Herald Heralds Hanukah, 1859

By sberger On December 9, 2022 · Leave a Comment

New York Herald, December 27, 1859
Professor Ronald and Miriam Rubin Judaica Americana Collection

The Yeshiva University Library is now the proud home of a treasured collection of Judaica Americana, a gift of early American newspapers meticulously gathered by Professor Ronald Rubin. The papers date from 1734 to 1869, thus covering the Colonial era, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War and its immediate aftermath. The collection is unique in its area of focus: each of the 350 newspapers includes information on the Jewish experience in America during this early time period in the development of the Jewish community in the United States.

Professor Rubin (YUHSB ’57), is a noted collector of antiquarian Americana. He was a professor of political science at the City University of New York’s Borough of Manhattan Community College and a prolific author of a variety of books and articles, including a masterful book based on his newspaper collection, Strangers & Natives: A Newspaper Narrative of Early Jewish America 1734-1869. The library is most grateful to Professor Rubin for this unique gift.

One of the newspapers in the collection, The New York Herald, devoted a portion of the front page to “Christmas Celebrations in New York” — not a surprising topic for a newspaper dated December 27, 1859. What is unusual is the two-column feature on the second page of the same issue, “The Hebrews in New York” – quite a bit of “real estate” for an eight-page newspaper. The section included four different articles:

– “Interesting Jewish Ceremony: Reception of a Female Christian Proselyte,” at the “Jewish Synagogue, no. 84 East Twelfth street.”

– two articles relating to the situation of the Jews in Morocco: As The Rev. Dr. S. [Samuel] Adler explained in an article about Temple Emanuel’s appeal for “The Suffering Jews of Morocco,” “… the Israelites of Morocco, … in consequence of the French-Spanish invasion [of Morocco in September 1859], were obliged to flee from their homes in that country and seek shelter in the more hospitable region of Gibraltar.” The second article “Services in the Wooster Street Synagogue,” summarized The Rev. Mr. [Samuel Myer] Isaacs’ sermon, an appeal for the “suffering Jews of Gibraltar.” The anonymous author noted that the sermon was delivered in English [Rev. Isaacs was “one of only two English-speaking rabbis in the United States”] at a service on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, the “4^th Day of the Jewish Feast of Dedication, which the Jews will continue to celebrate four days longer.” The adjacent column featured a general news article on the war between Spain and Morocco, with several subheadings about the situation of the Jews: “Sufferings of the Jews Near the Fortress – How They are Hemmed In and Huddled Together — Who Are Their Friends – A Call on the United States … ” Close to half of this general news article is a description of the plight of the Moroccan Jews and a non-sectarian plea to aid them.

New York Herald, December 27, 1859
Professor Ronald and Miriam Rubin Judaica Americana Collection

– “The Annual Jewish Feast of Dedication” is a lengthy description of Hanukah, a detailed and thorough explanation of the holiday for those who know nothing about it. It is interesting to note that the popular name for the holiday, “Hanukah” is not mentioned in the article. The “Feast of Dedication” is defined as “the annual Jewish festival in commemoration of the purification of the Second Temple.” The festival is marked by burning lamps fed by pure olive oil in the synagogues and private residences; one additional lamp is lit every night for eight nights. When the lamps are lit, “the children … are each supplied with a bunch of tapers, which, of course, they take great delight in lighting, waving, putting out, relighting … while dancing, singing and general festivity reign supreme, just as at one of our New England ‘apple bees.’” “The lamp used at this festival is peculiar…” – it is made of silver, has a drawer of eight compartments, each containing a wick and olive oil; “to the right of the whole apparatus is an upright rod, bearing a cup, called the sexton. This is also filled with olive oil and is used in relighting or replenishing the other lights.” The piece continues with the history of the holiday in great detail, including the victory of the Maccabees over Antiochus’ armies and the subsequent cleansing, purification, and rededication of the Temple, including the story of the lone bottle of oil with the seal of the high priest intact, a one-day supply which miraculously lasted for eight days. The anonymous author of this holiday guide refers to an academic source for the information on the holiday, and quotes from it liberally: “The Book of Antiochus, translated from the original Hebrew and Arabic, comprehended in two manuscripts, in the British Museum, and published for the Hebrew Antiquarian Society by H. [Herschell] Filipowski, in 1851, will give a full account of the … origin of the ‘Feast of Dedication.’”

The author’s description of The Book of Antiochus is not quite accurate; Filipowski actually translated it from Aramaic – not Arabic – into Hebrew and English. It was the first translation of the work into English, thus making it available to a wide audience. Filipowski’s translation of The Book of Antiochus was published only eight years before the article in the Herald appeared, appended to his translation of Mivhar Ha-Peninim [The Choice of Pearls] a volume which is currently quite rare. It is remarkable that someone in the United States in 1859 would quote from something so esoteric.

The two columns comprising “The Hebrews in New York” can be further mined and analyzed for further historical, religious, and sociological information on Jews in New York in 1859. If these two columns can provide such depth and richness on Jews in New York, just imagine what the entirety of the newspapers in Professor Ron Rubin’s collection can yield!