Beth Israel Congregation (Jackson, Mississippi) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Beth Israel |
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Hebrew: בית ישראל
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| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Reform Judaism |
| Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Synagogue |
| Leadership | Rabbi Joseph Rosen |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | 5315 Old Canton Road, Jackson, Mississippi 39211 |
| Country | United States |
 Location in Mississippi
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| Architecture | |
| Architect(s) | Joseph Willis (1875) |
| Architectural type | Synagogue |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival (1875) |
| Date established | 1861 (as a congregation) |
| Completed |
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Beth Israel Congregation (Hebrew: בית ישראל) is a Reform Jewish community and synagogue. It is located in Jackson, Mississippi, in the United States. The group was started in 1860 by Jewish people from Germany. It is the only Jewish synagogue in Jackson.
Beth Israel built the first synagogue building in Mississippi in 1867. After it burned down, a new building was built in 1874. This building was once the oldest religious building in Jackson. The congregation was first Orthodox, but it joined the Union of American Hebrew Congregations in 1874.
The congregation moved to a new building in 1941. Dr. Perry Nussbaum was the rabbi from 1954 to 1973. He was very active in the Civil Rights Movement. In 1967, the congregation moved to another new synagogue building. Both the new building and Rabbi Nussbaum's house were bombed that year. These attacks were carried out by the Ku Klux Klan.
In 2003, Valerie Cohen became the first female rabbi for the congregation. Rabbi Joseph Rosen started at Beth Israel in July 2019. With over 200 families, Beth Israel is the largest Jewish community in Mississippi.
Contents
How Did Beth Israel Begin?
The Beth Israel community started in 1860. Its first goal was to create a Jewish cemetery. They quickly set one up on State Street. In 1862, they hired a cantor named Mr. Oberndorfer. Their next goal was to provide Jewish education for their children. At that time, there were only 15 Jewish families in Jackson.
Some stories say the first synagogue was built in 1861. It was at South State and South streets. These stories claim it was burned by the Union Army in 1863. However, this claim is not fully proven. In 1863, the congregation had 31 members. They also wrote their first rules.
In 1867, the congregation built a wooden building. It was at the corner of South State and South streets. This building was used as both a school and for prayer. It was the first synagogue ever built in Mississippi.
The congregation was not always in agreement from the start. But in 1868, there were only about 50 Jewish people in Jackson. This was too few for two synagogues. There were disagreements between older German Jewish members and newer Jewish immigrants from Poland. These conflicts were often about synagogue traditions. The synagogue followed Orthodox customs. But some members wanted to use a more modern prayer book.
Things got better when Beth Israel hired its first Rabbi, L. Winter, in 1870. He began to move the community towards Reform Judaism. He changed Saturday services to Friday nights. He also gave sermons in English. He added confirmation ceremonies for young people. However, Rabbi Winter left soon after.
What Happened to the First Buildings?
Beth Israel's first building burned down in July 1874. A new stone and brick building was built in the same spot. This new building opened in 1875. It was a two-story brick building in the Gothic Revival style. It had pointed-arch windows. The second floor had a large room for gatherings.
The architect, Joseph Willis, had designed other important buildings in Mississippi. Later, one straight staircase replaced the two curved ones. The brick walls were also covered with stucco. In 1875, Beth Israel officially became a Reform synagogue. They joined the Union of American Hebrew Congregations.
Beth Israel in the Early 1900s
The congregation grew very slowly at first. By 1908, there were only 37 members. There were 16 children in the religious school. By 1918, membership had dropped to 24. Only 10 children were in the religious school.
In the early 1900s, the area around the South State Street building became more industrial. Many members had moved away from downtown Jackson. So, in 1940, the congregation started building a new synagogue. It was located at 546 East Woodrow Wilson Avenue. During construction, they held services at a local church.
The congregation moved into the new building in 1941. It was officially opened in January 1942. The main prayer room had solid walnut pews that could seat 300 people. Beth Israel's old building was torn down. At the time, it was the oldest building used for religious purposes in Jackson. In 2005, a historical marker was placed there. It remembers the original Beth Israel synagogue buildings.
In its early years, Beth Israel had many rabbis who stayed for only short times. There were also many periods without any rabbi. In 1929, the congregation hired Rabbi Meyer Lovitt. With him, Beth Israel became more stable. By 1939, the synagogue had 72 members. The total Jewish population in Jackson was about 250.
Rabbi Lovitt was a calm person. He avoided getting involved in issues about the civil rights movement. He focused on the similarities between Christianity and Judaism. He also liked the idea of Jewish people fitting in with the wider community. He preferred that Jewish holidays be celebrated quietly. He even allowed members to have Christmas trees. He called them "Hanukkah bushes." Rabbi Lovitt stayed with Beth Israel until he retired in 1954.
Rabbi Perry Nussbaum and the Civil Rights Era
In 1954, Dr. Perry Nussbaum became the new rabbi. He was born in Toronto in 1908. He had served as a chaplain in the United States Army. He was looking for a stable job. When he interviewed for the role, the first question was about his views on school desegregation. This was a big issue at the time. He said he was a liberal. But he was careful not to cause trouble for his community. Even though they worried about his liberal views, they offered him the job.
Rabbi Nussbaum was a strong person. He was direct and not always tactful. Some members remembered him as "headstrong." But he was a good teacher, speaker, and spiritual leader. He was especially good at writing new prayers.
Nussbaum felt that many Beth Israel members had lost touch with Jewish traditions. He said some were "anti-Hebrew, anti-Israel, anti-everything!" He criticized members who had Christmas trees. He slowly brought back Jewish traditions like bar mitzvahs. He also started adult education programs and Hebrew studies.
Rabbi Nussbaum supported Zionism and the country of Israel. His community usually avoided talking about these topics in public. When he arrived, he found that some wealthy members supported an anti-Zionist group. He immediately stopped them from meeting at the synagogue. He also openly said that Judaism was a unique religion, not just an older version of Christianity.
In 1955, Nussbaum created the Mississippi Assembly of Jewish Congregations. It included representatives from all 25 synagogues in Mississippi. He was elected its president. He also helped start the Jackson Interfaith Fellowship. This group brought together different faiths.
After a synagogue in another city was bombed in 1958, Nussbaum wrote an article. He said such an attack could happen in Jackson. This article was printed in local newspapers. It caused a lot of disagreement among Jackson's leaders. This led to a conflict with his own congregation. Some wanted him to get approval for all public statements. His supporters stopped this rule from passing. But the attempt worried Nussbaum. Still, he continued his activism.
In 1961, Nussbaum helped the early Freedom Riders. These were civil rights activists who were jailed in Mississippi. In 1966, he started holding yearly "Clergy Institutes" at Beth Israel. He invited local Black ministers to these meetings.
Attacks on the Synagogue
As tensions grew in the Southern United States over the civil rights movement, Jewish people in Jackson faced threats. They were targeted by hate groups like the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The KKK's leader in Mississippi, Samuel Bowers, ordered attacks on the synagogue and Rabbi Nussbaum.
Jewish people in Jackson faced prejudice. They were not allowed to join certain clubs. They were used to "slights and indignities" from the main white Christian community.
In 1967, the congregation moved to its current building on Old Canton Road. It is an octagonal building with a large roof. At its opening in March 1967, both Black and white ministers took part.
On September 18, 1967, the new building was badly damaged. KKK members placed a dynamite bomb in a doorway. The explosion tore a hole in the ceiling. It blew out windows and damaged walls. The bomb caused $25,000 worth of damage.
Three days later, local clergy showed their support for the Jewish community. They organized a "Walk of Penance." This group included 60 clergy from 10 different faiths. It was the first racially mixed group of Protestants, Catholics, and Jews in Mississippi. Rabbi Nussbaum had helped create it. Despite this show of support, the people who set the bomb were not found.
In November 1967, the same group planted a bomb at Rabbi Nussbaum's house. It blew out the front of his house while he and his wife were sleeping. Nussbaum believed the bombings were due to local prejudice against Jewish people. But most of his congregation blamed it on his activism against segregation.
Even though the congregation officially supported him, some members privately asked him to leave. The synagogue's board voted to stop non-Jewish groups from using the synagogue. This was meant to end the mixed-race meetings Rabbi Nussbaum held there.
After the bombings, Nussbaum wanted to leave Jackson. But as a 60-year-old rabbi, he could not find another job. He stayed at Beth Israel until he retired in 1973. Then, he and his wife moved to San Diego.
Beth Israel in Recent Times
After Rabbi Nussbaum retired, Richard Birnholz became the rabbi. He also taught at Millsaps College. He served Beth Israel until 1986.
After Birnholz, Eric Gurvis, Steven Engel, and Jim Egolf served as rabbis. Like Nussbaum, they also led services once a month at Temple Beth El in Lexington, Mississippi. By the end of the 1900s, Beth Israel was the largest of Mississippi's 14 synagogues. It had 213 member families.
In 2003, Beth Israel hired Valerie Cohen. She was the first female rabbi for the congregation. She had worked as an assistant rabbi in Memphis, Tennessee. She continued the tradition of serving as rabbi for Temple Beth El in Lexington.
In 2005, Rabbi Cohen started classes for adults. These classes were for those who wanted to celebrate their Bar and Bat Mitzvah but had not had the chance as teens. That same year, after Hurricane Katrina, Beth Israel welcomed many people who had to leave their homes in New Orleans.
In 2006, Beth Israel had about 200 families. Unlike other Jewish congregations in Mississippi, its membership was slowly growing. In 2013, the synagogue's windows were broken. The word "Jew" was scratched into a door.
Rabbi Cohen left in 2014 to become a rabbi in Massachusetts. Interim rabbis Ted Riter and Stephen Wylen followed her.
Jeffrey Kurtz-Lendner became rabbi in 2016. By 2017, the congregation had 214 families. That year, they held their 50th annual charity food bazaar. They also celebrated 50 years in the Old Canton Road building.
In April 2018, the synagogue was added to the Mississippi Freedom Trail. This was to recognize its help in the civil rights movement.
