Miller, Israel, 1918-2002

Clergyman, educational administrator.

Israel Miller (1918-2002) graduated Yeshiva College in 1938, was ordained at Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) in 1941, and earned a Master's degree from Columbia University. Served as rabbi of the Bronx, N.Y.'s Kingsbridge Heights Jewish Center, from 1941 until 1968, interrupted for several years during World War II, when he served as a military chaplain. Miller joined the staff of Yeshiva University in 1968 as an administrator, and rose to the position of Senior Vice President, where he served until his retirement in 1994. He also taught applied rabbinics at RIETS and established its Gruss Institute for advanced rabbinical study in Israel. Served as president of the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany from 1982 until his death, Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations (1974-1976), president of the Rabbinical Council of America (1964-1966), secretary of the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture, and was a founding vice president of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. An early advocate for Soviet Jews, he served as the national chairman of the American Jewish Conference for Soviet Jewry from 1965-1967. He was also heavily involved in Israel affairs, serving as the founding president of the American Zionist Federation (1970-1974), and holding high positions in the Jewish Agency for Israel, the World Zionist Organization, and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.