Congregation Beth Israel is a Reconstructionist synagogue located at 542 South New Middletown Road in Middletown Township in Delaware County, near Media, Pennsylvania, in the United States.[2]
| Congregation Beth Israel | |
|---|---|
 Beth Israel synagogue | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Reconstructionist Judaism |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Synagogue |
| Leadership | Rabbi Linda Potemken[1] |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | 542 South New Middletown Road, Media, Pennsylvania |
| Country | United States |
  Location in Pennsylvania | |
| Geographic coordinates | 39°53′20″N 75°24′14″W / 39.88899°N 75.403998°W |
| Architecture | |
| Date established |
|
| Website | |
| bethisraelmedia | |
History
editFormed in 1925 and granted a charter by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1929, Beth Israel is the first Jewish congregation founded in Media, the second-oldest in Delaware County, and the oldest Reconstructionist congregation in Delaware Valley.[3]
In 1935 the congregation bought the old Quaker school on Gayley Street in Media.[4] Originally Orthodox and led by lay members, Beth Israel allowed mixed seating in the 1940s.[3]
The congregation started hiring part-time rabbis from the Yeshiva University Synagogue Council in 1948, and in 1957 it hired its first full-time rabbi, a Yeshiva University graduate. Jewish families became attracted to local Conservative synagogues in the 1960s, and demographic changes and a deteriorating building led to a significant membership decline, with the synagogue almost failing. In 1972, Beth Israel affiliated with the Reconstructionist movement, and by the 1980s it had hired its first full-time Reconstructionist rabbi, and had outgrown its building. It moved into its current building on Middletown Road in 1997.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b Rabbi Archived 2010-04-18 at the Wayback Machine, Synagogue website. Retrieved December 25, 2009.
- ^ "Home page". Beth Israel Synagogue, Media. Retrieved December 25, 2009.
- ^ a b c History, Synagogue website. Archived at the Internet Archive. Retrieved December 25, 2009.
- ^ "Providence Meeting History". Providence Friends Meeting. Providence Friends Meeting. Archived from the original on 30 May 2007. Retrieved 9 December 2012.