I was born in Philadelphia in 1781, soon after the founding of our great nation. My parents raised us to be devout Jews, but also gave us excellent educations, and my father's income allowed us to mingle with society. As such, while only an amateur poet myself, in my youth I was fortunate enough to meet and maintain correspondences with leading writers and poets of my day both in America and England. While they were amiable and the dearest of friends, I knew that I had to allay their instincts to assure me of the superiority of the Christian faith, and to demonstrate that the Jewish religion is worthy of respect. While I never met Sir Walter Scott, it's been said that Scott heard of me and based the character of Rebecca in Ivanhoe, the first positive portrayal of a Jew in English fiction, on me. If that is true, what an honor it is!
I had an overall pleasant youth, though I never did find a man who would be an agreeable domestic companion given my strong will. I have over the years spent much time caring for ill family members and my siblings' children, which I confess to find a trying thing. However, the charitable instincts instilled in me by my dear mother allows me to bear it and also led me toward the vocation in which I've spent the latter part of my life- charity work and teaching. After beginning as secretary of several Christian charity organizations in Philadelphia, I, along with my mother and some of my sisters, helped to found the Female Association for the Relief of Women and Children in Reduced Circumstances, which aids indigent women and children of all faiths, as well as the Philadelphia Orphan Asylum.
In recent years, I have felt that the Jewish community of Philadelphia needs its own charitable organizations, and so I started the Female Hebrew Benevolent Society, which I am told is the first American Jewish charitable organization unaffiliated with a synagogue and which works to provide women with discreet help in a variety of areas. I then saw that Jewish children lacked knowledge of their heritage, a shocking development, and so founded the Hebrew Sunday School, which I am pleased to report has become a success and has led to my being able to instruct other Jewish communities in establishing their own Sunday Schools. Most recently, the Jewish Foster Home has become a focus of my attentions.
The picture of me above is an old one- from my youth, when I was painted by several fashionable portraitists. While my appearance now may bear signs of my advancing age, I still feel the very resoluteness that I believe that painting conveys.
Please ask me anything about my life, Philadelphia, the Jewish community, or anything you desire!
EDIT: The Sabbath will begin soon- but if anybody has more questions, please ask them and I shall do my best to answer them tomorrow night!
Forgive my ignorance of this topic, but I have been led to believe by many trusted friends that Jews hold sacred, not Sunday as the Christians but Saturday, and I am curious why you chose Sunday as the day for your schooling initiatives?
Many seeking relief from the terrors of slavery flock to the fair city of Philadelphia. What is the relationship like between the Jewish community and the free Black community? Do your many charitable organizations, in addition to their great work with the Jewish community, work with these poor souls as they try to start a new life free from the shackles of slavery?
Are men and women seated separately at your shul?
What interactions does your group have with Reform Jews in Philadelphia? How common are they in your day?
What does your religious observance look like as a Jewish woman of your class and time? How different is it from, say, an orthodox woman today, or a poorer Jewish woman in your time?
Is kosher meat available, do people do it themselves on their own animals are is there a designated person in the community to do it?
Secret celebrity crush?
Screw, marry, kill: Maimodines, Rashi, Nachmanides.
Are there soferim available in your community if your Torah Scrolls need repair? Where did they come from originally?
How much contact is there between your schul and other communities in the US?
I first learned about you in a book from the Jewish Publication Society, but I'm not sure it existed in your lifetime. What can you tell me about the printing of Jewish books in Philadelphia before the Civil War? How hard was it to find a sofer?
You mentioned you live in a Sephardi community: as Pesach approaches are you removing kitniyot with the chamatz as is minhag amongst Ashkenazim, or do you hold with the community and enjoy rice and other dishes in accordance with the Sephardic rulings?
How many marriage proposals did you receive and from whom? How great a taboo is interfaith marriage in your congregation?
What did you think of Ivanhoe?
Whats your favorite part of jewish history??
Do married women in your community cover their hair? Do men wear yarmulkas? What kinds of standards of dress prevail?
Thank you Rebecca for this great AMA! What's an average day like for you? Get up to any fun hijinks?
In your place and time time, would Jewish people have considered intermarriage with others? Would it have been a social, career, or other similar handicap for a gentile to be married to a Jewish person?
Oh hey. Just searched up sir Walter Scott on Reddit and found this. My great great grandmother was the foster child of sir Walter Scott’s great nephew.
Doubt you care lol but don’t really have anywhere else to talk about it