Aloha Jewish Chapel

21°21′11″N 157°56′10″W / 21.35306°N 157.93611°W / 21.35306; -157.93611ArchitectureArchitect(s)Vladimir OssipoffTypeSynagogueDate established1975

Aloha Jewish Chapel is an unaffiliated Jewish synagogue located on the grounds of what is now Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam in Honolulu, Hawaii, in the United States.

History

Completed in 1975, the building was designed by Vladimir Ossipoff^[1] as the first building built by the United States government exclusively for Jewish worship.^[2] (The Commodore Levy Chapel, Naval Station Norfolk, is the Navy's oldest Jewish Chapel, but it is part of a larger Chapel complex.) The Aloha Jewish Chapel was dedicated on December 14, 1975 by Rear Admiral Bertram Wallace Korn, who was, at the time, the highest ranking rabbi in the United States military.^[3]

The chapel has a vaulted roof with an adjacent mikveh (ritual bath). The building also contains a kitchen for kosher food, a library, and a small social hall.^[4] On the exterior of the building is the "Shalom" sculpture created in 1975 by Selma Mannheim of Los Angeles, California. With its copious natural light, the building is considered a prime example of Hawaii Modern architecture.^[5][6]

The congregation raised money for, and purchased, a new Torah scroll, which was dedicated on October 26, 2008. This was the first dedication of a new Torah scroll in Hawaii.

Gallery

• 
  Sefer Torah dedication in 2008

References

External links