Beth Israel Congregation President Zach Shemper wrapped up a week on Capitol Hill Thursday feeling “confident” that sharing the story of the recent arson attack on his synagogue with lawmakers would bring increased security funding for houses of worship nationwide — including his own.

“My message to members of Congress was simple — increasing funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program and advancing the Pray Safe Act will make a real difference for houses of worship like ours across the country,” Shemper told Jewish Insider. 

It’s been one month since a fire heavily damaged the historic place of worship — the only synagogue in Jackson and the largest one in the state. The suspected arsonist, Stephen Spencer Pittman, 19, admitted to starting the blaze on Jan. 10 due to “the building’s Jewish ties,” and referred to the institution as the “synagogue of Satan.”

Pittman was charged on Thursday with civil rights and arson offenses, which add to an earlier arson indictment. Two Torah scrolls were destroyed in the fire, and five more were damaged. A Torah that survived the Holocaust, which was kept in a glass case, was unharmed. The congregation’s library and administrative office were also destroyed. Synagogue leaders estimate it will take two or three years to rebuild. The 140 families that belong to Beth Israel are indefinitely holding services in a nearby church.  

Less than two weeks after the attack, ​​Congress put forward a budget of $300 million for NSGP for 2026. While that figure is a small increase from the funding provided in 2024 and 2025, it is lower than the allocations initially proposed by both the House and Senate. That figure is also significantly less than the $500 million to $1 billion for the program requested by congressional advocates and Jewish groups. 

New conditions on the program relating to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs and immigration have also drawn bipartisan condemnation.

Still, Shemper said he is “feeling confident about increased NSGP funding. At the end of the day, it’s just the right thing to do.” 

In meetings facilitated by the Anti-Defamation League, Shemper met with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY); the ranking members of the House and Senate Homeland Security committees, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI); Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA); and the co-chairs of the House Bipartisan Task Force to Counter Antisemitism, Reps. Dan Goldman (D-NY), Marc Veasey (D-TX), Grace Meng (D-NY), Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Jerry Nadler (D-NY) and George Latimer (D-NY).

“The arson attack on Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson, Mississippi is a stark reminder that Jewish institutions across the country face serious and persistent security threats. ADL was proud to join Beth Israel Congregation President Zach Shemper on Capitol Hill this week to ensure lawmakers could hear directly from a community leader navigating the aftermath of a targeted attack,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “Faith communities deserve to gather and worship without fear, and Congress has a clear opportunity, and responsibility, to help make that possible.”

Shemper told JI that “coming to Washington this week gave me the opportunity to underscore what it takes for synagogues like ours to keep our congregants safe.”

“After the arson attack on our synagogue, security is not an abstract concern,” he continued. “It is immediate, personal and a daily reality for our community. What happened in Jackson was not an isolated incident, it’s part of a dangerous pattern. No community should have to experience what we have, and no congregation should ever have to rebuild after an attack simply for being Jewish.”

Located in a major hub of the Civil Rights Movement, Beth Israel was also the target of a 1967 bombing by the Ku Klux Klan over the rabbi’s support for racial equality — including providing chaplain services to activists incarcerated for challenging segregated bussing in the state. 

Shemper said that NSGP “helped pay for security cameras that caught the assailant” of the arson attack.

“I was in Washington advocating for increased NSGP funding — because our grant didn’t cover the full cost of security cameras, and there are certainly more houses of worship who need access to this funding,” he continued. 

“Security for houses of worship can’t be optional, and it can’t just come after tragedy.”