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| Temple Beth Israel | |
|---|---|
 The current synagogue inWest Hartford, in 2008 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Reform Judaism |
| Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Synagogue |
| Leadership |
|
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | 701 Farmington Avenue,West Hartford,Connecticut 06119 |
| Country | United States |
  Location inConnecticut | |
| Coordinates | 41°45′53″N72°43′12″W / 41.76472°N 72.72000°W /41.76472; -72.72000 |
| Architecture | |
| Architects |
|
| Type | Synagogue |
| Style | 1876: 1936: |
| Established | 1843(as a congregation) |
| Completed |
|
| Domes |
|
| Website | |
| cbict | |
Temple Beth Israel (1876) | |
 The first synagogue, now cultural center, in 2010 | |
| Location | 21 Charter Oak Avenue,Hartford, Connecticut |
| Coordinates | 41°45′33″N72°40′29″W / 41.75917°N 72.67472°W /41.75917; -72.67472 |
| Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| NRHP reference No. | 78002868 |
| Added to NRHP | December 01, 1978 |
Temple Beth Israel (1936) | |
.jpg) The current synagogue building, in 2008 | |
| MPS | Historic Synagogues of Connecticut MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 95001343 |
| Added to NRHP | November 27, 1995 |
| [1][2] | |
Congregation Beth Israel (transliterated from theHebrew as "House of Israel") is aReformJewish congregation andsynagogue located at 701 Farmington Avenue inWest Hartford,Connecticut.
Established in 1843, Beth Israel is one of the twooldest Jewish congregations in Connecticut and is one of the largest Reform congregations inNew England. Its membership includes about 650 families and about 2,000 individuals.
The congregation'sfirst synagogue building on Charter Oak Avenue inHartford, commonly called the Charter OakTemple, was completed in 1876. It was designed byGeorge Keller in theRomanesque Revival style and was added to theNational Register of Historic Places in November 1978.
Beth Israel was founded in 1843, the same year the Connecticut legislature first permitted public worship by Jews. That year also saw the founding ofCongregation Mishkan Israel. Originally anOrthodox congregation, Beth Israel adoptedReform practices relatively quickly, influenced in part by the immigration of German Jews to Hartford. In 1877, the congregation joined with otherAmerican Reform Jewish communities to form theUnion of American Hebrew Congregations.
Congregation Beth Israel's first synagogue was built at 21 Charter Oak Avenue in Hartford in 1876. Though Beth Israel left the building in 1936, the building is occupied by the Charter Oak Cultural Center. It is among theoldest synagogue buildings still standing in the United States.[3]
Beth Israel moved into its present location in 1936.
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For most of the middle of the 20th century (1925–1977), Congregation Beth Israel was led byRabbiAbraham J. Feldman, a leading exponent of Classical Reform philosophy. One change that Rabbi Feldman brought to the congregation was the confirmation ceremony at age 16.[4]
Dr. Feldman was a nationally known Jewish leader.[5] He received many awards, authored several books, and held important positions in various offices including the Connecticut Advisory Committee of the United States Commission on Civil Rights and American Jewish Committee. He was praised byPresident Dwight D. Eisenhower for "his outstanding leadership" and "bringing strength to the nation and hope to the free world".[6]
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Rabbi Harold Silver succeededFeldman in 1968. He served as senior rabbi for 25 years, retiring in 1993. Silver came from a family ofrabbis, including the five generations preceding him. His father, Maxwell Silver, was a rabbi inNew York City; his uncle,Abba Hillel Silver, was a rabbi inCleveland, Ohio; and his grandfather, Moses Silver, was a rabbi inJerusalem. Silver wasordained in 1951 atHebrew Union College in New York City. Rabbi Silver's first rabbinate was as assistant rabbi at theRodef Shalom Congregation inPittsburgh. He later became rabbi at Temple Emanuel in Pittsburgh, where he served from 1955 until 1968, when he came to Congregation Beth Israel.[7]
Silver was prominent in the Hartford Jewish community. He organized the first Greater Hartford Rabbinical Board of Rabbis, which assembles rabbis from different Jewish congregations and movements. He also served on a variety of community boards, both Jewish and non-Jewish. Silver also promotedinterfaith dialogue, preaching at many local churches, as well as encouraging peace and understanding between people of different faiths. Additionally, Silver taught courses on Judaism at local universities. He hired Connecticut's first female associate rabbi,Jody Cohen, bringing her to Beth Israel in 1984.
Silver retired in 1993 and became rabbi emeritus. He died on March 9, 2017, at the age of 92.[8]
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Silver was succeeded by Rabbi Simeon Glaser in 1993, who served as assistant rabbi at Congregation Beth Israel at the end of Rabbi Silver's tenure as senior rabbi.[9] Glaser was popular with young families and children because of his interest in and talent formusic andsong. Glaser put on lively services for the holidays ofPurim andSimchas Torah; in these services, he, Cantor Green, and Assistant Rabbi Weiss sang, danced, and acted out stories of the holidays. After serving four years as senior rabbi, Glaser left Beth Israel, initially to serve at a smallConservative synagogue inWethersfield, Connecticut, and then atTemple Israel in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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During the 1990s,Congregation Beth Israel was instrumental in absorbing hundreds of Jewishimmigrants from the formerSoviet Union. Early in this period, the New American Committee was formed to provide assistance with education, licensing, clothing acquisition, and home needs. The New American Committee continues to provide educational opportunities, including lectures and weekly language classes. Congregation Beth Israel currently[when?] has a largeRussian-speaking population, and immigrants make up a significant portion of the congregation.
Rabbi Stephen Fuchs became senior rabbi in 1997 and has served as the Rabbi Emeritus since 2011.
The congregation occupies a large building that is dominated by aByzantine Revival dome. The building contains multiple parts: asanctuary (on which the dome is built), a chapel, a religious school, a pre-school, offices, two meeting halls, a small museum, and a library. Both the sanctuary and the chapel feature stained-glass windows.
The 1936 building was designed byCharles R. Greco and built at the height of theArt Deco movement; theByzantine revival form in Art Deco style provides a grand appearance. In 2006, the congregation was given the West Hartford Historic Preservation Award for its meticulous restoration of the historic structure.[10]
The synagogue building was one of fifteen Connecticut synagogues added to theNational Register of Historic Places in 1995[1] and 1996.
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