Rabbi Marcus Solomon,appointed to the Supreme Court of Western Australia,looks to bridge the worlds of Torah and Western legal tradition
But one glance at the solemn swearing-in ceremony was enough to explain what caught the eye of outlets as far afield as Israel and the US. Beneath the state emblem of a black swan and kangaroos, and flanked by his gowned colleagues, sat Rabbi Marcus Solomon. Judicial-looking in long robes and imposing, full-length beard, he proceeded to share an “old Jewish custom” with the court.
“At moments of importance in one’s life,” he said softly in his Australian accent, “we ought humbly to acknowledge life itself and the good fortune we share in having been sustained.
“And if the chief justice can use the Hebrew,” he continued, his fellow justices looking on poker-faced, “then I am not going to be outdone. Shehecheyanu v’kiyemanu v’higiyanu lazman hazeh!” he proclaimed, the paneled walls ringing with the unfamiliar sound, and then the court adjourned.
That address — part rabbinic sermon, part legal scholar, part dry humor — neatly encapsulates the world of Rabbi Marcus Solomon.
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