Moshe Feinstein, who was regarded at the time as the de facto supreme rabbinic authority in North America for Orthodox Jewry. Feinstein declared that "the work is kosher and the spirit under which the work was done is commendable," and so Rand was able to complete his project. The murals have since become much loved within the community, and the former Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel, Rav Ovadia Yosef, has been a frequent visitor. The murals include an illustration of the bronze menorah by Benno Elkan that stands outside the Knesset in Jerusalem, and representations of the first days of creation, with the first ten things created before the first Sabbath represented by images that include a donkey's head, Noah's rainbow, and Miriam's well. At the back of the prayer hall, there is a blue-circle mandala containing the meditation: "My Lord, open my lips, that my mouth may declare Your Praise." The women's section upstairs contains images of Jewish holidays, such as Rosh Hashanah and Passover, and a depiction of Rachel's Tomb. The murals, started in 1974, took three years to complete. A documentary entitled "The Painted Shul", was made about the murals and Archie Rand's experience by filmmaker Amala Lane and produced by Marji Greenhut in 2003, with minor changes made more recently in 2006. Featuring extensive footage of the stunning and widely varied painting styles, viewers get a glimpse of one of the world's few 'painted shuls'. The tradition of religious painting in synagogues is centuries old, but such murals can only be found in ruins or modest replicas. B'nai Yosef is an actively used synagogue and the murals which were painted in the early 1970s look vibrant and new today. Synagogue Leadership Haim Benoliel, Rabbi Eddie Sitt, President Gabriel A. Shrem (1916–1986), Cantor, Administrator Moshe Yedid, Cantor Albert Cohen, Cantor Raphael Cohen, Baal Koreh Jack Cohen, Director of Special Programs Florence Shrem Zeitouni, Office Administrator See also Sephardic Judaism Syrian Jewish communities of the United States Notes References , American Sephardi Foundation. Accessed March 29, 2008. External links Tara Bahrampour, "Neighborhood Report: Gravesend; 7-11 Fought as the Thin Edge Of an Undesirable Wedge", The New York Times, June 4, 2000 Five Columbia Professors Receive Presidential Awards for Excellence in Teaching "Religion and Art: Allies or Adversaries?", Fordham Online, February 16, 2007. Iranian-American culture in New York (state) Iranian-Jewish culture in the United States Middle Eastern-American culture in