A key proponent for a Jewish congregation under the auspices of
Reform Judaism, was Dr Ronald Taft, from the Psychology faculty at the
University of Western Australia. Taft had been a member of
Temple Beth Israel in
Melbourne and took up his faculty position in 1951. In May 1952, a formation known as the "Liberal Jewish Group" was established and began conducting Reform services. Rabbi Herman Sanger, a key figure in the history of Temple Beth Israel, led a service in the same year, addressing 300 in attendance. Taft also became foundation president of the congregation. In 1959, Rubens, born in the
Free City of Danzig had previously served congregations in
Melbourne and
Hobart. In 1966, the congregation extended its service offering, with Saturday Shabbat services offered each week rather than fortnightly. In 1974, a row unfolded between Temple David rabbi Uri Themal and his Orthodox counterpart, rabbi Coleman of
Perth Hebrew Congregation (PHC). The two previously ran end-of-term seminars together at
Mount Lawley Senior High School. During rabbi Themal's absence, rabbi Coleman made the decision to split the children into two separate groups, Orthodox and Reform for religious instruction. Rabbi Themal attended the
Royal Commission on Human Relationships where he supported the end of the criminalisation of
homosexuality. He accused rabbi Coleman as using this as justification to split the religious education of the children into two groups. In 1976, it was reported that Cantor Marshall Stone had introduced several changes to the service music with more "prayer settings specifically composed by Jewish composers for the Cantor-Choir-Organ ensemble". This was a move away from the "arrangements" for the "Reform temple of music originally written for Orthodox and/or Conservative synagogues in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries." In 1979, the Perth Hebrew Congregation rabbi emeritus, Louis Rubin-Zachs made history when he addressed Temple David in a Thanksgiving service for the
Egypt–Israel peace treaty. He told the congregation that in addressing them he was honouring the late Brigadier Philip Masel, a member of both PHC and Temple David. In 1980, both PHC and Temple David coordinated Jewish courses at Mt Lawley College of Advanced education as part of its community programs. The program covered eight areas of Jewish study, including Bible study, Hebrew classes, Jewish representation in dramatic literature as well as classes pertaining to politics, economics and archaeology of
Israel and the
Middle East. In 1980, the synagogue introduced a new teaching method to learn
Hebrew, using the
ulpan approach from
Israel. A specially recorded service at the synagogue in November 1987, was broadcast in early 1988 for the
ABC TV Sunday Worship slot. In 1989, Rabbi Dovid Freilich, long-time leader of
Perth Hebrew Congregation reported to have "excellent relations" with Temple David, expanding: "There seems no positive purpose in Orthodox Jews shunning the Temple." In 1992,
Carmel School, Perth's only
Jewish day school made changes to its enrollment policies, enabling more children affiliated with
Reform Judaism and Temple David to attend. It would, for the first time, begin to accept children that are not Jewish according to
Orthodox Jewish halacha definitions. The school's prior admissions policy had been criticised by Temple David rabbi, John Spiro in 1979.
Buildings The congregation established a permanent home in 1954, by purchasing a family home on Clifton Crescent in Mount Lawley, that was converted to use as a synagogue. The synagogue was officially opened on 27 October 1954. The synagogue was dedicated in 1963, following an 18-month building and renovation process, with the construction of separate building housing a sanctuary and religion school. As part of the ceremony, a plaque was unveiled in commemoration of the Jewish dead from both World Wars. equivalent to in . A caretaker's residence was constructed in 1973. The architect responsible for the designs was
Harold Boas, a founding member of the congregation. Boas's nephew
Harold Krantz' firm Krantz and Sheldon, established by Krantz and Robert Sheldon, a Jewish immigrant from
Vienna, designed the temple's kindergarten. ==Leadership==