Beth Judah Synagogue Celebrates 100 Years

WILDWOOD – Beth Judah Synagogue is celebrating its 100th anniversary this month, honoring its past and defining its future as a vital Jewish community in Wildwood and Cape May County. As the only active synagogue in the county, its members have witnessed several major events such as a local and active Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s, the annihilation of 6 million Jews in Europe, changing social and economic conditions in Cape May County, a fluctuating Jewish population nationally and locally, and the Cold War. It’s also these influences that have had an impact on shaping the local congregation.
“There are three major characteristics of this congregation that make it unique,” said Rabbi Jeffrey Lipschultz. “The first is that many families have been part of the temple since its beginning. The second is that members are mostly from the business community and the third is that it is very traditional in nature.
“The history of the synagogue is really tied to the history of the Eastern European immigrants who came to America,” Lipschultz said. According to the temple’s historians, many of Wildwood’s first Jews came from Woodbine when, in 1891, Baron Maurice de Hirsch, a German industrialist-banker-railroad tycoon, established a trust fund to enable families to immigrate to the U.S.
The fund purchased 5,300 acres of land in Dennis Township, which eventually gave birth to the Borough of Woodbine.
“Oftentimes, a typical congregation is very transient with people moving in and out,” Lipschultz said. “Here, it is very historical; some families have been part of this congregation for four generations or more.”
One member, Rita Best, was named at the temple 77 years ago and is the fourth generation of her family to be a temple member. She is being honored during the Centennial Celebration for her years of service, having been a member of the board of directors for 24 years, 20 as membership chairman.
Best said her great-grandfather gave the first $100 to build a synagogue in 1914. Her great-grandparents and grandmother were Eastern European and settled in Bridgeton where her great-grandfather owned a candy store.
He saw the business opportunity during the summers in Wildwood so he brought saltwater taffy to the Boardwalk in 1903. “After three summers here, he decided to move his family and we’ve been here ever since,” Best said.
Two of Best’s daughters were married in the temple and live in the area; two other children live out of town. A grandson who was Bar Mitzvah is the sixth generation member, along with a granddaughter who will be Bat Mitzvah in March.
“It’s like going home when I come to temple,” Best said. “While the temple has been refurbished over the years, it still is a beautiful old, old synagogue. There still is a lot of stuff there that I remember as a child; I always look to make sure it’s still there.”
Like Best’s great-grandfather, many immigrants who lived in Woodbine in the winter, came to Wildwood during the summer seeking better business opportunities, according to Lipschultz. This gave birth to the second “unique” congregational characteristic, Lipschultz said, which is the congregation that is made up of mostly business owners or members of the business community, giving it a “very entrepreneurial nature.”
“Oftentimes, parishioners are lawyers or doctors, or other professional types,” the rabbi said. “Our members and activities are reflective of Wildwood businesses and its economy. This means that summer is their busy time, so we have many activities and classes, for example, in the slower times such as winter or fall.”
Because most of the immigrants were Eastern European, there is a “strong reverence of tradition,” Lipschultz said, describing the third characteristic. “In the beginning, many of our members were survivors of The Holocaust, or were family members of survivors. The congregation here wants to keep things as traditional as possible, and they have an incredible sense of tradition, despite the fact that many of those survivors have passed away.”
Lipschultz mentioned that they keep a strict kosher kitchen, despite there being only a couple of members who follow strict kosher rules. The congregation also uses an Orthodox prayer book for Saturday services, despite there no longer being any Orthodox members.
“While the membership is getting older, it’s great to see some of the younger members getting involved now,” Best said. “It’s hard because so many of our young people leave the area because of the economic times. This centennial event will help show that we are still very active and a very warm group.”
Lipschultz and Best agree that reaching out to other areas, geographically and religiously, is key to increasing membership. “I think going forward we will need to have a religious transition to move away from some of the traditional aspects,” Lipschultz said, “such as shorter and fewer services, adding more English and music to the services, and making interfaith couples feel more comfortable at the services because they may not speak Hebrew and understand what is going on.”
Focusing on interfaith couples is a key area, Lipschultz said, because of the increase nationwide and locally in the number of interfaith marriages. “We lose 200,000 Jews in the U.S. every decade mostly due to interfaith marriages. In 72 percent of these marriages, the couple decides not to raise their children in the Jewish faith. Just basic demographics like these have impacted us locally, so I think going forward we need to help keep those interfaith couples and families involved. We need to make them feel comfortable at our services and activities by making some changes to help them along.”
Lipschultz, in his seventh year as Beth Judah Synagogue rabbi, said he performs only one or two weddings a year, and has done a few conversions to Judaism during his tenure. Like other religious groups, the Wildwood synagogue is facing challenges keeping its membership.
Today, there are about 60-65 families who are members of Beth Judah Synagogue, down from peaks in the 1950s-60s. “In the 1960s, most of the businesses on Pacific Avenue were owned by Jewish people,” Lipschultz said. “They worked hard, sent their kids to college and their children became professionals in many instances, and now live in places like Cherry Hill or Philadelphia. They aren’t coming back to Wildwood necessarily, so we are struggling with membership and a tough economic situation in Cape May County.”
Best owned Wagon Wheel Florist in Wildwood Crest for 28 years and remembers when “the local economy was strong. As a result of this centennial, some of the other religious groups now are looking to co-sponsor events, so hopefully this event will help rejuvenate us,” she said.
Facing their future is a key theme for the Centennial Celebration, planned for Oct. 24 – 26. The events are open to the public, and tickets and information can be obtained by calling 522-7541 or emailing bethjudahtemple@yahoo.com.
Celebration events include:
* Friday services (6:30 p.m.) and dinner, Oct. 24. Honoring Rita Best for years of service and welcome Shabbat together. Catered dinner, ticketed event.
* Saturday services (9:30 a.m.) and lunch, Oct. 25. Service led by alumni members, honoring the founding families, giving special tribute to the Gidding/Siris and Baker families. Catered lunch, ticketed event.
* Saturday Afternoon Block Party (2 p.m.) Oct. 25. VIPs, dignitaries, invited guests, families, alumni will unveil a plaque outside the synagogue commemorating the 100th anniversary and rededication of Beth Judah to the tune of The Hester Street Troupe, a Klezmer Band. Free.
* Cocktails, dinner and Joshua Nelson concert (6 p.m.) Oct. 25 – Nelson, a Black Jew who grew up inspired by Mahalia Jackson, combines his heritage creating a new style of Jewish meaning and gospel sounds. Ticketed event.
* Sunday Brunch (10 a.m.), Oct. 26. Catered brunch with the presentation of Kehilla 2014, a strategic plan of action that will define the congregation’s future as a vital Jewish community in Wildwood and Cape May County.