Confirmants dressed in white and arranged in two rows sit and stand with Rabbi Aronson seated in the middle. Rabbi Aronson came to Beth El in 1924, and served the congregation for 35 years. Beth El, at the time the photo was taken, was on the North Side of Minneapolis. The congregation is now in St. Louis Park .
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Libraries, Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives
Photograph showing the young men of the Minneapolis Talmud Torah Bar Mitzvah class. Bar Mitzvahs celebrate the coming of age at 13 of Jewish boys. At this age, young men become obligated to observe scripture. They may also lead prayer services and count towards a minyan. No service is required: however, it is customary to mark the occasion with a service and celebration. In the 20th century, young women were also welcomed into the adult community with a bat mitzvah. Both bar and bat mitzvahs participate in several years of Hebrew and religious study before the public occasion.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Libraries, Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives
Portrait of Rabbi Albert G. Minda, rabbi of Temple Israel Synagogue in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was a president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and a spiritual leader of Minneapolis Jews from 1922-1963. Additionally, he was co-founder of the Minneapolis Urban League and Round Table Conference of Christians and Jews.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Libraries, Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives
Rabbi Wechsler (pronounced Wexler) lead the congregation's sponsoring a Jewish farming settlement in the Dakota Territories. The settlement attempted to help Russian Jewish immigrants find livelihoods working the land in the American West. Though the farm colony ultimately failed, he was considered an innovator and modernizer. Late in his career, after leaving Minnesota, he worked to improve educational opportunities in Mississippi for blacks. He served at Temple Mount Zion from 1878-1886.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Libraries, Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives
A portrait photograph of Rabbi Solomon Silber. Rabbi Silber served as Kenesseth Israel's rabbi from 1902 to 1925. He, and members of his congregation, were instrumental in funding and building the Jewish Family Welfare Board and the Jewish Sheltering Home.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Libraries, Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives
Rabbi Alfred H. Khan, a graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary, is shown here with his students. Confirmation is a coming-of-age practice for post Bar- and Bat Mitzvahs. between age 15 and 18. It was originally developed by the Reform Movement to follow bar- and bat mitzvahs in the belief that thirteen year olds were not yet ready to be considered adult and should continue on in their religious education. Temple of Aaron was founded as an orthodox congregation but switched affiliation to Conservative several years after founding.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Libraries, Nathan and Theresa Berman Upper Midwest Jewish Archives