“In the beginning…” it was a dream: that Jewish families in Macon might transmit their heritage to their children and grandchildren, as Jews had done for generations. On November 10, 1904, Congregation Sherah Israel, received a charter incorporating and giving formal shape to that dream. In those early years, services were held in rented halls until the congregation purchased a large two‑story house at Oak and Third Streets, which served not only as a place for worship and classes but also as the home for the rabbi and his family. Around this time, the City of Macon granted land on Rose Hill for a burial ground, where the oldest tombstone dates back to 1902, tying the community’s story to the landscape even before the charter was signed.
The first decades were shaped by the steady, devoted presence of Rabbi Charles Glyck, who served the congregation intermittently until his death in 1923. Under his spiritual leadership, the small but determined kehilla laid foundations in prayer, education, and ritual life that would echo for generations. In 1919, the congregation purchased property at Plum and First Streets with the express purpose of building a synagogue, and with only forty members they raised an impressive sum and were able to fulfill that goal. By 1922, the new synagogue building was completed and dedicated on June 4 of that year, marking a major milestone in the life of Sherah Israel.
From 1922 to 1947, Sherah Israel grew rapidly, especially in its religious school, even though there were many periods without a resident rabbi. The congregation hosted an adult Bible class conducted entirely in Yiddish, keeping tradition and language alive among adults as well as children. The women organized a Ladies Auxiliary which played a central role in both the financial and spiritual vitality of the congregation.
During World War II, the Ladies Auxiliary welcomed servicemen stationed in the area, hosted public Seders, and even adopted two French war orphans whom they supported until 1950, extending the reach of the congregation’s care far beyond Macon.
A new era began in 1947 when Rabbi Charles Rubel and his wife arrived in Macon and focused on strengthening formal Jewish education. That same year, congregants gathered joyfully to celebrate the United Nations resolution paving the way for the creation of the State of Israel, a moment that deepened the community’s connection to the Jewish people worldwide. Soon after, in 1948 the congregation purchased two houses next to the synagogue, and in 1949 affiliated with the United Synagogue of America and adopted the Silverman Prayer Book, while the Auxiliary joined the National Women’s League, firmly aligning Sherah Israel with the Conservative movement.
The 1950s and early 1960s were years of building, innovation, and inclusion. The congregation launched a campaign to build a center and by 1953 the new center with auditorium, kitchen, ladies’ lounge, rabbi’s study, library, and classrooms was complete. The Women’s Auxiliary took on the new name Sherah Israel Sisterhood. After Rabbi Rubel departed in 1958, Rabbi Morton A. Wallach arrived. That same year, Sherah Israel celebrated other noteworthy milestones; the election of Milton Marshall as president created the first father‑and‑son presidential pair, the congregation elected the first woman to the Board of Governors, Sarah Koplin and the installation of air‑conditioning in the sanctuary. By the early 1960s newly adopted Constitution and By‑Laws granted wives the right to share their husbands’ votes, and in 1961 the first Bat Mitzvah was celebrated.
In 1962 Dr. Pierce Annes came to serve as rabbi, guiding Sherah Israel into a decade of religious and physical transformation. During Dr. Annes’s tenure, the congregation embarked on major renovations, including a complete remodeling of the Sanctuary and basement, adding the Plum Street Foyer and the Barnett Chapel. In these same years, a new cemetery parcel at Rose Hill was purchased, and the religious school began teaching the Sephardic Hebrew pronunciation.
In 1971, Dr. Annes retired and was named Rabbi Emeritus, and the early 1970s saw important steps toward egalitarian and ritual inclusion. Rabbi Leo Heim served from 1973 for two years. In January 1974 the congregation decided to count women toward a minyan; by August of that year women were being called to the Torah for aliyot.
The 1970s and 1980s brought a succession of rabbis including Rabbi Joseph Weintraub, Rabbi Robert Kravitz and Rabbi Irwin Cutler. The Tree of Life in the foyer was donated in honor of Elsie and Dave Kruger’s 50th anniversary. In 1979, Beverly Kruger became the first woman elected president of Sherah Israel, signaling a new era in egalitarian leadership.
The 1980s saw the gift of our congregation’s first Sephardic Torah, the establishment of the Dr. Lawrence A. Haskins Memorial Trust Fund and the David S. Kruger Torah Fund, the merging of the Sisterhood with the congregation and the establishment of a Board of Trustees to oversee the General Endowment Fund. Other developments during this time included the donation of a Holocaust Memorial Plaque by the Frolich family, major improvements to the rabbi’s study and the library and the creation of the Sarah Mendel Koplin Library Fund to support an expanded, cataloged collection. Our congregation also demonstrated reverence for sacred texts by creating a display case for the Kessler Torah which had been smuggled out of Nazi‑occupied Austria and lovingly donated to our congregation by Amalie Proskauer.
In 1985, Rabbi Dov Edelstein assumed the pulpit and helped guide the congregation through a period of planning, innovation, and communal recognition. The congregation completed a demographic study, launched long‑range planning and approved the use of music on Shabbat and festivals in the social hall, while also earning recognition such as the Solomon Schechter Award for its library and seeing Rabbi Edelstein appointed to the Georgia Holocaust Commission. In 1989 Rabbi Edelstein consecrated the new Sherah Israel Cemetery at Rose Hill, fulfilling plans initiated in the mid‑1960s and adding 253 gravesites for future generations.
The 1990s and early 2000s were marked by lay leadership stepping up during rabbinic transitions. After Rabbi Edelstein moved to Israel in 1991, visiting rabbis such as Rabbi Mychal Springer and Rabbi Ron Muroff helped to sustain the spiritual needs of our members, providing inspiration and support and enabling us to search for and find the appropriate rabbi. In 1993 Rabbi Rubinstein and his wife, Sharona joined the congregation with great hope for the future. During this time a wonderful choir was formed under the direction of Rabbi Rubinstein and his talented wife. Within the community Sherah Israel became more visible, hosting our first ecumenical Thanksgiving service, working with project Isaiah to provide items for the local Food Bank and adding to our ongoing social action projects volunteering at the Bibb County Jail on Christmas and at the Medical Centers.
In the new millennium, we embraced both tradition and modernity, from the return to the congregation’s original name, Sha’arey Israel, to the adoption of new technologies and forms of learning and in 2003 the celebration of the congregation’s centennial. We bid Rabbi Rubinstein and his family farewell in 2005 and in 2007 the congregation welcomed its first female rabbi, Rabbi Rachel Bat‑Or. CSI served as the pilot for a cantorial internship program, and educational endeavors such as Lunch & Learn. Art programs such as glass blowing to commemorate Kristallnacht and an opportunity to witness scribe, Rabbi Danneman, finish the last lines of a new Torah, gave our congregants deeper connections to our history and sacred texts.
In 2007 Rabbi Rat-Or returned to California and we found ourselves relying on our very talented and dedicated lay leadership once again. In 2012 we were blessed to welcome Rabbi Rubinstein and his family back to our kehillah. Rabbi Rubinstein introduced a variety of creative adult education program and vibrant youth and family programs like “Rockin’ Shabbat” reflecting our ongoing commitment to worship, study, and community.
Recent years have brought both unprecedented challenges and renewed resolve. When the Covid‑19 pandemic struck in 2020, Rabbi Rubinstein and his family quickly crafted online worship so that congregants could continue to pray and feel connected despite the inability to gather in person. As pandemic conditions eased, the kehilla developed hybrid services so that those attending in the building and those joining by computer could participate equally.
As Sha’arey Israel marks its 120th year and looks toward the future under the guidance of a long‑range planning committee and new generations of leadership, it remains humbly grateful to the men and women who founded the congregation and to those whose devotion and creativity sustain it today.
