Community leader reawakens Jewish tradition

By KC Cohen

BEACON HILL — Steven Greenberg found his purpose in the classified section of The Jewish Advocate.

In 1995, the 58-year-old read that Boston’s Center for Jewish Culture was looking for someone to oversee the renovation of the Vilna Shul, a Beacon Hill synagogue, and immediately set up an interview.

“I convinced them that I could take this building, and I could turn it into a Jewish cultural center,” said Greenberg, now the executive director of the Shul.

After Beacon Hill’s Jewish population moved to the suburbs in the early 1900s, the Vilna Shul was abandoned. Thanks to Greenberg’s efforts over the last 3 years, Boston’s only immigrant-era synagogue is now a renovated celebration of Jewish culture and spirituality.

“We are a piece of history that people can access,” Greenberg said, “and the effect of that is tremendous.”

Greenberg has dedicated the majority of his life to community service. In 1973, he provided documentation as evidence to the Supreme Court in the case of Brown v. Board of Education (II) that “white flight,” wherein families move across district lines to avoid segregated schools, was a serious social issue. Later, he helped found Shadows, a homeless shelter for single women in Natick.

“He’s very gregarious,” said Bentley College professor Gesa Kirsch, who lives across the street from the Vilna Shul and witnessed its renovation. “He connects people and ideas.”

Since the Vilna Shul’s reopening, Greenberg has started film nights and a speakers series. He also created “The Boston Jewish Experience: Reconnect to the Tapestry,” an exhibit on Jewish life in the city between 1850 and 1950.

“He reminds me of one of those ‘fixers’ for the journalists in Iraq,” said Shoshana Fagen, a volunteer for Havurah on the Hill, a group at the Shul focused on invigorating Jewish culture in Boston’s young adults. “Sometimes he just anticipates what needs to be done.”

Until recently, Greenberg was the only Vilna Shul employee.

“When Steven started working here, the building was rarely open,” said Rachel Cylus, Vilna Shul program coordinator, who was hired in June. “Now it’s open six days a week.”

From 11 a.m. until 5 p.m., the Shul opens its doors to visitors for tours and educational programs. The center seeks to educate non-Jews on the facets of Judaism and provide a means for the Jewish population to understand their spirituality, culture and history.

Support for the Vilna Shul is growing. More than 1,000 people found their way to the Phillips Street building during the Beacon Hill Art walk last June, and student visitors are increasingly common.

“People know the Vilna Shul,” said Deborah Melkin, chair of High Holidays at the center. “It’s something really special.”

Twelve years after the center’s reopening, Greenberg has achieved his goal—he has united community and spirituality.

“When you’re lucky enough to have a job that allows you to do something as interesting and expansive as this,” Greenberg said of the long hours, “you do what you can.”