![Texas Historical Medallion](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Texas_Historical_Medallion.jpg)
Congregation B'nai Israel (בני ישראל in
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
) is a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
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
Galveston, Texas
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...
, USA. Organized by German Jewish
immigrants
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
in 1868, it is the oldest
Jewish Reform congregation and the second chartered Jewish congregation in the state (Houston had the first).
By the
Galveston Movement, from 1907 to 1914, it helped attract thousands of eastern European Jewish
immigrants
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
to the city, Gulf Coast, and the middle region of the United States.
History
German Jews were among the many immigrants to Galveston from the German principalities in the 1840s; through their benevolent society, they established the first
Jewish cemetery
A Jewish cemetery ( he, בית עלמין ''beit almin'' or ''beit kvarot'') is a cemetery where Jews are buried in keeping with Jewish tradition. Cemeteries are referred to in several different ways in Hebrew, including ''beit kevarot'' ...
in Texas here in 1852. They held the first organized Jewish services in the state in Galveston in 1856. These two endeavors culminated in their organizing Congregation B'nai Israel in 1868 and its chartering in 1870.
["B'nai Israel, Galveston"](_blank)
''Handbook of Texas Online'', Texas State Historical Association
The congregation has the distinction of being the first
Jewish Reform congregation chartered in Texas, as well as the second Jewish congregation founded in the state. On June 20, 1875, the congregation voted to become one of the charter members of the
Union of American Hebrew Congregations
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 ...
(now known as the Union for Reform Judaism.)
It organized a school in 1869 and, by 1877, included Hebrew as a requirement of its curriculum.
Abraham Cohen Labatt Abraham Cohen Labatt (1802, Charleston, South Carolina - August 16, 1899, Galveston, Texas) was an American Sephardic Jew who was a prominent pioneer of Reform Judaism in the United States in the 19th century, founding several early congregations in ...
, one of the pioneers of Reform Judaism in the United States, moved to Galveston in 1878 and joined the congregation. He was an active member until his death in 1899.
["Abraham Cohen Labatt"](_blank)
''Texas Handbook Online'', Texas State Historical Association
Beginning in 1888, Rabbi Henry Cohen led the congregation for more than five decades, through periods of rapid immigration of Jews from eastern Europe and two world wars. In addition, he provided leadership and care to people of all religions in the aftermath of the
Galveston Hurricane of 1900
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...
, which destroyed many homes on the island and killed 6,000 people. He rallied members of the congregation to care for others.
B'nai Israel and the Galveston Movement
Rabbi Cohen is also credited with founding the
Galveston Movement, which operated between 1907 and 1914. He organized Galveston's Jewish Immigration Information Office. The city was a major port of entry for immigrants. The Movement wanted to attract Jews fleeing Russia and eastern Europe to the Gulf Coast and away from crowded
East Coast
East Coast may refer to:
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* East Coast FM, a ra ...
cities; they wanted to attract more Jewish settlement to the middle of the United States. Members of the congregation met all of the ships that docked carrying Jewish immigrants at the
Port of Galveston
The Port of Galveston is the port of the city of Galveston, Texas. It was established by a proclamation issued by the Congress of Mexico on October 17, 1825, while the land known today as Texas was still part of Mexico. The Port of Galveston is ...
. They helped to direct many of the passengers to new homes in Texas and beyond, and aided them in finding housing and work, as well as adjusting to American life.
["GALVESTON MOVEMENT"](_blank)
''Handbook of Texas Online''
Through the combined efforts of Rabbi Cohen and others, historians estimate that more than ten thousand Jewish immigrants passed through
Galveston
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...
, with many settling there, in Texas and the South.
Rabbis
Since its founding, the congregation has been served by thirteen
rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
s:
* Alexander Rosenspitz (1868–70)
* Abraham Blum, MD (1871–85)
* Joseph Silverman (1885–88)
*
Rabbi Henry Cohen (1888–1950; Rabbi Emeritus 1950-1952)
* Leo Stillpass (1950–55)
* Stanley Dreyfus (1956–65)
* Robert Blinder (1965–69)
*
Samuel M. Stahl (1969–76)
*
Jimmy Kessler
James Lee Kessler
, Hebrew Union College, 12 March 1997, Retrieved on 2012-03-13. (born December 10, 1945), ...
(1976–81)
* Alan Greenbaum (1981–85)
* Martin Levy (1985–89)
* Jimmy Kessler (1989–2014; Rabbi Emeritus 2014-)
* Rabbi Marshal Klaven (2014-2018)
* Rabbi Matthew Cohen (2018-2022)
* Rabbi Peter Kessler (2022-)
In 1976, Jimmy Kessler was the first native Texan to assume the leadership of the congregation.
Temple
By 1870, the congregation was ready to build a sanctuary and invited Mr. Tuck, the grand master of the
Masonic Lodge
A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...
of Texas, to lay the cornerstone. They had invited Rabbi Jacobs of the
Portuguese Jewish Nefutzot Yehudah Congregation (later part of
Touro Synagogue
The Touro Synagogue or Congregation Jeshuat Israel ( he, קהל קדוש ישועת ישראל) is a synagogue built in 1763 in Newport, Rhode Island. It is the Oldest synagogues in the United States, oldest synagogue building still standing in t ...
) to officiate; historians believe this was the first occasion when an
ordained
Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...
rabbi led a religious meeting in Texas.
![B'nai Israel Synagogue & Community House](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/B%27nai_Israel_Synagogue_%26_Community_House.jpg)
The congregation continued to grow and, by the late 1880s, found they needed a new synagogue. They replaced the old structure on site. They commissioned
Nicholas J. Clayton
Nicholas Joseph Clayton (November 1, 1840 in Cloyne, County Cork – December 9, 1916) was a prominent Victorian era architect in Galveston, Texas. Clayton constructed many grand religious and public buildings in Galveston including the Firs ...
, who was a notable Texas architect of religious structures. His Victorian design of 1890 produced an ornately detailed synagogue that became a landmark in the city.
The congregation used this building until selling it in the 1950s to the Masonic Lodge and moving to another new synagogue. The Masons simplified parts of the facade, but the basic structure remains.
Henry Cohen Community House
As the congregation grew in the twentieth century, it needed space for its activities. It decided to build a center in 1928; the Henry Cohen Community House was named in honor of their Rabbi Henry Cohen. The community house was built on the lot next to the 1890s temple. The congregation occupied this complex until the 1950s, when it moved to a new synagogue outside of downtown. It was designed by Holocaust survivor
Tibor Beerman
Tibor Eliahu Beerman (August 13, 1925 – August 7, 2015) was an architect in the United States. His work, much of it modernist, includes synagogues, residences, and the 1966 Galveston County Courthouse. His brother died at Buchenwald, and Beerma ...
.
The entry to the community house has a carved limestone portal and a gate, which both feature the "
Magen David
The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles.
A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...
" as the primary iconographic element.
B'nai Israel, Galveston, TX: Robert P. Davis, Architect
Accessed October 24, 2007. After the Congregation built a new synagogue, it sold the Clayton temple and community house to the Masons. They adapted the buildings for use as their Masonic Temple
A Masonic Temple or Masonic Hall is, within Freemasonry, the room or edifice where a Masonic Lodge meets. Masonic Temple may also refer to an abstract spiritual goal and the conceptual ritualistic space of a meeting.
Development and history
In ...
.
Image:Jewish_Benevolent_Cemetery,_Galveston.jpg, Hebrew Benevolent Cemetery, c. 1852
Image:1870_B'nai_Israel_Temple,_Galveston.jpg, Second B'nai Israel Temple, c. 1890, photo 2006
Image:Mogen david.jpg, Magen David on gate of Cohen Community House
Image:Cohen Community House, Galveston.jpg, Community House arch
Image:RabbiJimmyKessler.jpg, Rabbi Jimmy Kessler
James Lee Kessler
, Hebrew Union College, 12 March 1997, Retrieved on 2012-03-13. (born December 10, 1945), ...
, former rabbi of the temple
See also
* Galveston Movement
* Galveston, Texas
Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...
* Jewish Texan
Jewish Texans have been a part of the history of Texas since the first European explorers arrived in the region in the 16th century. In 1990, there were around 108,000 adherents to Judaism in Texas. More recent estimates place the number at around ...
* Rabbi Henry Cohen
* History of the Jews in Galveston, Texas Jews have inhabited the city of Galveston, Texas, for almost two centuries. The first known Jewish immigrant to the Galveston area was Jao de la Porta, who, along with his brother Morin, financed the first settlement by Europeans on Galveston Isl ...
* Texas Jewish Historical Society The Texas Jewish Historical Society, (sometimes abbreviated TJHS), which began in 1980, is a society dedicated to the preservation of Jewish history in Texas.
History
The society was founded in 1980 by Rabbi Jimmy Kessler of Galveston. He publish ...
* Oldest synagogues in the United States
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
*Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...
References
External links
Congregation B'nai Israel
Handbook of Texas Online
Union for Reform Judaism
Texas Jewish Historical Society
Jewish Federation of Greater Houston
Jewish Community Centers of North America
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bnai Israel (Galveston, Texas)
1868 establishments in Texas
Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Texas
German-American culture in Texas
German-Jewish culture in the United States
Religious organizations established in 1868
Jewish-American history
Jews and Judaism in Galveston, Texas
Henry Cohen Community House
Reform synagogues in Texas
Russian-Jewish culture in the United States