Abraham Tobias Boas (25 November 1842 – 20 February 1923) was a

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

of a Hebrew congregation in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

Biography

Early life

Abraham Tobias Boas was born at

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, son of Tobias Eliesar Boas, rabbi, and his wife Eva Salomon Levi, ''née'' Linse. Boas was educated at Amsterdam Theological Seminary and studied theology under a well-known Hebraist, Delaville. In 1865, he went to England to further his studies, and in 1867 became minister to the Jewish congregation at

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Adult life in Australia

In 1869, he was chosen as rabbi for the congregation at

, and he arrived there on the ship ''Tamesa'', Capt. William O. Phillips, from Liverpool on 13 February 1870. He held the position for forty-eight years, and became a well-known figure in all movements intended to forward the cultural and material good of the community . Well read, a great student of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, urbane and kind, broad-minded and anxious to be of use to other denominations than his own, he was a welcome visitor to the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...

, and often lectured on aspects of Jewish life and Old Testament history. He not only earned the affection of his own congregation, he was generally recognized as a valuable and public-spirited citizen. He resigned his charge in 1918 in consequence of a stroke from which he never fully recovered.

Personal life

On 15 May 1873 he married Elizabeth Solomon (c. 1851 – 26 September 1916), a daughter of Isaac Solomon (1818–1901) of Adelaide's influential Solomon family, and was survived by four sons, including Lionel (1875–1949) and

Harold Harold may refer to: People * Harold (given name), including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Harold (surname), surname in the English language * András Arató, known in meme culture as "Hide the Pain Harold" Arts a ...

(1883–1980), and five daughters.

Death

He died on 20 February 1923 and was buried in

West Terrace Cemetery The West Terrace Cemetery is South Australia's oldest cemetery, first appearing on Colonel William Light's 1837 plan of Adelaide. The site is located in Park 23 of the Adelaide Park Lands just south-west of the Adelaide city centre, between ...

References

*Louise Rosenberg,
Boas, Abraham Tobias (1842 - 1923)
, '' Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 7, MUP, 1979, pp 331–332. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Boas, Abraham Tobias 1844 births 1923 deaths Australian rabbis Dutch emigrants to Australia Rabbis from Amsterdam Burials at West Terrace Cemetery