Rabbi Dr. Isaac Lewin, (1906 - 1995) was a Professor Emeritus Of

Jewish History Jewish history is the history of the Jews, their Jewish peoplehood, nation, Judaism, religion, and Jewish culture, culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions and cultures. Jews originated from the Israelites and H ...

at the

Bernard Revel Bernard (Dov) Revel (; September 17, 1885 – December 2, 1940) was an Orthodox rabbi and scholar. He served as the first President of Yeshiva College from 1915 until his death in 1940. The Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies at ...

Graduate School of Yeshiva University In New York.

Biography

Isaac Lewin, born in 1906, in

Wieliczka Wieliczka (German: ''Groß Salze'', Latin: ''Magnum Sal'') is a historic town in southern Poland, situated within the Kraków metropolitan area in Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999. The town was initially founded in 1290 by Premislaus II of P ...

, Poland was the son of Rabbi Aaron Lewin. He received rabbinic ordination in 1935, and a law degree in 1937, and served two terms on the City Council of

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

. He fled Poland just ahead of the Nazis in 1939 with his wife and young son

Nathan Nathan or Natan may refer to: People and biblical figures *Nathan (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name * Nathan (surname) *Nathan (prophet), a person in the Hebrew Bible *Nathan (son of David), a biblical figu ...

, and arrived in the United States in 1941. He was part of the '' Vaad Ha-Hatzala'' working for the Rescuing Jews in Occupied Poland. After the war he went on a relief mission to help

Holocaust survivors Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators before and during World War II in Europe and North Africa. There is no universall ...

and displaced persons. Lewin was a key aide to the leaders of Agudath Yisrael, and became the spokesman for the Agudath Israel in the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

. Lewin an architect of the ''Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief'', which was Proclaimed by General Assembly resolution 36/55 of 25 November 1981. For this, he was awarded the United Nation's Medal of Peace. He was also awarded by the city of Warsaw with the Golden Badge of Merit in 1988, for promoting international relations and cooperation among peoples. Rabbi Lewin was professor of Jewish history at the

Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a Private university, private Modern Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City.

. He taught at YU from 1944 until 1985. He was an author and editor of works in English, Hebrew, Yiddish, and he could converse comfortably in German and French. In 1983 he was involved in obtaining an agreement from the Polish Government to help restore the neglected Jewish cemeteries in Poland.NY Times 8/25/1995,obituaries His Son

Nathan Lewin Nathan Lewin (born January 31, 1936) is an American attorney who has argued many cases before the Supreme Court of the United States. Early life and education Lewin was born in Łódź, Poland. His grandfather, the chief rabbi of Rzeszow, w ...

is a prominent Washington attorney who has appeared before the Supreme Court in many Orthodox causes.

Writings

''In the struggle against discrimination'' -1957- ''Late Summer Fruit'' -1960- ''War on War'' -1969- ''The Jewish community in Poland'' -1985- ''In defense of Human Rights'' -1992- ''Towards international guarantees for Religious Liberty'' -1981- ''Ten years of Hope'' -1971- ''Religious Freedom'' -1946- By Isaac Lewin, Michael L. Munk, Jeremiah Joseph Berman ''Unto the Mountains'' -1975- ''Attempts at Rescuing European Jews with the Help of Polish Diplomatic Missions During World War II'' -1977- ''Ten years of Hope'': addresses before the United Nations -1971- ''Religious Jewry and the United Nations'' -1953– ''In defense of Shehitah -1958- ''Shall the sword devour forever?'' -1974- ''The Metabolic Effects of the Steroid Hormones'' -1950– ''The Effect of Reward on the Experience of Pain'' -1965– ''A comparative study of concept formation'' -1981– By Helen Strauss, Isaac Lewin ''The Protection of Jewish Religious Rights by Royal Edicts in Ancient Poland'' -1943– ''Review and Analysis of Proposals for Federal Humane Slaughtering Legislation'' -1957– By Leo Pfeffer, Isaac Lewin, Synagogue Council of America

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewin, Isaac 1906 births 1995 deaths Polish emigrants to the United States Educators from New York City Yeshiva University faculty Agudat Yisrael Polish politicians American Orthodox rabbis 20th-century Polish lawyers