Shearith Israel Will Appeal Loss in $7M Shul vs. Shul Feud With Touro Synagogue
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
— Congregation Shearith Israel in New York will appeal a federal court ruling last month stripping its control of the historic Touro Synagogue in Rhode Island.
The Manhattan congregation filed a notice Tuesday saying it will appeal to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in an effort to reverse last month’s decision concerning its relationship with the 250-year-old synagogue in Newport, The Associated Press reported.
Shearith Israel and Congregation Jeshuat Israel, which holds regular services at Touro, the oldest synagogue building in the United States, have been at odds since 2012, when Jeshuat Israel attempted to sell a valuable set of bells adorning one of its Torah scrolls, designating the proceeds for building maintenance and a rabbi. Shearith Israel challenged the congregation’s ownership of the building and its right to sell its contents.
Shearith Israel was the initial occupant of Touro Synagogue, but relocated to New York in the early 19th century, when the size of Newport’s Jewish community plummeted. At that time Shearith Israel assumed responsibility for the building. However, according to the AP, Shearith Israel has not been actively involved with the synagogue in recent decades.
In May, U.S. District Judge Jack McConnell ruled in favor of Jeshuat Israel and removed Shearith Israel as a trustee.
“The central issue here is the legacy of some of the earliest Jewish settlers in North America, who desired to make Newport a permanent haven for public Jewish worship,” McConnell wrote in the 106-page decision.
Lawyers for Jeshuat Israel told the AP that they believe the appeal lacks merit.
A national historic site, Touro Synagogue attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
