Bagg Street Shul
Encyclopedia
The Bagg Street Shul or Beth Shloime (formally Congregation Temple Solomon) is an Orthodox
synagogue
operating in the Montreal Plateau region of Montreal
, Quebec
, Canada
.
In the early 1900s, fueled by heavy immigration, Jews established a large community in Montreal's Plateau region, around Saint Laurent Boulevard.
The synagogue's building, a red-brick duplex on Clark Street, was constructed in 1899. The congregation purchased the building and moved there in 1922. The sanctuary seats 350. The Torah ark, marble staircase, pews, bimah
furniture, and chandeliers were moved to the synagogue from the McGill College location of the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue. These items were purchased from the Shaar Hashomayim in 1918 for $1,500 ($ today).
The Jewish community of Montreal's Plateau supported at least a dozen synagogues at its peak. It started to decline in the 1950s, as many Jews moved further west in Montreal or to other parts of Canada. The Bagg Street Shul is the only synagogue still remaining.
The Bagg Street Shul remains the oldest synagogue still operating with its original congregation in its original location in Quebec. The building is recognized as a religious historical site by the Quebec government.
In 2008, the congregation had 50 member families. The congregation does not and has never had a paid rabbi
.
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
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...
operating in the Montreal Plateau region of Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
In the early 1900s, fueled by heavy immigration, Jews established a large community in Montreal's Plateau region, around Saint Laurent Boulevard.
The synagogue's building, a red-brick duplex on Clark Street, was constructed in 1899. The congregation purchased the building and moved there in 1922. The sanctuary seats 350. The Torah ark, marble staircase, pews, bimah
Bimah
A bimah A bimah A bimah (among Ashkenazim, derived from Hebrew בּמה , almemar (from Arabic al-minbar) or tebah (among Sephardim) is the elevated area or platform in a Jewish synagogue which is intended to serve the place where the person reading aloud from the Torah stands during the Torah reading...
furniture, and chandeliers were moved to the synagogue from the McGill College location of the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue. These items were purchased from the Shaar Hashomayim in 1918 for $1,500 ($ today).
The Jewish community of Montreal's Plateau supported at least a dozen synagogues at its peak. It started to decline in the 1950s, as many Jews moved further west in Montreal or to other parts of Canada. The Bagg Street Shul is the only synagogue still remaining.
The Bagg Street Shul remains the oldest synagogue still operating with its original congregation in its original location in Quebec. The building is recognized as a religious historical site by the Quebec government.
In 2008, the congregation had 50 member families. The congregation does not and has never had a paid rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
.