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Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Tours temporarily halted at Touro Synagogue amid long-standing dispute
NEWPORT, R.I. (WPRI) — Craig and Cathy Bell were saddened to learn that the historic Touro Synagogue has temporarily stopped offering tours. The Bells traveled from Long Island to Newport to celebrate their 46th wedding anniversary and were looking forward to seeing the nation's oldest synagogue, which was built in 1763 and has long stood as a symbol of religious freedom. 'We're not coming back anytime soon,' Craig Bell said. 'So, it's very disappointing.' Newport tour guide and University of Rhode Island professor Art Spivack was also disheartened to learn the building is currently closed to the public. 'It's a sad reflection of this ongoing conflict,' Spivack said. Congregation Jeshuat Israel, which used to worship at the Touro Synagogue, has been embroiled in a legal battle with the New York-based Congregation Shearith Israel for years. Congregation Shearith Israel, which owns the historic building, kicked Congregation Jeshuat Israel out of the synagogue nearly a month ago. The Newport congregation was ousted from the synagogue after the R.I. Supreme Court upheld a 2023 ruling that allowed the New York congregation to do so. The long-standing feud first erupted back in 2012, when the Congregation Jeshuat Israel attempted to sell a pair of Colonial-era Torah bells to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston for $7.4 million. Congregation Shearith Israel, which had been leasing the synagogue to Congregation Jeshuat Israel for $1 a year since the early 1900s, objected to the sale and sought to be declared the rightful owner of the bells. The First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals eventually determined that the bells belonged to Congregation Shearith Israel, which stopped the sale from moving forward. Now, Congregation Shearith Israel is accusing Congregation Jeshuat Israel of misappropriating funds set aside for the building's upkeep and failing to make at least $300,000 worth of repairs. The New York congregation filed a lawsuit against the Newport congregation back in April, accusing them of withdrawing $1.6 million from two funds created in the 1800s to cover synagogue maintenance and pay the rabbi's salary. Congregation Shearith Israel also claims Congregation Jeshuat Israel removed Torah scrolls and other religious artifacts from the building without their permission. The Newport congregation has since moved its prayer services to the Levi Gale House, which is across the street from the synagogue. The Touro Synagogue Foundation initially hoped that the New York congregation would allow them to continue offering tours to visitors. But Laura Freedman Pedrick, chair of the Touro Synagogue Foundation, told 12 News she was sadly mistaken. 'Unfortunately, we were unable to come to terms with that congregation to allow us entry,' Freedman Pedrick explained. 'We've been denied access to the building and are no longer able to give tours.' A sign was posted on the door of the Loeb Visitor Center alerting the public that tours are suspended. Lou Solomon, president of Congregation Shearith Israel, told 12 News that there's a reason the Foundation is not allowed in the building. 'The Touro Synagogue Foundation is allied with the former tenant, which took our ritual objects and refuse to return them,' Solomon said. 'I can't let them come in and take more.' For now, Freedman Pedrick told 12 News the Touro Synagogue Foundation is offering historic presentations at the visitor center. She said tour fees will be waived for the presentations, which are offered every half-hour between 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Sunday through Friday. Meanwhile, Solomon stressed that tours of the synagogue will resume this Friday, but not with the Touro Synagogue Foundation. He said Congregation Shearith Israel found someone else to host the tours. 'We're very pleased about that,' Solomon added. Solomon said the reason no tours were offered Monday and Tuesday were due to the Jewish holiday Shavuot. The Bells remain hopeful that the two congregations will resolve their issues in the near future. 'Knock it off. Find a way to make this work,' Craig Bell said. 'We're all on the same team, supposedly, and we all wear the same uniform.' 'It's disappointing that two affiliations want to fight over who has the right to do XYZ, and who suffers? The public,' he continued. 'Let everyone see what a beautiful building this is and stop being a bunch of knuckleheads.' Spivack echoed that sentiment. 'I think [the congregations] should be able to resolve this,' Spivack said. 'It would be to their mutual benefit.' Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Boston Globe
5 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
Public tours of historic Touro Synagogue halted amid ongoing dispute between Newport and New York congregations
The synagogue remains open to the public for prayer and worship during services, according to Paul Tobak, president of Congregation Ahavath Israel, the synagogue's tenant congregation. The foundation, which has brought tour groups through the historic synagogue for 78 years, was the only entity providing tours inside the building for members of the public who are not worshipping there, Freedman Pedrick confirmed. Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up The tours are now on hold indefinitely, although the foundation said it is still providing presentations of the synagogue's history 'in the Loeb Visitors Center or, weather permitting, outdoors in Patriots' Park, overlooking the synagogue.' Advertisement 'I can't tell you enough how upsetting it is that we have been denied access for exactly that reason: To be able to share the story [of the synagogue] in that space,' Freedman Pedrick said. Built in 1763, the synagogue has long stood as a symbol of religious freedom in the United States, especially after President George Washington visited Newport following Rhode Island's ratification of the US Constitution in 1790, and assured the Jewish congregation in a letter that the newly formed country would give 'to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.' Advertisement Inside Touro Synagogue in Newport, R.I. David L. Ryan/Globe Staff In recent years, the synagogue has been at The Rhode Island Supreme Court ruled in April the former could And in Michael Pimental, co-president of Congregation Jeshuat Israel, has called the allegations 'meritless.' Louis M. Solomon, president of Congregation Shearith Israel, did not return requests for comment. But according to Tobak, some members of the synagogue foundation's board also belong to Congregation Jeshuat Israel's litigation committee. 'With these issues outstanding, Shearith Israel did not want people from the leadership of CJI and also the leadership of the Touro Synagogue Foundation … having keys and other things for the synagogue,' Tobak said. Pimental said 'there has always been, historically, some overlap as it relates to either membership or maybe board representation' between the foundation and Congregation Jeshuat Israel. 'I can't speak to the basis for which [members of Congregation Shearith Israel] justify continuing to harass all the Newport community,' he said. Advertisement According to Tobak and Freedman Pedrick, Congregation Shearith Israel and the Touro Synagogue Foundation attempted to negotiate to allow the tours to continue, but could not reach an agreement. 'They wanted to dictate how we were going to tell the story and the history of Touro Synagogue, of religious freedom, of the history of what went on in that building,' Freedman Pedrick said. She declined to provide more details, but added, 'That was not how we were willing to go forward.' Tobak said Congregation Shearith Israel wants to have tours available, and had reached out to the Newport Historical Society about spearheading the tours. In an email, Lauren Craig, the society's membership engagement and social media coordinator, confirmed the congregation reached out to the organization. 'But our walking tour schedule is currently full and there are no plans for Newport Historical Society to take over tours of Touro Synagogue,' Craig wrote. According to the foundation, through its publicly-available presentations on the synagogue's history visitors will 'learn about Touro Synagogue, Newport's colonial Jewish community, the origins of religious freedom, and the separation of church and state in the United States.' There is no admission fee, but the foundation is accepting donations. Freedman Pedrick said the foundation remains focused on sharing the history 'because we think it's so important to America.' 'In the biggest scheme of it all … I'm hopeful that and I anticipate that that building is going to outlast all of us, right?' she said. 'They are the stewards right now. I hope that they take good care of that building, because it's so significant.' Touro Synagogue is the oldest standing synagogue in the US. David L. Ryan/Globe Staff Christopher Gavin can be reached at
