The Temple - Congregation Adath Israel Brith Sholom is a
Reform
Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
located in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. Originally the Adath Israel Temple, it adopted its current name following a merger, but is more commonly known by the informal name The Temple. Prior to merging, the congregations resided in several buildings, with the Adath Israel Temple's third synagogue listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.
History
The congregation, the
oldest in Kentucky, was chartered in 1842 and has occupied six buildings. It is a founding member of the
Union for Reform Judaism
The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) until 2003, founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the congregational arm of Reform Judaism in North America. The other two arms established ...
.
Brith Sholom—Louisville's third oldest synagogue—was organized in 1880. It was established for those wishing to pray in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
, rather than the English used in Adath Israel. It joined the Reform movement in 1920.
In 1976, Adath Israel merged with Brith Sholom.
This was motivated by the desire of both groups to improve their physical facilities and to relocate to the eastern part of
Jefferson County. For a few years after it was organized as Adath Israel Brith Sholom, it held services in the Brith Sholom building. In 1980, the congregation was able to move into its new sanctuary on
Brownsboro Road.
[Lee Shai Weisbach, ''Synagogues of Kentucky: History and Architecture'', ]University Press of Kentucky
The University Press of Kentucky (UPK) is the scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The university had sponsored scholarly publication since 1943. In 194 ...
, 1995, p. 29.
Adath Israel Temple sites
First site
The congregation built a synagogue on Fourth Street in 1849, which a fire destroyed in 1866.
Second site
In 1868, the congregation built a new temple at Broadway and Sixth Street.
The elaborate
dome
A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...
d synagogue was created in an
Orientalist style that featured twin towers topped by tall domes and a
Torah Ark
A Torah ark (also known as the ''Heikhal'', or the ''Aron Kodesh'') refers to an ornamental chamber in the synagogue that houses the Torah scrolls.
History
The ark, also known as the ''ark of law'', or in Hebrew the ''Aron Kodesh'' or ''aron ha- ...
with a
horseshoe arch
The horseshoe arch (; Spanish: "arco de herradura"), also called the Moorish arch and the keyhole arch, is an emblematic arch of Islamic architecture, especially Moorish architecture. Horseshoe arches can take rounded, pointed or lobed form.
His ...
topped by a similar dome. The architect was
H. P. Bradshaw.
Third site
The congregation's third building was informally known as the "Third Street Synagogue". The
Greek Revival
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...
structure
was designed by architects
Kenneth McDonald and
J.F. Sheblessy and dedicated on June 3, 1906. The
neo-classical building was listed in the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1975 as a result of the strength and prestige of the architects. In 1977, it was sold to the
Greater Bethel Temple, an Apostolic Church.
Brith Sholom Temple sites
Brith Sholom first owned a building at First and Walnut Streets,
which it sold to
Congregation Anshei Sfard in 1903 when it moved to Second and College Streets. It moved to the Bonnycastle Mansion at Cowling and Maryland Avenues in 1949.
Merged site
In 1980, the congregation moved to
Brownsboro and Lime Kiln Roads
with land purchased in 1966.
The temple was built by a joint venture between managing partners
Arrasmith & Rapp and
Joseph & Joseph
Joseph & Joseph is an architectural firm founded in 1908 in Louisville, Kentucky. The main services include architectural, engineering and design projects.
The firm designed many buildings listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. ...
.
References
External links
Congregation Adath Israel Brith Sholom website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adath Israel Brith Sholom
Synagogues completed in 1905
German-American culture in Louisville, Kentucky
Synagogues in Louisville, Kentucky
Reform synagogues in Kentucky
Religious organizations established in 1842
Founding members of the Union for Reform Judaism
1842 establishments in Kentucky
National Register of Historic Places in Louisville, Kentucky
Synagogues on the National Register of Historic Places in Kentucky
Greek Revival synagogues
Greek Revival architecture in Kentucky