Morristown Jewish Center

Morristown Jewish Center, officially Morristown Jewish Center Beit Yisrael, abbreviated as MJCBY, is a Conservative congregation and synagogue located in Morristown, New Jersey, in the United States. It was formally incorporated in 1899,^[1][2][3][4] while its building was constructed in 1929.^[1]

Morristown Jewish Center
Front facade of the 1929 structure
Religion
Affiliation	Conservative Judaism
Ecclesiastical or organizational status	Synagogue
Leadership	Rabbi Adam Gillman
Status	Active
Location
Location	177 Speedwell Avenue, Morristown, Morris County, New Jersey
Location in Morris County, New Jersey
Geographic coordinates	40°48′14″N 74°28′55″W / 40.80394°N 74.48204°W / 40.80394; -74.48204
Architecture
Date established	1899 (as a congregation)
Completed	1929
Website
mjcby.org

MJCBY is affiliated with Conservative Judaism^[5] although originally having started as an Orthodox congregation.

It is the oldest active congregation in Morristown, having a significant historic Jewish community during its era of peak significance.^[1]

History

The first known Jews to settle in Morristown came in the 1850's, and the first Jewish child in the area was born in 1860, with several Jewish families being resident by the end of the 1860's. These families were primarily of German-Jewish heritage. Starting in the 1890's Eastern European Jews began to settle in the area, who would in time become the majority of the Jewish population of the area.^[1]

During the early part of the 1890's, Ashkenazi Jews would travel to other locales in the New York City metro area for High Holiday services, but this changed in the mid-1890's when a group of local Jews took up a collection to buy a Torah scroll in New York City for $35. The first known minyan met at a home at 4 Race Street in Morristown on January 24, 1895. In 1898, the decision was made to formally incorporate as the "House of Israel of Morristown, New Jersey" (Beit Yisrael) which took place on January 5, 1899.^[1][2][3][4]

On November 4, 1929^[1] the congregation opened a Jewish community center.^[6][7] but due to the stock market crash of 1929, the community struggled to pay off the notes for the construction.^[1]

In the early 1900s, Speedwell Avenue was a hub for peddlers and small businesses many of which were Jewish-owned. Since then, much of the community has moved to suburbs such as Randolph and Morris Plains. Morristown still today, however, maintains a significant Jewish community with MJCBY, orthodox shul Ahavath Yisrael,^[8] and Lubavitch yeshiva Rabbinical College of America.^[9]

20th century to present

In 1998, the congregation was mentioned alongside two other local synagogues in the remarks of Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen on the floor of Congress.^[10]

As of 2021, the congregation has an active scholar-in-residence program.^[11]

References

1. Scherzer, Carl B. (October 1977). "Early Jewish History in Morristown". Morristown Jewish Center. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
2. "Morristown Jewish Center" Archives of the Jewish Historical Society of New Jersey Accessed December 3, 2021.
3. "Morris and Sussexx Counties" JewishVirtuallibrary.org Accessed December 3, 2021.
4. Garber, Phil "Jewish history in Morris and Sussex is traced" New Jersey Hills Media Group Feb. 12, 2004 Accessed December 3, 2021.
5. Morristown Jewish Center Beit Yisrael
6. This was reported to have discussed in the New York Times at the time,^{[citation needed]}
7. Weisberger, Jed "Historical patriotism of Morristown Jews on display" (July 24, 2017) Accessed December 3, 2021
8. "Home page". Ahavath Yisrael.
9. "About us". Rabbinical College of America.
10. Frelinghuyson, Rodney P. (May 12, 1998). "Saluting the state of Israel on their 50th anniversary". Congressional Record. 144 (59). Retrieved December 3, 2021.
11. "Morristown Jewish Center to present scholar Sid Schwartz, Dec. 8-9"". MorristownGreen.com. November 24, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2021.

External links

• Official website