Hungary has changed in many ways over the years, but for its Jewish population, it has been a complete reversal, according to Chief Rabbi Slomó Köves of the Association of United Hungarian Jewish Congregations (EMIH), with the country going from a place where it had been difficult for Jewish life to exist to a center of Jewish life in Europe.
Köves told The Jerusalem Post that he had been involved in Jewish life in Hungary for 35 years, but had “never dreamed that there could be such change” in the country. There had been “a 180 for Jewish life and antisemitism in Hungary.”
“Hungary was on the map as one of the most antisemitic countries in Europe,” said Köves.
Hungary fought on the side of the Nazis during World War II, and there was always a question as to how Hungarians related to that history when compared to other European states. Yet the world has turned, along with Hungary, and the dynamics within other European states are not the same as they once were for Jews.
“With antisemitism today, you need a survival strategy for living in France – and that was even before October 7,” said Köves
Antisemitic harassment had gone down in Hungary, said Köves, his perception backed by a European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) report in July 2024 that found that 24% of Hungarian Jews had experienced harassment in a 12-month period, compared to the average of 37% in a review of 13 European states.
The Action and Protection Foundation said in a 2024 analysis of the FRA data that Hungary had been one of the worst performers in terms of antisemitic harassment in 2013 but had become one of the top performers by 2018.
Unlike in Paris or London, there were little to no post-October 7 massacre anti-Israel protests in Budapest, according to Köves, as they were rejected by the government as pro-terrorism rallies due to their perceived support of the 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel.
Hungary to serve as a model for reducing antisemitism
Hungary could serve as a model for reducing antisemitism, the rabbi said. Many Jewish communities had been reluctant to grow close to governments, but Köves said the Hungarian Jewish community had flourished under the current government. European Jewish politics was often about “protection,” part of a “post Holocaust mentality” that was “already not working” as the memory of the survivors and perpetrators began to fade.
Köves, instead, offered another framework. One aspect was familiarity – educating and being open and represented so that Jews weren’t seen as an alien unknown. Another means for greater acceptance came from communities considering what they could offer the country.
One bonus for a flourishing Jewish community was a strong connection to Israel. Hungary had become a friend of Israel, a relationship that had pragmatic elements, Köves said. Israeli companies had invested in Hungarian industry, and Israeli entrepreneurs had brought with them their knowledge and experience in a variety of fields. Additionally, Israel is a leader in areas of the defense industry. Good relations with Israel had turned Budapest into a major tourist destination for Israelis.
Köves warned that, while it was important to appreciate the changes in Hungary, it was also necessary for Jewish communities to never “fall asleep” regarding antisemitism. The environment could change, such as through elections, and a challenging party with a different perspective on Israel could rise to power.
While EMIH was close to the government, Köves insisted that the community tried to be apolitical. Yet even in the political realm, there was still improvement to be seen, as the rabbi noted that current political campaigns were the first to not involve Jews in some manner.
Yet contemplations of the future were speculations, and, in the meantime, the good ties with Israel and the Jewish community had drawn tourism from Israelis and global Jewry.
Köves said that it was no wonder Israelis and Jews were visiting Hungary when it had “beautiful Jewish and kosher facilities” for tourists. The country also had a great Jewish and Zionist history.
The founder of Satmar Hassidim, Grand Rebbe Yoel Teitelbaum, had ties to Hungary, and the father of political Zionism, Theodor Herzl, was born in Pest. There were over a dozen historic synagogues in Budapest, many of them restored to their former splendor. Many Jews around the world could trace their roots to Hungary. Displays of Jewish identity, unlike in many other places in Europe, were unabashed. In front of the Neolog community’s massive Dohány Street Synagogue, there was a memorial to – and an exhibition about – the victims of October 7 and the hostages.
Several years ago, being an observant Jew in Hungary was significantly more difficult. There was little access to kosher food. Some community members had to purchase milk directly from the farms to ensure it was kosher. There was little in the way of kosher restaurants. Jewish education and medical centers were declining.
Much has changed, not just in the past 35 years, but even in the last five. A kosher dairy factory is opening, and one community member is set to open a kosher ice cream parlor. The number of kosher restaurants has doubled, their signs brightening the streets of Budapest’s Jewish quarter. More Jews than ever can be seen walking those streets, be they secular Israelis identifiable by their loud chatter in Hebrew, or Orthodox Jews, recognizable by their attire. Four years ago, EMIH established a rabbinical court.
The Zsilip Synagogue and Jewish Center was still under construction just five years ago. The site functions around families, with a third of the synagogue devoted to children and teenagers, with multi-story slides, a ball pit, and even miniature golf. The play center, alongside the utilities for children to play “house,” has lessons and commandments painted into murals. Older children learn Hebrew and basic Jewish studies in an area behind the prayer hall. Köves said that even more synagogues would be opening as historic synagogues were being returned to the Jewish community.
One of the challenges that Köves is seeking to face in the next five years is assimilation. Originally from a secular family with little Jewish education in his youth, Köves said that there were between 50,000 and 100,000 Jews in Hungary, many of whom do not participate in any of the communities, namely the Orthodox, Neolog, or Chabad.
One need only dig in the earth of Budapest to find Jewish roots, he noted. With a rate of intermarriage that he estimates at around 90%, his task of attracting assimilated Jews was formidable.
At the Maimonidesz English-Hungarian Bilingual High School, many of the 76 students are from secular Jewish stock. The school offers an education program that includes a course in introduction to Jewish identity, explained school director Zsuzsa Szilánk.
Many students had not known that they were Jewish, but they were now walking around wearing tzitzit. Szilánk told of a Tu Bishvat program that the school held with grandparents. The children recited prayers over Shabbat candles, leading one woman to break into tears. The last time she had heard the prayer was from her mother, who had been murdered in Auschwitz.
Many of the children didn’t know the prayers, but on the anniversary of October 7, they had a choir singing psalms, and a poster educating students how to say prayers for those suffering in the conflicts in Ukraine, Israel, Sudan, and Nigeria.
A happy and proud connection to Judaism
“Our goal is to teach them how to connect in a happy and proud way to Judaism,” said Szilánk.
Many of the congregants and visitors expressed optimism about the future of Judaism in Hungary, though many of those spoken to were affiliated with Chabad.
Köves shared the optimism, though he tempered his hope with some caution, mostly with a focus on the future. Kosher food was still too expensive for most people, he explained, and he wanted to work to provide a more moderate and affordable standard that would be more widely available to those who required it. He also sought to reclaim more synagogues that had been taken over during the Soviet period.
Yet amid these thoughts about the future, Köves also kept one eye on the past.
“A few years ago, you couldn’t imagine Hungary as being a center for Jewish life,” Köves said. “Look at us now.”