Affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, the Calgary Beth Tzedec was formed in 1986 by the merger of two smaller congregations, the Beth Israel and the Shaarey Tzedec. The Beth Israel congregation was founded in 1935 and opened its 66th avenue SW (Glenmore trail) synagogue in 1960 and had been a conservative congregation for many years. The Shaarey Tzedec shul was built in 19
59 adjacent to the old house of Israel community building near downtown Calgary and it was a "modern orthodox" shul with mixed seating. By the 1980's, both congregations had space problems; Beth Israel's sanctuary could only seat 250 people and the Shaarey Tzedec was also crowded at times and many members disliked its location which became increasingly distant from the newer centers of Calgary’s Jewish population. The merger, embraced by both synagogue boards in 1986 meant that the Beth Tzedec would have a new building on the Beth Israel site and it would be a conservative shul led by the Beth Israel clergy. Construction of the new synagogue began in 1987 and was completed in stages while the old building was gradually razed. The Beth Tzedec’s large sanctuary seats 1,470, it has spacious social facilities, as well as a chapel and a full basement for educational and youth activities. The popular facility is used for many community wide events including: concerts, film festivals and honoree dinners, to name a few. The Calgary Beth Tzedec's history goes back some 70 years and the congregation looks forwards to many more years as a center of Jewish prayer and culture for Calgary’s growing Jewish community. This information has been reproduced with the consent of the JHAA.
