Temple Emanuel, founded in 1889, is the only Reform Jewish

Reform Judaism

Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...

 congregation in Roanoke, Virginia

Roanoke, Virginia

Roanoke is an independent city in the Mid-Atlantic U.S. state of Virginia and is the tenth-largest city in the Commonwealth. It is located in the Roanoke Valley of the Roanoke Region of Virginia. The population within the city limits was 97,032 as of 2010...

 or the surrounding area. The name, Emanuel

Emanu-El

Temple Emanu-El is the name of numerous Jewish synagogues. It is also spelled Emanuel and Emanu El in English. Emanu-El means "God is with us" in Hebrew.-Canada:*Congregation Emanu-El...

, is Hebrew for "God is with us" and is a name shared by over 60 other Reform congregations in the US, including Temple Emanu-El, the first Reform congregation in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

.

Temple Emanuel's membership has been growing in recent years, and currently stands at just over 200 families. Since 1996, the congregation has been led by 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...

 Kathy Cohen, who was ordained by the Hebrew Union College

Hebrew Union College

The Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is the oldest extant Jewish seminary in the Americas and the main seminary for training rabbis, cantors, educators and communal workers in Reform Judaism.HUC-JIR has campuses in Cincinnati, New York, Los Angeles and Jerusalem.The Jerusalem...

 in Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

 in 1988 and served thereafter at Rockdale Temple

Rockdale Temple

The Rockdale Temple, K.K. Bene Israel, is the oldest Jewish congregation west of the Allegheny Mountains, the oldest congregation in Ohio, the second oldest Ashkenazi congregation in the United States and one of the oldest synagogues in the United States...

 in Cincinnati and Temple Israel in Westport, Connecticut

Westport, Connecticut

-Neighborhoods:* Saugatuck – around the Westport railroad station near the southwestern corner of the town – a built-up area with some restaurants, stores and offices....

. The Temple does not currently employ a cantor

Hazzan

A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish cantor, a musician trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.There are many rules relating to how a cantor should lead services, but the idea of a cantor as a paid professional does not exist in classical rabbinic sources...

, but instead makes use of a cantorial soloist and, once a month, a choral group known as the Chailites.

Temple Emanuel is located at 1163 Persinger Rd S.W., Roanoke, VA 24015.

External links

• Temple Emanuel of Roanoke