Jacob Raphael Cohen
Encyclopedia
Jacob Raphael Cohen was a Jewish minister in England
, Canada
, and the United States
.
, but was educated was educated in London
where he became a mohel
. In 1777 or 1778, the Spanish-Portuguese
congregation of London, Shaar Hashomayim
, was asked by the Shearith Israel
congregation in Montreal
to recommend a spiritual leader, and they suggested Cohen. On February 13, 1778 Cohen was engaged for three years to act as shochet
, hazzan
, and Hebrew
teacher
. The engagement was made in London on behalf of the Montreal congregation by the merchant Hyam Myers.
Cohen arrived at Montreal in 1779, making him the first minister to a Jewish community in the province of Quebec
. His congregation consisted largely of the families of successful merchants who had come to the new British colony during and immediately after the conquest from England
, the American colonies
, Barbados
, Jamaica
, and Curaçao
.
Cohen extended his services to Jewish communities outside Montreal: at Trois-Rivières
he performed the circumcision
ceremonies for two of Aaron Hart
's sons, Benjamin
in 1779 and Asher Alexander in 1782. The Jewish communities were small, however, numbering only 20 families in Montreal and five in Trois-Rivières and Berthier
combined, and in the three years of his ministry Cohen performed only four circumcisions and two marriages. In 1781 Cohen made his own translation of an ancient and complex halachic
document, the Aramaic
ketubah
, probably not rendered into English previously.
Cohen's incumbency appears to have been satisfactory to his congregation and peaceful, until his last year when he complained of not having been fully paid for the term of his engagement. The congregation split, a minority supporting Cohen, who in September 1782 sued Lucius Levy Solomons, apparently the parnas of the congregation. Cohen won his case in the Court of Common Pleas
but the decision was reversed on a technicality in the Court of Appeals
on May 6, 1784.
Cohen had departed for England in 1782 but found himself stranded in New York City
, where his ship had been diverted to repatriate British troops. The Jewish community there was temporarily without a minister, their hazzan, Gershom Mendes Seixas
, a supporter of the revolution, having fled to Philadelphia. Cohen filled the position of hazzan until Seixas's return in 1784, at which time he left to replace Seixas at the Mikveh Israel Synagogue of Philadelphia. Cohen died at Philadelphia in 1811 and was replaced as hazzan by his son, Abraham Haim.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Biography
He is believed to have been born on the Barbary CoastBarbary Coast
The Barbary Coast, or Barbary, was the term used by Europeans from the 16th until the 19th century to refer to much of the collective land of the Berber people. Today, the terms Maghreb and "Tamazgha" correspond roughly to "Barbary"...
, but was educated was educated in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where he became a mohel
Mohel
A mohel is a Jewish person trained in the practice of brit milah "covenant of circumcision."-Etymology of the Hebrew and Aramaic term:...
. In 1777 or 1778, the Spanish-Portuguese
Spanish and Portuguese Jews
Spanish and Portuguese Jews are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardim who have their main ethnic origins within the Jewish communities of the Iberian peninsula and who shaped communities mainly in Western Europe and the Americas from the late 16th century on...
congregation of London, Shaar Hashomayim
Bevis Marks Synagogue
----Bevis Marks Synagogue is located off Bevis Marks, in the City of London. The synagogue, affiliated to London's historic Spanish and Portuguese Jewish community, is the oldest synagogue in the United Kingdom still in use...
, was asked by the Shearith Israel
Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue of Montreal
The Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue of Montreal also known as Shearith Israel is a Montreal synagogue, located on St. Kevin Street in Snowdon, which is the oldest Jewish congregation in Canada. The Congregation traces its history back to 1760 and was formally established in 1768...
congregation in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to recommend a spiritual leader, and they suggested Cohen. On February 13, 1778 Cohen was engaged for three years to act as shochet
Shechita
Shechita is the ritual slaughter of mammals and birds according to Jewish dietary laws...
, hazzan
Hazzan
A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish cantor, a musician trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.There are many rules relating to how a cantor should lead services, but the idea of a cantor as a paid professional does not exist in classical rabbinic sources...
, and Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
. The engagement was made in London on behalf of the Montreal congregation by the merchant Hyam Myers.
Cohen arrived at Montreal in 1779, making him the first minister to a Jewish community in the province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. His congregation consisted largely of the families of successful merchants who had come to the new British colony during and immediately after the conquest from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, the American colonies
European colonization of the Americas
The start of the European colonization of the Americas is typically dated to 1492. The first Europeans to reach the Americas were the Vikings during the 11th century, who established several colonies in Greenland and one short-lived settlement in present day Newfoundland...
, Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
, Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, and Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
.
Cohen extended his services to Jewish communities outside Montreal: at Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières means three rivers in French and may refer to:in Canada*Trois-Rivières, the largest city in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada*Circuit Trois-Rivières, a racetrack in Trois-Rivières, Quebec...
he performed the circumcision
Brit milah
The brit milah is a Jewish religious circumcision ceremony performed on 8-day old male infants by a mohel. The brit milah is followed by a celebratory meal .-Biblical references:...
ceremonies for two of Aaron Hart
Aaron Hart (businessman)
Aaron Philip Hart was a businessman in Lower Canada and one of the first Jews to settle in the colony. He is considered the father of Canadian Jewry...
's sons, Benjamin
Benjamin Hart (businessman)
Benjamin Hart was a Canadian businessman, militia officer, and justice of the peace.-Early life:Benjamin Hart was born in Montreal to Aaron Hart, a prominent merchant of Trois-Rivières, and Dorothea Judah....
in 1779 and Asher Alexander in 1782. The Jewish communities were small, however, numbering only 20 families in Montreal and five in Trois-Rivières and Berthier
Berthier (provincial electoral district)
Berthier is a provincial electoral district in Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. Situated in the Lanaudière region and created in 1867, the riding includes the municipalities of Saint-Michel-des-Saints, Saint-Jean-de-Matha, Saint-Come and Mandeville.-Members of...
combined, and in the three years of his ministry Cohen performed only four circumcisions and two marriages. In 1781 Cohen made his own translation of an ancient and complex halachic
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
document, the Aramaic
Aramaic language
Aramaic is a group of languages belonging to the Afroasiatic language phylum. The name of the language is based on the name of Aram, an ancient region in central Syria. Within this family, Aramaic belongs to the Semitic family, and more specifically, is a part of the Northwest Semitic subfamily,...
ketubah
Ketubah
A ketubah is a special type of Jewish prenuptial agreement. It is considered an integral part of a traditional Jewish marriage, and outlines the rights and responsibilities of the groom, in relation to the bride.-History:...
, probably not rendered into English previously.
Cohen's incumbency appears to have been satisfactory to his congregation and peaceful, until his last year when he complained of not having been fully paid for the term of his engagement. The congregation split, a minority supporting Cohen, who in September 1782 sued Lucius Levy Solomons, apparently the parnas of the congregation. Cohen won his case in the Court of Common Pleas
Court of Common Pleas
Court of Common Pleas may refer to several different courts:England and Wales and Ireland:* Court of Common Pleas * Court of Common Pleas...
but the decision was reversed on a technicality in the Court of Appeals
Appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...
on May 6, 1784.
Cohen had departed for England in 1782 but found himself stranded in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where his ship had been diverted to repatriate British troops. The Jewish community there was temporarily without a minister, their hazzan, Gershom Mendes Seixas
Gershom Mendes Seixas
Gershom Mendes Seixas was the first native-born Jewish minister in the United States. He was the minister of Congregation Shearith Israel, the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue of New York from 1768 to 1776 and again from 1784 to 1816...
, a supporter of the revolution, having fled to Philadelphia. Cohen filled the position of hazzan until Seixas's return in 1784, at which time he left to replace Seixas at the Mikveh Israel Synagogue of Philadelphia. Cohen died at Philadelphia in 1811 and was replaced as hazzan by his son, Abraham Haim.