Beshalach (בשלח – when he let them go)
Shabbat Shira (שבת שירה – Shabbat of Song)
Exodus 13:17–17:16 and Judges 4:4–5:31
The sea parts to let the Bnei Israel pass through before closing on the Egyptians. In gratitude, Moses sings the Song of the Sea, followed by Miriam and the women who sing in turn. In the Haftarah, Deborah and Barak(1) praise God for their victory over their oppressors.
Judges 5:1
וַתָּשַׁר דְּבוֹרָה וּבָרָק בֶּן־אֲבִינֹעַם בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא לֵאמֹר׃
Deborah and Barak, son of Abinoam, sang on that day, saying:
In the 19th century, synagogues with choirs were called choral synagogues. The Kiev Choral Synagogue, also known as the Podil Synagogue(2) or the Rozenberg Synagogue, was built in 1895 in the Moorish style by local architect Nikolay Gardenin and financed by merchant Gabriel Yakob Rozenberg.
In 1915, it was remodeled under the direction of the renowned Ukrainian architect Valerian Mykytovych Rykov (1874–1942), with funding from Vladimir Ginzburg, Rozenberg’s nephew.
Active until 1929, it was then closed by Soviet authorities and transformed into a club. During the German occupation, it was converted into stables. In 1945, it regained its religious function.
In 1990, the Chief Rabbi of Kiev and Ukraine, Yaakov Dov Bleich(3), initiated restoration work including the opening of a yeshiva and schools for boys and girls. In 1992, the synagogue was officially returned to the Jewish community.
(1) Deborah, prophetess and judge, leads the Bnei-Israel, under the command of Barak, to victory against the Canaanites. After their defeat at Mount Tabor, their leader Sisera tries to flee but is killed by Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite (tribe of Jethro).
(2) Podil is one of the oldest districts of Kiev. Its name means “low land,” reflecting its position by the Dnieper River.
(3) Yaakov Dov Bleich (born in Brooklyn in 1964) has been the Chief Rabbi of Kiev and Ukraine since 1990. He studied at the Karlin-Stolin Yeshiva, a Hasidic dynasty that emphasizes music and singing in its religious practices. He founded the Union of Religious Organizations of Ukraine and holds significant positions within the World Jewish Congress.