Marshall Sklare Award Lecture December 19, 2010, Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry Steven M. Cohen,
[email protected], 646-284-1932 Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner In memory of Charles S. Liebman, z”l As I’m sure anyone who receives a prestigious award in recognition of their life’s work will experience, such an occasion is a time for reflection, and a myriad of emotions. For me, the first emotion is a profound sense of gratitude to my parents, Max and Toby Cohen, of blessed memory, and also to my wife Marion Lev-Cohen, to my children, Adam Wall and Edeet Cohen, and to other beloved family members and dear friends. Over the years, they all have given me the passion, motivation, and industry to do my part for our people and our profession. My gratitude also extends to our academic community and, in particular, to dozens of co-authors over the years. I checked my CV, and found some 56 collaborators, including seven previous Sklare Awardees. I know they’ll forgive me, and I’m sure you’ll thank me, if I forego a public recitation of all their names. Yet, I’d feel remiss if I failed to at least mention several collaborators to whom I feel especially indebted -- Paul Ritterband, of blessed memory, Paula Hyman, Samuel Heilman, Jack Wertheimer, Ari Kelman, Jack Ukeles, and, of course, my good friend, Arnie Eisen, with whom I had the privilege of writing, The Jew Within. I also wish to lovingly acknowledge four mentors in my life, albeit with all-too-brief expressions of gratitude.