He worked to save the lives of hundreds of people who were being persecuted by the regime. He visited political prisoners in jails. He worked with the Israeli government to free the renowned journalist, Jacobo Timerman, who had been persecuted, imprisoned and subjected to extended house arrest. Timerman dedicated his memoir of that time, Prisoner Without A Name, Cell Without A Number (1981), to the rabbi. Timerman wrote that Meyer had "brought solace to Jewish, Christian and atheist prisoners". Meyer additionally founded the Movimiento Judío por los Derechos Humanos, an organization that played a key role in the fight for human rights in Argentina. In 1983, when democracy was restored in Argentina, the newly elected president, Raúl Alfonsín, recognized the work of Rabbi Meyer by awarding him the highest Argentine decoration, Order of the Liberator General San Martín. Rabbi Meyer returned the United States in 1984. Later period After a short stay at the University of Judaism (now the American Jewish University) in Los Angeles, in 1984 Rabbi Meyer accepted the position of rabbi at Congregation Bnai Jeshurun in New York City. It is the oldest Ashkenazic synagogue in the city, and he had the mission of reviving the congregation. Between 1984 and 1993, B'nai Jeshurun became a thriving liberal community that attracted thousands of Jewish people. The challenging theology espoused by Rabbi Meyer, the spiritually uplifting religious services, an agenda that emphasized social action as a central part of the synagogue's principles, ecumenical work with Christian and Muslim clergy, and a leading role in the peace movement in regard to the Arab–Israeli conflict, led to the rapid growth of the congregation. It became a model for many other synagogues in the United States. Marriage and family Rabbi Meyer was married to Naomi Meyer, and they had three children: Anita, Dodi and Gabriel. Death He died in 1993 of cancer. He was buried in the cemetery of the synagogue of his home town in Norwich, Connecticut. References External links The Marshall T. Meyer Papers in Duke University's Human Rights Archive 1930 births 1993 deaths American Conservative rabbis Argentine Conservative rabbis Recipients of the Order of the Liberator General San Martin Dartmouth College alumni American expatriates in Argentina American Jewish University faculty Jewish Theological Seminary of America alumni Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Rabbis from New York City 20th-century American rabbis