[ earned some money by working in the library, shelving books and pre-cataloguing; I found the responsa collection difficult as the system had not taken into account the complexities of similar titles, various editions, and books that only vaguely belonged in that collection. My work brought me into contact with Herbert Zafren, the Director of Libraries, as well as Moses Marx and Isaiah Sonne , scholars in this field. The library had received a large number of books liberated from the Nazis , which were distributed to leading Jewish institutions throughout the world.” The library was short of help, so I was given tasks with much more responsibility than usually assigned to a beginner. Occasionally there was also an opportunity to purchase a duplicate old volume.
When 1 arrived in Pittsburgh at Rodef Shalom as a twenty—four—year—old, not yet ordained assistant rabbi in the winter of 1955, I had the opportunity of watching Solomon B. Freehof , who had begun seriously writing reponsa for the Reform movement.’ Earlier he had prepared responsa for the armed forces of the United States, which had gotten him involved in writing responsa. My introduction that spring was very brief as I left for a two-year stint as a United States Air Force chaplain in the Philippines . Although this was a wonderful opportunity to become acquainted with the lands, cultures, and art of the Far East , the tropical Philippines were hardly a place for transporting a library, so I settled on the Mishneh Torah and continued to study it. This eventually led to a minor in rabbinic codes for my doctorate, however, upon returning to Pittsburgh 1 concentrated on a doctorate in the field of German Jewish literature. Daily contact with Solomon B. Freehof showed me the questions that were troubling our colleagues. He often asked me to read a newly minted responsum as he corrected it or checked some data. However, the tasks of this large congregation, establishing a family, and writing a doctoral dissertation did not leave much time for rabbinic literature. I was placed on the Responsa Committee of the Central Conference of American Rabbis(CCAR) in the 1960s, but as this committee never