Six Lives

Ian A. Andrews is editor of the New Brunswick Teachers’ Association’s Focus and co-author of Becoming a Teacher.

Dow Marmur is a Polish Jew who survived the Holocaust in Uzbekistan,
moved to Sweden following World War II, became a rabbi to congregations
in England and Canada, and retired in Israel. This is his autobiography.

Rabbi Marmur traces his life chronologically, dealing with each
geographical jump in a separate chapter. The headings of his chapters
encapsulate the changing emphasis each had on his life. In Poland, the
“Beginnings” of a life turned upside down by German invasion; in
Uzbekistan, seven years of “Exile” trying to survive the twin
scourges of communism and fascism; “Refuge” in Sweden from an
unaccepting and still anti-Semitic Poland; relocate to England to learn
the “Vocation” of rabbi, marry, and spend 25 years providing counsel
to various synagogues; move to Canada for the “Challenge” of serving
in Toronto’s Holy Blossom Temple for nearly two decades; and the
culmination of Zionist sentiments with a “Homecoming” to retirement
in Israel.

As a Reform rabbi, Marmur weaves his philosophy and theology throughout
this work, chronicling his disagreements and confrontations with
congregants on both sides of the Atlantic. And he takes pains to show
that he is often the maverick, questioning both Orthodox and
Conservative ideologies. Marmur is seen as an intellectual, possibly
because of his several publications on theological issues, but the
reader senses the author’s feeling of inferiority due to his lack of
educational credentials.

Marmur’s unflattering description of a dissatisfied mother and overly
compliant father preface a volume that depicts a search for contentment
and the intimacy of family while maintaining the intellectual rigour of
his chosen profession. Six Lives is recommended as the study of a
complex survivor whose life has taken many twists and turns in a journey
through many lands.