Wikipedia's first sentence called it “oldest jewish congregation in south africa”. Today it says “modern orthodox jewish congregation and synagogue”. The one-line description Wikipedia serves to search engines and AI systems read “The Gardens Shul , formally, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation , founded in 1841, located in the Cape Town Botanical”. It now reads “Modern Orthodox synagogue in Cape Town, South Africa”.
Measured, not asserted. Every count, date and revision on this page was taken from Wikipedia's own history and checked against the live article. The words quoted are theirs.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-03.
We saved snapshots of this article over twenty years; you are reading the 2025 one. Red dashes: removed from Wikipedia since.Pale dots: rewritten; the numbered note shows what it says now.Red text: written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot.1 tap a number or a side note to jump between them
The opening as it read in 2025
Gardens Shul , formally the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation (CTHC), also called the Great Synagogue , is a Modern Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue , located in the Company's Garden , in the Gardens neighborhood of Cape Town , South Africa . The congregation was established in 1841, making it the oldest Jewish congregation in South Africa. The congregation, known as "The Mother Synagogue of South Africa," possesses two historic structures, the 1863 synagogue known as the Old Shul and the 1905 synagogue. The South African Jewish Museum , located in its grounds, also occupies the Old Shul and is responsible for its upkeep. The 1905 building is an example of Edwardian architecture and has been called "one of the most magnificent synagogues in the world." "Cape Town's Jewish History on Display" .
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 1295573240.
The opening as it stood in 2010
he Gardens Shul , formally, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation , founded in 1841, located in the Cape Town Botanical Gardens , in the Gardens neighborhood of Cape Town , is the oldest Jewish congregation in South Africa . The congregation, known as "The Mother synagogue of South Africa," possesses two notable historic structures, the 1863 synagogue and the 1905 synagogue. The original 1849 building is no longer extant. The congregation is particularly noted for its choir. The synagogue grounds also house the South Africa Jewish Museum .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 363718952.
The opening as it stood in 2015
The Gardens Shul , formally, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation , founded in 1841, located in the Cape Town Botanical Gardens , in the Gardens neighborhood of Cape Town , is the oldest Jewish congregation in South Africa . The Rabbi's name is Rabbi Feldman and the cantor is Choni Goldman. The congregation, known as "The Mother Synagogue of South Africa," possesses two notable historic structures, the 1863 synagogue and the 1905 synagogue. The original 1849 building is no longer extant. The congregation is particularly noted for its choir. The synagogue grounds also house the South Africa Jewish Museum .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 669140841.
The opening as it stood in 2020
The Gardens Shul , formally, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation , founded in 1841, located in the Cape Town Botanical Gardens , in the Gardens neighborhood of Cape Town , is the oldest Jewish congregation in South Africa . The rabbi is Rabbi Feldman and the cantor is Choni Goldman. The congregation, known as "The Mother Synagogue of South Africa," possesses two notable historic structures, the 1863 synagogue and the 1905 synagogue. The original 1849 building is no longer extant. The congregation is particularly noted for its choir. The synagogue grounds also house the South Africa Jewish Museum .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 932224623.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Jewish religious building in Cape Town, South Africa The Gardens Shul , formally, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation , founded in 1841, located in the Cape Town Botanical Gardens , in the Gardens neighborhood of Cape Town , is the oldest Jewish congregation in South Africa . The rabbi is Rabbi Feldman and the cantor is Choni Goldman. The congregation, known as "The Mother Synagogue of South Africa," possesses two historic structures, the 1863 synagogue and the 1905 synagogue. The original 1849 building is no longer extant. The synagogue grounds also house the South African Jewish Museum .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1145912766.
Today
Wikipedia's first sentence called it “oldest jewish congregation in south africa”. Today it says “modern orthodox jewish congregation and synagogue”. The one-line description Wikipedia serves to search engines and AI systems read “The Gardens Shul , formally, the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation , founded in 1841, located in the Cape Town Botanical”. It now reads “Modern Orthodox synagogue in Cape Town, South Africa”. Read the current article and compare.
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined since 2010, and today's defining sentence is their current revision.
Then
oldest jewish congregation in south africa
Now
modern orthodox jewish congregation and synagogue
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
