The Gate of Heaven: The Story of Congregation Shaar Hashomayim in Montreal, 1846-1996 - Hardcover

Shuchat, Wilfred

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0773520899 ISBN 13: 9780773520899

Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2000

Synopsis

Rabbi Shuchat tells of the emergence of Shaar Hashomayim as a congregation separate from the Spanish and Portuguese fold, the generation-long tension between the two congregations, and the rebellion that produced the Temple Emanuel. He describes the role of the Canadian government in the ups and downs of Jewish immigration and details the effects of world-wide anti-Semitism on the local community, as well as the struggle for Jewish educational rights that ultimately produced a real public school system in the province of Quebec. The student protest that almost paralysed the Passover festival and the day school crisis that almost split the congregation are recounted in detail, and the Pavilion of Judaism at Expo '67 is described. Weaving together individual stories and the history of the Shaar, Rabbi Shuchat demonstrates how the turbulence of the nineteenth century produced a twentieth-century Shaar and Montreal Jewish community that are second to none in tolerance and creativity.

About this title

Synopsis

"The Gate of Heaven" is the story of the evolution of Congregation Shaar Hashomayim, from the beginnings of Jewish settlement in Canada to present-day activities. Rabbi Wilfred Shuchat shows how the achievement of political rights for Jews in Canada galvanised immigration, leading the English/German/Polish congregation of the Shaar to create the second oldest congregation in Canada, the oldest in the Ashkenazic tradition. Rabbi Shuchat tells of the emergence of Shaar Hashomayim as a congregation separate from the Spanish and Portuguese fold, the generation-long tension between the two congregations, and the rebellion that produced the Temple Emanuel. He describes the role of the Canadian government in the ups and downs of Jewish immigration and details the effects of world-wide anti-Semitism on the local community, as well as the struggle for Jewish educational rights that ultimately produced a real public school system in the province of Quebec. The student protest that almost paralysed the Passover festival and the day school crisis that almost split the congregation are recounted in detail, and the Pavilion of Judaism at Expo '67 is described.

Weaving together individual stories and the history of the Shaar, Rabbi Shuchat demonstrates how the turbulence of the nineteenth century produced a twentieth-century Shaar and Montreal Jewish community that are second to none in tolerance and creativity. Rabbi Wilfred Shuchat occupied pulpits in Albany and Buffalo before coming to Shaar Hashomayim in 1946. He retired in 1993 and lives in Montreal.

About the Author

Shuchat occupied pulpits in Albany and Buffalo before coming to Shaar Hashomayim in 1946. He retired in 1993 and lives in Montreal.

Edition details

• Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0773520899
• ISBN 13: 9780773520899
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 536