Beth HaMedrosh Hagodol-Beth Joseph, known locally as BMH-BJ or simply BMH, and for a period after 2012 also known as The Denver Synagogue, is a

Modern Orthodox Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosoph ...

Zionist Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...

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 ...

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

History

Beth HaMedrosh Hagodol (BMH-the Great House of Study) originated as a modern Orthodox synagogue in 1897 under the leadership of shoe merchant Henry Plonsky.Kerry M. Olitzky, ''The American Synagogue: A Historical Dictionary and Sourcebook'' (

Greenwood Publishing Group Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. (GPG), also known as ABC-Clio/Greenwood (stylized ABC-CLIO/Greenwood), is an educational and academic publisher (middle school through university level) which is today part of ABC-Clio. Established in 1967 as Gr ...

, 1996), , pp. 70-71
Excerpts available
at

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

. BMH rented the original Temple Emanuel building at 19th and Curits for holiday services until it purchased the former home of Temple Emanuel in 1898. The building was severely damaged by fire in 1902. Rabbi Charles Eliezer Hillel Kauvar came to BMH in 1902 and served until 1952. BMH laid the cornerstone of their new building on Rosh Hashanah 1916 and was a major civic event, drawing DU chancellor and former Colorado governor Henry Buchtel, Judge Benjamin Barr Lindsey and former Denver School Superintendent William H. Smiley. The congregation occupied this building until 1966; after BMH left, the building served a variety of uses, falling into increasing disrepair before an extensive remodel in 2008 converted the building into a Messianic Christian church. In 1963, BMH secured at 560 S. Monaco Parkway and the building was completed in 1969. The congregation was a founding member of the

United Synagogue of America The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ) is the major congregational organization of Conservative Judaism in North America, and the largest Conservative Jewish communal body in the world. USCJ closely works with the Rabbinical Assembly, ...

(now called the

United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ) is the major congregational organization of Conservative Judaism in North America, and the largest Conservative Jewish communal body in the world. USCJ closely works with the Rabbinical Assembly, ...

), the primary organization of American

Conservative Judaism Conservative Judaism, known as Masorti Judaism outside North America, is a Jewish religious movement which regards the authority of ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions as coming primarily from its people and community through the generatio ...

. Rabbi Kauvar was the first vice-president of the organization, and BMH remained affiliated with the Conservative movement until 1955, when Rabbi Kauvar (by then serving as the emeritus rabbi) was influential in causing the congregation to leave the United Synagogue. BMH hired its first Orthodox rabbi in 1956.

Stanley M. Wagner Stanley M. Wagner (January 4, 1932 – February 23, 2013) was an American rabbi, academic, and community leader. Early life and education Stanley M. Wagner was born in on January 4, 1932, in Brooklyn, New York City. He attended Yeshiva Univers ...

became the rabbi in 1972 and BMH joined the

Orthodox Union The Orthodox Union (abbreviated OU) is one of the largest Orthodox Jewish organizations in the United States. Founded in 1898, the OU supports a network of synagogues, youth programs, Jewish and Religious Zionist advocacy programs, programs for ...

, but it maintained several ritual practices not typically followed at OU-affiliates. BMH's Monaco Parkway building was also the home of the Mizel Museum of Judaica, a museum co-founded by Denver businessman

Larry Mizel Larry A. Mizel (born September 14, 1942) is an American business executive and philanthropist based in Denver, Colorado. He currently serves as Executive Chairman of MDC Holdings. Early life Larry A. Mizel was born to a American Jews, Jewish fam ...

, from the museum's founding in 1982 until it relocated in 2002. In 2007, BMH merged with Beth Joseph, an Orthodox congregation founded in 1922, to become Beth HaMedrosh Hagodol-Beth Joseph. Prior to resigning its affiliation with the

(OU) at the end of 2015, it was the only OU affiliated synagogue in the country without a ''

mechitza A ''mechitza'' ( he, מחיצה, partition or division, pl.: , ) in Judaism, is a partition, particularly one that is used to separate men and women. The rationale in halakha (Jewish law) for a partition dividing men and women is derived from ...

'', thus allowing men and women to sit together. It was the only surviving example of a seating style that had previously been present in a substantial number of Orthodox Union affiliated synagogues, and resigned from the OU after learning the organization planned to expel them over the mixed seating issue. Today, BMH-BJ describes itself as an "independent orthodox congregation".

References

External links

BMH-BJ Congregation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beth Hamedrosh Hagodol-Beth Joseph Buildings and structures in Denver Conservadox Jewish organizations established in 1987 Synagogues in Denver Modern Orthodox synagogues in the United States Zionism in the United States Synagogues completed in 1969

History

See also

References

External links