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<font size=3>At 10:18 AM 1/13/2008, Jonathan Baker wrote:<br><br>
<br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">Nitpick: not Colonial, but
antebellum. Born in 1808, raised in Germany,<br>
he came to the US in 1824. Bemoaning the state of Jewish education
and<br>
publishing, he set about doing something about it, publishing his
own<br>
translations of "Instruction in the Mosaic Religion", the
Chumash,<br>
the Tanach, his own writings in Jewish education, and other English-<br>
language Judaica, as well as both German and Portuguese-rite
siddurim,<br>
etc. He started a well-regarded magazine that is still quoted
today<br>
(by R' Yosef Wikler in his Yoreh Deah classes), the Jewish
Publication<br>
Society, and Maimonides College, the first attempt at a rabbinical <br>
seminary in the US (1867-73).<br><br>
He was the rabbi at Cong. Mikveh Israel in Philadelphia, their
Spanish<br>
& Portuguese synagogue, for over 20 years, so it's not too
surprising<br>
that he transliterated Shema as Shema/nj/.</font></blockquote><br>
Since we are nitpicking, let me point out that Isaac Leeser was not a
rabbi. He was the chazzan of Cong. Mikveh Israel. The first ordained
Orthodox rabbi to come to America was R. Avraham Rice. He arrived in
1840.<br><br>
For information about the accomplishments of Isaac Leeser, please see
<br>
<font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>
"<a href="http://www.jewishpress.com/displayContent_new.cfm?contentid=21906&mode=a&contentname=Isaac_Leeser:_Architect_of_Traditional_Judaism_in_America&recnum=4&sectionid=14">
Isaac Leeser: Architect of Traditional Judaism in America</a>"
<b>The</b> <b>Jewish Press,</b> June 22, 2007, page 1.
</font><a href="http://tinyurl.com/2f3eu9" eudora="autourl">
http://tinyurl.com/2f3eu9<br><br>
</a></b><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>There is no question
that Chazzan Leeser was the outstanding Jewish leader of the 19th
century. BTW, the "well-regarded magazine" he published
was called the Occident. The issues from 1843 to 1852 are available on
the Internet at
<a href="http://www.jewish-history.com/Occident/index.html" eudora="autourl">
http://www.jewish-history.com/Occident/index.html</a> . If you have the
time, I think that you will find some of fascinating reading. <br><br>
<br>
</font><x-sigsep><p></x-sigsep>
Yitzchok Levine</body>
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