Egypt has reopened one of the world’s oldest synagogues and home to the most significant single trove of Jewish manuscripts. The Ben Ezra synagogue reopened last week after a decade of restoration work, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MOTA). Constructed in the 12th century, the synagogue was rebuilt in 1889 and restored previously in 1982. It was named after Abraham ibn Ezra, a Jewish figure who authored various biblical commentaries during the golden age of Spanish Judaism. The site has been visited by distinguished Jewish figures throughout history, including Moses Maimonides, one of the most influential Jewish philosophers. Maimonides lived close to the synagogue and worshipped there. The site of the synagogue is believed by some to be where the biblical prophet Moses prayed to God. The synagogue was also where the single most important selection of Jewish medieval manuscripts was found in the late 19th century, according to the Cambridge University Library, where the documents, known as the Cairo Geniza, are now kept. The building has basilica-style architecture as it was once a church, according to the ministry. Its latest restoration — completed by the Drop of Milk Association, an organization that seeks to preserve Egypt’s Jewish heritage — required treatment to protect ceilings, stones and provide insulation. Egypt’s MOTA has worked to restore several buildings and take on conservation projects in the last few years, said Louise Bertini, executive director of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE). Egypt’s Jewish population exceeded 80,000 people in 1948, but only about a dozen Jews remain in the country today. The restoration efforts are largely to improve tourism, according to Bertini. “There’s always an effort to open up new sites or make a current site more accessible,” she said. Egypt has however come under intense criticism for razing large parts of old Cairo to make way for development projects. Historic tombs in the oldest parts of capital, called the City of the Dead, are being demolished to make way for roads. Egyptian media reported in June that President Abel Fattah al-Sisi had requested the relocation of graves to a new burial site, the Cemetery of the Immortals. The move was met with indignation from historians and activists on social media, who saw it as the destruction of Egypt’s heritage and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (SD-Agencies) Words to Learn 相關(guān)詞匯 【猶太教堂】yóutài jiàotáng synagogue the house of worship and communal center of a Jewish congregation 【憤慨】fènkǎi indignation anger aroused by something unjust, unworthy, or mean 世界上最古老的猶太教堂之一重新開放了。位于埃及的這座教堂藏有最珍貴的猶太手稿。 據(jù)埃及旅游和文物部（MOTA）稱，經(jīng)過十年的修復(fù)工作，本?埃茲拉猶太教堂上周重新開放。 該教堂建于12世紀，1889年重建，1982年進行了修復(fù)。教堂以亞伯拉罕?伊本?埃茲拉命名，他是西班牙猶太教黃金時代的代表人物，著有多部圣經(jīng)注釋。 歷史上許多杰出的猶太人都曾來過這里，包括最有影響力的猶太哲學(xué)家摩西?邁蒙尼德。邁蒙尼德住在猶太會堂附近，并在那里做禮拜。一些人認為，猶太會堂是《圣經(jīng)》中先知摩西向上帝祈禱的地方。 劍橋大學(xué)圖書館稱，19世紀末在這個會堂發(fā)現(xiàn)了最重要的中世紀猶太手稿。 埃及旅游和文物部說，這座建筑是一座教堂，因此采用了大殿式建筑風(fēng)格。 最近一次修復(fù)工作是由旨在保護埃及猶太遺產(chǎn)的組織 “一滴奶協(xié)會”完成的。 美國埃及研究中心執(zhí)行主任路易絲?貝爾蒂尼說，一滴奶協(xié)會在過去幾年中修復(fù)了幾座建筑，并承擔(dān)了一些保護項目。 1948 年，埃及的猶太人口超過了8萬，但如今只有數(shù)十名猶太人留在埃及。 貝爾蒂尼認為，修復(fù)工作主要是為了改善旅游業(yè)。她說：“我們一直在努力開放新遺址，或者讓現(xiàn)有遺址更加游客友好。” 然而，埃及因夷平開羅老城的大片土地為開發(fā)項目讓路而廣受批評。 首都最古老地區(qū)的歷史古墓（被稱為“亡靈之城”）正在拆除，為道路建設(shè)讓路。埃及媒體6月報道稱，阿卜杜勒?法塔赫?塞西總統(tǒng)已要求將古墓遷移到新墓地 —— 不朽墓地。 此舉在社交媒體上引起了歷史學(xué)家和活動家的憤慨，他們認為這是對埃及遺產(chǎn)和聯(lián)合國教科文組織世界遺產(chǎn)的破壞。 (Translated by Debra) | 