Dan Cohn-Sherbok

• University of Kent
• University of Wales

Dan Mark Cohn-Sherbok
Born	(1945-02-01)February 1, 1945 Denver, Colorado, US
Nationality	United States, United Kingdom
Title	Professor Emeritus of Judaism at the University of Wales
Spouse	Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok
Academic background
Education	Williams College, Wolfson College, Cambridge
Alma mater	Wolfson College, Cambridge

Dan Mark Cohn-Sherbok is a rabbi of Reform Judaism and a Jewish theologian. ^[1] He is Professor Emeritus of Judaism at the University of Wales. ^[2]

Early life and education

Born into a Jewish family on February 1, 1945 ^{[3] [4]} in Denver, Colorado, Cohn-Sherbok was the son of Bernard Sherbok, an orthopedic surgeon, and Ruth Sherbok (nee Goldstein). ^[5] His family roots were in New York City and Hungary. ^[2] He graduated from East High School (Denver) and was a student at Williams College, Massachusetts, spending a junior year abroad in Athens, Greece. ^[6]

Cohn-Sherbok was conceived through sperm donation and artifical insemination at the University of Chicago Medical School. In interviews he has expressed gratitude for his conception and said learning of it in his twenties clarified his strained relationship with his father. ^{[6] [7]} However, he has also described his discovery as "traumatic" ^[8] and said that it initially caused confusion about his identity. ^{[9] [10]}

Career

He was ordained a Reform rabbi at the Hebrew Union College at Cincinnati. ^[2] He was a Chaplain of the Colorado House of Representative, and Honorary Colonel Aide-de-Camp of New Mexico.^{[ citation needed ]} He has served as a rabbi in the United States, England, Australia and South Africa. ^[11] He was a student at Wolfson College, Cambridge. He received a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Cambridge in England. ^[12] Later, he received an honorary doctorate in divinity from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, New York City. He taught theology at the University of Kent and served as director of the Centre for the Study of Religion and Society, and was Professor of Judaism at the University of Wales. He has served as visiting professor at University of Essex, Middlesex University, St. Andrews University, Durham University, University of Vilnius, Lithuania, Charles University, Prague, York St John University, Trinity University College, St Mary's University, Twickenham, New Saint Andrews College and Honorary Professor at Aberystwyth University. ^{[1] [13]}

He has been a visiting fellow at Wolfson College, Cambridge, and Harris Manchester College, Oxford, a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Corresponding Fellow of the Academy of Jewish Philosophy, a visiting research fellow of Heythrop College, University of London, a Life Member of Wolfson College, Cambridge, an Honorary Senior Member of Darwin College, University of Kent, an Associate Member of the SCR Christ Church, Oxford, a Member of the SCR Harris Manchester College, Oxford, President of the London Society for the Study of Religion and Member of the Arts and Humanities Peer Review College. He has also served as a visiting scholar of Mansfield College, Oxford, the Oxford Centre for Postgraduate Hebrew Studies and Sarum College. ^[13] He was a finalist of the Times Preacher of the Year, ^[14] and winner of the Royal Academy Friends design competition. He is a member of the Oxford and Cambridge Club and the Athenaeum.

Controversial views

Cohn-Sherbok has written and lectured on a number of provocative topics that have stirred controversy in the broader Jewish community, including the legitimacy of Messianic Judaism, ^{[15] [16]} the equal standing of Humanistic Judaism with other Jewish movements, ^[17] the purported benefits of Antisemitism, ^[18] and the growing influence of Christian Zionism. ^[19]

Personal life

He is married to Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok.

Works

Cohn-Sherbok is the author and editor of over 100 books which have been translated into Russian, Greek, Bulgarian, Hebrew, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, Swedish, Japanese, Romanian, Turkish, Persian and German. He has also illustrated 25 books with cartoons and has contributed cartoons to books and magazines. His books include:

• Cohn-Sherbok, Dan (1984). The Jews of Canterbury 1760-1931. Seattle, WA ?: Yorick Books. ISBN   978-0-947-71001-9.
• ———; Irwin, Michael, eds. (1987). Exploring Reality. London: Allen & Unwin. ISBN   978-0-041-00050-4.
• ——— (1987). On Earth as It Is in Heaven: Jews, Christians and Liberation Theology. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books. ISBN   978-0-883-44410-8.
• ——— (1989). The Jewish Heritage. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN   978-0-631-15414-3.
• ——— (1989). Holocaust Theology: A Reader . London: Lamp Press. ISBN   978-0-551-01829-7.
• ——— (1989). Jewish Petitionary Prayer: A Theological Exploration. Toronto Studies in Theology. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-889-46781-1.
• ——— (1989). God and the Holocaust. Herefordshire: Gracewing Publishers. ISBN   978-0-852-44341-5.
• ———, ed. (1990). The Canterbury Papers: Essays on Religion and Society. London: Bellew Publishing. ISBN   978-0-947-79244-2.
• ———, ed. (1990). The Salman Rushdie Controversy in Inter-religious Perspective. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-889-46719-4.
• ——— (1990). Rabbinic Perspectives on the New Testament. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-889-46689-0.
• ———, ed. (1991). Islam in a World of Diverse Faiths. Library of Philosophy and Religion. Macmillan Academic and Professional Ltd. ISBN   978-0-333-69067-3.
• ———, ed. (1991). A Traditional Quest: Essays in Honour of Louis Jacobs. Sheffield: JSOT Press. ISBN   978-1-850-75279-0.
• ———, ed. (1991). The Sayings of Moses. Gerald Duckworth & Co. ISBN   978-0-715-62375-6.
• ———, ed. (1991). Problems in Contemporary Jewish Theology. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-773-49645-3.
• ——— (1991). Issues in Contemporary Judaism. Macmillan. ISBN   978-1-349-21330-6.
• ———, ed. (1991). Tradition and Unity: Sermons Published in Honour of Robert Runcie. Canterbury Papers. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-947-79261-9.
• ———, ed. (1991). Using the Bible Today. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-947-79295-4.
• ——— (1991). Dictionary of Judaism and Christianity. Philadelphia: Trinity Press. ISBN   978-1-563-38030-3. OCLC   23972715.
• ——— (1992). Exodus: An Agenda for Jewish-Christian Dialogue. London: Bellew Publishing. ISBN   978-1-857-25033-6.
• ———, ed. (1992). World Religions and Human Liberation . Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books. ISBN   978-0-883-44795-6.
• ———, ed. (1992). Many Mansions: Interfaith and Religious Intolerance. London: Bellew Publishing. ISBN   978-1-857-25044-2.
• ——— (1992). The Blackwell Dictionary of Judaica. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN   978-0-631-16615-3.
• ——— (1992). The Crucified Jew: Twenty Centuries of Christian Anti-Semitism. London: Fount. ISBN   978-0002159944.
• ——— (1992). Israel: The History of an Idea. London: SPCK Publishing. ISBN   978-0-281-04577-8.
• ———, ed. (1992). Torah and Revelation. Studies in Jewish Theology. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-773-49165-6.
• ——— (1993). The Jewish Faith. London: SPCK Publishing. ISBN   978-0-281-04685-0.
• ——— (1993). Not a Job for a Nice Jewish Boy. London: Bellew Publishing. ISBN   978-1-857-25069-5.
• ———; Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia (1994). Jewish and Christian Mysticism: an Introduction. London: Continuum Co. ISBN   978-0-826-40695-8. OCLC   889692769.
• ——— (1994). Judaism and Other Faiths . Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN   978-0-333-57523-9.
• ——— (1994). The Future of Judaism . London: T & T Clark. ISBN   978-0-567-29267-4.
• ———; Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia (1994). Judaism: A Short History. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68206-5.
• ——— (1994). Atlas of Jewish History. Routledge. ISBN   978-0-415-08684-4.
• ——— (1994). World Religions and Human Liberation. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books. ISBN   978-0-883-44796-3.
• ———; Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia (1994). The American Jew. Harper Collins; STL. ISBN   978-0-006-27687-6.
• ———, ed. (1994). Glimpses of God. Duckworth. ISBN   978-0-715-62608-5.
• Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia; ——— (1995). A Popular Dictionary of Judaism. Surrey: Curzon Press. ISBN   0-7007-0357-8.
• ———; Lewis, Christopher (1995). Beyond Death: Theological and Philosophical Reflections on Life after Death. Palgrave Schol. ISBN   978-0-333-63073-0.
• ———, ed. (1997). Theodicy. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-773-48690-4.
• ———; Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia (1996). A Short Reader in Judaism. Richmond: Curzon Press. ISBN   978-1-851-68278-2.
• ——— (1996). Modern Judaism: From Jewish Diversity to a New Philosophy of Judaism . St. Martin's Press. ISBN   978-0-312-16188-0.
• ——— (1996). The Hebrew Bible. Cassell. ISBN   978-0-304-33703-3.
• ——— (1996). Biblical Hebrew for Beginners. London: SPCK Publishing. ISBN   978-0-281-04818-2.
• ——— (1996). Medieval Jewish Philosophy: An Introduction. Routledge. ISBN   978-0-700-70453-8.
• ———; Leahy, Michael (1996). The Liberation Debate. Routledge. ISBN   978-0-415-11693-0.
• ———, ed. (1996). Divine Intervention and Miracles in Jewish Theology. Jewish Studies. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-773-49093-2.
• ——— (1997). The Crucified Jew: Twenty Centuries of Christian Anti-Semitism (U.S. reissue ed.). Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. ISBN   978-0-802-84311-1.
• ——— (1997). Fifty Key Jewish Thinkers. Routledge. ISBN   978-0-415-12627-4.
• ———; Linzey, Andrew (1997). After Noah: Animals and the Liberation of Theology. Mowbray. ISBN   978-0-264-67450-6.
• ———; Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia (1997). A Short Introduction to Judaism. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68145-7.
• ——— (1998). A Concise Encyclopedia of Judaism. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68176-1.
• ———, ed. (1999). The Future of Jewish-Christian Dialogue. Toronto Studies in Theology. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-773-47923-4.
• ———, ed. (1999). Jews, Christians and Religious Pluralism. Toronto Studies in Theology. Lewiston, New York; Lampeter, Wales: Edwin Mellen Press. ISBN   978-0-773-47920-3.
• ——— (1999). Judaism. Religions of the World. Prentice Hall. ISBN   978-0-132-66271-0.
• ———; Lamb, Christopher, eds. (1999). The Future of Religion: Postmodern Perspectives - Essays in Honour of Ninian Smart. Hendon, London: Middlesex University Press. ISBN   978-1-898-25326-6.
• ———, ed. (1999). Understanding the Holocaust: An Introduction. Issues in contemporary religion. Cassell. ISBN   978-0-304-70442-2.
• ——— (2000). Messianic Judaism. London; New York: Continuum. ISBN   978-0-826-45458-4.
• ———, ed. (2001). Interfaith Theology: A Reader. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68276-8.
• ———, ed. (2001). Voices of Messianic Judaism: Confronting Critical Issues Facing a Modern Movement. Clarksville, MD: Messianic Jewish Publishers. ISBN   978-1-880-22693-3.
• ———; Court, John, eds. (2001). Religious Diversity in the Graeco-Roman World: A Survey of Recent Scholarship. Understanding the Bible and Its World. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press. ISBN   978-1-841-27216-0.
• ———; El-Alami, Dawoud (2001). The Palestine-Israeli Conflict: a Beginner's Guide. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68261-4.
• ——— (2002). Anti-Semitism. Sutton Publishing. ISBN   978-0-750-92492-4.
• ———, ed. (2002). Holocaust Theology: a Reader (Reissue ed.). New York: New York University Press. ISBN   978-0-814-71620-5.
• ——— (2003). Judaism: History, Belief and Practice. Routledge. ISBN   978-0-415-23661-4.
• ———; Cook, Harry; Rowens, Marilyn, eds. (2003). A Life of Courage: Sherwin Wine and Humanistic Judaism. Milan Press. ISBN   978-0-967-32596-5.
• ——— (2003). What's a Nice Jewish Boy Doing in a Place Like This?. O Books. ISBN   978-1-903-81618-9.
• ——— (2004). Vision of Judaism: Wrestling with God. Paragon House Publishers. ISBN   978-1-557-78808-5.
• ——— (2005). Dictionary of Jewish Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-195-22391-0.
• ———; Grey, Mary (2005). Pursuing the Dream: A Jewish-Christian Conversation. Darton, Longman & Todd. ISBN   978-0-232-52540-3.
• ——— (2006). The Paradox of Anti-Semitism. London: Continuum. ISBN   978-0826488961.
• ——— (2006). Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism: An Introductory Anthology. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68454-0.
• ——— (2006). The Politics of Apocalypse: The History and Influence of Christian Zionism. Oxford: Oneworld Publishing. ISBN   978-1-851-68453-3.
• ———; Cohn-Sherbok, Lavinia (2007). What Do You Do When Your Parents Live Forever?: A Practical Guide to Caring for the Elderly. O Books. ISBN   978-1-846-94028-6.
• ——— (2009). Dictionary of Kabbalah and Kabbalists. Impress Books. ISBN   978-0-955-62397-4.
• ——— (2010). Judaism Today. Religion Today series. London; New York: Continuum. ISBN   978-0-826-42231-6.
• ——— (2011). Introduction to Zionism and Israel: From Ideology to History. London: Continuum. ISBN   978-1-441-12757-0.
• ——— (2012). The Palestinian State: A Jewish Justification. Impress Books. ISBN   978-1-907-60529-1.
• ———; El-Alami, Dawoud; Chryssides, George (2013). Love, Sex and Marriage:Insights from Judaism, Christianity and Islam. London: SCM Press. ISBN   978-0-334-04405-5.
• ——— (2013). Eternal Angels. London: Duerr Publishing.
• ——— (2013). The Illustrated History of Judaism. London: Lorenz Books. ISBN   978-0-754-82356-8.
• ——— (2014). Williams College Alumni Cartoons. London: Duerr Publishing.
• ——— (2014). Animals are People Too. London: Duerr Publishing.
• ———; Lewis, Christopher (2014). Sensible Religion. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-409-46808-0.
• ———; El-Alami, Dawoud; Chryssides, George (2014). Why Can't They Get Along?. London: Lion Books. ISBN   978-0-745-95605-3.
• ———; Grey, Mary (2014). Debating Palestine and Israel. Impress Books. ISBN   978-1-907-60549-9.
• ——— (2014). The Athenaeum Sketches. Impress Books. ISBN   978-1-907-60548-2.
• ——— (2015). History of the Jewish Faith. Southwater. ISBN   978-1-780-19422-6.
• ———; El-Alami, Dawoud; Chryssides, George (2016). Terror and Religion: An Interfaith Dialogue. Impress Books. ISBN   978-1-907-60596-3.
• ——— (2016). The Perplexities of Being an Amateur Artist. London: Duerr Publishing.
• ——— (2016). Judaism Belief and Practice. Southwater. ISBN   978-1-780-19509-4.
• ——— (2018). A Dictionary of Jews and Jewish Life. Impress Books. ISBN   978-1-911293-21-7.
• ——— (2018). London Clubs. London: Duerr Publishing.
• ———; Hasan, Usama; Chryssides, George (2019). People of the Book. JKP. ISBN   978-1-907-60596-3.
• ———; Cave, Peter; Chryssides (2019). Jews:Nearly everything you wanted to know but were too afraid to ask. Equinox. ISBN   978-1-78179-777-8.
• ———- (2019) Cohn-Sherbok, Lewis, Christopher, Interfaith Worship and Prayer, JKP. ISBN 978-1-78592-120-9.
• ———-(2020) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Cardozo Kindersley, Lida, The Alphabetician and the Rabbi, Cardozo Kindersley.
• ———-(2020) Cohn-Sherbok, Cave, Peter, Arguing About Judaism, Routledge. ISBN 978-0-367-33406-2
• ———- (2020) Cohn-Sherbok, Grant, Kevin, The Animal Orchestra, Words. ISBN 978-0-9529352-3-0.
• ———- (2021) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Jews and Jokes, Impress Books
• ———- (2022) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Antisemitism, The History Press
• ————(2023) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Chryssides, George (eds), The Covid Pandemic and the World's Religions, Bloomsbury
• ———— (2024) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Oxford and Cambridge Club Jigsaws, ISSUU
• ————-(2024) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, The Athenaeum, ISSUU
• ————(2024) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Grant, Kevin, Bible Jigsaws, ISSUU
• ————(2024) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Jew Hatred, ISSUU
• ————(2024) Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, Defining Antisemitism, ISSUU
• ————(2024), Cohn-Sherbok, Dan, The Bible and the Holy Land, ISSUU

See also

• Carol Harris-Shapiro
• Academic study of new religious movements

References

1. Rubinstein, William D. (2007). "Cohn-Sherbok, Dan". In Berenbaum, Michael; Skolnik, Fred (eds.). Encyclopaedia Judaica. Vol. 5 (2nd ed.). Macmillan Reference USA. p. 46.
2. Byrnes, Sholto (19 March 2006). "Dan Cohn-Sherbok: The Rabbi Who Sees Another Side to Anti-Semitism". The Independent. Archived from the original on 31 October 2009. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
3. "Cohn-Sherbok, Dan". Encyclopedia.com . Retrieved 26 October 2025.
4. "Birthdays". The Independent. 1 February 2016. p. 48. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
5. "Obituaries & Memorials". The Denver Post. 30 October 2006. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
6. Deacy, Chris (20 December 2018). "Dan & Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok". Nostalgia Interviews with Chris Deacy. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
7. Braid, Mary (20 January 2002). "Review: Your Daddy Was a Donor: As a Child, Melissa Always Felt There Was Something Not Quite Right. At 32, She Found Out That She Was Conceived Through Donor Insemination. Now She Wants to Find Her Real Father – and She's Not the Only One". The Observer. p. 1. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
8. Frean, Alexandra (22 January 2004). "To Tell the Whole Truth or Nothing?:". The Times. p. 4. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
9. "Thoughts from Rabbi Dan Cohn-Sherbok: a donor conceived person Donor Conception Network". Donor Conception Network. Archived from the original on 30 March 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2025.
10. Appleyard, Bryan (6 July 1997). "Bad Behaviour? It's Just Human Nature". The Sunday Times. p. News Review 6. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
11. Rozenberg, Gabriel (23 August 2003). "Religious Intolerance". The Times. p. 19 [S3].
12. Cohn-Sherbok, Dan (18 July 1997). "What Cost the American Dream?". The Times. p. 37. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
13. Avery, Laura, ed. (2017). "Cohn-Sherbok, Dan". The Writers Directory. Vol. 1 (35th ed.). St. James Press. p. 681-682.
14. Gledhill, Ruth (11 November 2000). "God's Soldier Battles Her Way into Final Six". The Times. p. 20.
15. "Get Concerned". Baltimore Jewish Times. Vol. 254. 11 August 2000. p. 42. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
16. Berkman, Jacob (11 August 2000). "Questionable Credibility: A Rabbi's Speech Encourages Messianic Jews". Baltimore Jewish Times. Vol. 254. p. 12. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
17. Cohn-Sherbok, Dan (1996). "Humanistic Judaism". Modern Judaism. Palgrave Macmillan Limited. pp. 155–177. doi:10.1057/9780230372467_7.
18. Alexander, William N. (2008). "The Paradox of Anti-Semitism". Shofar. 26 (4): 179–181. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
19. Yong, Amos (2007). "Review of The Politics of Apocalypse: The History and Influence of Christian Zionism – by Dan Cohn-Sherbok". Religious Studies Review. 33 (2). Blackwell Publishing Asia: 121. doi:10.1111/j.1748-0922.2007.00171_12.x.

External links

• "Department of Theology and Religious Studies staff entry "PROFESSOR DAN COHN-SHERBOK"". University of Wales - Lampeter. Archived from the original on 23 December 2008. Retrieved 2009-08-12.
• "Review of Dan Cohn-Sherbok’s "The Politics of Apocalypse" ", 8 January 2008, Calvin L. Smith.
• Dan Cohn-Sherbok: the rabbi who sees another side to anti-Semitism. Independent. 19 March 2006.

Further reading

• Cohn-Sherbok, Dan (1993). Not a Job for a Nice Jewish Boy. Bellew Publishing.
• Cohn-Sherbok, Dan (2003). “What’s a Nice Jewish Boy like You Doing in a Place like This?”: A Memoir of Four Continents. O Books.