Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer (March 25, 1930 – December 29, 1993) was an American

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

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 t ...

who became a recognized international

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

while living and working in

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

from 1958 to 1984, during the period of the "

Dirty War The Dirty War () is the name used by the military junta or National Reorganization Process, civic-military dictatorship of Argentina () for its period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983. During this campaign, military and secu ...

" in the 1970s. He was elected by president

Raúl Alfonsín Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín (; 12 March 1927 – 31 March 2009) was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1983 to 8 July 1989. He was the first democratically elected president after the 7-yea ...

to be one of the members of the

National Commission on the Disappearance of Persons National Commission on the Disappearance of Persons (Spanish: ', CONADEP) was an Argentine organization created by President Raúl Alfonsín on 15 December 1983, shortly after his inauguration, to investigate the fate of the (victims of force ...

. After the restoration of democracy in 1983, Meyer was awarded the nation's highest honor, the

Order of the Liberator General San Martín The Order of the Liberator General San Martín () is the highest decoration in Argentina. It is awarded to foreign politicians or military, deemed worthy of the highest recognition from Argentina. It is granted by the sitting President of Argenti ...

, by the new president. In Argentina Meyer also led the congregation Comunidad Bet El and founded '' Seminario Rabínico Latinoamericano,'' a

Conservative Jewish Conservative Judaism, also known as Masorti Judaism, is a Jewish religious movements, Jewish religious movement that regards the authority of Jewish law and tradition as emanating primarily from the assent of the people through the generations ...

rabbinical school in Buenos Aires that has trained generations of Spanish-speaking rabbis. Rabbi Meyer returned to the United States in 1984 and that year became rabbi of Congregation Bnai Jeshurun in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He was called to revive the congregation of the oldest

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...

synagogue in the city.; ; ''You Are My Witness:The Living Words of Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer''; ;> He was one of those honored by president

Cristina Fernández de Kirchner Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (; born 19 February 1953), often referred to by her initials CFK, is an Argentine lawyer and former politician who served as the 56th president of Argentina from 2007 to 2015, and later as the 37th Vice ...

to those who fought for the restoration of democracy in Argentina.

Early life and education

Marshall Theodore Meyer was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

in a Jewish family and raised in

Norwich, Connecticut Norwich ( ) is a city in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Yantic River, Yantic, Shetucket River, Shetucket, and Quinebaug Rivers flow into the city and form its harbor, from which the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River f ...

. He attended

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

, graduating in 1952. After meeting Rabbi

Abraham Joshua Heschel Abraham Joshua Heschel (January 11, 1907 – December 23, 1972) was a Polish-American rabbi and one of the leading Jewish theologians and Jewish philosophers of the 20th century. Heschel, a professor of Jewish mysticism at the Jewish Theolo ...

, he enrolled in the Jewish Theological Seminary. Heschel became his mentor and spiritual guide, whose influence and example profoundly affected Meyer's career as a religious leader. After receiving ordination in 1958, Meyer was called as a rabbi to the Congregación Israelita de la República Argentina (Templo Libertad), where he worked for two years. He then left and started the Comunidad Bet El in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, Argentina.

Career in Argentina

Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer used his energy and charisma to contribute to the Argentine Jewish community. He founded the Seminario Rabínico Latinoamericano'','' a rabbinical school in Buenos Aires that soon became the center of

Conservative Judaism Conservative Judaism, also known as Masorti Judaism, is a Jewish religious movements, Jewish religious movement that regards the authority of Jewish law and tradition as emanating primarily from the assent of the people through the generations ...

in Latin America. In it were ordained dozens of Spanish-speaking rabbis who served communities in Argentina, Latin America, and the rest of the world. Rabbi Meyer led Comunidad Bet El'','' a congregation that became a model of many other Conservative synagogues, both in Argentina and Latin America. The congregation established its own day-school. During the years of the military regime of 1976–1983, Rabbi Meyer became a strong critic of the military government and its violations of human rights. He worked to save the lives of hundreds of people who were being persecuted by the regime. He visited political prisoners in jails. He worked with the Israeli government to free the renowned journalist,

Jacobo Timerman Jacobo Timerman (6 January 1923 – 11 November 1999) was a Soviet-born Argentine publisher, journalist, and author, who is most noted for his confronting and reporting the atrocities of the Argentine military regime's Dirty War during a period ...

, who had been persecuted, imprisoned and subjected to extended house arrest. Timerman dedicated his memoir of that time, ''Prisoner Without A Name, Cell Without A Number'' (1981), to the rabbi. Timerman wrote that Meyer had "brought solace to Jewish, Christian and atheist prisoners". Meyer additionally founded the Movimiento Judío por los Derechos Humanos, an organization that played a key role in the fight for human rights in Argentina. In 1983, when democracy was restored in Argentina, the newly elected president,

, recognized the work of Rabbi Meyer by awarding him the highest Argentine decoration,

. Rabbi Meyer returned the United States in 1984. In 2019, the City of Buenos Aires honored Meyer for his work visiting prisoners during the military regime by placing a graffiti wall in his memory, in the capital's main square.

Later period

After a short stay at the University of Judaism (now the

American Jewish University American Jewish University (AJU) is a Private university, private Jewish university in Los Angeles, California. It was formed in 2007 from the merger of the University of Judaism and Brandeis-Bardin Institute. AJU's academic division includes ...

) in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, in 1984 Rabbi Meyer accepted the position of rabbi at Congregation Bnai Jeshurun in

. It is the oldest Ashkenazic synagogue in the city, and he had the mission of reviving the congregation. Between 1984 and 1993, B'nai Jeshurun became a thriving liberal community that attracted thousands of Jewish people. The challenging theology espoused by Rabbi Meyer, the spiritually uplifting religious services, an agenda that emphasized social action as a central part of the synagogue's principles, ecumenical work with Christian and Muslim clergy, and a leading role in the peace movement in regard to the

Arab–Israeli conflict The Arab–Israeli conflict is a geopolitical phenomenon involving military conflicts and a variety of disputes between Israel and many Arab world, Arab countries. It is largely rooted in the historically supportive stance of the Arab League ...

, led to the rapid growth of the congregation. It became a model for many other synagogues in the United States.

Personal life

Meyer married Naomi Meyer, and they had three children: Anita, Dodi and Gabriel. He died of cancer in 1993 and was buried in the cemetery of the synagogue of his home town in

References

External links

The Marshall T. Meyer Papers in Duke University's Human Rights Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meyer, Marshall 1930 births 1993 deaths Activists against antisemitism American Conservative rabbis Argentine Conservative rabbis Recipients of the Order of the Liberator General San Martin Dartmouth College alumni American expatriates in Argentina American Jewish University faculty Jewish human rights activists Jewish Theological Seminary of America alumni Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Rabbis from New York City 20th-century American rabbis