There are in Chicago one hundred orthodox synagogues, large and small, and all of them put together have between six and seven thousand members. The largest orthodox synagogues in Chicago has three hundred members. It could have a thousand members because it can accommodate seventeen hundred persons. It is not unusual to see in Chicago a synagogue which has a "capacity" of a thousand "seats", having a membership of one hundred and fifty. Many synagogues have only thirty or forty members, and they continue to exist. The little synagogues are increasing rapidly. A score or so of Jews come together and found their own little synagogue. Soon a "women's auxiliary" appears with collection boxes, beggar's sackss, theater benefits, and so on. A little money is raised--and a synagogue is built. The Jewish women of Chicago are always ready to help build a synagogue. The do not ask whether or not a synagogue is needed. They have to hear only the magic word "synagogue" and at once they begin to get busy on begging expeditions.

Had Chicago twenty-five large synagogues instead of eighty small ones, then those twenty-five synagogues would have been able to keep up twenty-five Talmud Torahs, they would have had twenty-five prominent rabbis, they would have had twenty-five good cantors and there would have been twenty-five fortresses of Judaism in Chicago. But ninety little synagogues are doomed to inactivity. A little synagogue that has about fifty or sixty members cannot have a rabbi but must have a "little rabbi" who is half preacher, half circumciser, half jester and entirely a beggar. A little synagogue cannot keep up a Talmud Torah, a little synagogue cannot engage a good cantor--in short, a little synagogue can do--nothing. The existence of so many little synagogues explains the political and moral weakness of the Chicago orthodoxy.

When the forces of a certain group of people are divided, then the group can accomplish nothing--it cannot even fight in the struggle for existence. The Chicago-Jewish orthodoxy stands before a triple enemy: Reformism, radicalism and indifference. To be able to overcome this triple enemy it must unite its forces, but instead it scatters them from day to day. The curse of the little synagogue and the spirit of the little synagogue rest heavily upon the orthodox 3Jews of Chicago.

There are already ninety little synagogues in Chicago--that would seem to be enough, but it is still not enough. Various other little groups are going to build new little synagogues. The Luknik people are going to build a synagogue, the Goroditch people are going to build a synagogue and so are a score or so of Jews who come from the small towns of Poland and Lithuania--and they are going to build them in districts where there are enough synagogues, large and beautiful synagogues.

Whence comes this accursed little synagogue spirit? There is only one answer to this question: Greenhorns.

Many Jews in Chicago who have lived here a few decades, whose roots here are deep, and who live here with their families, are still unable to understand that now they are Chicago Jews, not Luknik, Goroditch or Anikst Jews. But instead of considering themselves Chicago Jews, with a sense of responsibility for Judaism in Chicago, they live with their memories of their youth, they live 4in the past and do not think about the present. They live in the spirit not of Chicago, but of their small towns in the Old World.

There are also many little men with big ambitions who dream about becoming presidents of synagogues, and are ready to build their own little synagogue or to help build little synagogues so that they may become the "big shots" in their own little circle. In general, these little men are the parvenus who have no sense of responsibility for the present Jewish generation and for the Jewish needs in the Jewish city where they live. As far as they are concerned, Judaism may perish in Chicago so long as they are presidents of little synagogues.

This "little synagogue" spirit is ruining Chicago Jewry and, on top of that, it is very expensive. The little synagogues cannot do anything for themselves and they cannot do anything for the city. It is difficult to organize them to do general Jewish work. The relief committee has to communicate with ninety little synagogues, instead of twenty large ones; so does the Keren Hayisod, the Federated, and so on. Not all of them can be coordinated into 5the work. Twenty large synagogues may represent the voice of the community but one hundred little synagogues represent nothing. Nobody considers them in the least because, as a rule, they have no opinion and do not care at all about general Jewish problems.

It is about time that the leaders of Chicago began an energetic fight against this "little synagogue" spirit and opened a campaign for the concentration of all the orthodox forces in Chicago and not their disintegration. New little synagogues are not needed in Chicago, but the amalgamation of fifty little synagogues into ten large ones is needed. Only then will we have in Chicago more Talmud Torahs, a stronger orthodoxy and a Jewish public opinion which will carry more weight.