The roots of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue (SWFS) were planted in 1905, when Dr. Stephen Samuel Wise, who had already attracted national attention from the pulpit in Portland, Oregon, was under active consideration for the pulpit at Temple Emanu-El in New York City. When Dr. Wise learned that his sermons would be reviewed in advance by the temple's board of trustees, he withdrew himself from consideration. In doing so, Rabbi Wise clearly stated his vision from his Portland pulpit, then sent it to the New York Times: "The chief office of the minister, I take it, is not to represent the view of the congregation, but to proclaim the truth as he sees it. A free pulpit, worthily filled, must command respect and influence; a pulpit that is not free, howsoever filled, is sure to be without potency or honor. In the pursuit of the duties of his office, the minister may from time to time be under the necessity of giving expression to views at variance with the views of some, or even many, members of the congregation."
Within months, Rabbi Wise was giving life to his vision of a free synagogue, holding synagogue services at the Hudson Theater on West 47th Street in New York City. After only a few weeks he was conducting services on the Lower East Side on Friday evenings and holding forums on social issues uptown on Sunday evenings. He so inspired those who heard his message that on April 15, 1907, more than a hundred of his followers met at the Hotel Savoy to establish a free synagogue. Henry Morgenthau, Sr., who would become the congregation's first president, declared that day, "The Free Synagogue is to be free and democratic in its organization; it is to be pewless and dueless." A religious school opened that October, and six months later had an enrollment of 150 students. Dr. Wise's Sunday morning services, held at the Universalist Church of Eternal Hope on West 81st Street, drew more than 1,000 people.
From its very beginnings the Free Synagogue was a groundbreaking institution. In December 1907 it established a Social Service Department, the first of its kind in a synagogue. Serving the needs of Jews on the Lower East Side, it was housed in Bellevue Hospital before it came under the roof of the synagogue. From 1907 through 1953 the Social Services Department was headed by Rabbi Sidney Goldstein, who was personally active in all aspects of social service; he also trained volunteers, and presented innovative lecture series for congregants to keep them up to date with the program. Louise Wise Services, a citywide adoption agency, had its origins at the synagogue when Louise Waterman Wise, wife of Stephen S. Wise, began finding homes for Jewish orphans who otherwise would have lived out their childhoods in institutions. Although attracted to Reform Judaism and fully committed to Judaism, Rabbi Wise's Free Synagogue was free to all, "inclusive alike of the non-Jew and the Jew."
Rabbi Wise's vision of a synagogue of life and light, a union of the bright ideals of Judaism and liberal democracy, reflected his lifelong commitment to the values of the faith he grew up in and its wider obligations of education, social justice, and community service. The Free Synagogue expanded rapidly. By October 1910, membership exceeded 500, and that year at Rosh Hashanah the pulpit was moved to Carnegie Hall. The next year, several brownstones were purchased on West 68th Street, and branches of the Free Synagogue started in the Bronx (1914), Washington Heights (1917), Flushing (1918), and Westchester County and Newark (1920). Rabbi Wise led the creation of the Jewish Institute of Religion in 1922, which moved into a new building at 40 West 68th Street (New York, NY) in 1922 and later merged with the Hebrew Union College, the Reform Jewish seminary.
Construction of the present synagogue building (at 30 West 68th Street
New York, NY) began in 1940. Its cornerstone comes from the Temple in Jerusalem and was presented to Rabbi Wise by Brigadier Wyndham Deedes. On December 8, 1941, the synagogue's Executive Council was scheduled to consider contracts for the final construction but voted instead, that fateful day, to suspend construction for the duration of World War II. Work resumed in early 1947, and the new home of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue was dedicated on January 5, 1950. But Rabbi Wise was not at the dedication; he had died on April 19, 1949, only a month after attending the gala Diamond Jubilee Dinner to celebrate his seventy-fifth birthday. Rabbi Wise's funeral, appropriately enough, was at Carnegie Hall.
Rabbi Edward E. Klein took as the pulpit as senior rabbi in 1949. In 1943 Rabbi Wise had personally selected Klein with the hope that he would succeed him, and so he did, guiding the congregation for the next thirty years. Cast in the same mold as his predecessor, Rabbi Klein was not only a beloved pastor to a vital, growing congregation but was a tireless community and religious leader as well. He spoke vigorously against huge expenditures on the arms race and was one of first religious leaders in the United States to protest American involvement in the Vietnam war. A president of the Lincoln Square Community Council and a founder of the West Side Jewish Community Council, Rabbi Klein played a key role in the development of the Lincoln Center area, paying especial attention to the relocation of the people who were uprooted by the project. And he broke ground by installing an Associate Rabbi (1973), Sally Priesand, the first woman to be ordained a rabbi (1972).
When the SWFS Social Service Department, the only agency housed in a synagogue ever to be supported by the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies, lost Federation funding after almost four decades, it was Rabbi Klein who rallied the congregation to underwrite the vital social service programs, a tradition still followed today in the Synagogue's funding of the Young Adventurers, a group for challenged adults, and Camp Shalom, a summer program for children from the community.
In 1980, Rabbi Balfour Brickner brought his vision of liberal Judaism to the pulpit of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue. Long active in Union of American Hebrew Congregations in interreligious affairs and the force behind the Reform movement's National Commission on Social Action, on the bimah Rabbi Brickner continued a message based on social action and lay leadership. Never one to shrink from controversy, Rabbi Brickner spoke out boldly against U.S. involvement in Central America, corporate involvement in then-apartheid South Africa, abortion rights, civil rights, the environment, and the rights of the Palestinians.
But Rabbi Brickner also changed the synagogue itself, bringing to it a more participatory style of worship. Always philosophically accessible, the bimah became physically accessible, a place for congregants as well as clergy. The synagogue was also well guided by Associate Rabbi Helene Ferris, whose pastoral guidance reached out to all members. Music, always an integral but formal part of SWFS through the leadership of the distinguished liturgical composer, Dr. A. W. Binder, became visible in the person of the synagogue's first and only cantor, Ellen L. Math. Cantor Math in turn started the children's choir and the Stephen Wise Singers, an adult group that participates in SWFS services and has performed in several synagogues. A congregation that once listened today takes part in both traditional and contemporary music.
After Rabbi Brickner's retirement in 1991, Rabbi Ira S. Youdovin took the pulpit until 1994. Rabbi Youdovin, one of at least six children of the congregation who have pursued rabbinic careers, served the congregation in 1994-1995, and reinvigorated adult study. His Saturday morning Torah study deepened the congregation's commitment, as did his formal and informal instruction from every synagogue platform.
Senior Rabbi Gary M. Bretton-Granatoor was the fifth person to hold that office in the congregation's nine-decade history. A strong teacher and leader, he brought the pulpit still closer to the congregation. As the Reform movement embraced traditions renewed by contemporary interpreters, Rabbi Bretton-Granatoor enriched worship with mi'shebeirach prayers and music with the strains of Israel and the modern Jewish experience. In the prophetic tradition of Rabbi Stephen Wise and the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue rabbis, he continued the call to social action, to learning, and above all to a meaningful Jewish life led in the knowledge and practice of Judaism.
Upon Rabbi Bretton-Granatoor's leaving the SWFS pulpit, Rabbi Charles A. Kroloff assumed the position of interim rabbi. A distinguished rabbi who served his previous pulpit in Westfield, New Jersey, for more than thirty-five years, Rabbi Kroloff was a former president of the Central Conference of America Rabbis and has served the Reform movement in several important ways, including teaching at HUC-JIR, the reform seminary and working on major movement committees and the new Reform siddur. He brought to SWFS his rich spiritual and pastoral experience.
The 1990s saw the congregation's dedication to a full Jewish life grow and intensify at every level. The Balfour Brickner Early Childhood Center grew rapidly, and its graduates can enter the Religious School and continue their Jewish education through high school. Congregants participate in a variety of adult education programs, from informal Shabbat morning Torah study to a year-long program leading to adult bar/bat mitzvah. The Synagogues commitment to hands-on social activism is reflected in such projects as the Emergency Food Program that feeds seventy homeless men and women every Shabbat morning, the ten bed shelter for homeless men maintained on Synagogue premises in cooperation with the Partnership for the Homeless, and the Momentum program which feeds, clothes, and counsels AIDS patients.
Since 2004, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch has led the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue. Rabbi Hirsch is well known in the international Reform community for his enlightened work as executive director of ARZA (Association of Reform Zionists of America) where he served for twelve years.
-- Adapted from "The First Ninety Years" found on the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue website <http://www.swfs.org/About/Heritage> and Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch's biography <http://www.swfs.org/About/BioAmmielHirsch>, 12 May 2010.
The STEPHEN WISE FREE SYNAGOGUE RECORDS document the "marriage of social justice and social action to the great teachings of [the Jewish] tradition [that] sets the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue apart from others" (quote taken from David Saperstein, Chair of the Commission of Social Action of Reform Judaism, April 2001, recorded on cassette #58). The collection contains administrative records (reports, minutes, committee files, etc.), sermons and speeches from holy day services, funeral and wedding records, adult education materials (such as conversion lessons), documentation of media involvement, internal organization records, Cantor Ellen Math's papers, and audio/visual media recordings (television spots, video of Archbishop Desmond Tutu; audio recordings of services, special events, radio broadcasts, concerts, and education courses).
Internal organization records include the social services department (board records, financial documents, by-laws, correspondence, chronological files, subject files, and files on various activities and programs, such as AIDS forum, summer camps, retiree club, and homeless shelters), the religious school (curricula, board minutes, class lists), and the women's organization (financial documents, correspondence, leadership lists, minutes, newsletter, and files on activities and programs, such as dreidel day, women's forum, and annual spring luncheons.
Cantor Ellen Math's papers include correspondence, memorabilia, contracts with musicians, bar/bat mitzvahs coordination, musical programming files, sheet music, and personal materials.
The notation [Balfour Brickner] is used throughout the box folder listing to indicate files that were distinctly his.
The records are divided into seven (7) series. To navigate directly to the box and folder listing for each series, click on the bulleted link below or click on the series/subseries title.
SERIES A. ADMINISTRATION. 1956-2001. Consists of 6 Hollinger boxes. This series contains two subseries:
SUBSERIES 1. GENERAL. 1956-2001. Includes reports, minutes, bulletins, committee files, correspondence, membership files, and other materials relevant to the running of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 2. FISHER FOUNDATION. 1957-1981. RESTRICTED until 70 years after the student's death. Includes financial statements, scholarship applications, transcripts, and other materials realted to the philanthropic support of the Fisher Foundation (mostly scholarships). Contains a copy of the last will and testament of Joseph L. Fisher. These files were originally maintained by Rabbi Edward Klein. Arranged chronologically. Please consult an archivist to view these materials.
SERIES B. ACTIVITIES AND ORGANIZATIONS. 1955-1992. Consists of 10 Hollinger boxes. This series contains five subseries:
SUBSERIES 1. RELIGIOUS SERVICES. 1955-1991. Includes correspondence, sermons, speeches, evaluation forms, other materials related to the observance and celebration of Jewis holidays. Funeral and wedding files contain official records of the ceremony. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 2. ADULT EDUCATION. 1959-1967. Includes edcuational materials from conversions, midweek Hebrew lessons, telecourss, and facutly lecutres. See also SERIES D. RELIGIOUS SCHOOL. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 3. MEDIA. 1972-1992. Includes documentation of involvement in media projects, such as film festivals, and with the media industry. Industry involvements include an effort to establish a National Office of Jewish Media and the launching of the Vision Interfaith Satellite Network (now the Hallmark Channel). Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 4. ORGANIZATIONS. 1960-1968. Includes records of internal organizations. Youth organizations were organized arround grade levels; Pre-teen (6th - 7th grade), Nu-Teen (8th - 9th grade) and Tz'irim 10th - 12th grade). Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 5. GENERAL. 1962-1967. 1981-1992. Includes subject and miscellaneous activity files. Arranged alphabetically.
SERIES C. SOCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT. 1958-1992. Consists of 13 Hollinger boxes. Includes materials of former directors of the Synagogue's social services activities: Rabbi Gerald A. Goldman, Rabbi Robert S. Widom, Nancy Rubinger, Sheri Bloom, and Robert Cohen. This series contains three subseries:
SUBSERIES 1. ADMINISTRATION. 1958-1967. 1981-1992. Includes board records, financial documents, by-laws, correspondence, chronological files, miscellaneous materials, and the report Development of Social Services Programming for the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue. The group with administrative responsibility was known as both the Social Service Board and the Social Service Committee. All records from both committees are filed under Board of Social Services and include reports, statistics, minutes, correspondence, job descriptions, and other materials. Arranged alphabetically, with chronological files in a separate section.
SUBSERIES 2. ACTIVITIES. 1960-1992. Includes files for the various activities and programs run by the Social Services Department. Activities include AIDS forum, summer camps, daycare, retiree club (Golden Age), homeless shelter, pro-choice march, Young Adventurers Club, and others. Camp Shalom files include photographs and negatives. See also SUBSERIES 3. SUBJECT FILES. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 3. SUBJECT FILES. 1962-1992. Includes subject files on various topics important to the Social Services Department. Files include nearprint, contact information for local resources, and notes. Subjects include abortion, blindness, domestic violence, employment, HIV/AIDS, housing, parenting, seniors, and others. See also SUBSERIES 2. ACTIVITIES. Arranged alphabetically.
SERIES D. RELIGIOUS SCHOOL. 1952-1968, 1981-1986. Consists of 3 Hollinger boxes. Most files from the earlier date span belonged to Assistant Rabbi Gerald A. Goldman. Includes class lists, curriculum guides, Keren Ami records, registration, school board minutes, and Sunday school rosters. See also SERIES B. ACTIVITIES AND ORGANIZATIONS, SUBSERIES 2. ADULT EDUCATION, SUBSERIES 4. ORGANIZATIONS (for youth groups) and SERIES F. CANTOR ELLEN MATH'S PAPERS, SUBSERIES 1. ADMINISTRATION for correspondence on Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. Arranged alphabetically.
SERIES E. WOMEN'S ORGANIZATION. 1944-1996. Consists of 5 Hollinger boxes. This series contains two subseries:
SUBSERIES 1. ADMINISTRATION. 1944-1996. Includes financial documents, correspondence, leadership lists, memberships lists, minutes (executive board and general), newsletter (News & Views), and regional/national meeting materials. The "black book" is a compilation of materials, mostly duplicates of the above, including minutes, leadership lists, correspondence, and annual reports of the president. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 2. ACTIVITIES. 1957-1995. Includes files on activities and programs of the women's organization. Activities include dreidel day (with photographs from 1992), women's forum, Haudalan, Or Ami award, and annual spring luncheons. Arranged alphabetically.
SERIES F. CANTOR ELLEN MATH'S PAPERS. 1959. 1977-1996. Consists of 6 Hollinger boxes. This series contains three subseries:
SUBSERIES 1. ADMINISTRATION. 1959. 1977-1994. Includes correspondence, contracts, and memorabilia. Correspondence covers cantor duties, bar/bat mitzvahs, and personal. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 2. ACTIVITIES. 1978-1996. Includes files on musical programming. Programing includes concerts, music for services, Purim specials, and Yom Hashoah Holocaust remembrance. Arranged alphabetically.
SUBSERIES 3. SHEET MUSIC. 1971-1983. UNDATED. Includes sheet music used by Synagogue choirs for services. Most of the sheet music was probably not collected by Ellen Math, but inherited by her. Most music is undated and in Hebrew. Arranged alphabetically.
SERIES G. AUDIO/VISUAL MEDIA. 1971-2003. Consists of 1 Hollinger box and 5 cassette boxes. This series contains two subseries:
SUBSERIES 1. VISUAL. 1979-1989. Includes video recordings of a speech by Archbishop Desmond Tutu's (one VHS cassette) and a local TV special on Yom Kippur (two Umatic cassettes), as well as slides for a conference workshop. Videos arranged alphabetically, followed by slides.
SUBSERIES 2. AUDIO. 1971-2003. Includes various audio recordings from services, special events, radio broadcasts, musical concerts, and educational courses. Titles are taken from cassettes and were expanded after listening to recordings. In most cassettes, side B is a continuation of side A or blank. Occasional, side B will contain a different program that side A, when this happens it is indicated by a decimalized number. (E.g. 9.1 - Stephen Wise Centennial, part 3; 9.2 - Stephen Wise Centennial, Rev. Dr. Voss, part 3.) Unless otherwise stated, recordings are on audio cassettes. Arranged chronologically.
