About the project
The Shepard Broad Synagogues is a complex of three religious structures: an Ashkenazi synagogue, a Sephardi synagogue (Beit Rachel and Beit Shmu’el), and a ritual bath.The buildings were designed by architect Haim Hafetz using his “domecrete” patent, in which concrete is cast over a balloon mold, creating interior spaces in which walls flow into ceiling, creating a feeling of unity and closeness. The identical synagogues seat 140 and feature womens’ galleries and central areas for Torah reading. The complex, which is located on the first road built in Gilo, was an important contribution to the religious life of residents of the Gilo Alef neighborhood, the first area built in Gilo in 1972, who previously held religious services in bomb shelters, classrooms or other inadequate spaces.
