[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 9289]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    TEMPLE BETH SHOLOM'S DESIGNATION AS A NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK

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                        HON. ALLYSON Y. SCHWARTZ

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 18, 2007

  Ms. SCHWARTZ. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Pennsylvania's 
newest National Historic Landmark--Temple Beth Sholom of Elkins Park.
  On April 4, 2007, Department of Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne 
designated Beth Sholom as a National Historic Landmark, ensuring that 
it would be remembered for its importance in interpreting the heritage 
and history of our Nation.
  As the only synagogue in my State honored with this distinction, Beth 
Sholom is a source of pride for the people of Montgomery County, 
greater Philadelphia, and Pennsylvania. Founded in 1919, Beth Sholom 
was the first Philadelphia congregation to move to the region's suburbs 
in the 1950s. Today, the congregation has a membership of more than 
1,000 families.
  Beth Sholom is also the only synagogue ever designed by America's 
renowned architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. Built between 1954 and 1959, 
Beth Sholom was constructed to represent two metaphors suggested by the 
congregation's then rabbi, Mortimer J. Cohen--a tent and Mt. Sinai--to 
convey the sense of a collective sacred space,
  To fulfill this vision, Mr. Wright designed the temple as a hexagon. 
When asked why he chose this shape for the temple, Mr. Wright is 
reported as saying, ``when one enters a place of worship he should feel 
as if he were resting in the very hands of God,'' Indeed, Beth Sholom 
is truly an awe-inspiring structure and worthy of its recognition as a 
National Historic Landmark.
  So, Madam Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in saying ``Mazel 
Tov,'' to Beth Sholom's congregation, to express our collective 
congratulations, and wish them many more years of prosperity and 
success.

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