Union of Jewish Religious Communities in Poland
Administrative division of ZGWŻ across Poland
|
|
| Abbreviation | ZGWŻ |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | Związek Religijny Wyznania Mojżeszowego, registered in 1949 |
| Formation | February 27, 1997 originally registered in 1993 |
| Type | NGO |
| Legal status | Religious community |
| Headquarters | Warsaw |
|
Membership
|
~ 2,000 (1998) |
|
Official language
|
Polish |
| Leader | Piotr Kadlčik (2003-) |
The Union of Jewish Religious Communities in Poland (Polish: Związek Gmin Wyznaniowych Żydowskich w RP, and abbreviated ZGWŻ), is a religious association formed by Jews living in Poland who adhere to Judaism. It was originally created in 1949 as the Religious Association of Judaism, and renamed in 1992. The Association's seat is located in Warsaw, with seven administrative branches throughout the country. ZGWŻ consists of approximately 2,000 members (1998) congregating in nine municipalities. The Union operates seven active synagogues and 15 prayer houses. Also, ZGWŻ publishes its own periodicals, as well as the popular Jewish Calendar (Kalendarz Żydowski). Since 2003, the president of the Union is Piotr Kadlčik.
The main goal of the Association is to organize religious and cultural life for its members. The Association continues the democratic traditions of the Jewish religious presence in the country preceding the Holocaust and the subsequent religious strife in Soviet-dominated Poland from before the Revolutions of 1989. The Jewish community was almost completely destroyed in World War II, along with most of its religious monuments. ZGWŻ helps Polish Jews - including the descendants of the Holocaust survivors - in a variety of legal matters, both communal and personal, including aiding in the process of recovery and restoration of property once owned by the Jewish Kehilla (קהלה), and nationalized in Communist Poland, like the White Stork Synagogue in Wrocław (see gallery).
ZGWŻ activities are financed by the resources of the union, and in part, by grants from the Joint Distribution Committee (JDC). Some specific projects are also supported financially by the Ministry of Culture, the Arts of Poland, and other private sponsors.
...
Wikipedia