Rabbi Tobias Goodman was a pioneer. He was a Rav in London early in the nineteenth century who was famous for being the first Rabbi to give sermons in English in the synagogue. He was Chazan ("Reader") at the Western Synagogue which was then in Denmark Court. He gave English sermons in Liverpool, and London. … Continue reading Faith of Israel, by Rabbi Tobias Goodman, London 1834.
Month: December 2021
Amudei Yaavetz, by Yaakov ben Tzvi Charif, printed by Joseph Massel, Manchester, 1897.
I have very little information about the author of this book. He is Yaakov ben Tzvi, sometimes identified as Yaakov Tzvi Alberstadt, and according to Rabbi Yitzchok Yaakov Reines was from Nishvez. He appeared in Manchester in the 1890s, where he lived in a state of economic uncertainty and wrote or published several books. I … Continue reading Amudei Yaavetz, by Yaakov ben Tzvi Charif, printed by Joseph Massel, Manchester, 1897.
The Jews in Europe, Their Martyrdom and Their Future, Board of Deputies of British Jews, London, 1945.
This is an interesting 64 page book, published by the Board of Deputies in 1945, just before the end of World War II. The Board of Deputies was founded in 1760. It is an elected, cross-communal, representative body, in the Anglo-Jewish community. The Deputies are directly elected by the synagogues and communal organisations that they … Continue reading The Jews in Europe, Their Martyrdom and Their Future, Board of Deputies of British Jews, London, 1945.
The Jewish Chronicle, London 1915 – A Second Selection.
There has been so much interest in the scans that I posted from my bound volume of the Jewish Chronicle for 1915 that I have decided to provide a second selection. These include details about the War, charitable lists, announcements from synagogues, Selfridges advertisements, Monickendams order form for Passover groceries, advertisements for kosher hotels, and … Continue reading The Jewish Chronicle, London 1915 – A Second Selection.
Crumbs and Character, by Rabbi Dr. Leo Jung, New York 1942.
Leo Jung was born in 1892 in Moravia, the son of Rabbi Meir Tzvi Jung. His father was appointed Chief Rabbi of the Federation of Synagogues in London in 1912. At the time the Federation was an orthodox rival to the more established and orthodox but English United Synagogue. Rabbi Meir Tzvi Jung, also, incidentally, … Continue reading Crumbs and Character, by Rabbi Dr. Leo Jung, New York 1942.
The B. Strauss Library and Sefer Turei Even by Rabbi Arieh Leib Gunzberg (the Shaagas Arieh), Vilna, 1835 – the 300th Post!
Berthold-Baruch Strauss, born in 1901, was a book collector, originally from Leipzig in Germany, who came to England with his private library in 1933, and was able to add to it significantly in Britain until his early death in 1962. During the Blitz he moved his collection temporarily to Chesham in Buckinghamshire, where other refugees … Continue reading The B. Strauss Library and Sefer Turei Even by Rabbi Arieh Leib Gunzberg (the Shaagas Arieh), Vilna, 1835 – the 300th Post!
BeInyan Kriat haHaftorah be’al Peh – On the Subject of Reading the Portion from the Prophets by heart, by Dayan Abraham Rapoport, London 1961.
This small book, published in London in 1961, answers the question of whether a blind person can read the Haftorah (the portion from the prophets that is read every week after the reading from the Torah) if he knows it by heart or if he uses a Braille text. The author, Abraham Rapoport was born … Continue reading BeInyan Kriat haHaftorah be’al Peh – On the Subject of Reading the Portion from the Prophets by heart, by Dayan Abraham Rapoport, London 1961.
The Old Castle Street Synagogue and Pri Chadash by Rabbi Hezekiah Da Silva, Fuerth, 1769.
Sometimes I buy a book just because of the association - in this case, a copy of the 1769 printing of Pri Chadash with a book stamp of the Old Castle Street Synagogue, 42 Old Castle Street in the East End of London. It was known as Agudath Achim and Gemiluth Chesedim, and later Agudat … Continue reading The Old Castle Street Synagogue and Pri Chadash by Rabbi Hezekiah Da Silva, Fuerth, 1769.
Sefer Divrei Shir, by Rabbi Shmuel Yosef Rabinow, London 1959.
Rabbi Samuel Joseph Rabinow was a very prominent Talmudic scholar of exceptional ability and insight. he was born in Chaimiak, in the province of Kovno, Lithuania, in 1889. He was the only son of a rabbi who traced his descent from the Vilna Gaon. At the age of nine he left his home to live … Continue reading Sefer Divrei Shir, by Rabbi Shmuel Yosef Rabinow, London 1959.
Jewish Miscellanies 