B'nai Israel Synagogue (Baltimore, Maryland)
Encyclopedia
B'nai Israel is a Modern Orthodox
synagogue
located in the historic Inner Harbor
neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. It is among the oldest synagogue buildings
still standing in the United States.
It is noted for its Moorish Revival
architecture. The Aron Kodesh is an architectural fantasy in carved wood, with the cabinet in which the Torah
scrolls are stored flanked by a pair of tall minarets.
The congregation was founded in 1873, the present building was erected in 1876. B'nai Israel is one of two synagogues in the collection of the Jewish Museum of Maryland.
The building was erected by Congregation Chizuk Amuno and sold to B'nai Israel in 1895.
The shul is poplar with medical and graduate students at the Johns Hopkins and U. Maryland medical campuses who live in Harbor East.
An easy walk from all of the downtown hotels, the congregation welcomes tourists and business travelers to its services.
Modern Orthodox Judaism
Modern Orthodox Judaism is a movement within Orthodox Judaism that attempts to synthesize Jewish values and the observance of Jewish law, with the secular, modern world....
synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
located in the historic Inner Harbor
Inner Harbor
The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and iconic landmark of the City of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Described by the Urban Land Institute in 2009 as “the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the World.” The Inner Harbor is actually the end of the...
neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. It is among the oldest synagogue buildings
Oldest synagogues in the United States
The designation of the oldest synagogue in the United States requires careful use of definitions, and must be divided into two parts, the oldest in the sense of oldest surviving building, and the oldest in the sense of oldest congregation...
still standing in the United States.
It is noted for its Moorish Revival
Moorish Revival
Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of the Romanticist fascination with all things oriental...
architecture. The Aron Kodesh is an architectural fantasy in carved wood, with the cabinet in which the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
scrolls are stored flanked by a pair of tall minarets.
The congregation was founded in 1873, the present building was erected in 1876. B'nai Israel is one of two synagogues in the collection of the Jewish Museum of Maryland.
The building was erected by Congregation Chizuk Amuno and sold to B'nai Israel in 1895.
The shul is poplar with medical and graduate students at the Johns Hopkins and U. Maryland medical campuses who live in Harbor East.
An easy walk from all of the downtown hotels, the congregation welcomes tourists and business travelers to its services.