Joseph Blatt was an American

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 ...

, civic leader, and professor who was the longest serving rabbi of Temple B'nai Israel in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

. He was inducted into the

Oklahoma Hall of Fame The Oklahoma Hall of Fame was founded in 1927 by Anna B. Korn to officially celebrate Statehood Day, recognize Oklahomans dedicated to their communities, and provide educational programming for all ages. The first Oklahoma Hall of Fame Induction Cer ...

in 1932.

Early life

Joseph Blatt was born in 1878 in Ohio. In 1901, he became a

and worked at a temple in Georgia.

Oklahoma

Rabbi

Blatt moved to

in 1906. He became the rabbi for the congregation that would build the Temple B'nai Israel there and served in that position until 1946. From 1906 to 1916 he was the only full-time rabbi in the state of

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. He is remembered for his classical reform approach, interfaith efforts (including guest speaking at many churches in Oklahoma City), but also for his strident defense of the Jewish community in the face of anti-semitic accusations by the ''Guthrie Daily Leader'' newspaper (accusations that the state capitol's move from Guthrie to Oklahoma City was inappropriately orchestrated by a group of prominent Jewish businessmen in Oklahoma City). Rabbi Blatt responded that the newspaper's claims were slanderous and that they were a “a disgrace to the civilization of our state.” Rabbi Blatt was also remembered for his work in helping to organize congregations in Tulsa, Enid, Shawnee and Ardmore, at times even serving as a kind of circuit preacher of sorts,Tobias, Henry J. The Jews in Oklahoma (Univ. of Oklahoma Press 1980), p. 34
/ref> as well as his opposition towards

Zionism Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a Nationalism, nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is ...

, as recalled by his successor Rabbi Levinson: (he was) "staunchly opposed to Jewish nationalism and died broken-hearted (in 1946) in the thought that the Reform movement had made peace with political Zionism."Tobias, Henry J. The Jews in Oklahoma (Univ. of Oklahoma Press 1980), p. 46
/ref> He was even described as being a "bitter anti-zionist" by Rabbi Randall Falk of Tulsa.Nicholson, Anne E. "The Strategies of the Jews of Oklahoma for preserving distinctive ethno-religious identity" (A thesis submitted to the graduate college of the University of Oklahoma) 2005. - Archived at the library of Temple B'nai Israel, Oklahoma City, p. 145

Other work and death

Blatt was a part-time professor at the School of Religion at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

starting in 1915. In 1932, he was inducted into the

. He died in 1946.

References

{{reflist 1878 births 1946 deaths 20th-century American rabbis American Reform rabbis People from Ohio People from Oklahoma City People from Oklahoma Territory University of Oklahoma faculty Jews from Oklahoma