Mazal tov to Bruce Slovin, Founder and Co-Chair of The Center for Jewish History and a Distinguished Member of The American Sephardi Federation’s Board of Directors, on the 18th anniversary of the world’s foremost repository of Jewish history. In less than a decade, Bruce brought together five of the world’s leading Jewish institutions to create a beautiful 90,000 sq ft space for scholarly study, research, and cultural activity in Manhattan. In less than two decades, Bruce propelled The Center for Jewish History to become the Jewish world’s preeminent research, historical, and educational institution exploring the richness of Jewish life and letters, and showcasing the enormous contributions Jews have made to civilization.
Sephardi Ideas Monthly is a continuing series of essays from the rich, multi-dimensional world of Sephardi thought that is delivered to your inbox on the second Monday of every month. This issue was delayed on account of Columbus Day.
The October issue of Sephardi Ideas Monthly featured an interview with Marc Leepson, author of Saving Monticello: The Levy Family’s Epic Quest to Rescue the House that Jefferson Built. Leepson introduced us to the role played by a special Sephardic-American family, the Levys, in preserving Thomas Jefferson’s architectural masterpiece. This month we dive deeper into the story with Prof. Melvin I. Urofsky’s fascinating article, “The Levy Family and Monticello” (Virginia Quarterly Review, Summer 2002).
Representative from New York Jefferson Monroe Levy, 1912 (Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress)
In Leepson’s telling, the main protagonist is the colorful Uriah Levy (1792-1862), the first Jewish Commodore in the history of the United States Navy and an ardent admirer of Jefferson who, in 1934, purchased Monticello. Urofsky, however, has a different perspective. “The hero of this drama,” he claims, “is Jefferson Monroe Levy.”
Who was Jefferson Monroe Levy? He was a real estate developer who, Urofsky writes, “was rich enough to… have installed a ticker tape in his bedroom so he could follow the money market while at home.” He was also a three-term congressman from New York City and, crucially for our story, Uriah Levy’s nephew. Uriah Levy left a contested will, and after winning a series of court battles, Jefferson Levy assumed ownership of Monticello in 1879. In short order he ousted a derelict overseer who let Monticello fall into disrepair and, in time, became the man principally responsible for restoring Monticello as we know it: “Windows were repaired, the house repainted, internal and external renovations took place, and the grounds replanted according to Mr. Jefferson’s original plans.”
But Jefferson Levy wasn’t just restoring a beautiful, physical structure. Levy understood the historical import of Monticello, and he acted accordingly: “Every Fourth of July he would hold an open house for the residents of the community, and after he read the Declaration of Independence there would be fireworks and refreshments.”
It should also be noted that Jefferson Levy wasn’t only a proud American, he was also a proud and committed Jew. Indeed, he played a significant role in establishing one of the most important Jewish advoacy organizations of the 20th century: “When the Russian pogroms broke out in the first decade of the 20th century, Jefferson Levy was one of those who formed the protest group that eventually led to the creation of the American Jewish Committee.”
It’s only fitting that Mevlin I. Urofsky has written about Jefferson Monroe Levy. Professor emeritus of history at Virginia Commonwealth University and the author of more than fifty books, Urofsky has invested his prodigious scholarly energies in writing about both American and American Jewish issues, from the role played by dissent in the Supreme Court (Dissent and the Supreme Court, 2017) to central issues and figures in American Jewish life (American Zionism from Herzl to the Holocaust, 1995; Louis Brandeis: A Life, 2012). This combination of passionate commitment to both American and Jewish matters also characterized the life of Jefferson Monroe Levy, the principal hero of Urofsky’s learned article and this month’s featured essay, “The Levy Family and Monticello.”
The monthly sage for November is Mori (lit., “my teacher”) Yihya Kapach.
Mori Yihya Kapach (1850-1936) was one of the leading scholars of Yemenite Jewry in the 19th and 20th centuries. A religious rationalist who tried to steer Yemenite Jewry back to the theological teachings and halakhic rulings of Se’adia Gaon and Maimonides, Mori Kapach became famous, and in some circles, infamous, for doubting the authenticity of the Jewish mystical tradition, including its principal text, The Zohar. Mori Kapach served for six years as Hacham Bashi, the Chief Rabbi of Yemen, and was also appointed principal of a Jewish school in the capital city of Tsana’a that taught, “Arabic, Turkish, Hebrew and sciences, as well as Jewish studies.”
ne of Mori Kapach’s principal accomplishments, however, was educating one of the great rabbinic figures of the 20th century, his grandson, R’ Yosef Kapach (Qafih). Raised by Mori Kapach after the passing of his father, R’ Yosef Kapach always credited his grandfather for educating him in the ways of the great figures of the Jewish theological tradition.
Mori Kapach’s rationalist approach to Judaism was articulated in his book, Milhamot Hashem. In the passage, below, from the Introduction to Milhamot Hashem, Mori Kapach argues that it is a positive commandment to revive Hebrew as a spoken language. In this context he even favorably refers to Eliezer Ben Yehuda, a figure still reviled by many in Jerusalem’s Old Guard. However, in light of this passage, it is no wonder that Mori Kapach’s grandson, R’ Yosef Kapach, would grow up to single-handedly translate the classics of the Jewish theological tradition from Arabic to Hebrew.
Intelligent people will take note and those in fear and awe of God's word can rejoice in the nation of Israel's situation. See how each and every one of the Nations adore their language and glorify the tongue in which they have been raised, the language in which their beliefs and religion has been defined. We, the nation of Israel, had abandoned our Holy Tongue since the time of our exile… We had not fulfilled what we were commanded, to "…teach them to your children, to speak of them". We had not responded to the public appeal issued by Eliezer Ben Yehuda in journals, who called to revive the holy Hebrew language; the yearning in our souls remained limited to mere words and discussions and did not materialize until the year 1910, when our exalted government agreed to open a school for Jewish children. The children now learn Bible, the Onkelos translation and Rabbi Sa'adia Gaon, Maimonides' Mishna, grammar and vocabulary. This is all being accomplished just as it should be - the study of Torah, Prophets and Writings, with a clear commentary, and a book of grammar for the Holy Tongue!
Milhamot Hashem, Introduction, P. Anav Publishing, Jerusalem, 1931
Representative Robert L. Henry with Maud Wilson Littleton, who led a populist, anti-Semitic, and unsuccessful campaign against Representative Jefferson Monroe Levy, the owner of Monticello. While Representative Levy and his family had spent a fortune to revitalize and maintain Monticello, he was a fellow Democrat from New York (Mrs. Littleton’s husband represented Brooklyn in Congress), and she had even praised Levy’s stewardship of his namesake’s homestead, Mrs. Littleton later levied all manner of bigoted accusations against her former host.
In one telling remark, she complained that Levy, an American-born son of a distinguished and patriotic Sephardic family, was an “Oriental potentate” and sought a vote on Congress to purloin his property purportedly for the public good. Populist Williams Jennings Bryan, then President Woodrow Wilson’s Secretary of State and who later would argue for the anti-science side of the Scopes Monkey Trial, joined Mrs. Littleton against the continued private, and one suspects especially Jewish, ownership of Monticello, by proposing a compromise: turning Levy’s property into a presidential retreat.
Presenters: Dora Piperno, Celeste Pavoncello Piperno, Rav Umberto Piperno
Many of us remember well the years Rav Umberto Piperno spent in New York: his enthusiasm, wisdom and tireless efforts to present the specific traditions of Italian Jews from liturgy to food and beyond. In July he is back in Manhattan to present yet another intriguing project: the revival of the dying Italian tradition of the silk tallit, the prayer shawl. An enterprise rooted in the wisdom of the past, the passion of the present and the innovation of the future.
Alessandro Cassin: The tradition of the Italian tallitot involves not only a long tradition of craftsmanship, but also a cultural history, and mercantile exchange.
Rav Piperno: Absolutely. Today it gives an added dimension to the many stories that concern the Silk Road, the fascinating network of trade routes. It was central to cultural interaction between different parts of the world comprising both a terrestrial and the maritime routes, connecting Asia with the Middle East and southern Europe.
The effort to highlight and revive the Italian Jewish tradition of the silk tallit is spearheaded by two entrepreneurs, DoraandSofia Piperno, with rabbinical guidance and assistance.
Wednesday, 28 November, at 7:00PM Center for Jewish History
15 West 16th Street
New York City
Admission is Complimentary!
Please register here
or call: 1.800.838.3006 Join The American Sephardi Federation for a special screening of Duki Dror’s “Shadow in Baghdad” in honor of the date chosen by the Knesset to commemorate the Middle Eastern Jewish experience, including the exodus of Iraqi Jews after denationalization in 1950. The documentary tells the story of Linda Abdul Aziz Menuhin, whose father remained in Iraq after her emigration to Israel and was later abducted by Saddam Hussein’s intelligence services into the Qasr al-Nihaya (“Palace of the End”). Mrs. Menuhin is an Arabic-language specialist and retired reporter based in Israel.
Opening remarks by Gallit Peleg – Israel’s Consul for Public Diplomacy at New York
The film will be followed by Q&As with Mrs. Menuhin
Thursday, 11 October, at 7:30PM Center for Jewish History
15 West 16th Street
New York City
Admission is complimentary! The Philos Project and American Sephardi Federation cordially invite you to “Nosotros," an exhibition composed of pieces by Latino artists celebrating the shared history and culture of Jewish and Latino communities, and expressing hope for a more positive future. Latin American artistry is rich with Sephardi and Crypto-Jewish allusions and symbols.
The exhibit is titled “Nosotros,” the Spanish word for “us,” and all of the art represents the growing relationship between the Jewish and Hispanic communities in New York and around the world. The exhibit is one of the many things Jesse Rojo, The Philos Project's Hispanic Affairs Director, is doing to bridge the gap between Hispanics and the Middle East.
Rachael Reynolds, a graduate from our 2018 Philos Leadership Institute (PLI) cohort, is one of the featured artists. She will be showcasing portraits she took on PLI that compare the lives of Christians living freely in Israel to the lives of Christian refugees in Jordan. Through her project, Rachael is not only advocating for the protection of Christians in Arab states, but also elevating Israel as the model for state protection of religious freedom in the Middle East.
We look forward to seeing you!
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