A South Carolina court will decide the fate of a $3 million bequest to Shaarei Kodesh, a synagogue which merged with Congregation Beth Tikvah in Boca Raton, Fla.

A judge in South Carolina this week set the trial for June, according to the Sun Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale.

Hadassah, ORT, Americans for Peace Now and the Blumenthal Home for the Aged in North Carolina are challenging the estate of Nathaniel Rosenfeld, who lived in South Carolina and died in 1997.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis of the crisis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Rosenfeld instructed his two sisters to name the charities to benefit from his estate, which would receive the bequests after his wife died. She passed away in 2012.

The sisters directed 89 percent of the estate to Congregation Beth Tikvah, which they helped found. They also agreed to allocate 7 percent for ORT, 2 percent for the Blumenthal Home for the Aged, and 1 percent each for Americans for Peace Now and Hadassah. Both the sisters have died.

Beth Tikvah merged with Congregation Shaarei Kodesh in 2007, and the combined Conservative congregation took on the name Shaarei Kodesh, according to the Sun Sentinel. The congregations neglected, however, to file articles of merger with the state, and the Rosenfeld trust said the Jewish organizations chosen by his sisters had to exist in compliance with IRS charity codes at the time of his death, otherwise Blumenthal, Hadassah and ORT were to receive equal shares.

Shaarei Kodesh says it is the legitimate successor to Beth Tikvah and should receive the Rosenfeld bequest.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount