Two different faiths, one roof

The Ocala Tree Of Life Sanctuary, which is a combination of the First Congregational United Church of Christ and Temple Beth Shalom, on Southwest 78th Avenue Road in Ocala. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2022.

What began as an extraordinary possibility six years ago has now become a heavenly reality for two differing faith communities in Marion County. 

The Ocala Tree of Life Sanctuary, 6140 SW 78th Avenue Road, a joint and equal interfaith place of worship for Temple Beth Shalom and the First Congregational United Church of Christ, will be dedicated during an official grand opening from 2:30 to 6 p.m. Sunday (March 13).

The multi-million dollar 17,000-square-foot facility houses both a separate synagogue and church under its roof, with the Jews and Christians sharing common areas including a social hall, courtyards, and offices as well as space for artistic, educational and social justice programming for the community. 

“There are two sanctuaries under one roof; the church’s worship space is on the right; the Jewish synagogue is on the left,” said Rabbi Ze’ev Harari, spiritual leader of Beth Shalom for the past 11 years. “It is good economically for the two congregations.” 

“But it is also good for the community to show that differences of faith do not mean you cannot talk to each other, that you can cooperate and can find common ground despite your differences,” he said. 

Temple Beth Shalom was founded 40 years ago as an outgrowth of United Hebrews of Ocala, while First Congregational was established in 1983. 

The two congregations have been meeting in the building since January, said the Rev. Dr. Hal McSwain of First Congregational, with relatively few kinks. Harari and McSwain have been close colleagues for ten years.https://fb.watch/bLhtTDK1pY/

“It’s very exciting and amazing that Christians and Jews can equally share the same space, resources and utilities,” he said. 

Two diverse faiths maintaining their identities while equally sharing space, resources and costs are rare, with just a handful of others known worldwide, including Genesis of Ann Arbor, a partnership between St. Clare’s Episcopal Church and Temple Beth Emeth in Michigan. 

“We believe it is only the fourth time that it’s been done,” said McSwain, lead pastor of the church for the past 12 years. 

The unique project had its genesis six years ago when the church began searching for property on which to build a new sanctuary in an area that would attract younger people to its services, said Pat Keith, a Bartow native and member of First Congregational for 20 years. 

“We were seeking ways to keep the church vital and growing for the next 50 years,” she said. “Small protestant churches aren’t doing well these days.” 

One such property, within the new Calesa Township master-planned community southwest of Ocala, ended up belonging to a member of Temple Beth Shalom, which triggered the innovative and cost-saving idea, she said. 

“We began to discuss the extraordinary possibility of doing this joint, interfaith worship center together with learning, arts, concerts and student activities for the community,” said Keith, who became the chair of a joint planning committee in Nov. of 2016 once the idea took root. 

Herb Katz, then president of Temple Beth Shalom, said church members first approached him to see if the synagogue would be interested in a joint endeavor on the three-to-four-acre site. 

He was for it, while others were not, at first. 

“It took at least two years to get both congregations fully on board,” said Katz, a native of Pennsylvania who’s lived in Florida since 1984. “Some people had misconceptions about what constitutes a holy building.”

Now that the project has been completed, it’s proven to be a valuable cost-saving venture for both the synagogue and the church, he said. 

“We were taking care of four buildings and they were taking care of three before this,” he said. “It’s much more efficient in that two different congregations can use it at different times.” 

Keith said the project was quite a journey for everyone involved.

“It was a long six-year project with hundreds of people helping with planning, details and bringing it all together,” she said. Ocala Tree of Life Sanctuary can hold up to 550 worshippers when pocket doors dividing the two worship spaces are opened all the way. 

“It is a safe and sacred place for both congregations to worship in,” she said. “And it’ll be a wonderful place for community events and interfaith services.”

Dedicated to the principle of Tikkun Olam, which in Hebrew means “Healing the World,” the Ocala Tree of Life’s dedication will begin at 2:30 p.m. Sunday when members of Temple Beth Shalom lead a traditional processional of its Torah scrolls from the parking lot into the synagogue, said Harari, a native of Israel who plans to retire in June. 

We will be walking our Torah scrolls into the building and placing them in the Ark,” he said. “After that, we will have an interfaith service with choirs, the dedication, and reception.”