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Temple Beth El was realization of American dream

By Carolyn Bening Historic City of Jefferson

“Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” — words of American Jewish poet Emma Lazarus.

Twelve Hebrew men, most from Bavaria and in the clothing industry, immigrated on sailing ships past the Liberty Statue, eventually migrating to Jefferson City. They comprised a fragment of the thousands of Jewish families emigrating as part of the mid-19th century Reform Judaism movement erupting out of Germany against more extreme Orthodox Judaism.

Their faith and ritual observances had identified four components of a community of Reformed Jewish faithful: a gathering of a minyan (Jewish prayer meeting), the creation of a cemetery, the building of a synagogue, and a benevolent society built on kindness, love, and compassion for others. (Rabbi Hayim Donin To Be a Jew). In 1879 the Capital City’s Jewish community of 12 families met the first goal when prayer services were held in members’ homes, thereby keeping the weekly Shabbat.

An early Jewish merchant in Jefferson City was Morris Obermayer, whose death in 1876 resulted in his burial to be held in a St. Louis Hebrew cemetery, necessitating the forming of the Jefferson City Hebrew Cemetery

Association. Anticipating a future synagogue, members of the association formed in 1879 on paper the Beth El Congregation, meaning “House of God.”

The second, more urgent goal was the building of a Hebrew cemetery. To bury their dead “with the ceremonies and usages of the Jewish religion,” the Cemetery Association purchased a plot in February 1879 on East McCarty Street, naming it “Maple Grove Cemetery.” Besides the Jewish custom of remembering the gravesite with a tombstone, Gail Severance mentioned that the names of deceased loved ones are read on the anniversary of their passing at the Sabbath service.

However, the gravesites were moved in 1932 when McCarty Street was widened. An agreement with Riverview Cemetery reserved Section 10 for use by Temple members and those of Jewish faith, an agreement still standing today. Early burials in the Maple Grove Cemetery were Abraham Straus, father of Joseph, in February 1889 and Jacob Goldman in February 1907.

The construction of Beth El Temple was realized on April 3, 1882, when six Jewish women, members of the Hebrew Ladies Sewing Society, raised $1,800 to purchase land on Monroe Street. Prominent local architect Frank B. Miller designed the 38-by-25-foot brick and cut-stone Temple building, completing it in 1883. Twelve Temple families observed the High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur that October 136 years ago.

Renovating the temple in 1954 included a kitchen, bathroom and heating system. In 1968, an updated interior included walnut paneling, red carpeting, arched ceilings and stained-glass windows depicting Jewish symbols. Behind the altar, the eternal light illuminates the Hebrew inscription “Know before Whom you stand.”

The fourth tenet described by Rabbi Hayim Donin, central to Jewish religious faith, is kindness, love and compassion for others as taught in the Torah. Over its 140 years of existence, members of Temple Beth El have exemplified this Jewish daily life by their community civic responsibilities serving on hospital boards and auxiliaries to county health drives to city arts and library councils.

Today’s Beth El Sisterhood is responsible for church suppers, Temple upkeep, community educational programs and century-old festival celebrations. Purim marks the joyful deliverance of the Jews from the Persians. Upholding this festival tradition, members practice tzedakah, acts of charity and kindness, by sending baskets of food to friends and gifts and donations to those in need.

The Days of Awe, 10 days of self-reflection, include Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year (beginning Sept. 29 this year). This joyous High Holiday, commemorating the world’s creation, begins in the synagogue’s prayer service and by the sounding of the shofar, a ram’s horn trumpet. In the home, two candles are lighted, and blessings recited over the wine and bread, challah baked in a round shape, the circle of life.

Special dishes customarily served on Rosh Hashanah involve honey, wishing others a sweet new year. The honey cakes or tzimmes have become a distinctive dish for Temple member Gail Severance; as a beekeeper, she enjoys creating honey jars in September for friends. Reflecting on the synagogue’s Rosh Hashanah celebration, Gail commented, “I like to think of the generations of Jefferson City’s Jewish community who have come together in this special place.”

Nearing its 150-year anniversary in 2022, the Temple Beth El congregation has been blessed by keeping their traditions and culture true to their faith, but also by their sharing of blessings, a sharing of the joyous as well as the sorrowful experiences, with members and strangers. The foundation of that bond is the synagogue, the oldest Reform temple west of the Mississippi in its original structure and in continuous use since its inception.

Carolyn Bening, a former assistant editor of Historic City of Jefferson’s Yesterday & Today newsletter, is a local historian, retired high school and university teacher, and amateur genealogist.

Jefferson City News Tribune

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2020-11-06T08:00:00.0000000Z

2020-11-06T08:00:00.0000000Z

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