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Philadelphia.—At the annual meeting of the United
Hebrew Beneficent Society, held October 1st, the following persons were
elected to serve for the current year: A. L. Hart, President; J. A.
Phillips, <<417>>Vice-President; J. L. Moss, Treasurer; Z. A. Davis, Secretary;
A. Hart, M. Arnold, A. S. Wolf, M. Cauffman, Isaac Leeser, Joseph
Newhouse, H. Van Beil, and Isadore Binswanger, Managers.—At the
election for officers of the society “Mercy and Truth,” held on the 2d
of October, the following persons were elected to serve for the current
year: Henry Marcus, President; Joseph J. Harvy, Vice-President; Moses M.
Engel, Treasurer, Isaac Meyers, Isaac Cohen, Michael Asher and Joseph
Levi, Coihmittee; David A. Phillips, Secretary and Messenger; Dr. P. De
Young, Physician, and Robert Killduff, Apothecary.
Baltimore.—Mr. Leon Dyer, in consequence of the
impaired state of his health, declined a re-election as President of the
old Congregation of Baltimore, worshipping in Lloyd Street. The
congregation in parting with their former presiding officer, adopted
suitable resolutions of thanks and expressive of their regret in losing
one who has done so much to promote the welfare of the body over which
he has presided for several years past; and we cannot do otherwise than
add our acknowledgment for the efforts Mr. Dyer has made to establish
order and decorum in Synagogue; and we hope that during his contemplated
absence his health may be thoroughly restored. At the subsequent
election held on October 2d, the following persons were elected officers
for the current year: Abraham Rosenfeld, President; A. Rider, Treasurer,
and Solomon Tuhn, J. Wallfish, and Louis Frank, Managers.
Albany.—At the late examination of the school under
the charge of Dr. Wise, which resulted to the satisfaction of the
public, several boys distinguished themselves in showing an intimate
acquaintance with the book of Proverbs, and several girls equally so in
the Pentateuch, in which scarcely a passage is said to be unknown to
them. This by the by, is the right way of reforming, by teaching
the Hebrew language to all, so that every Israelite, by being acquainted
with the language of his forefathers, may be able to pray in it
understandingly, and thus be excited to devotion by the words which he
utters before Him who dwells on high. We also learn that the choir of
the Synagogue Beth El is progressing fast to a great degree of
perfection, and the service is conducted, as it should be, on the old
Jewish platform, nevertheless, with solemnity and edification. The good
style of conducting the worship attracts many to the Synagogue, and our
correspondent adds, that he hopes that better motives may afterwards
induce them to attend.
Cincinnati.—The new Synagogue of the congregation
B’nai Jeshurun, was duly consecrated on the 22d of September last. The
<<418>>building itself is said to be the finest of the kind in this country,
the West Indies, or England, as we are assured by our correspondent, who
has travelled extensively in all these countries; and though we may
allow something for the natural gratification he feels in the success of
a movement in which he was one of the first, there is no question that
it has few equals if any superiors among us in this country, and it
speaks well for the zeal and liberality of originally a handful of
Israelites, who joined themselves together to erect a suitable place for
worshipping the Most High, the only Synagogue then existing in their
city not being large enough to hold all the worshippers who desired to
unite in prayer. A novel spectacle was exhibited at the consecration,
nothing less than a procession of about three hundred persons,
Israelites and Christians, walking from the room where the congregation
formerly worshipped to the new Synagogue, to convey thither the books of
the law, to be deposited in the ark built for their reception. The
procession was preceded by a band of music; this was followed by three
little girls, dressed in white with wreaths of flowers; the one in the
centre bore on a velvet cushion, suspended from her neck by ribands, a
key; then came a canopy borne by four young men, under which were three
gentlemen bearing the laws; then followed the Rev. James K. Guthreim,
the minister of the congregation, supported by the other ministers in
the place, the rear being composed of the members, and Israelites of
other congregations, besides Christians. The whole was under the
superintendence of Messrs. Mordecai Levi and Jacob Elsas. The ceremonies
of the consecration were as usual, and the minister delivered an
address, but we have received no sketch of it; yet we cannot doubt that
it was very effective. The officers of the congregation elected on the
evening of October 3d, are: S. Friedman, Parnass; A. Aub, Gabah Zedokah;
Wolf Frost, Gabah Beth Chaim; L. Friedman, Treasurer; Jacob Elsas, A.
Goodhart, Daniel Wolf, and Henry Franklin, Trustees; and Henry Mack,
Jr., Secretary. The number of members is one hundred and sixty, and
increasing. The congregation is ruled by the board of trustees, and
officers; and when it becomes proper to alter, make or amend any
law, there are six sub-trustees, who are elected annually to represent
the congregation, which only meets once a year to elect officers, and
fix the salaries.
Augusta, Georgia.—We are pleased to learn that the
small community of Israelites in Augusta continues its organization. The
late holydays were duly celebrated, and the Synagogue was well attended.
Mr. Philip S. Jacobs of Columbus, S. C., officiated in connexion with
Mr. S. Levy the stated Reader of the Congregation. A happy circum<<419>>stance
attended the festivals this year, as some who had not observed them
before now joined themselves to the faithful. We hope the progress may
continue, and increase to bring forth good fruits.
Charleston.—The Congregation Beth Elohim will soon
receive among them, as we are told, from Germany, a gentleman answering
to the requisites expected of him in the advertisement which we inserted
last winter. We would gladly give his name if we had received it
officially. We therefore wait till the gentleman has arrived, without
venturing to rely entirely on mere verbal reports, which possibly might
lead us into a mistake.
New Congregations.—The Israelites at Fort Wayne,
Indiana, are about organizing themselves into a congregation, and we
hope with a prospect of permanency. We shall give particulars when
received.—The Jews in Newark, New Jersey, have also lately organized
themselves for public worship, and consecrated—we hope merely as a
temporary place, as we trust that they soon will be numerous enough to
erect a permanent abode for the law of God—a small upper room in a
school-house in Harrison Street, on Friday evening the 22d of September.
As our readers may be curious to know how Christian religious papers
view the remnant of Israel, we extract from the Sabbath Recorder the
letter which appeared in the New York Observer:—
“Newark, N. J., Sept. 23d, 1848.
“I was invited last evening to attend the opening
of a new place of worship for the Jews in this city. The place was a
small upper room in a schoolhouse in Harrison Street, not capable of
holding more than fifty persons, about half that number being present,
of whom perhaps half were Jews.
“Mournful indeed it was to see these children of
Israel, in their blindness and hardness of heart, here gathered, a
little remnant, unnoticed and unknown, meeting in this obscure corner to
worship the God of Abraham, and with no knowledge of the way to him
through Christ.
“The High Priest, carrying the law in a scroll upon
his shoulders, and followed by several who officiated as priests, walked
in procession around the room, chaunting Hebrew passages from the Psalms
of David, and now and then ejaculating brief but earnest prayers. Each
priest took his turn in heading this procession, and leading the
service, which seemed to be sad and painful, as if they mourned the
absence of the glory that should shine in the courts of the Lord.
“One of them named a text from the history of
Solomon’s dedicatory service of the temple, and proceeded to make a
discourse in English and in German; but his brethren became impatient,
and desired him to desist, which he did after speaking a few minutes.
“The procession was then renewed, and after prayer
and singing, the law was deposited in a closet before which the veil was
hung, and the services were brought to a close.
“When will the eyes of this people be opened to see
the King in his glory?”
In “The High Priest” our readers will recognise the
officiating Hazan, and as for the mournful looks of the audience, we
fancy that <<420>>the writer’s wishes were fathers to his thoughts. On the
contrary, we expect there was strong joy marked on the countenances of
the few faithful who had united to consecrate the humble room as a
sanctuary of the Lord, that they had been permitted to assemble and to
call on his name in an assembly of the righteous. We regret, to, be
sure, that a person should be interrupted when about to address the
audience; but we expect there is some misstatement in it, as all
consecration arrangements are generally made beforehand, even in the
smallest bodies. Perhaps the writer’s jaundiced eye and ear deceived him
as to facts; at all events we can give him one consolation, that the
handful of Jews before him that evening will be long before they will
even think of seeing with his eyes, as their very assembling proves that
they mean to remain true to the God of Israel and his law.
Europe.—The emancipation of the Jews in various
states is progressing; though it had not yet been pronounced universally
through Germany at late accounts. Several Jewish deputies were elected
for the Austrian and Prussian Diets, in addition to those who were
chosen for the German Parliament in Frankfort. Dr. Fishhoff was
appointed President of the Austrian Diet, if we understand aright a
paragraph in the Orient. The celebrated preacher, Dr. Isaac Noah
Mannheimer of Vienna, is also a member; he sits for Brody in Gallicia,
and was appointed Vice President at the first meeting of the house.
Another delegate is Dr. Goldmark. A writer in the Orient remarks it as
singular, that a Jew is President of an assembly in a city where a
relative, should he come to see him, has to pay a personal Jew-tax for
the privilege of sojourning there a few days. Such are some of the
inconsistencies of the present state of Austria, which we hope may soon
yield to more sensible counsels. In Berlin, Dr. Koch and Dr. John Jacobi
are prominent members of the Diet, and the former had well nigh been
appointed minister of public worship, only that the change from a total
exclusion from all office to that of superintendent of church affairs
was too great, even in the democratic changes of the present year. But
office-holding is no object, so only that no exclusion is permitted. We
would gladly give more information, if the European papers would only
give us particulars; but they deal too much in generalities to be
transcribed by us.
Jerusalem.—The number of Israelites having greatly
increased in the holy city, they have been induced to enlarge and
rebuild the Synagogue Beth El, and we have received an appeal from the
chiefs of the congregation for aid. Rabbi Jechiel Cohen is again in this
country, and any funds transmitted through him will be duly
appropriated. |
