Temple Israel is a Reform Jewish congregation in Memphis, Tennessee. It
is the only Reform synagogue in Memphis, the oldest and largest Jewish
congregation in Tennessee, and one of the largest Reform congregations
in the United States. It was founded in 1853 by mostly German Jews as
Congregation B'nai Israel. Led initially by cantors, in 1858 it hired
its first rabbi, Jacob Peres, and leased its first building, which it
renovated and eventually purchased. The synagogue was one of the
founding members of the Union for Reform Judaism. It experienced
difficulty during the Great Depression—membership dropped, the
congregational school was closed, and staff had their salaries
reduced—but conditions had improved by the late 1930s. In 1943 the
synagogue changed its name to Temple Israel, and by the late 1940s
membership had almost doubled from its low point in the 1930s. Rabbi
Jimmy Wax became known for his activism during the Civil Rights era. In
1976 the congregation constructed its current building, closer to where
most members lived. Wax retired in 1978, and was succeeded by Harry
Danziger, who brought traditional practices back to the congregation.
He retired in 2000, and was succeeded by Micah Greenstein. As of 2010,
Temple Israel has almost 1,600 member families. Greenstein is the
senior rabbi, and the cantor is John Kaplan.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Israel_%28Memphis%2C_Tennessee%29>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1856:
Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom issued a Warrant under the Royal
sign-manual that established the Victoria Cross, originally to
recognise acts of valour by British military personnel during the
Crimean War.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_Cross>
1863:
Indian Wars in North America: The United States Army led by Patrick
Edward Connor massacred Chief Bear Hunter and forces of the Shoshone at
the Bear River Massacre in present day Franklin County, Idaho.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bear_River_Massacre>
1891:
Liliʻuokalani was proclaimed the last monarch and only queen regnant
of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liliuokalani>
1943:
World War II: The Battle of Rennell Island, the last major naval
engagement between the United States Navy and the Imperial Japanese
Navy during the Guadalcanal Campaign, began.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Rennell_Island>
2006:
India's Irfan Pathan became the first bowler to take a Test cricket
hat-trick in the opening over of a match.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irfan_Pathan>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
spuria (npl):
[[spurious
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/spuria>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Each of us is full of too many wheels, screws and valves to permit us
to judge one another on a first impression or by two or three external
signs.
--Anton Chekhov
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Anton_Chekhov>