Shangarai Chasset, also called Shaarei Chesed, was an

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

and later,

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

congregation and

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, located in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, in the United States. The congregation worshipped in the

Sefardi Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

rite Rite may refer to: Religion * Ritual, an established ceremonious act * Rite (Christianity), sacred rituals in the Christian religion * Ritual family, Christian liturgical traditions; often also called ''liturgical rites'' * Catholic particular ch ...

History

Shangarai Chasset was founded in New Orleans on December 20, 1827, and chartered by the Louisiana legislature on March 27, 1828 by Jacob Solis. The synagogue’s members were primarily of Sephardic Portuguese background. Around the same time the synagogue was founded, a related benevolent society was established with the same name, "Shaare Chessed," (the first interment therein was that of a Hyam Harris on June 28, 1828). Though

Judah Touro Judah Touro (June 16, 1775 – January 18, 1854) was an American businessman and philanthropist. Early life and career Touro's father Isaac Touro of Holland was chosen as the hazzan at the Touro Synagogue in 1762, a Portuguese Sephardic congr ...

was not initially interested in the congregation, he eventually gave generously to it. The congregation constructed a synagogue building in 1845 on Rampart Street between St. Louis and Conti Streets, the first permanent synagogue building in Louisiana. A plaque remains at the site. By 1846, the Jewish population had become more French and German because of the migration of Jews from Alsace-Lorraine. As a result, a Sephardic businessman, Gershom Kursheedt, convinced Judah Touro to establish a new Sephardic synagogue which he did on the corner of Bourbon St. and Canal St. The new congregation was called Nefutsoth Judah, Dispersed of Judah. By 1881, the two congregations couldn't exist separately and re-united under the name of ''The Gates of Mercy of the Dispersed of Judah''. In 1937, the congregation changed its name to

Touro Synagogue The Touro Synagogue is a synagogue built in 1763 in Newport, Rhode Island. The building has been occupied by several different congregations over the years. The current occupant is known as Congregation Ahavath Israel (). As the only surviving s ...

in honor of their mutual benefactor. Far from established Jewish communities, the congregation’s membership attempted to create a semblance of Jewish life and community in the new territory opened to them as part of the

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...

. Upon its founding, most Jewish people were reportedly indifferent and not affiliated with the synagogue. Of those affiliated with the congregation, their level of observance was minimal. Jacob Rader Marcus, a noted historian, comments that the lack of affiliation to the synagogue may have in part resulted in many of the Jewish men in the

Louisiana Territory The Territory of Louisiana or Louisiana Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 4, 1805, until June 4, 1812, when it was renamed the Missouri Territory. The territory was formed out of t ...

taking non-Jewish wives and having non-Jewish children. However, the high intermarriage rate did not preclude the congregation from appointing men with gentile wives to leadership positions in the synagogue. Despite shortcomings in their religious observance, their love of their religion, and service to their community was nonetheless noteworthy, as it paved the way for future generations of Jewish life in New Orleans.

Rabbinical leadership

The following individuals served as

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

of the congregation:

Notes

References

External links

Roley Marks
mentioned in Princeton Packet OnlineNews

mentioned in biography of Gershom Kursheedt i
JewishVirtualLibrary.org
detail. *Zivotofsky, Rabbi Ari Z. Ph.D. and Amar, Zohar Ph.D.(2003
"The Halachic Tale of Three American Birds: Turkey, Prairie Chicken, and Muscovy Duck
'' The Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society'', Rabbi

Jacob Joseph Jacob Joseph (; 1840 – July 28, 1902) served as chief rabbi of New York City's Association of American Orthodox Hebrew Congregations, a federation of Eastern European Jewish synagogues, from 1888 until his death in 1902. Born in Krozhe, a pro ...

School Press. Includes a lengthy letter from Rabbi Illoway. 1827 establishments in Louisiana 1881 disestablishments in Louisiana 19th-century synagogues in the United States Alsatian-Jewish culture in the United States Former synagogues in Louisiana French-American culture in Louisiana German-American culture in Louisiana Jewish organizations established in 1827 Portuguese-Jewish culture in the United States Sephardi Reform Judaism Sephardi synagogues in the United States Synagogues completed in 1845 Synagogues in New Orleans

History

Rabbinical leadership

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links