Isaac M. Wise Temple is one congregation with two distinct locations, each reflecting an important part of its history and community life. The historic Plum Street Temple, located in downtown Cincinnati, is a landmark of American Reform Judaism and continues to serve as a living place of worship. Wise Center, located in Amberley Village, provides a modern home for everyday congregational life, including a chapel, religious school classrooms, administrative offices, and flexible program spaces. Together, these two locations connect Wise Temple’s rich history with its vibrant present and future.

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Isaac M. Wise Temple, also known as Wise Temple, is an important center of Jewish life in Cincinnati, Ohio. Its Wise Center, dedicated in 1976, serves as the heart of the congregation’s everyday activities and is located on 30 wooded acres in Amberley Village. The center provides spaces for religious education, worship, study, administration, celebrations, and community gatherings. It is home to the Kehillah Religious School, the Ralph & Julia Cohen Library, the Wohl Chapel, the Sisterhood Gift Shop, administrative offices, community kitchens, and flexible event spaces.

In addition to Wise Center, the congregation is connected to the historic Plum Street Temple, which was built in 1866 under the direction of Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, a founder of American Reform Judaism. Known as the “jewel of Jewish Cincinnati,” Plum Street Temple connects the congregation to the history of Reform Judaism and the broader history of Cincinnati. Its magnificent sanctuary continues to host important Shabbat and festival services, weddings, B’nai Mitzvahs, and other meaningful Jewish celebrations.

Together, Wise Center and Plum Street Temple represent both the modern life and rich historical heritage of Isaac M. Wise Temple.

Plum Street Temple, is a historic and majestic synagogue in Cincinnati, Ohio. Constructed in 1866, it is considered the fountainhead of Reform Judaism in America and is one of only two Byzantine-Moorish-style temples in the United States. Designed by prominent Cincinnati architect James Keys Wilson, the temple reflects Jewish architecture that developed in 19th-century Germany. Many other examples of this style in Germany were later destroyed during the Holocaust, making Plum Street Temple a rare surviving example. Only one other synagogue of a similar style remains in the United States, in New York.

The temple combines Gothic Revival, Islamic, and Moorish influences, including its tall proportions, pointed arches, rose window, minarets, decorative motifs, and Torah Ark. Fourteen bands of Hebrew inscriptions, selected by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise primarily from the Book of Psalms, surround the interior.

The temple is especially significant because Rabbi Isaac M. Wise established important institutions of American Reform Judaism within its walls, helping transform Reform Judaism from an ideology into an organized religious movement. Today, Plum Street Temple continues to preserve its remarkable history while serving as an active place of worship and community life.

 Isaac M. Wise Temple’s Wise Center is a contemporary, suburban,........

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