The name Edmond J. Safra is synonymous with philanthropy and benevolence. A Lebanese-born Jew who rose to prominence in the banking industry, Mr. Safra supported a remarkable diversity of institutions and charities during his lifetime. While his legacy of giving affected Jewish communities worldwide, his generosity may have had its greatest impact on the various Syrian Jewish communities in the United States and abroad. An example of how Mr. Safra’s policy of supporting new Jewish institutions continues even after his untimely death can be found in the recently completed Edmond J. Safra Synagogue.
During his lifetime, Mr. Safra was often in New York City and spent many Shabbats on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Noting the absence of a formal synagogue and communal center for the Sephardim of Manhattan, Mr. Safra expressed a desire to build a central house of worship in the area. As was his practice, he moved this idea from a vision to a reality.
He asked his wife, Lily, to supervise this project personally. Although Mr. Safra lived to see the groundbreaking for the synagogue, Mrs. Safra was left to complete this effort alone after her husband’s passing. Coordinating a team of skilled artisans, Mrs. Safra completed construction of the building in December 2002. Dignitaries including the Chief Rabbi of Israel and His Honor Mayor Michael Bloomberg attended an official inauguration of the building. Praise for the edifice was exceeded only by praise for the man who foresaw it and his wife who completed it. Since opening its doors in March of 2003, the Edmond J. Safra Synagogue has become the communal center that its namesake imagined it would be. Under the spiritual guidance of Rabbi Elie Abadie, the synagogue offers regular religious services including daily minyanim, a bi-weekly Bet Midrash program, liturgy studies and daily tehilim readings. Moreover, the synagogue has become a prominent social, cultural and educational center having hosted more than 50 events over the course of the year including parenting and cooking classes, singles events, children’s programs, and political and educational lectures.
The Edmond J. Safra Synagogue is well located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan at 11 East 63rd Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues. It is situated near many of Manhattan’s finest hotels and regularly hosts guests from around the world. The congregation is comprised of Sephardic families of Middle Eastern background and follows the Aleppo style of prayer. The Synagogue is prepared to welcome all those interested in spending a Shabbat in Manhattan among this most vibrant Sephardic Jewish community. For more information please call (212) 754-9555.
