In a recent front-page essay (May 30, 2008) and in last month’s “Glimpses” column we traced the life of Rabbi Jacob Joseph (1840-1902). Rabbi Joseph, who studied in the famed Volozhiner Yeshiva, was an outstanding Talmudic scholar and one of…
Rabbi Jacob Joseph (RJJ)
THE CHARACTER OF RABBI JACOB JOSEPH
by Professor Yitzchok Levine • • 0 Comments
The Jewish Press recently published three articles about the life of New York’s chief rabbi, Rav Jacob Joseph (1840-1902): “Failed Experiment: New York’s Only Chief Rabbi” (front-page essay, May 30); “The Chief Rabbi Encounters Opposition” (Glimpses Into American Jewish History,…
THE CHIEF RABBI ENCOUNTERS OPPOSITION
by Professor Yitzchok Levine • • 0 Comments
Note: Unless otherwise indicated all quotes are from “New York Chooses a Chief Rabbi” by Abraham J. Karp, Publications of the American Jewish Historical Society (1893-1961) Sep 1954-Jun 1955, 44. The article is available at http://www.ajhs.org/references/adaje.cfm. In “Failed Experiment: New…
FAILED EXPERIMENT: NEW YORK’S ONLY CHIEF RABBI
by Professor Yitzchok Levine • • 0 Comments
(It is widely known among Orthodox Jews that Rabbi Jacob Joseph [RJJ] served as chief rabbi of New York in the latter part of the 19th century. Many are aware that his experience in New York was quite tragic. There is,…
New York’s Forever Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Yaakov Yosef
by Rafael (Rafi) Hecht • • 0 Comments
This article was originally posted in the blog Revach. While the idea of a single Chief Rabbi worked well in the Shtetlach of Europe it did not fair as well in the great melting pot of New York circa 1890. …