Letter; Leeser, Isaac; Wise, Isaac Mayer; Albany, New York, United States; 1850 September 20
Title:
Letter; Leeser, Isaac; Wise, Isaac Mayer; Albany, New York, United States; 1850 September 20
Date:
1850-09-20
Description:
A two and a half page letter from Isaac Wise in Albany, New York to Isaac Leeser in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This is the most important letter on the firsthand account of the "Congregation Beth-El of Albany Affair". (In 1850, a fistfight between Wise and the synagogue's president caused a split in the Albany community, and the consequent formation of a new congregation, the Anshe Emeth). Here Rabbi Isaac Wise writes in detail of the arguments at the Beth-El meeting in which he was discharged as Rabbi for leading the congregation toward a more liberal path. The letter mentions that a fight broke out, and the sheriff was called and he locked the building. Rabbi Isaac Wise identifies Louis Spanier as the instigator of the whole affair.
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