Jewish Heritage Collection: Oral history interview with Lewis Weintraub
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- Title:
- Jewish Heritage Collection: Oral history interview with Lewis Weintraub
- Date:
- 1997
- Interviewer:
- Rosengarten, Dale, 1948-;Grossman, Michael Samuel
- Interviewee:
- Weintraub, Lewis, 1918-
- Description:
- In this interview Rabbi Lewis Aryeh Weintraub provides details of his personal history leading up to his arrival in Charleston, South Carolina. He was born in Uscilug, Wolin Gubernia, Poland, in 1918 and immigrated with his family to Montreal, Canada, when he was twelve years old. He graduated from Yeshiva College in New York in 1941 and from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1944, the same year he joined the Canadian Army Chaplaincy Service. After discharge from the army in 1946, he served as assistant rabbi to Rabbi C. E. H. Kauvar of Beth haMedrosh Hagadol Congregation in Denver, Colorado. In August 1947 Rabbi Weintraub became the first rabbi of a newly formed Conservative congregation in Charleston, South Carolina. The founders had just broken away from Brith Sholom, one of the city’s Orthodox synagogues. Weintraub discusses the dissension in the Jewish community surrounding the split and the decisions involved in the creation of a new congregation, such as choosing a name—Synagogue Emanu-El—acquiring property, and hiring Jacob Renzer as cantor. He mentions a number of the founders and explains how Dr. Matthew Steinberg came to be the congregation’s mohel. The rabbi provides dates and some details regarding the start of Hebrew and Sunday school classes, the first bar mitzvah, the first confirmation, and other “firsts” in the congregation. To enhance the adult education program begun in January 1948 and to aid in “molding the ideology of Conservative Judaism for the community,” he brought to Charleston as guest speakers Jewish scholars such as Arthur Hertzberg, Max Arzt, and Robert Gordis. Rabbi Weintraub credits his parents for his decision to enter the rabbinate. He discusses why he chose Conservatism, the aspects of Conservative Judaism that appeal to Jews, and how a break with certain traditions is not necessarily a renunciation of “other basic, central, ideological principles of Judaism.” He married Fannie Goldberg, a native Charlestonian, four years after arriving in the Holy City, as Charleston is called. “With great regrets” the rabbi resigned at the end of his seventh year at Emanu-El. He and Fannie left Charleston for the sake of their two young children—they wanted them to attend a Jewish day school, not available at that time in Charleston. Note: the transcript contains additions and corrections made by Rabbi Weintraub during proofing.
- Collection Title:
- Jewish Heritage Collection Oral Histories
- Contributing Institution:
- College of Charleston Libraries
- Media Type:
- Oral Histories
- Preferred Citation:
- Lewis Weintraub, audio interview by Dale Rosengarten and Michael Samuel Grossman, 26 January 1997, Mss. 1035-113, Special Collections, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, USA.
- Personal or Corporate Subject:
- Beth Israel (Charleston, S.C.), Emanu-El (Charleston, S.C.), Brith Sholom (Charleston, S.C.)
- Topical Subject:
- Jews--South Carolina--Charleston--History, Jews--South Carolina--Interviews, Jewish Sects--South Carolina--Charleston--History, Conservative Judaism--South Carolina--Charleston--History, Rabbis--South Carolina--Charleston--Interviews, Jews--Colorado--Denver--History
- S.C. County:
- Charleston County (S.C.)
- Language:
- English
- Shelving Locator:
- MSS 1035-113
- Date Digital:
- 2012-03-26
- Digitization Specifications:
- Mp3 derivative audio created with Audacity software. Archival masters are wav files.
- Internet Media Type:
- audio/mpeg;application/pdf
- Copyright Status Statement:
- Copyright © Jewish Heritage Collection
- Access Information:
- For more information, contact Special Collections, College of Charleston Libraries, 66 George Street, Charleston SC 29424.
- Admin ID:
- 220984
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