Chabad Lubavitch of Norway
Chabad-Lubavitch in Norway: Chabad Lubavitch Norge and the Lubavitch Fond Norge foundation, led in Oslo by Rabbi Shaul Wilhelm and Esther Wilhelm since 2004
| Chabad Lubavitch of Norway
| |
|---|---|
| Type | Jewish religious organisation (Chabad-Lubavitch) |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Headquarters | Oslo |
| Location | Josefines gate 9, 0351 Oslo |
| Area served | Norway |
| Key people | Shaul Wilhelm (director), Esther Wilhelm |
| Website | https://chabadnorge.no |
Chabad Lubavitch of Norway (Chabad Lubavitch Norge) is the Chabad-Lubavitch organisation in Norway. It is based in Oslo and has been led since 2004 by Rabbi Shaul Wilhelm and his wife Esther Wilhelm.[1][2] Its property is held by a separate foundation, Lubavitch Fond Norge.[3]
History
According to lubavitch.com, Shaul and Esther Wilhelm "landed in Oslo in 2004 to serve Norway's 2,000 Jews".[1] Chabad's world headquarters lists the centre as Lubavitch of Norway, Oslo 0362.[4] A 2017 overview of Jewish organisations in Norway by Mette Ramstad of Østfold University College described "Chabad Lubavitch Norge og Oslo" as an Orthodox non-profit organisation addressing all Jews, with Wilhelm as director and general manager.[5]
Registered entities
- Chabad Lubavitch Norge – association (forening/lag/innretning), organisation number 834652722, founded on 15 November 2024 and entered in the Central Coordinating Register for Legal Entities on 14 December 2024. Its business address is Josefines gate 9, 0351 Oslo. Its stated purpose is to increase knowledge of Jewish religion, culture, values and history and to carry out humanitarian work for Jews in need. The register lists Shaul Wilhelm as chair of the board, with Gonen Butel and Esther Miriam Wilhelm as board members, and M2 Revisjon AS as auditor.[2][6]
- Lubavitch Fond Norge – foundation (stiftelse), organisation number 911727595, founded on 10 October 2012 and registered on 6 April 2013, with capital of NOK 100,000. Its business address is Bekkeveien 7, 3320 Vestfossen. Its purpose is to provide property for the religious and cultural activities of Chabad-Lubavitch. It has been in the Register of Non-Profit Organisations (Frivillighetsregisteret) since 11 May 2018. Shaul Wilhelm is its general manager (daglig leder); the board is chaired by Chaim Eliezer Ashkenazi, with Tom Ivar Gravklev, Shaul Wilhelm and Michael Bendennoun Danow as members.[3]
A 2023 overview by Ramstad dates "Chabad Lubavitch Norge og Chabad Lubavitch Oslo" to 2013–2014;[7] the association currently registered under the name Chabad Lubavitch Norge dates from 2024.[2]
Funding and state support
In Norway, registered faith communities receive state support. According to Ramstad's 2023 overview, only Det Mosaiske Trossamfund in Oslo (626 members) and the Jewish Community in Trondheim (129 members) were registered Jewish faith communities receiving such support, and "Chabad Lubavitch Norge og Chabad Lubavitch Oslo" were listed among Jewish organisations that do not receive support from the county governor as registered faith communities.[7]
According to lubavitch.com in 2018, Wilhelm said that there were some local supporters but that philanthropy was not part of Norwegian culture, and he travelled abroad eight times a year to raise funds. In 2009 the centre received a two-year grant from the Frontier Fund, which an anonymous donor set up with Machne Israel, the social-services division of Chabad's headquarters.[1]
Relations with the Jewish community
The 2017 overview describes Chabad as addressing all Jews in Norway.[5] No published source was found describing relations between Chabad and Det Mosaiske Trossamfund.
Israel and public profile
In May 2011 Chabad.org reported that Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister, Danny Ayalon, met Wilhelm during a visit to Oslo and invited him to visit his office in Jerusalem.[8]
In December 2025, after the attack on a Hanukkah celebration organised by Chabad at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Vårt Land reported that Chabad would hold its Hanukkah celebration in central Oslo, that Wilhelm had known one of those killed well, and that the mayor of Oslo, Anne Lindboe, said: "Det er ekstra viktig at vi stiller opp nå" (It is especially important that we show up now).[9]
See also
- Chabad-Lubavitch movement
- Jewish, Zionist and Israeli connections to Norway
- Chabad Lubavitch of Sweden
- Chabad Lubavitch of Denmark
- Chabad Lubavitch of Finland
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Dvora Lakein, "Frontier Fund Offers Small Chabad Centers Some Relief", lubavitch.com, 9 May 2018, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Chabad Lubavitch Norge, 834652722", Enhetsregisteret, Brønnøysund Register Centre, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Lubavitch Fond Norge, 911727595", Enhetsregisteret, Brønnøysund Register Centre, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ "Lubavitch of Norway", Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mette Ramstad, "Jødiske trossamfunn og foreninger i Norge 2017", Høgskolen i Østfold, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ "Chabad Lubavitch Norge", Regnskapstall.no, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Mette Ramstad, "Jødiske trossamfunn og foreninger i Norge 2023", Høgskolen i Østfold, 18 October 2023, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ Rishe Groner, "Israeli Diplomat Finds Challah in Norway", Chabad.org, 11 May 2011, accessed 25 October 2026.
- ↑ Herman Frantzen, "Han mistet rabbiner-kollega i Sydney-terroren: – Vi har blitt omfavnet av kjærlighet", Vårt Land, 16 December 2025, accessed 25 October 2026.