(AMERICAN JUDAICA).

John Winebrenner

Harrisburg, PA

1854

(Leeser, ISAAC). Rupp, Daniel I. (Ed.) History of All the Religious Denominations in the United States; Containing Authentic Accounts of the Rise and Progress, Faith and Practice, Localities and Statistics, of the Different Persuasions; Written Expressly for the Work, by Fifty-Three Eminent Authors, Belonging to the Respective Denominations.Contains article by Isaac Leeser: "History of the Jews and their Religion" (pp. 307-319)

When compiling this anthology of articles on American religions, Rupp sought the assistance of prominent clergy and laymen. It is thus no surprise he invited Isaac Leeser, America’s most prominent Rabbinic leader, to contribute the entry on Judaism. Leeser’s article contains an apologia of Jewish contributions to Western civilization, a review of Jewish theology and a survey of the American Jewish community (history, population statistics, communal organizations, educational institutions, publications, etc.). See L. Sussman, Isaac Leeser and the Making of American Judaism (1995) pp. 149-50.