© dpa
The exterior of the Pears Jewish Campus (PJC), taken before the building opened.
© dpa
People walk through the entrance area with the "Tree of Life" light installation during a press event before the opening of the Pears Jewish Campus (PJC).
A visible sign of Jewish life, a place of tolerance: After four years of construction, the largest Jewish institution for education, culture and sport since the Shoah, the Pears Jewish Campus (PJC), opens in Berlin on Sunday.
On 8000 square metres, there are day-care centres, primary and secondary schools, art studios and music studios, a cinema, a sports and event hall, a kosher deli.
"We are building to remain," said the chairman of the Jewish Campus Foundation, Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal, on Friday. "Despite the difficulties, there is absolutely a vibrant future here." He called the new campus "the heart for the future of Jewish life and positive coexistence." The educational facilities and event spaces are open to people of all faiths, and anyone and everyone can visit the campus - despite the security precautions required at all Jewish institutions.
The campus was built for 40 million euros in a residential area in Berlin-Wilmersdorf: a curved building that, according to Teichtal, is reminiscent of a newborn baby, the façade kept in blue as a reflection of the sky, with seven floors for the seven days of the week - "seven floors of the future", as Teichtal said.
The "Pears Jewish Campus" is named after its main sponsor, the British Pears Foundation. However, the federal government, the state of Berlin and others are also donors. The sponsor is a foundation. Among others, the president of the Central Council of Jews, Josef Schuster, the actress Iris Berben and the former editor-in-chief of "Bild" Kai Diekmann sit on the board of trustees.
On Friday, work was still going on at the construction site. On Sunday, the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel, Izchak Josef, Central Council President Schuster, and Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner, among others, are expected to attend the opening. "This campus is a testament to the active Jewish community in Berlin and its visibility in our city," Wegner said in advance.