Machol was born on November 18, 1845, in
Kolmar,
Posen,
Prussia, the son of Zadik and Esther Machol. His father was a merchant. Machol attended the
Schneidemuehl gymnasium. He then attended the
University of Breslau as a special student from 1866 to 1869, and in 1869 he received a Ph.D. from the
University of Jena. He also attended the teachers' department of the
Jewish Theological Seminary of Breslau and was ordained a rabbi. In 1869, he immigrated to America and became rabbi of Temple B’nai Jeshurun in
Leavenworth, Kansas. He served as rabbi there until 1872, when he was named associate rabbi of
Kehilath Anshe Maarav in
Chicago, Illinois, under
Liebman Adler. In 1876, he became rabbi of
Anshe Chesed in
Cleveland, Ohio, a position he held until he retired as rabbi emeritus in 1907. There, he advanced a moderate
Reform Judaism by instituting occasional English sermons, installing an organ, and moving to uncover heads, but demonstrated personal
Conservative leanings in sermons and articles that opposed the destruction of every ceremony. As rabbi, he oversaw the congregation's growth in the 1880s. He helped organize new buildings for the congregation in 1887 and 1912. In 1890, he worked out an agreement with
Temple Tifereth-Israel to jointly own the
Mayfield Cemetery. In 1901, he joined other rabbis and lay leaders in opposing the Cleveland school board's decision to begin every day with the
Lord's Prayer, the
Ten Commandments, and the
23rd Psalm. He was succeeded by Rabbi
Louis Wolsey in 1906. Machol was a member of the
Freemasons. In 1871, he married Minnie Rosenthal, daughter of Rabbi Bernhard Rosenthal of
Württemberg. Their children were Jacob, Henry, Bernhard, Gertrude, and Ernest. He was buried in Mayfield Cemetery. == References ==