Just three days after the attempted firebombing of Finchley Reform Synagogue last week, the north London worship hall was full to bursting for Friday night prayers.

"It was one of the biggest services I've ever seen. It was like three bar mitzvahs and an aufruf [when a groom is called to the Torah] combined," said Raymond Simonson, a synagogue trustee and chief executive of London's JW3 community center. "People really wanted to be there. My 82-year-old mother, who is on crutches, called up and told me she just had to go."

It wasn't just the synagogue members filling the premises. The local Somali Bravanese community – which the synagogue invited to share their building after their own center was firebombed 13 years ago – brought doughnuts and messages of unity. Local council members and politicians turned out; community groups and Christian congregations gathered to sing "We Shall Overcome" before services.

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The arson attack in Finchley was the first in a series of attacks targeting Jewish institutions and synagogues over the last month.