What the Rabbis Said

"What the Rabbis Said" examines a relatively unexplored facet of the rich social history of nineteenth-century American Jews. Based on sources that have heretofore been largely neglected, it traces the sermons and other public statements of rabbis, both Traditionalists and Reformers, on a host of matters that engaged the Jewish community before 1900.Reminding the reader of the complexities and diversity that characterized the religious congregations in nineteenth-century America, Cohen offers insight into the primary concerns of both the religious leaders and the laity - full acculturation to American society, modernization of the Jewish religious tradition, and insistence on the recognized equality of a non-Christian minority.She also discusses the evolution of denominationalism with the split between Traditionalism and Reform, the threat of antisemitism, the origins of American Zionism, and interreligious dialogue. The book concludes with a chapter on the professionalization of the rabbinate and the legacy bequeathed to the next century. On all those key issues rabbis spoke out individually or in debates with other rabbis. From the evidence presented, the congregational rabbi emerges as a pioneer, the leader of a congregation, as well as spokesman for the Jews in the larger society, forging an independence from his European counterparts, and laboring for the preservation of the Jewish faith and heritage in an unfamiliar environment.

ISBN 0814716881   Pages 252 ISBN13 9780814716885 (What's this?)   Volumes 1 Publisher New York University Press   Weight (grammes) 499 Imprint New York University Press   Published in New York Format Hardback   Height (mm) 232 Publication date 17 May 2008   Width (mm) 159 Library of Congress 2007050442   Spine width (mm) 22 DEWEY 296.610973   Academic level Undergraduate, Postgraduate, Professional / Scholarly DEWEY edition DC22

1		The muzzled rabbi		13
2		From the words of Sabato Morais		33
3		Heroes and villains		53
4		Meant for children		74
5		Rabbi versus rabbi		94
6		Restoration to Palestine		113
7		Rabbis under attack		131
8		The new antisemitism		150
9		The world's parliament of religions		177
10		Building a profession		198
		Notes		217
		Index		247
		About the author		261

"Cohen breaks new ground by drawing from relatively unstudied sources: the sermons delivered in nineteenth-century synagogues." MARC SAPERSTEIN, Principal, Leo Baeck College"

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