Builder of Bridges
Rabbi Randall M. Falk of Brentwood, Tenn., died Jan. 19, 2014. He was 92. Falk was at the forefront of religious leadership in Nashville and made significant contributions to Jewish life, the civil rights struggle, community-building among the city’s increasingly diverse population, and to Jewish–Christian relations. He served as senior rabbi of The Temple Ohabai Sholom in Nashville from 1960 until 1986, when he was named rabbi emeritus.
Born in Little Rock, Ark., Falk served Congregation Anshe Hesed in Erie, Pa., before arriving in Nashville in 1960—an era when African Americans were attempting to integrate the city’s lunch counters. He challenged his congregation to view the civil rights battle as an extension of the struggles of Jewish people, leading clergy of different faiths on a march in support of equal rights. An adjunct professor at Vanderbilt Divinity School, Falk’s collaborative teaching with his late friend and colleague Walter Harrelson, Vanderbilt Distinguished Professor of Hebrew Bible, emeritus, led to the publication of two books—Jews and Christians: a Troubled Family (1990) and Jews and Christians in Pursuit of Social Justice (1996)—and teamed up to teach a seminar in various cities on the topic.
Falk received numerous honors for his activism. In 2004 members of the Vanderbilt and Nashville communities gathered to honor Falk’s life and work at an event hosted by the divinity school. More recently, he was honored by the Jewish Federation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee during a Freedom Seder in April 2013.
Falk was a founding member of the Metropolitan Nashville Human Relations Commission, which later named him the recipient of its Human Relations Award. He was named Clergyman of the Year by the Religious Heritage of America, Nashville Chapter, and was also the recipient of the Human Relations Award from the National Conference of Christians and Jews, Nashville Chapter.
Survivors include his wife of more than 60 years, Edna Falk; two children and four grandchildren. Preceding him in death was his son, Randall M. Falk, BA’76.