Wikipedia:List of hoaxes on Wikipedia/Sephardic Temple Adat David
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| Sephardic Temple Adat David | |
|---|---|
| File:Sephardic temple.jpg (Original image showed exterior of a brick and stone place of worship, with a staircase, large white stone columns supporting archways, and a dome on top. Windows are tall and narrow. On right is a small wooden door set into a brick wall, and a telephone pole supporting wires that run across the photo.) | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Traditional Judaism |
| Rite | Sephardic |
| Leadership | Rabbi: Daniel Azoulay |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | Caldwell Street, Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Byzantine Revival |
| Completed | 1926 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 500 |
| Materials | Brick & Concrete |
Sephardic Temple Adat David is a Jewish synagogue located in uptown Charlotte, North Carolina. Founded in 1919, it is the oldest and only active Sephardic congregation in the Carolinas.
History
The first Sephardic Jew to arrive in Charlotte was a merchant by the name of Abraham Matalon, who came in 1896. Eventually, more Sephardim began to arrive between 1908-1918.[citation needed] By the end of World War I, the Sephardic community in Charlotte consisted of approximately 30 families, mostly Greek Jews from Rhodes and Salonica. These families established the first congregation, Beth David, in 1919.
Unlike Sephardic communities in other parts of the United States, most of these Greek Sephardim assimilated into Jewish life in Charlotte alongside their Ashkenazic neighbors. Many of these families, who were merchants and storekeepers, quickly began to amass wealth and affluence within the Charlotte community from other endeavors such as real estate and banking.
In 1926, several prominent families constructed the current building on Caldwell Street. A Byzantine Revival structure, it is capable of holding approximately 500 people at maximum capacity. Its dome, more than 80 feet (24 m) tall, is one of the tallest domed structures in Charlotte. Atop the dome, sits a windowed keter or "crown" symbolizing the superiority or kingliness of God in Kaballah. In 1949, an adjacent education building was constructed.
By the 1950's, the small yet vibrant Beth David, known colloquially as "The Sephardic Temple," consisted of approximately 75 families with a Talmud Torah of approximately 30 students. The congregation was led by a chazzan with visiting rabbis for High Holy Days. In 1957, the Temple made the unique decision to allow for "mixed seating" on Shabbat, which was quite unusual for a Sephardic Orthodox community at the time. Separate seating was still maintained for High Holy Days.
Following Fidel Castro's rise to power in Cuba, most Cuban Jews fled to the United States. Mostly settling in Miami, Florida, several Ashkenazic and Sephardic families came to Charlotte as well. Upon their arrival, these Cuban Sephardim (mostly of Syrian and Turkish descent) found the "mixed seating" and more liberal positions of Beth David not suited to their liking. Thus, the leaders of this group of Cuban Jewish immigrants established the "Congregacion Hebreo de Adat Yeshurun" (Hebrew Congregation of Adat Yeshurun) in 1961. This congregation met in a store front on College Street for several years.
In the mid 1970's both congregations, which had seen decline in their numbers due to intermarriage with Ashkenazim and death, decided to begin discussions about a possible merger. At this time, Beth David employed a rabbi, Rabbi Uriel Behar, who agreed to serve both congregations if a merger were to take place. So, in 1978 both congregations merged and took the amalgamated name "Sephardic Temple Adat David" as a tribute to both communities' history.
In 1987, the nearby family-built synagogue in Salisbury, North Carolina, Beth Sadeh Synagogue, agreed to merge with Adat David and donate its Judaica and Torah scrolls for preservation.
Today
Today, Adat David maintains a small, but active community with approximately 80 families. Its rabbi, Daniel Azoulay, arrived in 2002 and is actively engaged in the Charlotte Jewish community. In 2007, he became the first rabbi in North Carolina history to be awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine for his work with inner-city youth and the homeless.
Leadership
- Abraham Pinto, Cantor
- Samuel Lopes, Cantor
- Ezekiel Cohen, Cantor
- David ben Ezra, Cantor
- Uriel Behar, Rabbi
- Michael Barouch, Rabbi
- Daniel Azoulay, Rabbi
See also
[[Category:Religious buildings completed in 1926]] [[Category:Synagogues in North Carolina]] [[Category:Mecklenburg County, North Carolina]] [[Category:Orthodox synagogues in the United States]] [[Category:Spanish and Portuguese Jews]] [[Category:Greek Jews]]