FROM ISTANBUL TO CINCINNATI; LIFE AT THE HEBREW UNION COLLEGE, PART III

 

Rabbi Rifat Sonsino, Ph.D.

 

MY TEACHERS

During my stay at the College (1961-66), I had a number of teachers who shaped my thinking. Among them, I can mention the following: Dr. Samuel Sandmel, Bible professor and an expert in the New Testament, infused in me the love of Torah and particularly the study of Bible and Biblical criticism. I studied Bible and New Testament with him, and did an “honors” elective on the development of the Graf-Wellhausen theory. Dr. Julius Levy, professor of ancient Near Eastern studies, and his wife Dr. Hildegard Levy always answered my questions about Hebrew grammar or ancient history. Dr. Jacob Marcus, professor of American Jewish history, used to invite me to his house for lunch, and served me steak and potatoes, while pacing up and down the dining room. He always called me, “Rifat, my boy.” He had met my parents in Israel once, and always asked me about them. Dr. Nelson Glueck, the president of the institution and a well-known archaeologist, knew me well, and asked me over to his house a number of times. Dr. Alvin Reines, professor of Jewish Philosophy, was a very demanding teacher. He had us memorize his class notes, whether we were studying a medieval Jewish philosopher or his own polydoxic approach to theology. But he made us think, and opened our eyes to the intricacies of Jewish thought like no other teacher before. Dr. Jakob Petuchowski, a German born professor who taught liturgy, had a sarcastic approach to everything, but he knew his material well. We learned a lot from him. Dr. Sheldon Blank, Bible professor, was a sweet old man who had a passion for the prophets. He and his wife used to invite students to their home on Shabbat afternoons for tea and conversation. I considered Dr. Ellis Rivkin, history professor, more of a philosopher of history than a mere historian. I learned from him how to look at history from an economic point of view. Dr. Alexander Guttmann (the “Goose”), Talmud professor, tried to make the classes lighter by concentrating on sexual matters. (By the way, I dated his daughter for a while). Dr. Eugene Mihaly, our Midrash professor (called the “Duke” or “the Grease Gypsy” by the students), introduced us to the developmental thinking of the ancient Rabbis. He used to insist that one should never preach “against” the traditional text. If you cannot use the text for a positive message, don’t use it at all, he would say. At that time, we all agreed. [I don’t anymore]. And then we had Mr. McCoy, a wonderful gentleman who was a protestant minister before he gave up service in the church to teach rabbinic students how to preach and how to speak properly. He also taught us how to behave on the pulpit (“Make sure your zipper is up”).