This year, Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim (KKBE) in Charleston, South Carolina celebrates its 275th anniversary. Menachem Wecker delves into the synagogue’s architecture and the history of the local Jewish community:
Sitting in the voluminous sanctuary of KKBE across the aisle from Mark Swick, executive director of the congregation, is an exercise in self-restraint to focus on the conversation and not the arresting interior. Light pours in through colorful stained-glass windows, many with biblical themes. Some depict Noah’s ark, perhaps a nod to the merchants drawn to the city’s ports. An apparent depiction of the burning bush is damaged, a kind of echo of the 1794 synagogue building’s destruction in an 1838 fire that destroyed many city blocks.
KKBE boasts of being the oldest synagogue in continuous use in the nation. Touro Synagogue, in Newport, Rhode Island, is older but hasn’t been used continuously. The first Jews arrived in Charleston in the late 17th century—largely Sephardi merchants drawn to the city’s seaport and its unusual hospitality toward Jews, among others. By 1749, KKBE was formed, building its first synagogue 45 years later.
The current Greek Revival building draws on classical Greek architecture while suspending a dome—a distinctly ancient Roman feature—underneath the roof, according to an informational video that plays in the sanctuary for visitors. The elegant ark and interior suggested that Judaism, an older tradition, surpassed the best of Greece and Rome, per the video.
Read more on JNS: https://www.jns.org/with-275-years-of-ghosts-charlestons-jewish-leaders-bullish-on-its-future/