Solomon Gaon (1912–1994) was

Sephardic Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...

Rabbi and

Hakham ''Hakham'' (or ''chakam(i), haham(i), hacham(i)''; he, חכם ', "wise") is a term in Judaism, meaning a wise or skillful man; it often refers to someone who is a great Torah scholar. It can also refer to any cultured and learned person: "H ...

of the

Spanish and Portuguese Jews Spanish and Portuguese Jews, also called Western Sephardim, Iberian Jews, or Peninsular Jews, are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardic Jews who are largely descended from Jews who lived as New Christians in the Iberian Peninsula during the ...

of the British Commonwealth.

Biography

Solomon Gaon was born in

Travnik Travnik is a town and a municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the administrative center of Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, west of Sarajevo. As of 2 ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

in 1912 and studied at the

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy a ...

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

. Both his parents were murdered in the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

. He received his rabbinic ordination from

Jews' College The London School of Jewish Studies (commonly known as LSJS, originally founded as Jews' College) is a London-based organisation providing adult educational courses and training to the wider Jewish community. Since 2012 LSJS also offers rabbini ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In 1949 he became Haham (Chief Rabbi) of the Sephardic congregations of the British Commonwealth. With

Alan Mocatta Sir Alan Abraham Mocatta, OBE (27 June 1907 – 1 November 1990) was a British judge, an expert on restrictive practices and a leader of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews of Britain. Legal and military career After attending Clifton College and New ...

, he is credited with revivifying a declining community. Beginning in 1963 he became involved (initially on a part-time basis) with

Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a private Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City."About YU
on the Yeshiva Universi ...

in New York, and was integral in the founding of its Sephardic Studies Program. Dr Gaon's overseas activities were controversial with some members of his London congregation, and he left under difficult circumstances. A 1977 ballot on his retirement as spiritual leader drew 75-75 and was only carried by the deciding vote of the president of the

Mahamad Ma'amad or Mahamad ( he, מעמד) was Council of Elders (or "the board of directors") of the communities of Sephardi Jews ( Spanish-Portuguese Jews) corresponding to ''qahal'' of the Ashkenazi Jews. Ma'amad was described as extremely conservative ...

(council). His departure deepened the rift within the community. No successor as Haham has yet been elected. Rabbi Abraham Levy served as "Spiritual Head" until his retirement in 2012.Jewish Chronicle, 19 April 2012. http://www.thejc.com/judaism/judaism-features/66625/abraham-levy-ive-no-resentment-over-decision-retire-early After moving to New York, he was also connected with the Spanish and Portuguese

Congregation Shearith Israel The Congregation Shearith Israel (Hebrew: קהילת שארית ישראל ''Kehilat She'arit Yisra'el'' "Congregation Remnant of Israel") – often called The Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue – is the oldest Jewish congregation in the Unit ...

. In 1968 Dr Gaon delivered the main address at the dedication of the first synagogue consecrated in Spain since the Expulsion of the Jews in 1492. He became a professor at Yeshiva University in 1976, and founded and directed the Jacob E. Safra Institute of Sephardic Studies. He served as president of the Union of Sephardic Congregations of the United States and Canada. He was the principal representative of the Sephardic people at the March 31, 1992 event in the Madrid Synagogue during which King Juan Carlos of Spain revoked the 1492 Edict of Expulsion. Haham Rabbi Gaon received Spain's high honor

Prince of Asturias Award The Princess of Asturias Awards ( es, Premios Princesa de Asturias, links=no, ast, Premios Princesa d'Asturies, links=no), formerly the Prince of Asturias Awards from 1981 to 2014 ( es, Premios Príncipe de Asturias, links=no), are a series of a ...

in 1992 for his lifetime of efforts seeking a renewal of relationships between and among the Sephardim and the Spanish people. In 1991, he presided when Jewish services were held for the first time in 500 years in Zaragoza, Spain. In addition to numerous articles and sermons, Gaon authored: *''Prayer Book for Boys and Girls'', 1969 *''Haggadah or Order of Services for Domestic Use on the First Two Nights of Passover According to the Rite of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews' Congregation'', London, 1975 *''Book of Prayer of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews' Congregation'', London, (ed) 1980 *''Del Fuego: Sephardim and the Holocaust''. (ed) with Mitchell Serels, 1987 () *''The Influence of the Catholic Theologian Alfonso Tostado on the Pentateuch Commentary of Isaac Abravanel'' Ktav, 1993 () * ''Minhath Shelomo: A Commentary on the Book of Prayer of the Spanish & Portuguese Jews'' Union of Sephardic Congregations, 1990 ()

References

*''Haham Gaon Memorial Volume'' Ed. Marc Angel, Hermon Press, 1994. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaon, Solomon Bosnia and Herzegovina Sephardi Jews Bosnia and Herzegovina rabbis Spanish and Portuguese Jews 1912 births 1994 deaths