Judges and Jews: congregational conflict and the Protestant secular in 19th-century America

This article shows how 19th-century Jews embraced the American legal system. In spite of the rhetoric of ‘religious freedom' the fact that religious congregations were legal corporations meant that they were never fully ‘free' from government oversight. In the absence of clear religious au...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Rabin, Shari (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Routledge [2018]
In: Religion
Year: 2018, Volume: 48, Issue: 4, Pages: 659-677
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B USA / Religious freedom / Religious organization / Corporations / Legal system / Protestantism / Jewish community
RelBib Classification:BH Judaism
KBQ North America
Further subjects:B Protestant secular
B 19th-century America
B American Judaism
B Religious Freedom
B Legal History
B Congregationalism
B Secularism
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Description
Summary:This article shows how 19th-century Jews embraced the American legal system. In spite of the rhetoric of ‘religious freedom' the fact that religious congregations were legal corporations meant that they were never fully ‘free' from government oversight. In the absence of clear religious authorities, American Jews regularly invited state oversight into their religious affairs, and, seeking legal victory, they worked alongside judges to fit the dictates of Jewish law to the Protestant assumptions of American secularism. Three instances of Jewish congregational strife, dealing with practice, employment, and membership, are closely analyzed to demonstrate how outsider religious communities strategically navigated a legal system that was allegedly neutral but presumptively Protestant.
ISSN:1096-1151
Contains:Enthalten in: Religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/0048721X.2018.1520751