ABSTRACT
As with any other religion, the architectural history of synagogues is varied and contested, by its "users" as well as by those who write about it. For past scholars and architects, contrast has been a key aspect of identifying and defining Judaism. Specifically, they routinely compared and contrasted Judaic and Christian typologies in a Yin/Yang manner, a complementary relationship that means "activation/completion". For synagogues, coexistence and mutual influence began with early Roman secular architecture. Cultural and architectural reciprocation in the early 20th century was heavily shaped by the International Modernist movement, whose influence could be detected through simplified volumes. At that time, architectural synagogue style grew out of disfavor as Jewish communities in Europe began to perceive Moorish-style synagogues as a marker for their "otherness"; that dissatisfaction was echoed by architects. It was, interestingly, replaced by a "National Romanticism" in Eastern and Northern Europe that incorporated local architectural features into synagogues as a way of expressing national identity.
