Dear All

My great aunt, Evelyn RABINOVITZ married
Solomon a.k.a Sidney KRAMER at the Willesden
Synagogue in 1944. Sid's father was David
Woolf KRAMER. The witnesses were Emanuel HERMAN
and Lewis MORSHOVITZ.
They were married by Eve's father, Aaron
RABINOVITZ, and his occupation was given as
Synagogue Reader. He lived locally and was
aged around 68. His Hebrew name is Raphel
Arieh son of Tordros Henoch and he had a
known brother called Menachem Mendel. I am
not sure if Menachem came to the East End.
There has also been mention of a David.

I have two questions;

Aaron also officiated as 'Rev' for his other
children's marriages at the Great Synagogue as
it was, Dukes Place, Bethnal Green Great
Synagogue and Heathfield Park. How can I find
out more about Aaron's role as a Reader/Cantor.
He does not appear in the 1931/Susser Archive
information in JGen.

Is anybody familiar with the congregation at
that time >from Willesden Synagogue,Heathfield
Park, or a current member as it is now who
could obtain an e mail contact for me that might be
able to assist.

Many thanks.
Naomi Ogin a1steve@...
Brisbane
Searching;BENDEL,BRESNARK,CHERNOSKY,CHORGAN,
DAVIDOVITCH,FELDMAN,GOLD,GOLDWITZ,GREENBERG,
GROSSMAN,HA YUDAH,HIATT,HUNT,KATZ,LEBIS,MELNICK,
MONTAGUE,NATHAN,OGIN,ORGIN,POLIAKOFF,RABIN,
RABINOVITCH,RANDALL,RESNICK,RUBINSTEIN,STEIN,
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a1steve's rubbish removals wrote on 24 jan 2009 in soc.genealogy.jewish:

Aaron also officiated as 'Rev' for his other
children's marriages at the Great Synagogue as
it was, Dukes Place, Bethnal Green Great
Synagogue and Heathfield Park. How can I find
out more about Aaron's role as a Reader/Cantor.
He does not appear in the 1931/Susser Archive
information in JGen.

Perhaps this chazan:

... over to the "Shomrei Hadass", where the tenor Rabinowitz was Chazan (he
had been brought there by Joseph Byalsky) and Gantmann was the
choirmaster.
<http://geoffreyshisler.com/Faigenblum.htm>

About the use of "Rev" for a chazan, much has been said over the years in
this NG. I maintain it does not mean "reverend", but that both "rev" and
"rav" ment "rabbi" in the sense of "learned gentleman".

--
Evertjan Hannivoort.
The Netherlands.
(Please change the x'es to dots in my emailaddress)

In a message dated 1/24/2009 1:37:16 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
exjxw.hannivoort@... writes:
<< About the use of "Rev" for a chazan, much has been said over the years in
this NG. I maintain it does not mean "reverend", but that both "rev" and
"rav" ment "rabbi" in the sense of "learned gentleman".>>

==Reverend and Rev were the English titles for a male who performs,
or is invested in, a ritual function within any religion. The central body
for British Jews was the United Synagogue which was associated with
Jews College, the educational body that turned out teachers, cantors,
and what would in other communities have been termed rabbis.

==Some of the rabbis in the United Synagogue had obtained smikha
(rabbinical ordination) independently, >from an Orthodox Yeshiva
(rabbinical seminary) and may have preferred being addressed as
rabbi. Commonly, British Jews gave the appelation Reverend or Rev to
teachers in Hebrew school, cantors, Torah readers, funeral directors,
shochtim (ritual slaughterers), kashrut supervisors, mohelim, etc.

The term is explained by my dictionaries:
* title of respect applied or prefixed to the name of a member of the
clergy or a religious order
* worthy to be revered; entitled to reverence.
* pertaining to or characteristic of the clergy.
* Informal. a member of the clergy.

The term is used as a title. After all, Moses Cohen as a layman,
would be addressed by fellow Jews as Mr. Cohen, not Mensch Cohen.

Addressing Cantor as Rev. Cohen does not in any way imply any
connection to the Christian religion than would calling him Mr. Cohen.

Rev or Reverend as used within the Jewish community as a courtesy
title. The word is borrowed >from the English language, not >from the church.

Michael Bernet, New York