Thank you to all who answered last week’s Shul Trivia Of The Week. The winner this week is Simon Raphael, who correctly identified the shul as Beit Knesset HaNassi in Rechavia, in Jerusalem. From the time of its inception in 1932, it was a place where illustrious Jews prayed, including many leaders of The Jewish Agency. Among them were the author Shai Agnon, and Dr. YitzchakNebenzahl, the Comptroller of the State of Israel (and father of Rav Avigdor Nebenzahl, Rabbi of the Old City of Jerusalem). In 1952, Yitzchak Ben Zvi, a regular, was elected President of the State of Israel. Upon his passing, the title “Hanassi” was added to the name of the shul by the congregational leadership, with the approval of his family. In recent years, the shul has also become affiliated with the Young Israel movement, and is now also known as the Young Israel of Rechavia. The Rabbi is the legendary historian, thinker and speaker Rabbi Berel Wein, who made aliyah in 1997 and was born only two years after the founding of the shul he continues to serve! The connection between this shul in my family is that my great grandfather, RavAvraham Baruch Abba Rackovsky, was its unofficial Rabbi at the time of its inception. His son, my great uncle Rav Eliezer Rackovsky, was the “weekday Rabbi” between 1965 and his passing in 1995, delivering numerous weekly shiurim- but was never in the shul on Shabbos (!).
This Week’s Shul
A special event took place this week in the city in which this magnificent shul is located, commemorating another similar event that took place there 125 years ago. Name the city, the shul and the event.
Shabbat Shalom! Rabbi Ariel Rackovsky
Congregation Shaare Tefilla 6131 Churchill Way Dallas, TX 75230
