Forward Looking Back: Man Shoots His Brothers For Informing On Him For Skipping Shul On Yom Kippur (1923)
Illustration. Image by iStock
By Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt September 27, 2017
A fascinating little snippet from the Forverts’ front page on September 26, 1923, which we felt compelled to share on the eve of atonement day:
Having been rebuked by his brothers for not having attended synagogue on Yom Kippur, Isaac Gordon, a young Manchester man, quickly drew his revolver and fired on his Orthodox brothers, Meyer and Binyomen. The first of them was wounded in the right wrist while the bullet caught the second one’s left foot. In court, the attacker was charged with shooting with intent to murder.
Image by Forward Association
No matter how far you stray, that bottomless Jewish guilt for playing shul-hooky can have dangerous consequences.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
