Our History
Our History
Over 150 years of Temple Israel History
Congregation Adath Israel was founded in 1854 by German members of Temple Ohabei Shalom, who split with their Polish coreligionists over ethnic and ritual differences. The synagogue established its first home on Pleasant Street in the South End the same year.
For its first 20 years, Adath Israel remained an Orthodox congregation, but as congregants gained more financial success and became more involved with the local community, they began to call for religious modifications to reflect their changing identity and social aspirations. Beginning with small liturgical changes, congregants soon voted to incorporate sermons, mixed seating, a choir, and an organ. In 1874, the congregation elected Rabbi Solomon Schindler, who made his pulpit an interfaith educational tool, encouraging interested Christians to attend his sermons on Judaism and explaining Christian doctrine to his congregation.
By the 1880s, membership tripled, and included the most wealthy and influential Jews in Boston. To accommodate this growth, the congregation built a beautiful new temple on Columbus Avenue. By the early 1890s, Schindler's teachings were deviating too far from Judaism for his congregation. The board replaced him in 1894 with Rabbi Charles Fleischer. Temple Israel joined the Union of American Hebrew Congregations and adopted the new Union Prayer book.
In 1907, Temple Israel dedicated a 1,000-seat synagogue on fashionable Commonwealth Avenue, reflecting the congregation's growing wealth and prominence. By 1911, Fleischer resigned and the congregation chose Rabbi Harry Levi to replace him.
During Levi's tenure, the congregation completely revamped its Sabbath school. The board reorganized the structure, hiring professional teachers and placing the children in grades. Working with the temple's Sisterhood, founded in 1903, they also established branch schools in the Boston's ghettos. A Young People's Society, organized in 1915 supplemented these educational efforts. In 1928, the Temple's commitment to both childhood and adult education was reinforced with the building of a meetinghouse on the Riverway, which provided more program and school space for the rapidly growing congregation.
With Levi's retirement in 1939, the temple elected Joshua Loth Liebman, a promising young rabbi and scholar. He reinstated Saturday as the main day of worship and brought Friday night services back into practice. He incorporated a more traditional liturgy with Hebrew, increased holiday observance, and instituted an educational curriculum more grounded in Bible and Jewish history.
After Rabbi Liebman's sudden death in 1948, the board elected his assistant Rabbi Abraham Klausner as senior rabbi, resigned in 1953, and was replaced by Rabbi Roland B. Gittelsohn. Unlike in other congregations, this return to more traditional practices was not limited to men. In 1956, the temple introduced the Bat Mitzvah ceremony for girls to match the Bar Mitzvah ceremony reinstated in 1940 for boys. First elected to the board of trustees in 1924, this event marked the full participation of women in religious services.
In 1972, the congregation laid the cornerstone for a new sanctuary next to its meetinghouse on the Riverway, reflecting its continuing growth in membership. Completed the following autumn, this structure remains the temple's home today. Also in 1972, the temple elected its first cantor, Murray E. Simon to replace its long-time musical director Herbert Fromm. Gittelsohn served as senior rabbi until 1977, and as Rabbi Emeritus until his death in 1995. Upon his retirement, the congregation elected Rabbi Bernard H. Mehlman.
The 1980s brought many changes to Temple Israel, including a heightened awareness of the plight of Jews in Soviet Russia. Together with assistant Rabbi Ronne Friedman and Cantor Roy B. Einhorn (1983-present), Rabbi Mehlman made several trips to Russia on the behalf of the refusniks. Other priorities included an even greater dedication to education, as Rabbi Friedman became the temple's educator, devoting all of his efforts to enhancing the temple's many programs for children and adults. The end of the decade brought new advances for the women of the congregation. In 1988, Fran Putnoi was elected the congregation's first female president. Two years later, Elaine Zecher became the first female rabbi.
During the 1980s and 1990s, the temple continued to expand its social justice, cultural, and education programs. The Wyner Museum opened in 1983, while the Frances Jacobson Preschool opened its doors in 1993 with a full enrollment and waiting list. In 1999, Rabbi Mehlman became Senior Scholar/Rabbi Emeritus, and Rabbi Friedman returned from a short stint at another synagogue to become the congregation's tenth senior rabbi.
Temple Israel Branch Religious School, Baldwin Place, North End, 1916-1917
In 2004, Temple Israel celebrated its 150th anniversary. While barely recognizable from its beginnings as a small German Orthodox shul, it has retained its awareness of tradition, commitment to Jewish values, and ability to change for the better. These characteristics are the strength of Temple Israel and will continue to serve it well in the next century.
Excerpted in part from Becoming American Jews: Temple Israel of Boston,
by Meaghan Dwyer-Ryan, Susan L. Porter, and Lisa Fagin Davis (Brandeis University Press, 2009).
Used with the permission of the authors.