Max Vorspan (1916 – June 2002) was an American

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 ...

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professor ...

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

, and administrator at the

American Jewish University American Jewish University (AJU), formerly the separate institutions University of Judaism and Brandeis-Bardin Institute, is a Jewish institution in Los Angeles, California. Its largest component is its Whizin Center for Continuing Education in ...

, and leader in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

Jewish community. He was the founder of the Pacific Southwest Region of the United Synagogue for Conservative Judaism, and the co-author of ''The History of the Jews of Los Angeles''. Vorspan attended the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, where he was ordained. After serving as a chaplain in

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 est ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he began teaching at the University of Judaism, eventually rising to the position of Senior Vice President. For 18 years, he hosted a weekly Sunday-morning public affairs talk show on CBS named ''Commitment''. He also served as the associate director of the Brandeis Bardin Camp Institute.http://articles.latimes.com/2002/jun/16/local/me-vorspan16, ''Los Angeles Times'', "Rabbi Max Vorspan, 86; Scholar and Historian", June 16, 2002, retrieved April 30, 2011. Co-authored by Lloyd P. Gartner, Vorspan wrote ''The History of the Jews of Los Angeles'' in 1970, chronicling the Jewish community's growth from the first establishment of the City of Los Angeles until the present day. Vorspan died at the age of 86 in June 2002.

Family

Several of Vorspan's family members are also active in the

Jewish community Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Albert Vorspan Albert Vorspan (February 12, 1924 - February 16, 2019) was an American author and long-time leader of Reform Judaism. He was director emeritus of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism. and served as senior vice president of the Union of ...

, his brother, was an author and Director Emeritus of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism until his death in February 2019. His son, David Vorspan, is founding rabbi of Congregation Shir Ami, and Rabbi-in-Residence of

de Toledo High School de Toledo High School, formerly New Community Jewish High School and informally known as "New Jew",Rachel Heller"New Jew to relocate to larger, permanent West Hills campus" ''The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles'', January 27, 2011. is a priv ...

(formerly New Community Jewish High School.)http://www.shirami.com/rabbi.html, Congregation Shir Ami website, "Rabbi Vorspan", retrieved April 30, 2011.

References

External links

Photos of Rabbi Vorspan at the University of JudaismHistory of The Jews of Los Angeles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vorspan, Max 1916 births 2002 deaths American Conservative rabbis American Jewish University faculty Jewish Theological Seminary of America alumni 20th-century American rabbis 21st-century American Jews American military personnel of World War II American military chaplains