Dueling Synagogues Fire Opening Salvos $7M Court Fight
Shul Fight: The proposed sale of this 18th century pair of silver Torah finials, or decorative bells, has sparked an ugly feud between two of America?s oldest Jewish congregations. Image by david bazarsky
Opening statements began in a Rhode Island legal battle pitting America’s oldest congregation against the congregation that worships in America’s oldest synagogue structure.
The trial between Congregation Shearith Israel of New York City and members of a congregation that worships in Touro Synagogue of Newport, Rhode Island — both of which claim control over the Newport synagogue’s building and its contents — began Monday in U.S. District Court in Providence.
The conflict began in 2012 when Congregation Jeshuat Israel, which worships at Touro, America’s oldest synagogue building, agreed to sell a set of 18th-century bells adorning a Torah scroll for $7.4 million to Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. The proceeds were used to set up an endowment to care for the Touro building and keep a rabbi in residence.
Shearith Israel, which is the oldest American Jewish congregation and has served as the trustee of Touro for nearly 200 years, in objecting to the transaction said that Jeshuat Israel did not have the right to sell synagogue property.
In opening arguments Monday, the attorney for Jeshuat Israel asked Judge John McConnell to remove Shearith Israel as trustee, arguing that until the cash-strapped Rhode Island congregation opted to sell the silver bells, the New York shul had neglected its trustee responsibilities, the Providence Journal reported.
Louis Solomon, a representative of Shearith Israel, described the leaders of Jeshuat Israel as “lessees of the property” who “have gone astray.”
“Selling your birthright is not a good idea,” Solomon added, according to the Providence Journal. “Selling someone else’s is even worse.”
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 the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
