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| JRC History |
Rabbi Ira Eisenstein
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With its roots in an Anshe Emet study group that Rabbi Ira Eisenstein led from 1955 to 1959, and in the Jewish Reconstructionist Havurah (probably the area's first Havurah), the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation (JRC) fully blossomed when it incorporated as a congregation in 1964.
Although the town of Wilmette was the first of its many homes, from the outset early JRC members envisioned and advertised themselves as an ideological rather than a geographical congregation. Inaugural High Holy Day services were highlighted by study sessions rather than sermons. |
| By the end of 1965, JRC had already elected its first female president, celebrated its first bar mitzvah, and begun a school. By the spring of 1970, membership was approximately 60 households, and the Congregation had moved into larger, more flexible headquarters at Chute Middle School in Evanston. A social action committee was formed and JRC's first bat mitzvah was called to the Torah. |
 High Holiday Service 1970 |
Rabbi (intern) Arnie Rachlis |
Ties to Reconstructionism at the national level were also strong. JRC hosted the national Reconstructionist convention. We became the first congregation to adopt the Rabbinic Intern program from the then two-year-old Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC). The second student to visit us was an energetic young man named Arnold Rachlis who subsequently conducted High Holidays in 1972 and the first JRC Kallah (retreat).
While stability and growth marked the next few years, JRC members continued to innovate using musical instruments and multi-media presentations in Shabbat services. High Holidays were celebrated with a complement of drama and modern dance. By the fall of 1972, JRC had expanded to 76 households. |
The President's 1973 report to the congregation raised questions concerning, among other things, membership (then at a record 85 households), the need for a permanent rabbi, and the need to limit school size. Several meetings in the spring of 1973 resulted in the decision to stabilize growth and not to hire a rabbi. |
| Throughout this period, services were held in members' homes during the summer, and often during the school year as well. JRC had only one official home: Chute Middle School in Evanston. While this provided some stability, the "shlep-a-shul" existence also meant that the "sanctuary" (Chute's cafeteria) and all JRC school classrooms had to be set up and put back into homes and cupboards after each weekend of activity. Still, the JRC arts committee in the next years managed to complete two large projects: the JRC tablecloth and needlepoint panels for the ark then in use. |
 Sukkah building 1971 |
 B'not Mitzvah 1975
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Debates about the future size and nature of JRC had not ended with the decisions made in the spring of 1973. Many months of thoughtful meetings, begun in the summer of 1975, culminated in a decision in December 1975, to offer the position of part-time rabbi to Arnold Rachlis, who was soon to be ordained. This represented an exciting turning point for the congregation, a reaching outside itself for new leadership after years of learning primarily from each other. |
| To insure the participatory nature of the congregation, the initial agreement with the rabbi uniquely required that members would continue to lead half of all Shabbat services. A similar commitment to active leadership and participation by our members still exists today, though our Rabbi and Canter now lead most services in our Sanctuary throughout the year. JRC members continue to participate actively in many parts of the service and we still have several member-led Friday evening services throughout the year. The Shabbat morning minyan is entirely member-led. |
Rabbi Rachlis was installed as JRC's Rabbi by Rabbi Ira Eisenstein, his teacher and JRC's original inspirational force. Within weeks of the installation, we moved from Chute to the First Baptist Church, an ecumenical first in Evanston. Although serious consideration was given to adopting a Hebrew name for JRC, consensus could not be reached.
Growth and reorganization were continuing themes for the next years. The rabbi's position had become a full-time one and the school committee asked that enrollment be limited. By 1978, JRC membership approached 160 households—double the size just 5 years earlier. In the fall of 1978, the school, having reopened its enrollment, expanded to 120 students and added weekday classes to the formerly weekend-only program. Adult education mini-courses were established on Sundays to accommodate parents. |
Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan (1963) Founder of Reconstructionism |
Typical Lakefront Erev Shabbat Service
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We kept growing, and in August 1980, we rolled up our sleeves (again), packed, and moved to new quarters at Covenant United Methodist Church in Evanston. The first congregational trip to Israel occurred that summer. By spring 1982, we expanded to over 200 households with more than 175 children.
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During the next three years the subject of a permanent home, our own shul, came up in discussions again and again. After serious debate and soul-searching, the momentous decision was made and, in 1985, we moved into our synagogue building at 303 Dodge Avenue in Evanston. There were to be no more temporary homes for JRC in which we were guests, and no limited space for our school. We had arrived home, thanks to the concerted efforts of our members and the extraordinary dedication of individuals skilled in matters of architecture, law, fundraising, and the art of negotiation. |
 JRC at 303 Dodge |
 Adult B'Not Mitzvah 1992
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In 1988 a pre-school director was hired to coordinate early childhood classes as well as a pre-school summer camp. We also hired Lori Lippitz as our part-time cantor. Rabbi Arnold Rachlis took a sabbatical in 1991 and then relocated to California in July, 1992. For two years our interim rabbi and spiritual leader was Rabbi Roy Furman. In August of 1993 we welcomed Rabbi Richard Hirsh (like Rabbi Rachlis, a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College) as the new Rabbi of JRC.
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To help meet the growing needs of JRC, we instituted many new programs and practices. Our "Friends and Neighbors" (FAN) program brings small groups of JRC members together in their neighborhoods. Our Friday evening rotation of communal dinners, family Torah services, guest speakers, and discussion, meets the needs of the diverse group within JRC.
At the end of July, 1998, Rabbi Hirsh and his family relocated to Philadelphia when he was appointed Executive Director of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association. At the beginning of August, 1998, we were fortunate to be able to bring Rabbi Brant Rosen, a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, to JRC to be our spiritual leader. He and his family moved to Evanston from Denver. At the same time we hired Cantor Anita Schubert as JRC's first full-time cantor. She and her family moved to Evanston from New Jersey. |
 Rabbi Brant Rosen |
 Unrolling Torah at Simchat Torah |
In the summer of 2001, we found a new cantor in Howard Friedland,
who, along with his family, had been a member of JRC for twelve
years prior to this appointment.
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| Today we have more than 475 households and 250 children enrolled in our school, preschool, and youth programs. JRC is committed to its members and its members to JRC. From the beginning, JRC's history has been the story of its individuals and their common desire to create a unique congregation with a sense of intellectual integrity, moral purpose and meaningful community. We are indebted to our officers, Rabbi, Cantor, staff, and membership for ongoing, nurturing and developing our original dream. |
 Early Childhood Program |
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