Jewish Community of Brookyn Heights
Posted By admin on October 15, 2015
In Brooklyn Heights, amid all the history and beautiful architecture, lives a truly unique population of Jews. In the crazy, hectic borough that is Brooklyn, they have been able to create a community in the true sense of the word. The harmony and caring in which they live is not common to most areas of Brooklyn
Jews are not new to the area of Brooklyn Heights. A few minutes away, in nearby Cobble Hill, sits Congregation Baith Israel Anshei Emes, more commonly known as the Kane Street Synagogue, the oldest synagogue in Brooklyn that still serves the community in which it was founded. The story is told of 12 Jewish settlers from the Netherlands who grew weary of rowing across the East River each Friday to celebrate Shabbat in Manhattan and got together to establish the congregation in1856. Ever since, the Jewish presence has been slowly growing in strength, as three other synagogues have been established in the area.
What is the community like? One residents reply is, This isnt like Borough Park or Crown Heights, which are well known for their Ultra Orthodox communities. Here, its very different. We have a mixture of Reform, Conservative, some Orthodox, and all the in-betweens. The majority of the Jews in the area are of a Reform background while the Orthodox group is rather small in comparison. Bnai Avraham, the neighborhoods Orthodox synagogue, founded just sixteen years ago, is the youngest in the area but is slowly growing in size as more Jews are moving in. The residents say that they all get along very well. Whereas in other neighborhoods there may exist tension between the various religious sects, the Jews in Brooklyn Heights have built one community rather than a few smaller ones. An example of this is the recent Purim carnival held by the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue when the congregants of neighboring congregations showed up and partook in the festivities. A resident here might attend the Reform synagogue while simultaneously sending their children to the Orthodox school. Again, this is not very typical of other neighborhoods in Brooklyn.
Sheila Skolnik, executive director of the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue on Remsen Street, a Reform congregation, describes Brooklyn Heights as a special neighborhood. Her congregation is home to about 600 700 member units (that could mean only one person each or whole families). Her congregation has grown in size over the years and sixteen years ago they had to relocate to a larger building to accommodate everyone. Today the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur bring so many people to the synagogue that they simply arent able to fit into the sanctuary. On those days, the services are held in the Plymouth Church. Add to this the interfaith services that they hold once a year with Grace Church and the fact that right next door are the Sisters of the Franciscans who Skolnik greatly praised, and one can easily assume that the Jews in the Heights get along extremely well not only with the different sects within their own religion but with all the religious institutions in the area. For people who dont live in Brooklyn Heights this seems an anomaly but for its residents its nothing new.
The Jewish residents play a very active role in the community as a whole. The Brooklyn Heights Synagogue has been home to a homeless womens shelter for the past twenty-three years. Jewish volunteers come to help cook and clean for the ten women who receive shelter there during the cold winter months. Rabbi Joseph Potasnik has been rabbi of the Mount Sinai congregation for the past thirty-one years and in addition to those responsibilities, he has played a part in many other aspects of the city. He has served on the Citys Campaign Finance Board, is the current Jewish Chaplain to the New York City Fire Department, has served on the Mayors Commission on Human Rights and is the head of the New York Board of Rabbis. His synagogue is home to about 220 families, all of whom greatly respect and admire this accomplished leader.
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Jewish Community of Brookyn Heights
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