Congregation Beth Yeshurun is a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

at 4525 Beechnut Street,

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, in the United States. Founded in 1891 as Adath Yeshurun, it merged in Congregation Beth El in 1946, taking its current name. In 2002 Beth Yeshurun absorbed the membership of Shearith Israel of nearby Wharton, Texas. It includes the Beth Yeshurun Day School (BYDS).

History

Beth Yeshurun was formed as a merger of the Adath Yeshurun and Beth El congregations.

Adath Yeshurun

Congregation Adath Yeshurun was founded in 1887 as an Orthodox alternative to Temple Beth Israel which in 1874 had moved from Orthodox to

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

. It was a Russian-Polish congregation. After a period during which the congregation met for prayers in private homes, a wood-framed, former church was purchased at the corner of Walker Ave. and Jackson street. Adath Yeshurun merged into Congregation Adath Yeshurun in 1891. Growth of the congregation, especially an influx of members who moved to Houston at the turn of the twentieth century; the congregation dedicated a large, new synagogue at the corner of Preston and Hamilton in 1908.

Congregation Beth El

Congregation Beth El was founded in 1924. It was the first Conservative synagogue founded in Houston. In 1925 it occupied the former Temple Beth Israel building.

Current synagogue

The original building was established in 1945 in the Third Ward area and in proximity to the

University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...

.Kaplan, Barry J. (

).
Race, Income, and Ethnicity: Residential Change in a Houston Community, 1920-1970
" ''The Houston Review''. Winter 1981. pp. 178-202. CITED: p. 187. Beth Yeshurun moved from its building at 3501 Southmore Avenue to its present location at 4525 Beechnut Street in 1962. From 1998 to 2004, the synagogue undertook a major renovation and more than 30,000 square feet of building were added. The synagogue's foyer has a memorial to the Jews murdered in the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. A ark with a

Burning Bush The burning bush (or the unburnt bush) refers to an event recorded in the Jewish Torah (as also in the biblical Old Testament and Islamic scripture). It is described in the third chapter of the Book of Exodus as having occurred on Mount Horeb ...

-motifed stained-glass background serves as the focus of the synagogue's sanctuary. The synagogue includes a social hall. The walls of the social hall are decorated with needlepoint recreations of Reuven Rubin's series of biblical lithographs. Beth Yeshurun houses the Louis and Mollie Kaplan Museum of Judaica, which includes ritual objects and books.

Beth Yeshurun Day School

Beth Yeshurun Day School was the first Jewish Day School in Texas, founded in 1949 under the leadership of Rabbi William S. Malev, the rabbi of the congregation at that time. During the

COVID-19 pandemic in Texas The COVID-19 pandemic in Texas is a part of the ongoing viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The state of Texas confirmed its ...

, as of 2022, more students attended Beth Yeshurun Day 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.

Gallery

Levin_Brown_-_Beth_Yeshurun.jpg, Contemporary synagogue external architecture by Levin/Brown David_Ascalon_-_Beth_Yeshurun_2.jpg, Interior of sanctuary. David_Ascalon_-_Beth_Yeshurun.jpg, Sanctuary elements include stained glass windows, Ark, and ner tamid (eternal flame), by David Ascalon

References

External links

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Beth Yeshurun Day School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beth Yeshurun (Houston, Texas) Jews and Judaism in Houston Conservative synagogues in Texas Religious buildings and structures in Houston Jewish organizations established in 1887 Independent Schools Association of the Southwest 1887 establishments in Texas Synagogues completed in 1962 20th-century synagogues in the United States