BELFAST, Northern Ireland (JTA) — On Saturdays, the Jewish day of rest, there is barely a quorum of 10 for prayers at the old synagogue in Northern Ireland’s capital city. But every other Wednesday, the place is hopping. A gaggle of seniors gathers for lectures, conversation, lunch and socializing. Only some of them are Jewish.

“I come here mostly for company. I see my friends, and I enjoy the talks. It gets me out once a fortnight,” said Norma Simon, 94, one of the members of the synagogue, on a recent Wednesday.

Her Catholic companion, Eleanor Minahan, said she appreciates the company she finds at the Belfast Hebrew Congregation. “Most of the people that I meet here, I don’t meet in any other circumstances,” she said.

The neighborly vibes offer a contrast to tensions swirling outside and around the synagogue, the only Jewish house of worship in Northern Ireland. There, as in the Republic of Ireland to the south, pro-Palestinian sentiment is strong — as exemplified by the Belfast band Kneecap, which projected the phrase “Fuck Israel. Free Palestine” at the Coachella festival last month. Jewish leaders say antisemitism is on the rise.

Earlier this month, an object was thrown through the window of the synagogue, which is located in a mixed but predominantly Catholic neighborhood in North Belfast. Two girls were cautioned by the police, according to Michael Black, the congregation’s deputy chairman, and the damage caused will total over £600 ($800).

“My original thought was that this was inevitable,” Black said. He added, “In my lifetime, I don’t remember so much open antisemitism.”

Black said the synagogue has received hateful emails and phone calls. He said it has been experiencing “more verbal abuse than physical fear,” and he does not currently believe there is a lethal threat to his community.

“There’s an awful lot of virtue signaling and a lot of useful idiots who swallow the propaganda coming. That’s all. It’s getting worse,” he said. But he added that he worried that verbal abuse could morph into something more dangerous, as........

© The Times of Israel