Remembering Manfred Gerstenfeld Z”L

Above all, in everything he wrote, Manfred sought with characteristic realism actively to oppose antisemitism and Holocaust revisionism, and to rally Jewish opinion and institutions against them. He was remarkable in this regard, uniting scrupulously careful and objective scholarship with an insistent call for informed and consistent action. This extended to the State of Israel, where he long urged official support for a state bureau dedicated  actively to opposing global antisemitism, and to coordinating national endeavors in this regard. This remains a work to be completed.  

I was privileged to know Manfred for some twenty years, and to have benefitted not only from his scholarship, but also from his personal example, and his warm friendship. In 2019 the Canadian Institute for Jewish Research was privileged to confer on Manfred Gerstenfeld, after his Annual Gala Keynote speech in Montreal (he was driven through a snowstorm from Toronto to make it), its “International Lion of Judah Award”. The Award, in recognition of his lifetime of service to Israel and the Jewish people, was richly deserved, for — as was noted — Manfred was then the world’s outstanding student of modern antisemitism. 

It is, then, with profound sadness that we note the loss of this great Zionist champion of Jewish values and of the centrality of the restored State of Israel in the life of the Jewish People. But it is also with profound confidence and gratitude that we can affirm that his life of great service will long live in memory and example, enshrined in the ongoing influence of his scholarship, and his love of the Jewish People.  

To his grieving sons and family, we extend our deepest sympathy, and our reassurance that Manfred’s work will continue, and life will truly ever remain  a blessing. 

To read more about Manfred Gerstenfeld, click here.

TheJ.ca extends our deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.