In this biography, Gerald and Deborah Strober draw from original source materials and numerous interviews to detail the life and career of the esteemed Rabbi Marc Tanenbaum, a seminal 20th century figure in interfaith relations in the US and around the world. From his position as Director of Interreligious Affairs at the American Jewish Committee, Rabbi Tanenbaum was deeply involved in the historic Vatican II Council, which promulgated a landmark encyclical on Catholic-Jewish relations. Rabbi Tanenbaum also was one of the few Jewish leaders who worked closely with Reverend Billy Graham and other evangelicals. He worked tirelessly as a civil rights activist and was active in the cause of Soviet Jewry, as well.
Confronting Hate details this esteemed career and his interactions with the likes of television legends Norman Lear, Don Hewitt, and Franco Zeffirelli; Jesse Jackson; Martin Luther King, Jr.; and several US presidents, from Dwight D. Eisenhower to George H.W. Bush. This book leaves no stone unturned in covering the public and private aspects of the life of "the human rights rabbi." The authors bring to light the immense international influence that Rabbi Tanenbaum has even today, more than twenty-five years after his passing.
"In this compelling and important volume, Deborah Hart Strober and Gerald S. Strober meticulously unfold the fascinating life and groundbreaking career of Rabbi Marc Tanenbaum, an iconic religious figure in the 20th century who played key roles in Jewish-Christian reconciliation, the civil rights struggle, the liberation of Soviet Jews, and political opposition to racial or ethnic injustice world-
Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor at Harvard University
"This book tells a remarkable historical story that everyone should know. Rabbi Marc Tanenbaum is a man to be remembered, and this is a book that will haunt your memory, long after you have turned its pages."
Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg, President Emeritus, CLAL
"There is no one in my memory quite like Rabbi Marc Tanenbaum. He was a man of peace and fellowship with the fiery heart of a warrior who would fight to the death for his beliefs. I could express this quality a thousand ways, but they would all add up to the unique man and giant among us who was Marc Tanenbaum. Hate had no more fierce an enemy than Marc."
