Baruch Bloomfield

In the history of Judaism on the American continent the name of few deserve equal prominence with that of Baruch Bloomfield, scholar, educator and philanthropist, actuated at all times by the highest spirit of humanitarianism and moral force. He was born in Russia. He had liberal educational advantages for his time and throughout his life was a close and discriminating student. Crossing the Atlantic to the new world, he settled first in New York, where he engaged in teaching for about ten years. He was one of the greatest Hebrew and Talmudic scholars of his time. About 1870 he removed from New York to Montreal, which city remained his place of residence throughout the rest of his life. His family is one of the oldest Jewish families in Montreal, having been represented here for close to a century. For a quarter of a century prior to his demise he was a representative in Montreal of the German Jews in Jerusalem and was a prominent member of the McGill College Avenue synagogue to which he rendered great services at various times. A part of his life work was the collection of funds which he forwarded to the Holy Land, and to the cause he was himself a most generous contributor.

Mr. Bloomfield was united in marriage to Miss Dora Albert and they became the parents of five sons, four of whom still survive, Abraham, David, Harry and Samuel, together with the mother. In 1901 the family were called upon to mourn the loss of a daughter and sister, Jessie, whose death was an irreparable blow to the household. It was while still grieving over the loss of this daughter that Mr. Bloomfield went to New Orleans, called there by the sudden illness of his son, Moses, who was traveling through the south for a Canadian firm. He was a young man of twenty-five years and was looked upon in the community as a model young man of sterling character, of the highest honor and integrity, and of ideal purity in life. The father hastened to his bedside and every possible thing was done to restore him to health, but a few days after the father’s arrival Moses Bloomfield passed away. This death following so closely upon the death of the daughter was more than Mr. Bloomfield could bear. He died almost literally of a broken heart, passing away in New Orleans on the 31st of December, 1901, aged fifty-six years. The sudden demise of father and son has been greatly deplored by the entire Jewish community and especially by the Shaar (Hashomayim) congregation to which they belonged. A beautiful memorial service was held at the McGill College Avenue synagogue. The remains of father and son were interred in a cemetery in New Orleans, but at the memorial service in Montreal hundreds of their friends gathered to pay the last tribute of respect and to thus honor their memory. In his address Rabbi Bernard M. Kaplan said: “We have assembled in this House of God from all parts of the city to mourn a great and grievous loss which we have sustained by the untimely demise of two most virtuous, most pious and most respected members of the community, a father and son who under the most pathetic circumstances found their graves in a strange land. The son, while yet in the freshness and bloom of life, expired in the embrace of a loving father who had traversed almost a continent to gaze once more upon the innocent and serene countenance of his child.” Rabbi Kaplan said that some would mourn more deeply the loss of the young man—his associates and friends who were closely connected with him—while to others the death of the father, which had come as a more telling blow, yet by all the death of each would be felt, for each was a man largely ideal in his home relations and in his relations to his friends and to his congregation. Mr. Bloomfield was a most devoted and loving father as well as a most kind, considerate and affectionate husband. “He not only loved his wife, but true to the teachings of the Talmud, of which he was a great student, he honored and respected her. His family life was an inspiration to every lover of ideal home life. His modest home was a veritable sanctuary whose atmosphere was permeated by serene peace, true purity, and sincere piety. And, again, every one who appreciates gentleness of manner and gentleness of disposition, purity of life and purity of thought, faith in God and faith in humanity, devotion to religion and devotion to every other duty, sincerity of speech and sincerity of action, must lament the loss which the community sustains by the death of Baruch Bloomfield, for he embodied all these qualities and many more. He loved peace and pursued it. He loved Hebrew learning and devoted his life to it. He loved Judaism and made great sacrifices for it. He loved charity and gave it. I approached him myself several times on matters of charity. Not only did he contribute a great deal more that I thought his means allowed him, but what is more, he gave his share with all his heart and soul—so much so that he reminded me of the proverbial romantic Hebrew charity which meant not only the giving of money but also the giving, so to speak, of the very heart with it.

“For a period of twenty-five years Baruch Bloomfield, from time to time collected and forwarded considerable funds to the Holy Land. It was the supreme passion of his life to step some day on the Holy Land. His wish like that of Moses has not, however, been realized. He died on this side of the Jordan. But, friends, there was no need for Baruch Bloomfield to go to Palestine in order to be on holy land. I say in all sincerity, that the ground where so pure and so pious a man as Baruch Bloomfield stood, studied or prayed, was holy. It was sanctified by the holiness of an ideal Jewish life. Yea, the very ground wherein his body, the shrine of so beautiful a soul is deposited is positively holy. Baruch Bloomfield was an ish kaddish, a holy man in the traditional sense of the term. A truly holy man sanctifies his surroundings.”