He was born in
Boston, Massachusetts to parents, Abraham Moshe Shereshevsky (1857–1927) and Shifra Shereshevsky (née Libovsky). His father was an
Orthodox rabbi. Both were leaders of the 'Hebrew-speakers Club' at the college. His first rabbinical post was in
Cleveland, Ohio as assistant to Rabbi
Abba Hillel Silver, a key figure in the mobilization of American support for the founding of the
State of Israel.
Chaim Weizmann, future
President of Israel, was impressed by Sherman and hired him as Director of Community relations for an
American Jewish Conference, which aimed to promote greater Jewish unity and organizational effectiveness for the expanding and pluralistic American Jewish community. In 1943 he emigrated to South Africa where he was the first Reform rabbi in Cape Town at his congregation,
Temple Israel in
Green Point. In 1947 he married Bertha Cohen at Temple Israel and the wedding was officiated by Weiler. In the 1940s and 1950s there was a cultural split between reform Jewry in
Johannesburg and its counterpart in Cape Town, with the leadership in Green Point rejecting a proposal for the creation of the position of Chief Minister under which all Progressive congregations would fall. The appointee would have been Weiler, who was based in Johannesburg at
Temple Israel in
Hillbrow. Cape Town wanted a looser federation where each city made its own decisions and pushed back against the notion of a Chief Minister, arguing that it was against the democratic principles of Reform Judaism. Rabbi Rabinowitz, who led the
Marais Road Shul was sympathetic to Abrahams. Sherman took a discreet yet courageous stand on issues of human rights, he opposed
apartheid and spoke at protest meetings. During his tenure, Major Hall at Temple Israel had a dual function as a centre for African culture, literacy and poverty alleviation projects. In May 1995, a gala dinner was organised in Sherman's honour, marking 48 years of service to the Jewish community. Weiler, who had made
aliyah in 1958, also attended the dinner. Sherman died at age 92 in Cape Town in 2002. == References ==