The Israelite Community Basel. Jewish life in the region.
A home for all Jewish people.
The Israelite Community Basel is the cultural and religious home for its members. It enables Jews in the region to lead a diverse Jewish life and is a place for Jewish coexistence. The IGB is well networked, locally and culturally anchored in the Basel region and recognized under public law in the canton of Basel-Stadt.
Our guidelines
1Judaism as religion, tradition, culture and identity
We, the Israelite Community Basel,
- are a congregation governed by Jewish religious law.
- show openness to all religious and cultural expressions of Judaism.
- strengthen the Jewish identity of our members through friendly gatherings at celebrations and commemorations and by actively embedding our common history in education.
- are connected to Israel and its people.
2Our services and activities
We, the Israelite Community Basel,
- offer our members a religious service in all situations of life.
- align our program to the needs of our members. We pay special attention to young people, young families and senior citizens.
- promote the active participation of the younger generation in committees and the synagogue. In this way, we safeguard the interests of the next generation and strengthen social affiliation at all levels.
- invite all members to actively participate in community life.
3Solidarity towards inside and outside
We, the Israelite Community Basel,
- welcome Jewish people with their families and children and Jewish visitors from all over the world.
- support Jewish associations, organizations and individuals ideally, financially and socially.
- represent the interests of the Jewish population before authorities, in politics and in society.
- participate in interreligious exchange and show solidarity with other religious communities.
History and the present
The Israelite Community of Basel is officially the third Jewish community of the city and has existed for over 200 years. Today it has around 860 members. As a unified community, it is home to Jews of all religious orientations and, as one of the major Swiss communities, has a well-developed infrastructure and all the institutions that make a fulfilling Jewish life possible. It is run according to the rules of Halacha.
Further details
The first Jewish community settled in Basel in the 13th century. In 1349 Jews were persecuted, expelled or killed during the plague.
Presumably to finance the reconstruction of Basel after the great earthquake (1356), Jews were allowed to come to Basel again from 1361. Traces of this second community are evidenced, for example, by old gravestones in the former cemetery on Petersplatz. In 1397 the community fled due to rumors of renewed persecution.
Although Jews were not allowed to settle in Basel for about 400 years, there was Jewish life in the Basel region, especially in Alsace, and Jews also visited the city of Basel as merchants or doctors.
In 1798 the so-called «Judenzoll» (jewish tariff) was abolished.
The founding year of the third present-day congregation was set at 1805. The rabbinate was exercised by the rabbi of Hégenheim.
In 1866, Swiss Jews were granted freedom of settlement in Basel.
In 1868, the present synagogue on Leimenstrasse was consecrated.
In 1872 Jews in Basel were able to obtain Basel citizenship, in 1874 freedom of religion, and in 1879 full Swiss citizenship.
In 1884 Arthur Cohn (1862-1926) became the community’s first full-time rabbi.
In 1892, a second dome was added to the synagogue.
In 1903, the cemetery at 90 Theodor Herzl-Strasse was inaugurated.
In 1927, some of the members seceded, founding the strictly Orthodox Israelite Religious Society (IRG), today on Ahornstrasse.
In 1973, the IGB became the first Jewish community to receive recognition as a corporation under public law, putting it on an equal footing with the three large churches in Basel.
From the tax period 2020, municipal taxes will be assessed and collected by the canton (based on the acceptance of the voting of May 19, 2019).