OUR COMMUNITY SYNAGOGUE SPOTLIGHT
Watch “Ask the Rabbi” with Rabbi Schadick.
Social Action Is at Its Roots
Grand Rapids’ Temple Emanuel does its best to meet the needs of a diverse population. DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER
O
ur claim to fame is that the Union for Reform Judaism has told us we’re the fifth oldest Reform congregation in America. We’re very proud of that,” Rabbi Michael Schadick said. “We’re as welcoming as we can be to all people. We have a big tent Rabbi kind of congregaMichael Schadick tion, whether
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you’re Jewish and married to a non-Jew, whether you come from a more traditional background, whether you’re simply someone who is exploring Judaism, we have a diverse population here.” Temple Emanuel, Grand Rapids’ Reform congregation, was founded in 1857 and occupied two rented structures until 1881 when the congregation built its first home on the corner of Fountain and Ransom streets.
Organized by five German families who fled the restrictive laws of Europe, its membership remained largely Germanic until the 1890s when Eastern European Jews began to move into the Grand Rapids area. In 1952, the present Temple building was erected, designed by California architect Eric Mendelsohn. The 1,000-square-foot mural in the sanctuary is the creation
of painter Lucienne Bloch Dimitroff, daughter of the American composer Ernest Bloch and protege of Diego Rivera. In 1992, the Congregation initiated Atid, which funded a major renovation of the sanctuary and public spaces. The second phase of Atid renovated and expanded the library and classrooms. Schadick has been the rabbi of Temple Emanuel since July 2000. Cantor David Fair joined in 2021. Rabbi Emeritus is Rabbi Dr. Albert M. Lewis. Schadick says social action is at the congregation’s roots,
