Commodore Levy Chapel The Commodore Levy Chapel , established in 1942 and renamed in 1959 in honor of Uriah P . Levy , is the United States Navy ' s oldest Jewish chapel , located at Naval Station Norfolk , in Norfolk , Virginia . It is part of a chapel complex in the Naval Station ' s Frazier Hall that also includes Catholic , Protestant , and Muslim Chapels . Commodore Levy Chapel is one of two Navy chapels named for the same person , the other located being the Commodore Uriah P . Levy Center and Chapel , at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis , Maryland . History . Although not renamed until 1959 for Levy , the chapel was created in 1942 during World War II ( in a space formerly used as a chapel complex auditorium ) as the Navy ' s first chapel dedicated to worship and religious events for Jewish military personnel and their families . Therefore , although it is recognized as the Navy ' s oldest land - based Jewish Chapel , the first Navy Jewish Chapel created as a free - standing building from the ground up is the Aloha Jewish Chapel , Naval Station Pearl Harbor , in Hawaii . The Protestant and Catholic chapels in the Frazier Hall ( then part of Naval Operating Base Norfolk — NOB Norfolk ) were opened two weeks after the December 7 , 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor , and they were officially named and dedicated on February 21 , 1942 . Jewish chaplain Selwyn Ruslander was assigned to Norfolk August 1942 , and began conducting Jewish services in Frazier Hall , in the second floor auditorium area . That area was formally dedicated as a Jewish chapel the following year , during a conference of Jewish chaplains February 20 – 21 , 1943 . Present at the dedication was the Navy Chief of Chaplains , Chaplain Robert D . Workman ; the senior chaplain for the Norfolk Operating Base and Officer - in - Charge of the Navy ' s Chaplain School , Cinton A . Neyman ; and " other dignataries . " The Jewish community of Norfolk presented a Torah ark , constructed by Lester Sherrick , a civilian member of the community , as part of the dedication ceremony . When Rabbi Julius Nodel was assigned to the NOB in the mid - 40s , he not only led services in the Levy Chapel , but also led services for Jewish personnel at other bases , including two in North Carolina : the Patrol Plane Base and Coast Guard Air Station , Elizabeth City , N . C . and the Naval Air Station , Weeksville , N . C . In 1959 , in honor of Levy ' s " dedication to his religion and his country , " the chapel was renamed the " Commodore Levy Chapel . " Credit for the choice of the name belongs to history - minded Lieutenant Commander William J . Jasper , DC USN , who suggested it to the Jewish Chaplain Samuel Sobel , CHC , USN . Lieutenant Commander Jasper was the driving force behind the establishment of the Levy Chapel as the first permanent Jewish Chapel in the Navy . On December 13 , 2009 , special ceremonies were conducted to " rededicate " the Chapel on the occasion of its 50th anniversary . The ceremony honored the memory of Rabbi Samuel Sobel , the only Navy Jewish Chaplain who served twice at the Levy Chapel . Sobel was the author of " Intrepid Sailor , " a 1980 biography of Uriah P . Levy . The keynote speaker was Rabbi Jonathan Panitz , who — while on active duty as a Jewish chaplain at the Naval Academy — was part of the original effort to raise funds in order to establish the Academy ' s Jewish chapel , also named for Levy . Special events . Over the years , The Chapel has been the site of many special programs and events . In 1980 , Jewish chaplain Arnold Resnicoff initiated a quarterly " Commodore Levy Sabbath " program . Because many military personnel participated in civilian synagogue services and programs closer to the areas in which they lived , this new program encouraged them to attend services at the Levy Chapel every three months , to have " the opportunity to renew acquaintances , and to allow the area ' old timers ' to meet new arrivals . " That same year , a " blue ribbon panel " composed of Navy Jewish chaplains met at Frazier Hall to consider the " beneficial suggestion " made to the Navy to change the Jewish chaplain uniform insignia . The insignia , the two tablets of the ten commandments , topped by a six - pointed Star of David , had included Roman numerals to represent the ten commandments — but the recommendation was to replace those numerals with the first ten letters of the Hebrew alphabet . Based on the unanimous recommendation of the panel , the change was made in 1981 . On September 12 , 1982 , the Chapel sponsored a " Jewish Pride in the Navy Day , " that included the dedication of an 11 by 7 foot cloth - on - cloth wall hanging for the chapel , designed by local Norfolk artist Leonette Adler , and cut and sewn by Jewish officers , sailors , and their spouses . The celebration included music on the Frazier Hall lawn by members of the Navy band , and tours of local Navy ships . As described by the Navy News , " the hanging features a backdrop of silver moon and roaring waves of blue and white and words from the prophet Isaiah . " Chapel complex . In addition to the Protestant and Catholic chapels that predate the Commodore Levy Chapel in the Frazier Hall chapel complex , a Muslim chapel / mosque was dedicated in November 1997 .