Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth

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Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of Great Britain and the Commonwealth
Ephraim Mirvis March 2015.jpg
Incumbent
Ephraim Mirvis
since 2013
United Synagogue
Type Religious leader
Inaugural holder Aaron Hart
Website chiefrabbi.org

The Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of Great Britain and the Commonwealth is the senior rabbi of the United Synagogue, a union of British Orthodox Jewish synagogues. The Chief Rabbi is considered to be one of the more, if not the most prominent Jewish spiritual leader in the UK. They often represent the larger Jewish community of the UK to the government and the Crown. [1] The Chief Rabbi's full title is the "Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth", previously "... of the British Empire". His title and position has historically, since 1758, been considered to be the Orthodox Jewish community in Britain's equivalent of the Archbishop of Canterbury. [2]

Contents

Two Chief Rabbis have been knighted and entered the House of Lords: Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, and his predecessor, Rabbi Lord Immanuel Jakobovits. The current chief rabbi is Ephraim Mirvis. [3] [4]

List

ImageNameTermTitleNotesReason for termination
1 Dannor - Rabbi Aaron Hart (Uri Feivel) - Google Art Project.jpg Aaron Hart 1704 1756Rabbi of the Great Synagogue Died in office
2 HartLyon.jpg Hirschel Levin 1758 1764Rabbi of the Great SynagogueResigned
3 Schiff.jpg Tevele Schiff 1765 1766Chief RabbiRabbi appointed by
the Great Synagogue
4 No image.svg Meshullam Solomon 1765 1780Chief RabbiAppointed in opposition
by Hambro and the
New Synagogues;
return to Hamburg
confirmed the primacy
of David Tevele Schiff
5 Schiff.jpg Tevele Schiff 1780 1791Chief RabbiDied in office
1791 1802Post vacant
6 Barlin, Frederick Benjamin - Rabbi Solomon Hirschel - Google Art Project.jpg Solomon Hirschell 1802 1842Chief RabbiDied in office
7 NathanMarcusAdler.jpg Nathan Marcus Adler 1845 1890Chief Rabbi
8 WP Hermann Adler.jpg Hermann Adler 1891 1911Chief RabbiAppointed
delegate Chief Rabbi
in 1879 due to failing
health of his father
Died in office
9 Joseph Hertz (FL12337875).jpg Joseph Hertz 1913 1946Chief RabbiDied in office
10
(Sitting on the right) Chief Rabbis Yehuda Unterman Yitzhak Nissim and Rabbi Israel Brodie 1964.jpg
(Sitting on the right)
Israel Brodie 1948 1965Chief RabbiKnighted 1969Retired
11 Immanuel Jakobovits.jpg Immanuel Jakobovits 1966 1991Chief Rabbi Knighted 1981
Life peer 1988
Retired
12 Sirjonathansacks.jpg Jonathan Sacks 1991 2013Chief RabbiKnighted 2005
Life peer 2009
Retired
13 Ephraim Mirvis March 2015.jpg Ephraim Mirvis 2013 presentChief RabbiKnighted 2023Currently serving

See also

References

  1. Staff, Ajn. "A moment in history: Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, May 6, 2023". The Australian Jewish News . Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  2. "History of the Chief Rabbinate".
  3. "New UK chief rabbi installed", BBC News , 1 September 2013, retrieved 21 March 2018
  4. "Office of the Chief Rabbi - Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis". Office of the Chief Rabbi. Retrieved 21 March 2018.

Further reading