Arnold Jacob Wolf
Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf | |
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Personal | |
Born | Hebrew Union College | March 19, 1924
Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf (March 19, 1924 – December 23, 2008) was an American Reform Rabbi, and a longtime champion of peace and progressive politics.
Biography
Wolf received an associate degree from the
He served a stint as an assistant to his uncle, Rabbi Felix A. Levy, at Temple Emanuel in Chicago, then he served as a Navy chaplain in Japan during the Korean War. A near crash in a seaplane that landed safely in the water was a life-altering experience.
Congregation Solel
In 1957 he helped launch
Rabbi Wolf marched in Selma, Ala., for civil rights and he traveled to Washington together with his temple members to protest the Vietnam War. In 1967, FBI agents attended and recorded one of his anti-war sermons.[4]
Congregation Solel established an annual Holocaust remembrance weekends starting in the 1960s, making it one of the first synagogues in the United States to initiate the practice.[3]
He was known for bringing speakers as diverse and contemporary as Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and defendants in the Chicago Seven conspiracy trial.[3]
He allowed his congregation to write its own prayer book and make decisions previously reserved for the rabbi. He endorsed the establishment of a membership cap at 400, which the congregation adopted, and banned bar mitzvahs.[1]
Yale
After leaving Congregation Solel, Rabbi Wolf spent eight years as Jewish chaplain and Hillel director at Yale University, where he could have found an activist compatriot in Rev. William Sloane Coffin, the school's chaplain. In 1975 he was the first official Jewish representative ever invited to the World Council of Churches world assembly in Nairobi, Kenya
K.A.M. Isaiah Israel Temple
He led
Wolf received a Brotherhood Award for his civil rights work from the National Council of Christians and Jews in 1962. When the same group later gave a humanitarian award to then President Ronald Reagan, Rabbi Wolf returned his award, saying, "If Ronald Reagan is a humanitarian, then I’m not.[4]
Rabbi Wolf celebrated his
Rabbi Wolf died at age 84 on December 23, 2008, in Chicago of an apparent heart attack.[3]
Beliefs
He believed that "The core teaching of Torah for him had to do with justice, and one sometimes had to speak about that in ways that people didn't care to hear," and that "I am Adonai your God" was not a promise but a challenge to be lived up to every moment in every action."
He was the founder and leader of the organization for peace in the Middle East
Writing in
Support for Barack Obama
He was vocal in his support for Barack Obama, whose home is across the street from the K.A.M. Isaiah Israel Temple where Rabbi Wolf served for decades.[3]
Upon hearing of Rabbi Wolf’s death, President-elect Obama issued a statement, calling the rabbi a "dear friend," whose absence would be deeply felt in his hometown and beyond: "Throughout Chicago and in Jewish homes across our country, Rabbi Wolf’s name is synonymous with service, social action, and the possibility of change".[8]
Rabbi Wolf had supported Obama's campaign for the Illinois Senate in 1996, telling him that "Mr. Obama, someday you will be vice president of the United States". Obama laughed, responding "Why vice president?"[3][9]
See also
References
- ^ a b Jensen, Trevor. "Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf, 1924-2008: Led 2 prominent Reform Jewish congregations" Archived 2008-12-29 at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Tribune, December 25, 2008. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ Gips, Terry. "Eco-Kosher: Can I Care About the Earth and Still Eat My Lox, Bagels and Cream Cheese?" Archived October 10, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, The Alliance for Sustainability, dated April 30, 1994. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Fox, Margalit. "Arnold Jacob Wolf, a Leading Reform Rabbi, Is Dead at 84", The New York Times, December 29, 2008. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ a b Newbart, Dave. "Prominent rabbi, friend of Obama, dies at 84" Archived 2008-12-25 at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Sun-Times, December 24, 2008. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ Staff. "Rabbi to get his belated bar mitzvah: 13 too young -- 'that's why I'm doing it at 83'", Chicago Sun-Times, March 27, 2007. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ Yearwood, Paula Dubkin. "BAR MITZVAH, OLD MAN: At age 83, Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf is finally having his big day" Archived June 15, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Chicago Jewish News, March 23, 2007. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ Commentary Magazine "State of Jewish Belief", dated August 1966. Accessed January 29, 2021
- ^ Birkner, Gabrielle. "Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf, 84, a Champion of Peace and Progressive Politics", The Forward, December 26, 2008. Accessed December 30, 2008.
- ^ Krieger, Hilary Leila. "Mr. Obama's neighborhood"[permanent dead link], The Jerusalem Post, October 23, 2008. Accessed December 30, 2008.
Bibliography
- Unfinished Rabbi: Selected Writings of Arnold Jacob Wolf (1998)
- Jews For Obama
- Against Spirituality
External links
- Articles by Arnold Jacob Wolf on the Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner
- Obituary, 2009 in Sh'ma: A Journal of Jewish Responsibility Vol.39/no.659.