Congregation Beth Israel (Houston)

Congregation Beth Israel of Houston, the oldest Jewish congregation in Texas, was founded in Houston in 1854. It operates the Shlenker School.

History

The congregation was founded in 1854 as an Orthodox Jewish ''kehilla'' and legally chartered in 1859. Olitzky, Kerry M.; Raphael, Marc Lee. ''The American Synagogue: A Historical Dictionary and Sourcebook'', Greenwood Press, June 30, 1996, p. 346 The Orthodox Beth Israel Congregation in Houston opened in a former house that had been converted to a synagogue.Bell, p
216
In 1874 the congregation voted to change their affiliation to Reform Judaism, sparking the foundation of Congregation Adath Yeshurun, now known as Congregation Beth Yeshurun. Hyman Judah Schachtel was a past rabbi.

Beth Israel's Franklin Avenue Temple building was completed in 1874.Anne Nathan Cohen, The Centenary History of Congregation Beth Israel of Houston (Houston, 1954) The temple was at Crawford Street at Franklin Avenue in what is now Downtown Houston. In 1908 the congregation moved into a new temple at Crawford at Lamar Street, in an area that was a Jewish community. After the congregation left the Lamar site, the New Day Temple occupied it. The Grove at Discovery Green occupies the former Lamar site.

Maximilian Heller was rabbi of the congregation from 1886 to 1887.

A new temple at Austin Street and Holman Avenue was dedicated in 1925. Originally it was considered to be a part of the Third Ward.Wood, Roger. '' Down in Houston: Bayou City Blues''. 2003, University of Texas Press. 1st Edition. p. 73.

Rabbi Henry Barnston served as the Congregation's rabbi from 1900 to 1943, after which he served as rabbi emeritus until his death in 1949.

The Moderne style, 1924-built Austin Street building, designed by congregant Joseph Finger, was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1984 and was awarde
Recorded Texas Historical Landmark
status in 2009.

In 1943 Temple Beth Israel announced that people who espoused Zionist ideals, observed the laws of ''kashrut'' or favored the perpetuation of Hebrew as a language were not allowed to be members, so Emanu-El was formed by people who disagreed with the decision. As of 1967 Beth Israel accepts people with Zionist beliefs.Bell, p
217

In 1966 the Houston Independent School District purchased the 1920s temple building on Austin Street.Gore, p
8
Quote (from page 8 of ''Talent Knows no Color''): << "A former Hebrew temple across the street from San Jacinto had been purchased by the school district in 1966 as an annex for the school's burgeoning enrollment" >>Gore, p
10
Quote (from page 10 of ''Talent Knows no Color''): << "Denny was given her choice of three district-owned sites in the central city just outside of downtown Houston for the new school: W. D. Cleveland Elementary School to the west; Montrose Elementary School to the southwest; and the former Temple Beth Israel to the south. Denney, with the assistance of Barry Moore, one of her former Lamar drama students who had become an architect, toured all three sites, giving facilities for performance priority over any other consideration. The former Temple Beth Israel, the annex since 1966 for HISD's vocational San Jacinto High School enamed Houston Technical Institute on June 1, 1971 seemed best suited for HSPVA's temporary use. Despite five years of district neglect, the sanctuary, attached two-story Levy Memorial Hall, and adjacent one-story Mendelsohn Education Building had the essential components for a small arts high school; use of this campus would only be necessary until HISD could pass a bond issue including funds for a new state-of-the-art building (...)" >>. HISD began using that building—at first—as an annex for San Jacinto High School since the school's population was increasing.

In the years leading to 1967, the Jewish community was moving to Meyerland. To follow the community, in 1967 the congregation moved to a new temple on North Braeswood Boulevard. The former temple building on Austin Street became the first home of Houston's High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and was renamed the Ruth Denney Theatre. When the high school moved to new quarters, the building became a performance venue for Houston Community College's Central Fine Arts division and was renamed the Heinen Theatre. The historic building is located in Midtown Houston.

Rabbi David Lyon currently presides over the congregation of Beth Israel.

Properties

Current property

The current synagogue at 5600 North Braeswood Boulevard has a lobby with twelve needlepoints. The design of these needlepoints had inspiration in the Hadassah Medical Center's Chagall windows. The current synagogue facility has been expanded since its initial construction in order to house a Jewish school.Bell, p
218

The Shlenker School is on the synagogue property. The school is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in Texas, as of 2022, more students attended The Shlenker School than previously. An organization called Prizmah stated in a 2021 report that families with a preference for education in a school setting during a pandemic, as opposed to via the internet, often preferred schools that continued offering such.

Cemetery

The cemetery owned by Congregation Beth Israel is the oldest Jewish cemetery in Houston.Davis, Rod.
Houston's really good idea Bus tour celebrates communities that forged a city.
''San Antonio Express-News''. Sunday August 3, 2003. Travel 1M. Retrieved on February 11, 2012.

See also

* History of the Jews in Houston

References

* Bell, Roselyn. "Houston." In: Tigay, Alan M. (editor) ''The Jewish Traveler: Hadassah Magazine's Guide to the World's Jewish Communities and Sights''. Rowman & Littlefield, January 1, 1994. p. 215-220. , 9781568210780.
** Content also in: Tigay, Alan M. ''Jewish Travel-Prem''. Broadway Books, January 18, 1987. , 9780385241984.
* Gore, Elaine Clift. ''Talent Knows No Color: The History of an Arts Magnet High School'' (Research in curriculum and instruction) Information Age Publishing, 2007. , 9781593117610.

Notes

External links

Synagogue website

Shlenker School

Congregational history

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beth Israel (Houston, Texas)
Conservative synagogues in Texas
Jews and Judaism in Houston
Religious buildings and structures in Houston
Reform synagogues in Texas
National Register of Historic Places in Houston
Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks
Synagogues on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas
Independent Schools Association of the Southwest
Religious organizations established in 1854
1854 establishments in Texas
Synagogues completed in 1925
1925 establishments in Texas
Neoclassical synagogues
Synagogues completed in 1967
1967 establishments in Texas
Modernist architecture in Texas
Midtown, Houston