The Temple, Congregation B'nai Jehudah is the oldest and largest synagogue in the greater

Kansas City metropolitan area The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more th ...

. Established in 1870 in

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, it was 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 ...

. Its fourth building, designed by

Kivett and Myers Kivett & Myers was a Kansas City, Missouri architecture firm that pioneered the design of modern professional sports stadiums. Clarence Kivett (born Clarence Kivovitch) graduated from the University of Kansas in 1928 and his first big design proje ...

architects, was a

modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

structure that was "striking for its exterior profile and massing and its combination of natural and industrial forms to create an appearance rooted in both primeval nature and futuristic design." Completed in 1969, it was demolished after the congregation relocated to

Overland Park Overland Park ( ) is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas. Located in Johnson County, Kansas, it is one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the most populous suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. As o ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

in 2000. The senior

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 ...

is Arthur P. Nemitoff, the rabbi is Sarah Smiley, and the rabbi emeritus is Michael R. Zedek.

References

Reform synagogues in Kansas 1870 establishments in Missouri Religious organizations established in 1870 Synagogues completed in 1969 Synagogues completed in 2000 Modernist synagogues Founding members of the Union for Reform Judaism {{DEFAULTSORT:Temple Congregation B'nai Jehudah