It is well known that the first Jews arrived in North
America in 1654. What is not so well known is that the first qualified rabbi to settle here, Rabbi Avraham Rice, did not arrive until 1840. One might refer to the first 186 years of American Jewish history as the “Reverend and Cantorial Age,” since these men, as well as some laymen who possessed better than average Jewish educations, served as the leaders of the various Jewish communities during this period.

Needless to say, the lack of qualified Orthodox rabbis during these early years created all sorts of problems