N.Y. synagogue may be demolished
new york (ap) | Part of the roof collapsed at a historic Lower East Side synagogue this week, creating the possibility that the 19th-century building will have to be demolished.
No one was injured when the roof collapsed Sunday, Jan. 22 at the First Roumanian-American Congregation, but about 100 people were evacuated from four neighboring buildings, said Ilyse Fink, a spokeswoman for the city Department of Buildings.
The synagogue’s red brick facade remained intact but the floor of the main chamber was covered with large pieces of roofing.
The congregation, which has owned the structure since 1902, had been conducting services elsewhere since discovering water damage in the roof about seven weeks ago, said the congregation’s leader, Rabbi Shmuel Spiegel.
Since the building lacks city landmark designation, it could be leveled if the congregation is unable to repair it, Fink said. But Spiegel said he was hopeful the building could be saved.
“I believe God will help,” he said.
Ex-Nazi guard fights deportation
cleveland (ap) | An 85-year-old retired autoworker who lost his citizenship based on evidence he was a Nazi death camp guard asked an immigration board to reverse a judge’s order that he be deported.
Chief Immigration Judge Michael Creppy ruled Dec. 28 that there was no evidence to document John Demjanjuk’s claim that he would be tortured if deported to his home country of Ukraine. The judge ruled that Demjanjuk should be deported to Germany or Poland if Ukraine does not accept him.
Demjanjuk’s appeal, filed Monday, Jan. 23, sticks to the argument that he faces torture in Ukraine and that the case should have been handed to a judge in Cleveland. Creppy is based in Falls Church, Va., as is the Board of Immigration Appeals.
BBYO poll: Religion matters to teenagers
new york (jta) | Two-thirds of U.S. teenagers say religion and faith are important to them, a new survey says.
But 39 percent of them are not sure how to connect to their religion, according to the 742 teens surveyed in a poll commissioned by the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization.
Some 52 percent of respondents said they are looking for less conventional ways to connect with their religion.
In other findings, 72 percent of teenage girls say religion is important to them, compared to 64 percent of teenage boys. Also, 92 percent of respondents want a better connection with their religion.