Anti-Semitism
There has generally been a high level of interfaith goodwill in Belleville, though certainly in the early years it was hard for Jewish immigrants to secure regular employment because of discrimination. Many went into business for themselves so that they could observe their Orthodox faith and not work on Saturdays.
Use of the community hall in the new Sons of Jacob Synagogue was given to the Eastminster United Church during the summer of 1956, when the congregation was in the process of renovating their facilities. Rabbi Boros approved this goodwill gesture, after consultation with the Canadian Jewish Congress and rabbinical authorities at the Yeshiva Torah Chaim in Toronto. An interfaith committee in Belleville was established in 1958 with the United Church and chaired by Dr. Beattie to examine the issue of religious education in public schools. Rabbi M.N. Sharony was a member of the Belleville Ministerial Association that oversaw the creation of an interfaith meditation room at the Belleville General Hospital in the early 1980s.
An unusual case of graffiti painted on the synagogue accompanied by an anti-Semitic handwritten note occurred in 2005. A local 17-year-old girl was charged in the isolated incident after a rapid police investigation. This incident led to the Sons of Jacob Congregation members sponsoring some additional community outreach discussions.
