PESIKAH AND AMERICAN REFORM RESPONSA

the Hebrew Union College at the age of fourteen while"this possibility is practically out of the question in the case of a girl." Neumark wrote six other responsa with Kohler and both signed them.

If we look at these two responsa, which are representative of the early efforts, we find a good bit of rational argumentation, but little in the way of sources especially responsa. Neumark quoted no sources while Kohler provided Josephus , Masekhet Soferim and Midrash Rabbah. For Confirmation he cited a variety of nineteenth century German sources by Loew, Herxheimer, Geiger and Phillipson. These responsa were far removed from the pattern of tradition. This was also true of the third responsum issued in 1913, "Times When Weddings Should Not Take Place," which was signed by Kohler and Neumark together. In a brief statement they dealt with the omer period, the three weeks between the seventeenth of Tamuz and the ninth of Av, the Ten Days of Repentance and hol hamoed. There were brief citations from the Talmud , Shulhan Arukh, and nineteenth century Reform proceedings, an essay by Landsberg and a statement from the Augsburg synod. The conclusion, clearly and decisively permitted weddings during each of these periods. The two additional responsa of this Yearbook dealt with blowing of the shofar on the Sabbath and reading Torah portion in the vernacular. Both were also signed jointly by Kohler and Neumark and contained only minimal citations of standard rabbinic literature. The responsum on the Torah portion in the vernacular lacked all formal citations. I do not know which of the signatures actually wrote these responsum; my guess would be Neumark as Kohler was busy with administrative duties. A search in the archives might provide a definite answer to this question.

There was a responsum in 1918 on a"Rabbi Officiating at a Christian Scientists Funeral’ by Kohler which prohibited the burial through three rational arguments with no citations. Jacob Rappaport, a member of the committee, took an opposing stand

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