Chabad Lubavitch of Hong Kong
Chabad-Lubavitch centre in Hong Kong, the first in Asia
| Chabad Lubavitch of Hong Kong
| |
|---|---|
| Type | Religious organisation |
| Founded | 1986 / 1987 |
| Founder(s) | Mordechai Avtzon; Goldie Avtzon |
| Registration ID | 0209376 (Hong Kong Companies Registry) |
| Status | Live |
| Headquarters | 7–9 Macdonnell Road, Hoover Court, 1st Floor, Hong Kong |
| Location | Hong Kong |
| Area served | Hong Kong and Asia |
| Services | Synagogue, education, kosher services, hospitality |
| Key people | Mordechai Avtzon (co-director); Goldie Avtzon (co-director) |
| Website | chabadhongkong.org |
Chabad Lubavitch of Hong Kong (also called Chabad of Hong Kong) is a centre of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in Hong Kong. It was established by Rabbi Mordechai Avtzon and Goldie Avtzon in 1986 or 1987 and is described as the first Chabad centre in Asia.[1][2] It operates as a synagogue and community centre and is the headquarters for Chabad activities in the wider region under the name LIFE (Lubavitch In the Far East).[3]
Company
CHABAD LUBAVITCH JEWISH ORGANIZATION OF HONG KONG LIMITED was incorporated on 5 February 1988. Company registration number 0209376. Status live. Business registration number 12342929. Registered office: Room 303, 3/F, St George’s Building, 2 Ice House Street, Central, Hong Kong.[4] Secondary listings describe the entity as a company limited by guarantee.[5]
History
Rabbi Mordechai Avtzon first visited Hong Kong as a rabbinical student in 1985. He and Goldie Avtzon were sent to the then British colony the following year by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson. Hong Kong reverted to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.[6] The organisation’s own site gives 1987 as the year the couple were sent.[1]
- Editor's note: the Chabad.org source describes Hong Kong at the time as "a British protectorate". Hong Kong was a British colony (a dependent territory) until 1 July 1997, so the wording here has been corrected.
A Hong Kong government yearbook of 2002 listed Chabad Lubavitch among the three main synagogues serving the community, then located at 51 Garden Road.[7]
The centre later moved to 7–9 Macdonnell Road, Hoover Court, 1st Floor.[8] It expanded with two satellite houses: Chabad of Kowloon in 2005 and Chabad of Lantau in 2008.[1]
- Editor's note: dates conflict. The house's own site gives 2005 for Kowloon, but Chabad.org (2019) says the Kowloon centre was "established in 2008" and has been co-directed since 2017 by Yisroel and Menucha Lieberman.[6]
Activities
The organisation provides daily and Sabbath services, adult and children’s education, holiday programming, kosher services, hospitality for visitors, and personal counselling.[1] It began with a preschool in the Avtzons’ living room that grew into the Carmel Jewish Day School.[9] Other programmes include JUDA (an after-school enrichment programme), Camp Gan Israel, and young-professionals events.[10]
Rabbi Mordechai Avtzon has served as prison chaplain and secured kosher food for Jewish prisoners.[9] The centre has hosted community events including the rededication of a Torah scroll that travelled from Jerusalem to Afghanistan and later to Hong Kong.[11]
Community and politics
Chabad.org estimated in 2019 that Hong Kong had 4,000 to 5,000 Jews, temporary and permanent, as well as thousands of Jewish tourists each year. Speaking during the 2019 protests, Avtzon said the unrest "hasn’t turned Hong Kong into a dangerous place unless you insert yourself into the chaos. It’s not aimed at the Jews, but it affects the Jews as much as anyone else."[6] In late August 2026 the regional Chabad conference in Taipei marked 40 years since the Avtzons were sent to Hong Kong (see Chabad Lubavitch of Taiwan).[12]
Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1985 | Mordechai Avtzon visits Hong Kong as a rabbinical student[6] |
| 1986 | The Avtzons are sent to Hong Kong (the organisation's own site says 1987)[6][1] |
| 1988 | 5 February: Chabad Lubavitch Jewish Organization of Hong Kong Limited is incorporated[4] |
| 2005 or 2008 | Chabad of Kowloon opens (sources differ)[1][6] |
| 2008 | Chabad of Lantau opens[1] |
| 2017 | Yisroel and Menucha Lieberman become co-directors in Kowloon[6] |
| 2019 | Chaim and Menuchy Birnhack arrive as the third emissary couple[6] |
People
Mordechai Avtzon and Goldie Avtzon are co-directors.[8] Additional emissaries have included Rabbi Mendy Rabinowitz and Mushka Rabinowitz, and Rabbi Chaim Birnhack and Menuchy Birnhack (focused on children and young professionals). The Birnhacks moved from Israel just before Yom Kippur 2019 as the third emissary couple in Hong Kong. They took on Chabad Young Professionals and the JUDA afternoon programme and were to launch a CTeen chapter.[10][6] Chabad of Kowloon is co-directed by Rabbi Yisroel Lieberman and Menucha Lieberman.[13]
Contact
- Address: 7–9 Macdonnell Road, Hoover Court, 1st Floor, Hong Kong
- Telephone: +852 2523 9770; +852 2845 2772
- Website: ChabadHongKong.org
See also
- Chabad-Lubavitch
- Ohel Leah Synagogue
- Jewish Community Centre, Hong Kong
- Carmel Jewish Day School
- Chabad Lubavitch of China
- Chabad Lubavitch of Taiwan
- Jewish, Zionist and Israeli connections to Hong Kong
External links
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Chabad of Hong Kong, About Chabad of Hong Kong ChabadHongKong.org, accessed 7 October 2026.
- ↑ Karen Schwartz, Asia’s Jewish Transformation Celebrated at 25th Anniversary Dinner Chabad.org, 18 February 2011.
- ↑ Lubavitch.com, Torah Cup Competition for Jewish Children of the Far East Lubavitch.com, 27 February 2003.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Hong Kong Companies Directory, CHABAD LUBAVITCH JEWISH ORGANIZATION OF HONG KONG LIMITED LtdDir, accessed 7 October 2026.
- ↑ Hong Kong Business Directory, CHABAD LUBAVITCH JEWISH ORGANIZATION OF HONG KONG LIMITED HKG Business, accessed 7 October 2026.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 Chabad.org, Amid Turbulence, Hong Kong Jewry Receives Young Couple With Open Arms Chabad.org, 19 November 2019.
- ↑ Hong Kong Yearbook 2002, Chapter 18: Religion and Custom: Jewish Community Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, 2002.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters, Hong Kong – Centers Lubavitch.com, accessed 7 October 2026.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lubavitch.com, Hong Kong Jewish Community Celebrates Rabbi's 50th Lubavitch.com, 30 August 2009.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Chabad.org, Chabad of Hong Kong Chabad.org, accessed 7 October 2026.
- ↑ CrownHeights.info, An Heirloom Torah’s Journey From Jerusalem to Afghanistan to Hong Kong CrownHeights.info, 27 February 2024.
- ↑ Four Decades Into Asia’s Jewish Renaissance, Yeshiva World, 1 October 2026.
- ↑ Chabad of Kowloon, About Us KowloonChabad.com, accessed 7 October 2026.