Go back

Auschwitz Jewish Center

Jewish Museum in Oświęcim

In the home of the Kornreich family of Oświęcim, the Jewish Museum commemorates and educates about the Jewish history of Oświęcim. Through the core exhibition, Oshpitzin, visitors can explore the lives of the Jews of Oświęcim through photographs, artifacts, and survivor testimony.

In the exhibition, photographs of individuals and families, documents and artifacts from local Jewish organizations and businesses, and the Judaica excavated in 2004 from beneath the site of the Oświęcim Great Synagogue bring to life the vital Jewish town that Oświęcim once was.

The Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot synagogue is the only surviving Jewish house of prayer in Oświęcim of almost 30 that existed before the war. Built circa 1913, the Nazis devastated its interior and used the building as a munitions warehouse. After World War II, Jewish survivors in Oświęcim once again used it as a synagogue. In the 50s, the last Jews of Oświęcim left, and the synagogue stood empty. In the 1970s, the Communist government nationalized the building and turned it into a carpet warehouse.

In 1998, the synagogue became the first Jewish communal property to be returned to a Jewish community in Poland and the recipients of the property, the Bielsko-Biala Jewish Community, donated the synagogue to the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation. The AJCF restored the building to its pre-war condition as described by survivors. It was reopened in September 2000.

As the only Jewish house of worship near Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Chevra Lomdei Mishnayot provides visitors with a sanctuary for prayer, reflection, and solace. Although it has neither a rabbi nor a local congregation today, it is under careful protection of the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation.

Education

We help teachers in creating safe classroom environment for all students

This innovative professional development course equips teachers with knowledge and skills to teach respect and confront hatred.

During 6 weekend sessions participants learn to identify and respond to prejudice including, but not limited to, antisemitism, homophobia and racism.

The center also offers volunteering’s is a truly unique opportunity to engage with important history in an international environment, walking tours through the main Jewish sites of interest, different cultural programs, three-day intensive seminars for Polish law enforcement and police trainers designed in partnership with the Commander in Chief of the Polish police, and much more.