EXHIBITS
100 Years of Congregation Brith Sholem: Honoring the Jewish Community in Ogden, Utah: Religious Education at Congregation Brith Sholem
Religious Education at Congregation Brith Sholem
The early Jewish Community of Ogden began conducting religious education during their first congregation at Ohab Sholem. Because the first congregation did not have their own rabbi, it appears that many children may have been taught at home by their parents or, most likely, sent to receive religious education at B’nai Israel or Congregation Montefiore in Salt Lake City. Rabbi Samuel Alkow may have been the first rabbi of Ogden’s congregation to teach religious classes to local youth when he became rabbi for Congregation Brith Sholem in 1914. Rabbi Alkow was a Hebrew language and theology teacher, as well as a director of Congregation Montefiore in Salt Lake City.[1]
The first evidence of religious education, also called Hebrew school in the early twentieth century, at Congregation Brith Sholem appears in a photo of Rabbi Lazras Lehrer standing with a large group of Jewish children. The photo (pictured right) was captured between 1919 and 1922, the period that Rabbi Lehrer was present at the congregation, in a meeting room on the second floor of Louis Rubin’s business the Utah Shoe Hospital.[2] Behind the children hangs a tapestry with the Hebrew alphabet printed on its right. A young female is holding an Israel flag to the left standing next to Rabbi Lehrer. The article to the left lists many Jewish children of the congregation’s Sabbath school who participated in Hanukkah celebrations. In May of that same year, Rabbi Lehrer confirmed seven Jewish students for their Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. These students included Fannie Greenband, Fannie Gordon, Anna Lehrer, Harry Rub[in], Alex Schultz, Miss Berkowitz, and Miss Kreines.[3] Once Congregation Brith Sholem lost the ability to maintain a rabbi, it can be assumed their young members once again attended religious education at congregations in Salt Lake City.
The first newsletter issued by Congregation Brith Sholem in August 1968 indicates that the congregation organized a religious education program for their youth members the year before. Sunday School was coordinated by Dr. Bob Brodstein and taught by members Joy Levy, Leonore Mendelsohn, and Howard Shaw. The program of 1967–1968 enrolled fifteen children ages five to twelve. The instructors taught the children the history of the Jewish holidays, the Hebrew alphabet, and Hebrew prayers. The registration fees for each child to attend Sunday School from 1968 to 1969 was $12.50.[4]
In the early 1980s, Congregation Brith Sholem partnered with Congregation Kol Ami in Salt Lake City to make it eligible for their children to receive religious education at their congregation. Congregation Brith Sholem paid a yearly lump sum for this benefit. A 1982 newsletter from the congregation informed their members that a carpool system was being formed “for schlepping back and forth.”[5] The congregation also received adult education from Congregation Kol Ami, which consisted of learning Hebrew and discussing portions of the Torah. In the 1998 membership survey conducted by Congregation Brith Sholem officers, fourteen out of the seventeen members who participated in this portion of the survey believed Congregation Brith Sholem should start their own religious school due to the yearly payment required by Congregation Kol Ami for their religious educational services.[6]
That same year, Congregation Brith Sholem began conducting religious education for its young members. Thirty children attended the first year of religious school from 1998 to 1999. The cost for attending the first school year was $50 per child for congregation members and $100 for nonmembers. This fee included a tote bag with necessary books and supplies.
The curriculum for each grade included learning aspects of God, the Torah, Jewish celebrations, Israel, ethics of Judaism and the synagogue, and Hebrew. The goals of the Congregation Brith Sholem Religious School (CBSRS) are:
Students will build a Jewish identity and increase involvement in the Jewish community by: 1) learning about Jewish Holidays and life cycle events and how to observe them, 2) develop a basic knowledge of Hebrew which will allow them to sound out words fluently and master basic prayers, 3) learning and practicing the principles of tikkun olam (repairing the world), and 4) becoming familiar with worship services and synagogue life.[7]
Many parents held active roles and volunteered as teachers for the congregation’s religious school. These teaching roles included teaching students Hebrew, music, and caring and teaching different grade levels. The students were separated by grades and provided lessons appropriate for their grade level. Most classes were managed by two volunteers, with an average of five children in each class. In the 2003–2004 school year, twenty-four children from fourteen families attended Brith Sholem religious school.[8]
In 2003 Congregation Brith Sholem sought the assistance of the United Jewish Federation of Utah (UJF) to request funding opportunities for their religious education program. Since then, CBSRS partners with UJF as the organization provides funding to keep the program operating.[9]
At Congregation Brith Sholem, religious education is very important and valuable as it provides the students incredible knowledge of their Jewish heritage, religion, and brings them closer to their Jewish identity. The students, ranging from preschool to seventh grade, learn a variety of lessons related to Judaism, such as Hebrew, stories from the Bible, lessons from the Torah, religious songs and prayers, meanings of Jewish holidays, and lessons required to receive a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Because of its importance to Judaism and maintaining one’s Jewish identity, the congregation’s religious school provides mid-year and end-of-year assessments for their students. These assessments cover attendance, class preparation, class participation, group activities, and social attitudes. Separate commentary is made by the teachers and the student’s knowledge of Hebrew.
Due to the inadequate space to hold religious school in the synagogue, as they had yet to purchase the house next door, the congregation began renting spaces around Ogden. The first location they rented classrooms from was Wasatch Elementary School at 3370 Polk Avenue in Ogden. [10] The next year in 2000, the congregation rented classrooms from Horizon School at 1220 Twenty-Third Street. In 2001 the congregation began renting office spaces located at 3955 South Harrison Boulevard. Shortly after, congregation member Dr. Stuart Osofsky offered CBSRS the space of his entire dental office to hold religious education classes.[11] The congregation continued to use this location for its religious school until they purchased the house next door in 2014. Congregation Brith Sholem continues to conduct religious education at this location.