René-Samuel Sirat

René-Samuel Sirat (Hebrew: רנה-שמואל סירא; 13 November 1930 – 10 February 2023) was a French rabbi who served as Chief Rabbi of France from 1981 to 1988.[1] He was also a director of the Hebrew studies department at the Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales.

René-Samuel Sirat
רנה-שמואל סירא‎
Sirat in 2019
Chief Rabbi of France
In office
1981–1988
Preceded byJacob Kaplan
Succeeded byJoseph Sitruk
Personal details
Born(1930-11-13)13 November 1930
Bône, French Algeria
Died10 February 2023(2023-02-10) (aged 92)
Jerusalem, Israel
OccupationRabbi

Biography

Sirat was born in Bône, French Algeria, on 13 November 1930. His first language was Arabic, and he later learned French. Sirat was allowed to attend schools during the Vichy government despite being a Jew because his father fought at Verdun in World War I. In 1946, Sirat moved to mainland France to study at the yeshiva in Aix-les-Bains. He later attended the Jewish Seminary of France in Paris, becoming its youngest graduate at age 21.[2][3]

In 1952, Sirat became a rabbi in Clermont-Ferrand, then at Toulouse.[4] Sirat returned to Paris four years later, where he became a rabbi and teacher of Hebrew. In 1962, one of his brothers was killed in a terrorist attack in Algeria during the civil war. Sirat would later serve as a translator for President Charles de Gaulle, and co-founded the University Center for Jewish Studies. Sirat was also key in convincing the French minister of education to establish a chair of Hebrew studies at INALCO.[2][3]

In 1980, Sirat was elected Chief Rabbi of France, taking office the following year. During his seven-year term, Sirat oversaw the banning of microphones and organs during the Shabbat, and was described as a "fervent Zionist".[2][3] He participated in the first Incontro interreligioso di Assisi in 1986 alongside Pope John Paul II.[5] In 1997, he called for the abolition of the party-list proportional representation system in Israel.[6] In 1999, he co-founded the Fondation pour la recherche et le dialogue interreligieux et inter-culturels in Geneva alongside Joseph Ratzinger and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.[7] In 2000, Sirat gained the attention of President of the United States Bill Clinton for the foundation of the Faculty of Book Religion at the University of France of Morocco.[8] He was the founding director of the UNESCO committee "Knowledge of the Religion of the Book and Education for Peace".[5]

Sirat moved to Jerusalem in 2013, and continued advocating for the State of Israel. He was founding president of the Institut universitaire européen Rachi de Troyes, and donated his Talmudic library to the institution in 2017.[9][10] Sirat was also a moderator of the World Conference of Religions for Peace, and met with Pope Francis in 2018. He was a supporter of UNESCO's Project Aladdin, was a member of the Israelite Central Consistory of France, and served as president of the Académie Hillel.[5][11]

Sirat died in Jerusalem on 10 February 2023, at age 92.[12]

Decorations

References
  1. Bevilacqua, Arnaud (10 February 2023). "L'ancien grand rabbin de France René-Samuel Sirat est mort". La Croix (in French). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  2. "Le Grand Rabbin René-Samuel Sirat Z'l, 92 ans, est décédé" [Grand Rabbi René-Samuel Sirat Z'l, 92, has died]. JForum (in French). 10 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  3. "Trauer um Frankreichs früheren Oberrabbiner" [Mourning for France's former chief rabbi]. Jüdische Allgemeine (in German). 11 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  4. "Grand Rabbin René-Samuel Sirat, La joie austère, éd Cerf, 1990". Pages feuilletées (in French).
  5. Bourdin, Anita (16 March 2018). "Le pape François reçoit le rabbin français René-Samuel Sirat" (in French). Zenit News Agency. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  6. "Interview René-Samuel Sirat". Le Point (in French). 8 March 1997. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  7. Hoffner, Anne-Bénédicte (11 September 2008). "René-Samuel Sirat : « Benoît XVI est un pionnier du dialogue avec la culture »". La Croix (in French). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  8. "Letter of René-Samuel Sirat to Mr. Bill Clinton" (PDF). The Washington Post. 23 November 2000.
  9. "Séance d'ouverture – Allocution du Grand Rabbin Sirat". World Congress of Imams and Rabbis for Peace (in French). 27 December 2007. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  10. Chalautre, Olivier (16 September 2017). "Troyes redevient la ville de Rachi". The Times of Israel (in French). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  11. "Le message du Grand Rabbin René Samuel Sirat, ancien Grand Rabbin de France" (PDF). Project Aladdin (in French). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 December 2013.
  12. "Décès de l'ancien Grand Rabbin de France René-Samuel Sirat". The Times of Israel (in French). 10 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  13. "Décret du 31 décembre 1998 portant promotion et nomination". Légifrance (in French). 1 January 1999.
  14. "René Samuel Sirat honoré". Centre communitaire de Paris (in French). Archived from the original on 28 June 2013.
  15. "Décret du 14 mai 2010 portant élévation aux dignités de grand'croix et de grand officier". Légifrance (in French). 15 May 2010.
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