Shapiro picks historic Jewish bible from Philly museum for his inauguration
It will be one of three bibles used as part of the incoming governor’s ceremony.
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Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro will have a firm hand on American history when he’s sworn in Jan. 17 as Pennsylvania’s 48th governor.
During his inauguration at the Capitol in Harrisburg, Shapiro will rest his hand on a stack of three bibles, each with a meaningful history and link to his Jewish faith.
One will be from Philadelphia’s Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History. That bible, published in 1942 for Jewish service members by the Army in consultation with Jewish chaplains, was carried by Montgomery County resident Herman Hershman during World War II.
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“Governor-elect Shapiro is a committed and proud Jew who made his faith part of his campaign and has fought antisemitism as attorney general,” said Misha Galperin, Weitzman’s president and CEO. “We’re honored to lend Hershman’s bible, a treasured part of our collection, for this historic moment.”
A second bible is the same family bible Shapiro has chosen for every public office position he’s been sworn into since 2005. The third, a Hebrew bible from Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue, survived the 2018 mass shooting that killed 11 worshipers.
During his campaign, Shapiro spoke often about his religious heritage, saying it motivates him to make a difference in his community.
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Shapiro, the state’s outgoing attorney general, will honor the legacy ofHershman, who landed on Omaha Beach with the First Infantry Division during the D-Day invasion in 1944. Struck in the head and face by fragments of an artillery shell, Hershman was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.
Hershman, who died in 2013 at age 88, was a lifelong member of Beth Sholom in Elkins Park, which is also Shapiro’s longtime synagogue.
“Shapiro’s selection of Hershman’s bible honors the service of Jews in the military and reflects his pride as a Jewish American — both so essential in this time of escalating antisemitism and bigotry,” said Josh Perelman, Weitzman’s chief curator & director of exhibitions and interpretation.