Sort of like how the Irish Catholics came to the south building the railroads. Well, sort of – Bentonville, Arkansas’s growing Jewish population is having an impact:

This was the most interesting part to me:

But as Etz Chaim nears its second anniversary, Benton County’s only synagogue — and by extension, its fledgling Jewish community — faces several unexpected challenges.

The members of the congregation come from observant religious families in Connecticut, reform synagogues in Kansas City, Mo., and everything in between. Though they agreed to share one roof, they are struggling to reconcile varied backgrounds and traditions, which has made for hours-long debates over, among other things, whether congregants can take photos inside the synagogue on the Sabbath. (The answer is yes, but only with the flash turned off.)

Then there is the pressure from the outside. Eager to gain a foothold in what they consider a fast-growing Jewish community, several major Jewish movements have begun wooing the synagogue. In the last year, representatives from the Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist movements have all visited the temple.

After learning there was a sizable Jewish population in the area, a rabbi from the strictly observant Chabad-Lubavitch movement moved to town, creating a potential competitor to Etz Chaim. The rabbi has had some success offering residents prayer services in his home — which has its own Torah — and a hard-to-find amenity in these parts: a kosher meal.

Members of the synagogue’s board said they were in no rush to pick a religious affiliation but conceded the decision was inevitable.