Congregation Chasam Sopher is an

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

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 at 10 Clinton Street on the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

of Manhattan. It was formed in 1892 by the merger of two congregations of immigrants from Poland. It occupies a historic

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

synagogue building built in 1853 by Congregation Rodeph Sholom. It is among the oldest synagogue buildings still standing in the United States, the second-oldest synagogue building in New York, and the oldest still in use in the state. Renovation of the upstairs, completed in 2006, included conservation of the

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- ...

, the installation of new

stained-glass window Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

s, and stripping the interior of paint to expose the original wood. The outside was also landscaped, creating a garden for the neighborhood.Austerlitz, Saul
"Synagogues tell story of Lower East Side's past"
''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', October 28, 2007. , the

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 ...

was Azriel Siff.Leadership
Chasam Sofer website. Accessed May 14, 2011.

References

External links

Synagogue website
{{Lower East Side Synagogues completed in 1853 Lower East Side Synagogues in Manhattan Orthodox synagogues in New York City Religious organizations established in 1892 Polish-Jewish culture in New York City 1853 establishments in New York (state) Romanesque Revival synagogues