Potok, Chaim

orig. Herman Harold Potok

born Feb. 17, 1929, New York, N.Y., U.S.

died July 23, 2002, Merion, Pa.

U.S. rabbi and novelist.

The son of Polish immigrants, he was reared in an Orthodox Jewish home and was ordained a Conservative rabbi. He taught until he began a career as an editor and writer of scholarly and popular articles and reviews in the 1960s. His novels, which have introduced to American fiction the spiritual and cultural life of Orthodox Jews, include The Chosen (1967; film, 1981), The Promise (1969), and My Name Is Asher Lev (1972). Three connected novellas, Old Men at Midnight, appeared in 2001. Notable among Potok's nonfiction writings are Wanderings: Chaim Potok's History of the Jews (1978), in which the author combines impressive scholarship with dramatic narrative, and The Gates of November (1996), a chronicle of a Soviet Jewish family and the rise and fall of the Soviet Union.

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▪ 2003

Herman Harold Potok 

      American writer (b. Feb. 17, 1929, New York, N.Y.—d. July 23, 2002, Merion, Pa.), explored the conflict between Hasidic Jewish religious traditions and the secular world. He was the son of Polish immigrants and was educated in Orthodox schools. As a youth he was interested in painting, but when his parents objected to art, he turned to literature. In 1950 he graduated from Yeshiva University in New York City with a B.A. degree in English. Upon receiving a master's degree in Hebrew literature in 1954 from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York City, he was ordained a Conservative rabbi. He was a U.S. Army chaplain in Korea from 1955 to 1957. Potok served as managing editor (1964–75) of Conservative Judaism and editor in chief (1965–74) of the Jewish Publication Society of America. In 1965 he earned a Ph.D. degree in philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania, and he taught at a number of colleges and universities. His first novel, The Chosen (1967; filmed 1981), explores the friendship between two young Jewish men, one leading a more secular life and the other trying to reconcile his Orthodox Jewish heritage with his longing to participate in modern life. A sequel, The Promise, which took the characters into adulthood, appeared in 1969. The protagonist of My Name Is Asher Lev (1972) and The Gift of Asher Lev (1990) is a young man whose desire to be an artist brings him into conflict with his family. Other novels included The Book of Lights (1981), which drew on his army experiences, and Davita's Harp (1985), on discrimination experienced by his wife. He also published nonfiction, including Wanderings: Chaim Potok's History of the Jews (1978), and he was the coauthor of the autobiography of the violinist Isaac Stern, My First Seventy-nine Years (1999). In addition, he wrote short stories, plays, and children's books.

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▪ American rabbi and author

original name  Herman Harold Potok 

born February 17, 1929, New York, New York, U.S.

died July 23, 2002, Merion, Pennsylvania

      American rabbi and author whose novels introduced to American fiction the spiritual and cultural life of Orthodox Jews.

      The son of Polish immigrants, Potok was reared in an Orthodox home and attended religious schools. As a young man, he was drawn to the less restrictive Conservative doctrine; after graduation from Yeshiva University in 1950 and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1954 (both in New York City), he was ordained a Conservative rabbi. He taught at Jewish institutions of higher learning until he was named managing editor of Conservative Judaism in 1964. He later attended the University of Pennsylvania and in 1965 became editor in chief of the Jewish Publication Society of America, a post he held until 1974, when he became special-projects editor. Throughout his publishing career Potok wrote scholarly and popular articles and reviews.

      Potok's first novel was The Chosen (1967; film, 1981). It was the first book from a major publisher to portray Orthodox Judaism in the United States. The author established his reputation with this story of a Hasidic rabbi's son and the son's friend, whose humane Orthodox father encourages him to study secular subjects. The popular book was praised for its vivid rendering of the closed Hasidic community; some thought it an allegory of the survival of Judaism. The Promise (1969) followed the same characters to young adulthood. Potok again turned to the Hasidim in My Name Is Asher Lev (1972), which tells of a young artist in conflict with the traditions of his family and community.

      Potok's next four novels, the autobiographical In the Beginning (1975), The Book of Lights (1981), Davita's Harp (1985), and The Gift of Asher Lev (1990), also examine the conflict between religious and secular interests. I Am the Clay appeared in 1992, the illustrated The Tree of Here in 1993, The Sky of Now in 1995, and Old Men at Midnight, three connected novellas, in 2001. Notable among Potok's nonfiction writings are Wanderings: Chaim Potok's History of the Jews (1978), in which the author combines impressive scholarship with dramatic narrative, and The Gates of November (1996), a chronicle of a Soviet Jewish family and the rise and fall of the Soviet Union.

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