About

Temple Israel is a welcoming center of Jewish life where members, newcomers and visitors of all ages and cultural backgrounds are encouraged to participate in Jewish practices, spirituality, learning and culture. We continually strengthen our connections to each other and join together to care for the greater community, Israel, and the world.

Our Origin Story:

Temple Israel began with a small group of families on one November night in 1920, with the goal of establishing a Jewish Community in Alameda. In 1924 the first synagogue was built, with members of the congregation doing much of the work.

During the depression, the synagogue was often closed due to lack of funds; however High Holy Day Services were still performed. Our first long-term rabbi was Rabbi Gunther Gates who served our congregation from 1947-1981. He and his wife, Gretel would endear themselves not only to the congregation but to the whole Alameda community.

In 1980, the temple moved to its current site on Bay Farm Island. In 1985 the congregation formally affiliated with the reform movement. As Temple Israel Alameda wants to be welcoming to all Jews in the community, we have preserved some of the congregation’s conservative minhag.

Reform Judaism

The great contribution of Reform Judaism is that it has enabled the Jewish people to:

• Introduce innovation while preserving tradition,
• Embrace diversity while asserting commonality,
• Affirm beliefs without rejecting those who doubt, and
• Bring faith to sacred texts without sacrificing critical scholarship.

In 1995, the Temple Israel of Alameda Foundation was established with a $10,000 bequest from the estate of Diana Garfinkle, one of the original founding members. Its assets have grown such that the Foundation provides a significant annual unrestricted grant to the Temple as well as grants restricted to camperships, Israel trips, and religious school scholarships for member youth and building maintenance.

Reform Judaism affirms the central tenets of Judaism – God, Torah and Israel – even as it acknowledges the diversity of Reform Jewish beliefs and practices. We believe that all human beings are created in the image of God, and that we are God’s partners in improving the world. Tikkun Olam — repairing the world — is a hallmark of Reform Judaism as we strive to bring peace, freedom and justice to all people.

Reform Jews accept the Torah as the foundation of Jewish life containing God’s ongoing revelation to our people and the record of our people’s ongoing relationship with God. We see the Torah as God inspired, a living document that enables us to confront the timeless and timely challenges of our everyday lives.In addition to our belief that Judaism must change and adapt to the needs of the day to survive and our firm commitment to Tikkun Olam, the following principles distinguish Reform Jews from other streams of Judaism in North America.

Reform Jews are committed to the principle of inclusion, not exclusion. Since 1978, the Reform Movement has been reaching out to Jews-by-choice and interfaith families, encouraging them to embrace Judaism. Reform Jews consider children to be Jewish if they are the child of a Jewish father or mother, so long as the child is raised as a Jew.

• Reform Jews are committed to the absolute equality of women in all areas of Jewish life. Ours was the first movement to ordain women rabbis, invest women cantors and elect women presidents of our synagogues.
• Reform Jews are also committed to the full participation of LGBTQ+ people in synagogue life, as well as society at large.