the support of the Association of Hungarian Jewish Communities (EMIH), Chabad Shliach Rabbi Avraham Braun inaugurated a brand-new Jewish community center on Kazinczy Street, in the heart of Miskolc’s historic Jewish quarter. Just days earlier, a luxurious new mikvah was also opened directly across the street • Full Story

Chabad Shluchim Revive “Dry Bones” in Miskolc, Hungary

This remarkable Jewish revival — led by the Rebbe’s shluchim — is part of a broader spiritual renaissance sweeping across Hungary, widely regarded as the safest country in Europe for Jews. Now, that renaissance has reached Miskolc, a northeastern city near the Slovakian border.

The opening of the new center comes as the community marks 80 years since the deportation of Miskolc’s Jews to concentration camps in the summer of 1944. The city now celebrates a rebirth: a sprawling community center and a state-of-the-art mikvah serving both local Jews and the many visitors who travel annually to the nearby town of Bodrogkeresztúr, the Kever of Rabbi Yeshaya Steiner of Kerestir, just 40 minutes away.

The revival is led by Rabbi Avraham Braun and his wife, who arrived in Miskolc two years ago.

Before the Holocaust, Miskolc had a vibrant Jewish population of around 12,000. In 1944, under Nazi occupation, the Jews of Miskolc were herded into a ghetto set up in a former brick factory on Tatar Street, where they endured severe overcrowding and brutal treatment. Most were later deported to Auschwitz, with only a few hundred surviving. Today, the city is home to an estimated 1,000 Jews, including post-war immigrants from the former Soviet Union.

The new community center aims to serve as a vibrant hub of Jewish life — open and active around the clock. It features classrooms, lecture halls, and a large industrial kitchen for preparing hot meals for those in need. Programming will include Torah classes, children’s activities, cultural events, and free meals for hungry Jewish children. Plans are also underway to open a Jewish preschool and daycare next year.

Rabbi Shlomo Köves, Chief Rabbi of EMIH, attended the dedication ceremony along with Miskolc Mayor Pál Veres and other dignitaries.

Rabbi Braun described the new center as a “revolution of light” for the city’s Jewish life: “This center will serve all aspects of the community — educational, spiritual, and humanitarian. We’re already working on building a strong team to run the many programs.”

Rabbi Köves added: “Decades after Jewish life in Miskolc was nearly wiped out, we are witnessing a true revival. This renaissance is a powerful testament to the freedom and safety Jews enjoy in Hungary today, under the leadership of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. While dark clouds again hover over parts of Europe, Hungary remains a beacon of Jewish continuity and pride.”