Rabbi David Lieber, Scholar and University President, Dies at 83
Matthew Kruk
December 21, 2008
Rabbi David Lieber, Scholar and University President, Dies at 83
By DENNIS HEVESI
Rabbi David L. Lieber, a leader of Conservative Judaism in the United States
and the editor of a controversial book of Torah translation and commentary
that called into question the historical accuracy of some of the primary
accounts found in the Old Testament, died Monday at his home in Beverly
Hills, Calif. He was 83.
The cause was a lung ailment, said Iris Waskow, a spokeswoman for American
Jewish University, in Los Angeles.
For 29 years, until 1993, Rabbi Lieber was president of the University of
Judaism, which was renamed American Jewish University last year, when it
merged with the Brandeis-Bardin Institute. From 1996 to 1998, he was
president of the Rabbinical Assembly, the international association of
Conservative rabbis.
A renowned biblical scholar, Rabbi Lieber had for more than 20 years
contemplated the compilation of a volume of commentary on the Torah that
would provide a modern interpretation for Conservative Jews. Finally, in
2002, with essays by 41 prominent rabbis and scholars, "Etz Hayim" (Hebrew
for "Tree of Life") was issued by the United Synagogue of Conservative
Judaism, which represents the 1.5 million members of the movement in North
America.
"Etz Hayim" offers the standard Hebrew biblical text, a parallel English
translation and, at the end, essays on topics ranging from the Torah scroll
and dietary laws to ecology and eschatology.
The essays - incorporating findings from archaeology, philology,
anthropology and the study of ancient cultures - raise contentious questions
about things like the existence of Abraham and Moses, the accuracy of the
Exodus story, whether there were walls that tumbled at Jericho and whether
David, far from being a mighty king, was more likely a provincial leader
whose stature was later enhanced.
One essay, "Biblical Archaeology," by Lee I. Levine, a professor at the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, states, "There is no reference in Egyptian
sources to Israel's sojourn in that country, and the evidence that does
exist is negligible and indirect." The few pieces of evidence, it continues,
"are far from adequate to corroborate the historicity of the biblical
account." Professor Levine also wrote that excavations showed there had been
no walls at Jericho.
Another essay, "Ancient Near Eastern Mythology," by Robert Wexler, who is
now president of American Jewish University, states that it is unlikely that
the Genesis story originated in Palestine. More likely, the essay says, it
arose in Mesopotamia, as evinced in the story of the flood, which, it says,
probably grew out of the periodic overflowing of the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers.
Until the 1,560-page "Etz Hayim" was introduced, the commentary of Joseph
Hertz, the chief rabbi of the British Commonwealth in the 1930s, was the
basis for Conservative Torah interpretation. Rabbi Hertz's work countenanced
no doubt that the Torah was the literal word of God. And that is the
immutable view of Orthodox Jews, many of whom raised objections to "Etz
Hayim."
There was even discomfort among Conservative Jews, including Rabbi Susan
Grossman, an "Etz Hayim" co-editor. After the book was released, Rabbi
Grossman told The New York Times that the "basic historicity" of the Torah
"is valid and verifiable."
"The real issue for me is the eternal truths that are in the text," she
continued. "How do we apply this hallowed text to the 21st century?"
Rabbi Grossman was among those who had successfully advocated that the new
text refer less frequently to God as "he." Such issues had led Rabbi Lieber
to tell the Jewish newspaper Forward in 1999, while he was still editing the
book, "There's a need always for a new Torah commentary to reflect the age
in which it is made."
David Leo Lieber was born in Poland on Feb. 20, 1925, the son of Max and
Gussie Yarmush Lieber. Two years later, the family came to the United
States.
He graduated from the City College of New York in 1944 while at the same
time obtaining another bachelor's degree, in Hebrew literature, from the
Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He received a master's in philosophy
from Columbia in 1947 and a year later was ordained by the Jewish
Theological Seminary. In 1951, he received a doctorate in Hebrew literature
from the seminary.
From 1950 to 1954 he was a rabbi at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles. He was
named dean of students at the University of Judaism in 1956 and, in 1964,
appointed president.
Rabbi Lieber is survived by his wife of 63 years, the former Esther Kobre;
two daughters, Deborah and Susan; two sons, Michael and Daniel; and 11
grandchildren.
Though soft-spoken, Rabbi Lieber was not one to mince words.
In 1997, a small group of Orthodox rabbis issued a statement declaring that
the Reform and Conservative movements were "not Judaism," and urged Jews not
to attend synagogues affiliated with them.
Rabbi Lieber called the statement "sheer chutzpah."
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