The history of the Jews

by Gotthard Deutsch

With the growing number of schools the need for special training schools for Jewish teachers arose. The first of these was founded in Berlin in 1825. More important was the need for training schools for rabbis. The old method of education by which every young man who devoted himself to study was a Talmudic scholar was discontinued in Western Europe. On the other hand, it became necessary to give the rabbis a more systematic training. The first modern school of this kind was established in Padua, then under Austrian rule, in 1829. Later the Yeshibah of Metz was transformed into a Rabbinic seminary and subsequently transferred to Paris. In 1854 the Rabbinic seminary of Breslau was founded and this was followed by the establishment of similar institutions in European countries. In 1875 the first Rabbinic seminary in America, the Hebrew Union College of Cincinnati, was opened. In New York the Jewish Theological Seminary was established in 1886. Various educational institutions devoted to special needs, such as the school for the deaf-mutes opened in Nikolsburg in 1845, and later transferred to Vienna, and the first Jewish institute for the blind established in the latter city in 1872, deserve to be mentioned in this connection.

The removal of the disabilities which kept the Jews from agriculture and mechanical trades, and the desire of the Jews to direct the young generation into such pursuits gave rise to quite a number of institutions all over the world devoted to these purposes. Several of these are located in the Orient and were founded or subventioned by the Alliance Israélite. It established the first agricultural school near Jaffa in Palestine in 1871. The Hebrew Technical Institute of New York, founded in 1884, the agricultural schools at Ahlem, founded 1893, at Woodbine, N. J., 1891, and at Doylestown, Pa., 1896, may be mentioned.

With the emancipation from Rabbinic studies a new development in Jewish learning took place. This showed itself in what is called the “Science of Judaism,” and may be defined as a systematic study of Jewish history and literature. The pioneer in this work was Leopold Zunz (1794-1886) who wrote books on the history of Jewish homiletics, on the synagogal poetry and various minor essays on all phases of Jewish literature. He found numerous followers, not merely in western Europe, but also in the East, and thus contributed largely to the intellectual elevation of the Jews.

In Eastern countries the first who wrote on these topics in Hebrew were Nahman Krochmal (1785-1840) and Solomon Loew Rapoport (1790-1867). The latter, inspired by the works of Zunz, was the author of biographies of prominent mediæval rabbis. In Italy we have Isaac Samuel Reggio (1784-1855) and Samuel David Luzzatto (1800-1865), who used the excellent collections of old Hebrew prints and manuscripts for the elucidation of the history of Jewish literature. The external side of the literature was presented in erudite form by the great bibliographer Moritz Steinschneider (1816-1907). History in more readable form was written first by Isaac Marcus Jost (1795-1860), and then by Heinrich Graetz (1817-1891), the latter’s work having gone through various editions and been translated into French, English, Hebrew and Yiddish. Numerous authors worked at the elucidation of portions of Jewish history and carefully edited old manuscripts. Thus they shed light on obscure parts of the Jewish past and showed the many-sided activity of the Jews during the long period of their history and their influence on all human activities.

In this connection the participation of the Jews in spiritual activity ought to be mentioned. We find them as authors, artists, inventors and scholars in all lines. Only the most prominent can be named. Ludwig Boerne, formerly Loeb Baruch (1784-1837), is one of the classic essayists of German literature. Heinrich Heine (1797-1856) is one of the greatest of lyric poets. Both Heine and Boerne became converted to Christianity. A classic author of village idyls is Berthold Auerbach (1812-1882). Among the greatest tragedians of the world are Eliza Rachel Felix (1821-1858), in her days the foremost actress on the French stage, and Adolf von Sonnenthal (1832-1909) considered the most prominent German actor of his time. Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864) is one of the world’s best known composers. Moritz Oppenheimer (1800-1881) was a prominent painter, and his scenes from Jewish life possess, besides their value as works of art, great worth as historic scenes. Marcus Antokolsky (1842-1902) is one of the most famous sculptors, and Joseph Israels (born 1824) and Max Liebermann (born 1849) are among the greatest painters of our age. In the lines of science and scholarly work the names of prominent Jews are too numerous to mention.

The great change in the life of the Jews and their education brought about the necessity of harmonizing their religious practices with their new life. Thus the reform movement began. The forces which promoted it were æsthetic, political and dogmatic. In the first class may be reckoned the efforts of Israel Jacobson (1769-1828). Although not a professional scholar he was a man of considerable Jewish learning, and his object was to make the services of the synagogue more attractive to the younger generation. The synagogue established by him in connection with the school which he founded in Seesen in 1810 was the first that introduced some of the reforms which since have been generally accepted, namely, a sermon in the vernacular and decorum and modern music.

In 1818 the first reform congregation was established in Hamburg. It was followed in 1824 by a similar organization in Charleston, S. C.; this, however, was soon dissolved. These synagogues introduced a ritual different from the one which had up to this time been generally in use. The most important changes were those which eliminated the belief in the return of the Jews to Palestine and consequently also in the restoration of the sacrificial cult. These were followed by an attempt to present systematically the teachings of modern Judaism and to apply the principles of the modern critical school to the whole of Jewish life, particularly the observance of the dietary and marriage laws.

The desire to work in harmony led to the convocation of Rabbinic assemblies, the first of which was held in Frankfort-on-the-Main in 1844. As the exponent of the most radical views Samuel Holdheim (1806-1860) is to be mentioned. It was his idea that Judaism had lost all its former national significance. On this basis the reform congregation of Berlin, whose first rabbi Holdheim was, was established in 1845, introducing for the first time solemn services on Sunday.

The most prominent scientific exponent of the reform idea was Abraham Geiger (1810-1874), one of the most prominent workers in scientific Jewish literature. He stood for a more historic conception of the reform principle, although as a Bible critic his position was advanced. His views were shared by two of the leading rabbis of America, David Einhorn (1809-1879) and Samuel Hirsch (1815-1889). They, together with Samuel Adler (1809-1891), represented the progressive ideas of German theology in America.