Religion
Purim play, ca. 1985
Rabbi Solomon Kadoch conducted High Holiday services at the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He was one of the last rabbis to live in Belleville for an extended period, raising his son Arich in the community. The Sons of Jacob Congregation has functioned without a full-time rabbi since the late 1980s. For High Holidays and to run Hebrew language and educational programs, rabbis have been hired, often from Toronto, in consultation with the Regional Jewish Communities of Ontario (RJCO) program. Local volunteers, such as Hannah Rubinstein and Joseph Perez, have also assisted with the Sunday school classes for local Jewish youth.
The Sons of Jacob Congregation continues to use an Orthodox prayer book, but has gradually moved towards a more Conservative, modern-Orthodox service tradition. In recent years, with a significant decrease in the regular membership, the congregation has taken a more all-inclusive approach to its services. Many of the new members were looking for more of a Reform service with men and women sitting together and some of the service in English as well as Hebrew. The Sons of Jacob Congregation has been accommodating to all expressions of Jewish faith. Joe Burke says this is at least in part due to the high level of intermarriage among members of the community. Women have also been counted in the minyan since the late 1980s. Services are held on the last Friday of every month at the synagogue as well as for High Holidays.
The Last Rabbi
Eleanor Jourard talks about the last full-time Rabbi in Belleville, Solomon Kadoch, who served for a few years up to 1977-1978. After that time, declining membership in the synagogue meant they could no longer afford a full-time rabbi and instead had to rely on weekly classes from visiting teachers.
Interview with Eleanor Jourard, 31 May 2007, Sharon Gubbay Helfer. OJA, Oral History #310
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