First Congregation Sons of Israel

 St. Augustine, FL

April 7, 2022

The congregation was founded by Eastern European immigrants in the late 1800s and chartered by the State of Florida in 1908. Religious services were originally held in members' homes until the synagogue was completed in 1924. The stained glass windows were installed in 1958 by Rabbi Tarlinsky's three daughters. The Sanctuary was badly damaged in Hurricane Matthew and underwent extensive repairs to restore the beauty of the historic building.

First Congregation Sons of Israel

Artifact 1: Stained Glass Windows

The stained glass windows in the Sanctuary were obtained from a synagogue in Georgia that was being demolished. Rabbi Tarlinsky's daughters obtained them and had them installed in the Sanctuary in 1958. In 2013, Ken Hardeman, the great-grandson of the windows' original designer, restored the windows based on the original sketches of them.

Artifact 2: Star of David

Due to damage from Hurricane Matthew, the ceiling collapsed, causing the original chandelier to fall to the floor. The entire Sanctuary had to be restored, including the ceiling. A Flagler College student designed and installed the Star of David currently on the ceiling of the Sanctuary. 

Exterior 1

Exterior 2

Image in Conversation 1

This is the Congregation Rodeph Sholom synagogue in Tampa. The architecture catches my eye every time my family drives down Bayshore Boulevard. I grew up surrounded by Jewish peers, so stepping into the First Congregation Sons of Israel synagogue felt like it was reconnecting me to some of my friends from home. 

Image Source

Image in Conversation 2

This is a picture of a dreidel, which is a four-sided top that Jewish kids play with during Hanukkah. As mentioned above, I grew up with a lot of Jewish friends and although I'm not Jewish, every holiday party before winter break, I spent hours playing dreidel with my friends. I still remember the words to the song, and I remember the joy of squabbling over gelt and the competitiveness we all took on every time the top would spin. 

Image Source

Literature in Conversation

"Not all of the people living within our neighborhood walls are Baptists, but those who need to go to church are glad to come to us."

-Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler

This passage reminds me of the First Congregation Sons of Israel because it reflects how when there are limited choices, religious communities put aside differences and come together. There are various denominations of Judaism, and in bigger cities, there are typically synagogues that represent this, but when the First Congregation was founded, they were the only ones to from a congregation. They may not have all had the exact same beliefs or followed the same denomination had they been given the choice, but they came together and found a community in one another because ultimately, religion is a way that people build bonds between themselves and the greater world.

Creative Response

Boat Cushions - For the innovative reconstruction of the pews

Flood - For all the ordeals the Sanctuary has been through

Hardeman - For the family who designed and restored the stained glass windows

Bimah - For the bimah

Lightboard - For the lightboards at the back of the Sanctuary

Tarlinsky - For Rabbi Tarlinsky and his daughters

Star - For the Star of David and chandelier on the ceiling

Eternal Light - For the Eternal Light above the Ark

Restoration - For all the hard work put into keeping the Synagogue beautiful