The middle section

Student pulpit territory. That's what this swath of the country represents for those of us who went through Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. Jewish communities in smaller towns throughout the south and midwest have been served for decades by rabbinical students from Cincinnati's Reform seminary.

By the mid-80's, when I did my tenure at the College, assimilation and economic migration already were taking their toll: pulpits that had been bi-weekly's had reduced to monthly's and monthly's were, in some cases, only able to bring in a student for the High Holy Days and Pesach.

When I see a map of this part of the country, the town names that stand out to me are the ones that either I or classmates served as student rabbis. Friday mornings at the college were when many of us were on planes or in rental cars heading off to places like Jasper, Alabama or Columbus, Mississippi with our handwritten sermons and one-room schoolhouse lesson plans.

Some of these communities are no longer with us (the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life is basically the hospice program for those communities who can no longer even get a Rosh HaShana and Kol Nidre service together), but when I knew we were passing through Fort Smith, Arkansas, I was curious to see if the synagogue -- served for several years by one of my classmates -- was still around.

Fort Smith is a historic town with a number of pre-20th century buildings and homes. At the visitor desk of the historical Fort site I asked, "Do you know where the synagogue is?"

The older woman behind the desk looked at me quietly for a moment and then said seriously, "There's only one."

I laughed. "Yes, I figured that."

She then said, "I've been there with my friend but it's really hard to find."

"I'm guessing from your accent you're not originally from here." I observed after hearing a very familiar (and familial) accent.

"No - I'm from New York."

We talked about the Bronx for a few minutes and then the young man helping out behind the desk handed me a mapquest sheet with the directions. Photo is below:

United Hebrew Congregation of Fort Smith

Not surprisingly to me, there was no signage anywhere in the neighborhood concerning a synagogue although there were many signs pointing to Christian churches of various denominations. One universal among these Jewish communities in small southern towns is a strong desire to stay well under the radar.

I, myself, served in Arkansas (Jonesboro) as a tri-weekly during my final year of school. It was too far off our itinerary for me to make a stop. I remember them very fondly as an interesting group of characters -- as are most small southern congregations!

Here's a few photos from around Fort Smith: