Isaac Cohen (26 July 1914 – 30 November 2007) was a Talmudic scholar and

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...

of Ireland for 20 years.

Education

Born in

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carmarthen. ...

, Wales to immigrants from

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

, he won a scholarship in 1928 to Aria College in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, a boarding school which combined Jewish study with a place at

Portsmouth Grammar School The Portsmouth Grammar School is a co-educational independent day school in Portsmouth, England, located in the historic part of Portsmouth. It was founded in 1732 as a boys' school and is located on Portsmouth High Street. History In 1732, ...

. In 1931 he enrolled at Jews College and

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

and gained a Bachelor of Arts in Semitics in 1935. In 1939 he married Fanny Weisfogel of London and they settled in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. After the Second World War, he returned to London to complete his rabbinical diploma, which he gained in 1948, and subsequently took up a rabbinical position in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. In 1956 he gained his PhD from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

for research into Talmudic thought.

Appointments

His first post was at Harrow and Kenton Synagogue in Middlesex in 1935. In 1939 he moved to

United Hebrew Congregation in the capacity of an additional minister in the Moortown area. He set up a Citizens Advice Bureau to help Jewish evacuees from London and was an officiating

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...

for Jewish Servicemen. In 1947 he succeeded Dr Salis Daiches as rabbi of the Edinburgh Hebrew Congregation. In 1956 he succeeded Rabbi Dr Immanuel Jakobovits as the

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

-based Chief Rabbi of Ireland. During this time he also served as the

Av Beth Din The ''av beit din'' ( ''ʾabh bêth dîn'', "chief of the court" or "chief justice"), also spelled ''av beis din'' or ''abh beth din'' and abbreviated ABD (), was the second-highest-ranking member of the Sanhedrin during the Second Temple period, ...

in Dublin. With the decline of the Irish community, he considered leading a community in London or taking up a position at the London Beth Din. He ended up remaining in Dublin until retiring in 1979 and eventually settled in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, Israel.

Legacy

While officiating in Dublin he promoted Jewish education and dealt with problems involving the supply of kosher food. He was active in the Soviet Jewry Campaign and encouraged his community's support for Israel. His main work was his 25-year study ''Acts of the Mind in Jewish Ritual Law – An Insight into Rabbinic Psychology'' which was published two weeks before his death. The book was requested by the

in order to award him an honorary doctorate.

Sources

* (25 January 2008). Obituaries: Rabbi Dr Isaac Cohen. ''

Jewish Chronicle Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

'', p. 32.
Chief Rabbi Isaac Cohen – tribute on his first Yahrzeit
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cohen, Isaac 20th-century British rabbis 20th-century Irish rabbis 21st-century Irish rabbis Chief rabbis of Ireland British Orthodox rabbis British military chaplains World War II chaplains British people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent British expatriates in Ireland Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of the London School of Jewish Studies Alumni of University College London People from Llanelli 1914 births 2007 deaths Rabbis in the military Welsh Jews Welsh people of Lithuanian descent