Marcus Melchior (1897 – 1969) was the rabbi of the main synagogue in Copenhagen,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

, at the time of the

rescue of the Danish Jews The Danish resistance movement, with the assistance of many Danish citizens, managed to evacuate 7,220 of Denmark's 7,800 Jews, plus 686 non-Jewish spouses, by sea to nearby neutral Sweden during the Second World War.Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After escaping with his family and other Danish Jews to Sweden, he served as the acting rabbi for the Jewish refugees in Sweden until the end of the war, in mid 1945. In 1947 he became the

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 Denmark, a post he held until his death, in 1969.

Biography

Melchior came from a prominent Jewish family in Denmark. After receiving his rabbinical diploma from the

Hildesheimer Rabbinical Seminary The Hildesheimer Rabbinical Seminary (officially in german: Rabbinerseminar für das orthodoxe Judenthum in Berlin until 1880, thereafter ''Rabbiner-Seminar zu Berlin''; in , ''Bet ha-midrash le-Rabanim be-Berlin'') was founded in Berlin on 22 Octo ...

, in Berlin, Germany, in 1921, he served as a rabbi in

Tarnowskie Góry Tarnowskie Góry (German: ''Tarnowitz''; szl, Tarnowske Gōry) is a town in Silesia, southern Poland, located in the Silesian Highlands near Katowice. On the south it borders the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, a megalopolis, the greater Si ...

, Poland, from 1921 to 1923, and in

Beuthen Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', german: Beuthen O.S.) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship of Poland, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capita ...

, Germany (today,

Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', german: Beuthen O.S.) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship of Poland, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital ...

, Poland), from 1925 to 1934. He then moved to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

, Denmark, and became

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 ...

for the Jewish community there. From 1943 to 1945 he was acting rabbi for the Jewish refugees from Denmark in Sweden. Following the death of

Max Friediger Max Friediger (9 April 1884 – 9 April 1947) was a Danish people, Danish chief rabbi and a survivor of the Holocaust. Biography After the occupation of Denmark by the Wehrmacht, Friediger and other high prominent Danish Jews were interned in 19 ...

, in 1947, he became chief rabbi in Denmark. After World War II he pleaded for reconciliation with the new Germany. Though his background was Orthodox, his rhetorical skills and his culturally open attitudes made him a popular lecturer also outside Jewish circles. He fathered four sons and two daughters, among them

Arne Melchior Arne Melchior (22 October 1924 – 24 September 2016) was a Danish politician of Jewish descent and supporter of Jewish causes. He was the son of Marcus Melchior. Melchior was active in the Social Democratic Party but left this party in 1973 to co ...

(who became a frontbench Danish politician and government minister) and Binyamin (Bent) Melchior. In 1969, the latter succeeded his father as chief rabbi in Copenhagen, and is the father of

Michael Melchior Michael Melchior ( he, מיכאל מלכיאור; born January 31, 1954) is a Jewish leader, Orthodox rabbi, thinker, and activist. He is a former Minister of Social and Diaspora Affairs, a former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and a former m ...

, who is chief rabbi in Norway and emigrated to

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

in 1986 where he became a member of the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

for the Labour-Meimad faction. He was also the grandfather of Rabbi Ove "Uri" Schwarz who served as the Chief Rabbi of Finland 1982–1987.

References

External links

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The tip-off from a Nazi that saved my grandparents
20th-century rabbis Danish rabbis Norwegian rabbis Swedish rabbis Chief rabbis of Denmark Danish expatriates in Sweden The Holocaust in Denmark The Holocaust and Sweden Danish people of World War II 1897 births 1969 deaths Marcus {{Europe-rabbi-stub