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You may copy it, give it away or re-use + it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License <a href= + "#pglicense" class="tei tei-ref">included with this eBook</a> or + online at <a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license" class= + "tei tei-xref">http://www.gutenberg.org/license</a>. If you are + not located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws + of the country where you are located before using this ebook.</p> + </div> + <pre class="pre tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> +Title: Studies in Judaism, First Series + +Author: Solomon Schechter + +Release Date: May 6, 2015 [Ebook #48890] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STUDIES IN JUDAISM, FIRST SERIES*** +</pre> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"></div> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.73em"><span style= + "font-size: 173%">Studies in Judaism</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.20em; text-align: center"><span style= + "font-size: 120%">First Series</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.20em; text-align: center"><span style= + "font-size: 120%">by</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.44em"><span style= + "font-size: 144%">Solomon Schechter, M.A., Litt.D.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; text-align: center">Philadelphia</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; text-align: center">The Jewish Publication + Society of America</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "text-align: center; margin-bottom: 1.00em">1911</p> + </div> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Contents</span></h1> + + <ul class="tei tei-index tei-index-toc"> + <li><a href="#toc1">Preface</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc3">Introduction</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc5">I. The Chassidim</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc7">II. Nachman Krochmal and the “Perplexities Of + The Time”</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc9">III. Rabbi Elijah Wilna, Gaon</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc11">IV. Nachmanides</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc13">V. A Jewish Boswell</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc15">VI. The Dogmas Of Judaism</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc17">VII. The History of Jewish Tradition</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc19">VIII. The Doctrine of Divine Retribution in + Rabbinical Literature</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc21">IX. The Law And Recent Criticism</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc23">X. The Hebrew Collection of the British + Museum</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc25">XI. Titles of Jewish Books</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc27">XII. The Child in Jewish Literature</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc29">XIII. Woman in Temple and Synagogue</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc31">XIV. The Earliest Jewish Community in + Europe</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc33">Index</a></li> + + <li><a href="#toc35">Footnotes</a></li> + </ul> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-body" style= + "margin-bottom: 6.00em; margin-top: 6.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; text-align: center"></p> + + <div class="tei tei-figure" style="text-align: center; width: 30%"> + <a href="images/cover.jpg"><img src="images/cover.jpg" alt= + "Cover Art" /></a> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">[Transcriber's + Note: The above cover image was produced by the submitter at + Distributed Proofreaders, and is being placed into the public + domain.]</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagev">[pg v]</span><a name="Pgv" + id="Pgv" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">TO</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">THE EVER-CHERISHED + MEMORY</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">OF</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">THE LATE DR. P. F. + FRANKL, RABBI IN BERLIN</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">THESE STUDIES ARE + REVERENTLY</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">DEDICATED</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagevii">[pg vii]</span><a name= + "Pgvi" id="Pgvi" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc1" id="toc1"></a> <a name="pdf2" id="pdf2"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Preface</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These studies + appeared originally in their first form in <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Jewish + Quarterly</span></span> and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">The Jewish Chronicle</span></span>. To the + Editors of these periodicals my best thanks are due for their + readiness in placing the articles at my disposal for the purposes of + the present volume. The Introductory Essay is new. I desire to + express my sincere gratitude to Mr. J. G. Frazer, Fellow of Trinity + College, Cambridge, and Dr. J. Sutherland Black, of London, for their + great kindness in revising the proofs, and for many a valuable + suggestion. To Mr. Claude G. Montefiore I am indebted for the English + version of the Essay on <span class="tei tei-q">“Chassidim”</span>—my + first literary effort in this country, written at his own + suggestion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the + transliteration of Hebrew names, I have given the familiar English + forms of the authorised version. As regards post-Biblical names, I + have with few exceptions followed Zedner's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Catalogue of the Hebrew + Books in the Library of the British Museum</span></span>. A Hebrew + word will be found here and there in the text; I have purposely + avoided bewildering devices for representing the actual sound of the + word, contenting myself with the ordinary Roman alphabet, in spite of + its shortcomings.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="pageviii">[pg + viii]</span><a name="Pgviii" id="Pgviii" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The authorities + used for the various Essays will be found indicated in the Notes at + the end of the volume, where the reader will also find short + biographical and bibliographical notices, together with brief + explanations of technical terms for which no exact equivalent exists + in English. The index will, it is hoped, facilitate reference.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">S. S.</span></span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">Cambridge</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">February + 1896</span></span>.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexi">[pg xi]</span><a name="Pgxi" + id="Pgxi" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc3" id="toc3"></a> <a name="pdf4" id="pdf4"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Introduction</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The essays + published in this volume under the title of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Studies in + Judaism</span></span> have been written on various occasions and at + long intervals. There is thus no necessary connection between them. + If some sort of unity may be detected in the book, it can only be + between the first three essays—on the Chassidim, Krochmal, and the + Gaon—in which there is a certain unity of purpose. The purpose in + view was, as may easily be gathered from the essays themselves, to + bring under the notice of the English public a type of men produced + by the Synagogue of the Eastern Jews. That Synagogue is widely + different from ours. Its places of worship have no claims to + <span class="tei tei-q">“beauty of holiness,”</span> being in their + outward appearance rather bare and bald, if not repulsive; whilst + those who frequent them are a noisy, excitable people, who actually + dance on the <span class="tei tei-q">“Season of Rejoicing”</span> and + cry bitterly on the <span class="tei tei-q">“Days of + Mourning.”</span> But among all these vagaries—or perhaps because of + them—this Synagogue has had its moments of grace, when enthusiasm + wedded to inspiration gave birth to such beautiful souls as Baalshem, + such fine sceptics as Krochmal, and such saintly scholars as Elijah + Wilna. The Synagogue of the West is certainly of a more presentable + character, and free from excesses; though it is not devoid of an + enthusiasm of its own which <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexii">[pg + xii]</span><a name="Pgxii" id="Pgxii" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + finds its outlet in an ardent and self-sacrificing philanthropic + activity. But owing to its practical tendency there is too little + room in it for that play of intellectual forces which finds its + extravagant expression in the saint on the one hand, and the learned + heretic on the other.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Eight of these + essays are more or less of a theological nature. But in reading the + proofs I have been struck by the fact that there is assumed in them a + certain conception of the Synagogue which, familiar though it be to + the Jewish student, may appear obscure and even strange to the + general English reader. For brevity's sake I will call it the High + Synagogue, though it does not correspond in all details to what one + is accustomed to understand under the term of High Church. The High + Synagogue has a history which is not altogether without its points of + interest.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Some years ago + when the waves of the Higher Criticism of the Old Testament reached + the shores of this country, and such questions as the heterogeneous + composition of the Pentateuch, the comparatively late date of the + Levitical Legislation, and the post-exilic origin of certain + Prophecies as well as of the Psalms began to be freely discussed by + the press and even in the pulpit, the invidious remark was often + made: What will now become of Judaism when its last stronghold, the + Law, is being shaken to its very foundations?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such a remark + shows a very superficial acquaintance with the nature of an old + historical religion like Judaism, and the richness of the resources + it has to fall back upon in cases of emergency.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As a fact, the + emergency did not quite surprise Judaism. The alarm signal was given + some 150 years ago by an <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexiii">[pg + xiii]</span><a name="Pgxiii" id="Pgxiii" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Italian Rabbi, Abiad Sar Shalom Bazilai, in his pamphlet <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Faith of the + Sages</span></span>. The pamphlet is, as the title indicates, of a + polemical character, reviewing the work of the Jewish rationalistic + schools; and after warming up in his attacks against their heterodox + views, Bazilai exclaims: <span class="tei tei-q">“Nature and simple + meaning, they are our misfortune.”</span> By <span class= + "tei tei-q">“nature and simple meaning”</span> Bazilai, who wrote in + Hebrew, understood what we would call Natural Science and Philology. + With the right instinct of faith, Bazilai hit on the real sore + points. For though he mostly argues against the philosophical systems + of Aristotle and his commentators, he felt that it is not speculation + that will ever seriously endanger religion. There is hardly any + metaphysical system, old or new, which has not in course of time been + adapted by able dialecticians to the creed which they happened to + hold. In our own time we have seen the glorious, though not entirely + novel spectacle, of Agnosticism itself becoming the rightful handmaid + of Queen Theology. The real danger lies in <span class= + "tei tei-q">“nature”</span> (or Natural Science) with its stern + demand of law and regularity in all phenomena, and in the + <span class="tei tei-q">“simple meaning”</span> (or Philology) with + its inconsiderate insistence on truth. Of the two, the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“simple meaning”</span> is the more objectionable. Not + only is it very often at variance with Tradition, which has its own + code of interpretation, but it is constantly increasing the + difficulties raised by science. For if words could only have more + than one meaning, there would be no objection to reading the first + words of Genesis, <span class="tei tei-q">“In <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></em> + beginning God <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">evolved</span></em>.”</span> The difficulties of + science would then be disposed of easily enough. Maimonides, who was + as bold an interpreter as he was a deep metaphysician, hinted plainly + enough that were he as convinced <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "pagexiv">[pg xiv]</span><a name="Pgxiv" id="Pgxiv" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of the eternity of matter as he was satisfied + of the impossibility of any corporeal quality in the deity, he would + feel as little compunction in explaining (figuratively) the contents + of the first chapter of Genesis as he did in allegorising the + anthropomorphic passages of the Bible. Thus in the end all the + difficulties resolve themselves into the one great difficulty of the + <span class="tei tei-q">“simple meaning.”</span> The best way to meet + this difficulty was found to be to shift the centre of gravity in + Judaism and to place it in the secondary meaning, thus making + religion independent of philology and all its dangerous + consequences.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This shifting work + was chiefly done, perhaps not quite consciously, by the historical + school which followed upon that of Mendelssohn and his first + successors. The historical school, which is still in the ascendant, + comprises many of the best Jewish writers who either by their + learning or by their ecclesiastical profession as Rabbis and + preachers in great communities have acquired some important position + among their brethren. The men who have inaugurated this movement were + Krochmal (1785-1841), Rapoport (1790-1867), and Zunz (1794-1886).</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is not a mere + coincidence that the first representatives of the historical school + were also the first Jewish scholars who proved themselves more or + less ready to join the modern school of Bible Criticism, and even to + contribute their share to it. The first two, Krochmal and Rapoport, + early in the second quarter of this century accepted and defended the + modern view about a second Isaiah, the post-exilic origin of many + Psalms, and the late date of Ecclesiastes; whilst Zunz, who began (in + 1832) with denying the authenticity of Ezekiel, concluded his + literary career (1873) with a study on the Bible (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gesammelte</span> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexv">[pg xv]</span><a name="Pgxv" id= + "Pgxv" class="tei tei-anchor"></a><span style= + "font-style: italic">Schriften</span></span>, i. pp. 217-290), in + which he expressed his view <span class="tei tei-q">“that the Book of + Leviticus dates from a later period than the Book of Deuteronomy, + later even than Ezekiel, having been composed during the age of the + Second Temple, when there already existed a well-established + priesthood which superintended the sacrificial worship.”</span> But + when Revelation or the Written Word is reduced to the level of + history, there is no difficulty in elevating history in its aspect of + Tradition to the rank of Scripture, for both have then the same human + or divine origin (according to the student's predilection for the one + or the other adjective), and emanate from the same authority. + Tradition becomes thus the means whereby the modern divine seeks to + compensate himself for the loss of the Bible, and the theological + balance is to the satisfaction of all parties happily readjusted.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jewish Tradition, + or, as it is commonly called, the Oral Law, or, as we may term it (in + consideration of its claims to represent an interpretation of the + Bible), the Secondary Meaning of the Scriptures, is mainly embodied + in the works of the Rabbis and their subsequent followers during the + Middle Ages. Hence the zeal and energy with which the historical + school applied itself to the Jewish post-biblical literature, not + only elucidating its texts by means of new critical editions, + dictionaries, and commentaries, but also trying to trace its origins + and to pursue its history through its gradual development. To the + work of Krochmal in this direction a special essay is devoted in this + volume. The labours of Rapoport are more of a biographical and + bibliographical nature, being occupied mostly with the minor details + in the lives and writings of various famous Jewish Rabbis in the + Middle Ages; thus <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexvi">[pg + xvi]</span><a name="Pgxvi" id="Pgxvi" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + they offer but little opportunity for general theological comment. Of + more importance in this respect are the hints thrown out in his + various works by Zunz, who was just as emphatic in asserting the + claims of Tradition as he was advanced in his views on Bible + criticism. Zunz's greatest work is <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Die Gottesdienstlichen + Vorträge</span></span>—an awkward title, which in fact means + <span class="tei tei-q">“The History of the Interpretation of the + Scriptures as forming a part of the divine service.”</span> Now if a + work displaying such wide learning and critical acumen, and written + in such an impartial spirit can be said to have a bias, it was + towards bridging over the seemingly wide gap between the Written Word + (the Scriptures) and the Spoken Word (the Oral Law or Tradition), + which was the more deeply felt, as most of Zunz's older + contemporaries were men, grown up in the habits of thought of the + eighteenth century—a century distinguished both for its ignorance of, + and its power of ignoring, the teachings of history. Indeed it would + seem that ages employed in making history have no time for studying + it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Zunz accomplished + the task he set himself, by showing, as already indicated, the late + date of certain portions of the Bible, which by setting the early + history of Israel in an ideal light betray the moralising tendency of + their authors, and are, in fact, little more than a traditional + interpretation of older portions of Scripture, adapted to the + religious needs of the time. Placing thus the origin of Tradition in + the Bible itself, it was a comparatively easy matter for Zunz to + prove its further continuity. Prophecy and Interpretation are with + him the natural expressions of the religious life of the nation; and + though by the loss of Israel's political independence the voice of + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexvii">[pg xvii]</span><a name= + "Pgxvii" id="Pgxvii" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the prophets + gradually died away, the voice of God was still heard. Israel + continues to consult God through the medium of the Scriptures, and He + answers His people by the mouth of the Scribes, the Sages, the + Interpreters of the Law; whilst the liturgy of the Synagogue, + springing up at the time when Psalms were still being composed, + expands in its later stages through the work of the Poets of the + Synagogue into such a rich luxuriance <span class="tei tei-q">“that + it forms in itself a treasure of history, poetry, philosophy; and + prophecy and psalms are again revived in the hymnology of the Middle + Ages.”</span> This is in brief the lesson to be learned from Zunz's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gottesdienstliche Vorträge</span></span> as far + as it deals with the significance of Tradition; and it is in the + introduction to this work that Zunz expresses himself to the + following effect: Indispensable is the free Spoken Word. Mankind has + acquired all its ideal treasures only by Word of Mouth; an education + continuing through all stages of life. In Israel, too, the Word of + Instruction transmitted from mouth to mouth was never silenced.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The historical + school has never, to my knowledge, offered to the world a theological + programme of its own. By the nature of its task, its labours are + mostly conducted in the field of philology and archæology, and it + pays but little attention to purely dogmatic questions. On the whole, + its attitude towards religion may be defined as an enlightened + Scepticism combined with a staunch conservatism which is not even + wholly devoid of a certain mystical touch. As far as we may gather + from vague remarks and hints thrown out now and then, its theological + position may perhaps be thus defined:—It is not the mere revealed + Bible that is of first importance to the Jew, but the Bible as it + repeats itself in history, in other words, as it is <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="pagexviii">[pg xviii]</span><a name="Pgxviii" id= + "Pgxviii" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> interpreted by Tradition. The + Talmud, that wonderful mine of religious ideas from which it would be + just as easy to draw up a manual for the most orthodox as to extract + a vade-mecum for the most sceptical, lends some countenance to this + view by certain controversial passages—not to be taken seriously—in + which <span class="tei tei-q">“the words of the scribes”</span> are + placed almost above the words of the Torah. Since then the + interpretation of Scripture or the Secondary Meaning is mainly a + product of changing historical influences, it follows that the centre + of authority is actually removed from the Bible and placed in some + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">living + body</span></em>, which, by reason of its being in touch with the + ideal aspirations and the religious needs of the age, is best able to + determine the nature of the Secondary Meaning. This living body, + however, is not represented by any section of the nation, or any + corporate priesthood, or Rabbihood, but by the collective conscience + of Catholic Israel as embodied in the Universal Synagogue. The + Synagogue <span class="tei tei-q">“with its long, continuous cry + after God for more than twenty-three centuries,”</span> with its + unremittent activity in teaching and developing the word of God, with + its uninterrupted succession of prophets, Psalmists, Scribes, + Assideans, Rabbis, Patriarchs, Interpreters, Elucidators, Eminences, + and Teachers, with its glorious record of Saints, martyrs, sages, + philosophers, scholars, and mystics; this Synagogue, the only true + witness to the past, and forming in all ages the sublimest expression + of Israel's religious life, must also retain its authority as the + sole true guide for the present and the future. And being in + communion with this Synagogue, we may also look hopefully for a safe + and rational solution of our present theological troubles. For was it + not the Synagogue which even in <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "pagexix">[pg xix]</span><a name="Pgxix" id="Pgxix" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> antiquity determined the fate of Scripture? On + the one hand, for example, books like Ezekiel, the Song of Songs, and + Ecclesiastes, were only declared to be Holy Writ in virtue of the + interpretation put upon them by the Rabbis: and, on the other hand, + it was the veto of the Rabbis which excluded from the canon the works + that now pass under the name of Apocrypha. We may, therefore, safely + trust that the Synagogue will again assert its divine right in + passing judgment upon the Bible when it feels called upon to exercise + that holy office. It is <span class="tei tei-q">“God who has chosen + the Torah, and Moses His servant, and Israel His people.”</span> But + indeed God's choice invariably coincides with the wishes of Israel; + He <span class="tei tei-q">“performeth all things”</span> upon which + the councils of Israel, meeting under promise of the Divine presence + and communion, have previously agreed. As the Talmud somewhere + expresses itself with regard to the Book of Esther, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“They have confirmed above what Israel has accepted + below.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another + consequence of this conception of Tradition is that it is neither + Scripture nor primitive Judaism, but general custom which forms the + real rule of practice. Holy Writ as well as history, Zunz tells us, + teaches that the law of Moses was never fully and absolutely put in + practice. Liberty was always given to the great teachers of every + generation to make modifications and innovations in harmony with the + spirit of existing institutions. Hence a return to Mosaism would be + illegal, pernicious, and indeed impossible. The norm as well as the + sanction of Judaism is the practice actually in vogue. Its + consecration is the consecration of general use,—or, in other words, + of Catholic Israel. It was probably with a view to this communion + that the later mystics introduced a short prayer to <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="pagexx">[pg xx]</span><a name="Pgxx" id="Pgxx" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> be said before the performance of any + religious ceremony, in which, among other things, the speaker + professes his readiness to act <span class="tei tei-q">“in the name + of all Israel.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It would be out of + place in an introductory essay to pursue any further this interesting + subject with its far-reaching consequences upon Jewish life and + Jewish thought. But the foregoing remarks may suffice to show that + Judaism did not remain quite inactive at the approach of the great + religious crisis which our generation has witnessed. Like so many + other religious communities, it reviewed its forces, entrenched + itself on the field of history, and what it lost of its old devotion + to the Bible, it has sought to make up by a renewed reverence for + institutions.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In this + connection, a mere mention may suffice of the ultra-Orthodox party, + led by the late Dr. S. R. Hirsch of Frankfort (1808-1889) whose + defiance of reason and criticism even a Ward might have envied, and + whose saintliness and sublimity even a Keble might have admired. And, + to take an example from the opposite school, we must at least record + the name of that devout Jew, Osias Schorr (1816-1895), in whom we + have profound learning combined with an uncompromising disposition of + mind productive of a typical champion of Radicalism in things + religious. These men are, however, representative of two extremes, + and their followers constitute mere minorities; the majority is with + the historical school.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">How long the + position of this school will prove tenable is another question. Being + brought up in the old Low Synagogue, where, with all attachment to + tradition, the Bible was looked upon as the crown and the climax of + Judaism, the old Adam still asserts itself in me, and in <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="pagexxi">[pg xxi]</span><a name="Pgxxi" id="Pgxxi" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> unguarded moments makes me rebel against + this new rival of revelation in the shape of history. At times this + now fashionable exaltation of Tradition at the expense of Scripture + even impresses me as a sort of religious bimetallism in which bold + speculators in theology try to keep up the market value of an + inferior currency by denouncing loudly the bright shining gold which, + they would have us believe, is less fitted to circulate in the vulgar + use of daily life than the small cash of historical interpretation. + Nor can I quite reconcile myself to this alliance of religion with + history, which seems to me both unworthy and unnatural. The Jew, some + writer aptly remarked, was the first and the fiercest Nonconformist + of the East, and so Judaism was always a protesting religion. To + break the idols, whether of the past or of the present, has always + been a sacred mission of Judaism, and has indeed been esteemed by it + as a necessary preliminary to the advent of the kingdom of God on + earth. One of its daily prayers was and still is: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“We therefore hope in Thee, O Lord our God, that we may + speedily behold the glory of Thy might, when ... the idols will be + cut off, when the world will be perfected under the kingdom of the + Almighty.”</span> It bowed before truth, but it had never made a + covenant with facts only because they were facts. History had to be + re-made and to sanctify itself before it found its way into its + sacred annals. Nor did Judaism make a virtue of swallowing down + institutions. Such institutions as crept into it in course of time + had, when the Synagogue was conscious of their claims to form part of + religion, to submit to the laborious process of a thorough adaptation + to prophetic notions before they were formally sanctioned. But when + this process was deemed impossible or impracticable, <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="pagexxii">[pg xxii]</span><a name="Pgxxii" id= + "Pgxxii" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Judaism boldly denounced the + past in such fierce language as the prophets used and as still finds + its echo in such passages of the liturgy as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“First our ancestors were worshippers of idols and now + God has brought us near to His service”</span>; or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“But of a truth, we and our ancestors have + sinned.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, it would + be unfair to argue any further against a theological system which, as + already said, was never avowed distinctly by the historical school—a + school, moreover, with which speculation is a matter of minor + importance. The main strength of this school lies in its scientific + work, for which Judaism will always be under a sense of deep + gratitude. And living as we do in an age in which history reigns + supreme in all departments of human thought, we may hope that even + its theology, as far as it goes, will <span class= + "tei tei-q">“do”</span> for us, though I neither hope nor believe + that it will do for those who come after us. I may, however, humbly + confess that the sixth essay in this volume was written in a spirit + of rebellion against this all-absorbing Catholic Israel, with its + decently veiled scepticism on the one hand, and its unfortunate + tendency with many people to degenerate into a soulless conformity on + the other hand. There is, I am afraid, not much to be said in favour + of this essay. It is deficient both in matter and in style. It proved + to be a futile attempt to bring within the compass of an essay what a + whole book could hardly do justice to. The Hebrew documents bearing + upon the question of dogma which I have collected from various + manuscripts and rare printed books, would alone make a fair-sized + volume. I only venture to offer it to the public in the absence of + anything better; since, so far as I know, no other attempt has ever + been made to treat <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexxiii">[pg + xxiii]</span><a name="Pgxxxiii" id="Pgxxxiii" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the subject even in its meagrest outlines. I + even venture to hope that, with all its shortcomings, it will + contribute something towards destroying the illusion, in which so + many theologians indulge, that Judaism is a religion without dogmas. + To declare that a religion has no dogmas is tantamount to saying that + it was wise enough not to commit itself to any vital principles. But + prudence, useful as it may be in worldly affairs, is quite unworthy + of a great spiritual power.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Jewish mysticism + in the Middle Ages and in modern times is represented in this volume + by two essays (<span class="tei tei-q">“The Chassidim”</span> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“Nachmanides”</span>). But in order to avoid + mistakes which might be implied by my silence, I think it desirable + to state that there are also to be found many mystical elements in + the old Rabbinic literature. Mysticism, not as a theosophic system or + as an occult science, but as a manifestation of the spiritual and as + an expression of man's agonies in his struggle after communion with + God, as well as of his ineffable joy when he receives the assurance + that he has found it, is not, as some maintain, foreign to the spirit + of old Rabbinic Judaism. There was no need for the mediæval Rabbi to + borrow the elements of such a mysticism from non-Jewish sources. The + perusal of the old Homilies on the Song of Songs, and on the Lessons + from the Prophets, or even a fair acquaintance with the Jewish + liturgy would, in itself, suffice to refute such baseless assertions. + Those who are at all familiar with old Rabbinic literature hardly + need to be told that <span class="tei tei-q">“the sea of the + Talmud”</span> has also its gulf stream of mysticism which, taking + its origin in the moralising portions of the Bible, runs through the + wide ocean of Jewish thought, constantly commingling with the icy + waters of legalism, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="pagexxiv">[pg + xxiv]</span><a name="Pgxxiv" id="Pgxxiv" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + unceasingly washing the desolate shores of an apparently meaningless + ceremonialism, communicating to it life, warmth, and spirituality. To + draw attention to this fact a humble attempt has been made in the + ninth essay, <span class="tei tei-q">“The Law and Recent + Criticism,”</span> a subject which I have essayed to expound in a + series of essays on <span class="tei tei-q">“Some Aspects of Rabbinic + Theology,”</span> now appearing in <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Jewish Quarterly + Review</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The last five + essays touch rather on certain social and familiar aspects of + Judaism, and need no further comment. They are mere <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">causeries</span></em> + and hardly deserve the name of studies. Perhaps it may be useful for + those who judge of the heaviness of a work by its bulk to know that + there is also a lighter side of Rabbinic literature.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But I shall be + better pleased if the more serious side of this volume—Jewish + mysticism and Rabbinic theology—should attract the attention of + students, and so draw some fellow-workers into a field which is + utterly neglected. Notwithstanding the numerous Manuals and + Introductions which all more or less touch on the subject of Rabbinic + theology, there is, after nearly 250 years, not a single work among + them which, either in knowledge of facts or in their interpretation, + is a single step in advance of the Cambridge Platonist, John Smith, + in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Select Discourses</span></span>. But those who + try so hard to determine the miraculous distance of Christianity by + the eclipses in Rabbinism, should, if they wish to be just or prove + themselves worthy scholars, also endeavour to make themselves + acquainted with the numberless bright stars that move in the wide + universe of Jewish thought. We are often told that no creed or + theological system which has come down to us from antiquity can + afford to be judged by any other standard <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="pagexxv">[pg xxv]</span><a name="Pgxxv" id="Pgxxv" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> than by its spiritual and poetic <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">possibilities</span></em>: this indulgence + Judaism is as justly entitled to claim as any other religion. The + great and saintly Franz Delitzsch who, born with an intellect of + admirable temper, was also endowed by Heaven with a soul—and a + beautiful soul it was—was one of the few theologians who, partly at + least, admitted this claim, and sought earnestly and diligently after + these spiritual and poetic possibilities, and was amply rewarded for + his labours.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page001">[pg 001]</span><a name= + "Pg001" id="Pg001" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc5" id="toc5"></a> <a name="pdf6" id="pdf6"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">I. The Chassidim</span><a id= + "noteref_1" name="noteref_1" href="#note_1"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">1</span></span></a></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Throughout the + whole of that interesting field of Theological Literature which deals + with the genesis and course of religious movements, there is probably + none whose history, even whose name, is so little known to English + students, as that of the Chassidim. And yet it would be difficult to + point, in comparatively recent times, to a Dissenting movement more + strikingly complete in its development, more suggestive of analogy, + more full of interest in its original purpose, more pregnant of + warning in its decay.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Hebrew word + <span class="tei tei-q">“Chassidim”</span><a id="noteref_2" name= + "noteref_2" href="#note_2"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">2</span></span></a> merely + means <span class="tei tei-q">“the Pious,”</span> and appears to have + been complacently adopted by the early apostles of the sect. But the + thing—Chassidism—was, in its inception at all events, a revolt among + the Jews of Eastern Europe against the excessive casuistry of the + contemporary Rabbis. It was in fact one more manifestation of the + yearning of the human heart towards the Divine idea, and of its + ceaseless craving for direct communion with God. It was the protest + of an emotional but uneducated people against a one-sided expression + of Judaism, presented to them in cold and over-subtle disquisitions + which not only did they not understand, but which shut out the play + of the feelings <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page002">[pg + 002]</span><a name="Pg002" id="Pg002" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and + the affections, so that religion was made almost impossible to + them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Some account of + the sect is the more necessary because, although the Chassidim have + not been wholly ignored by historians or novelists, the references to + them have generally, for perfectly intelligible reasons, been either + biassed or inaccurate. The historians who have treated of them have + been almost exclusively men saturated with Western culture and + rationalism. To them the rude and uncouth manifestations of an + undisciplined religious spirit could not be other than repellent; to + them Chassidism was a movement to be dismissed as unæsthetic and + irrational.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To the purposes of + fiction the romantic side of Chassidism lends itself readily, but the + novelists who have used this material have confined themselves to its + externals. Indeed, to have done more would have involved a tedious + and unremunerative study of difficult Hebrew texts, an undertaking + not to be expected from the most conscientious writers of this class. + Thus Franzos in his references to the Jews of Barnow describes + faithfully the outer signs of the man, his long coat and tangled + curls, but the inner life, the world in which the Chassid moved and + had his being, was unknown to him and is therefore unrecorded.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to my treatment + of the subject, I confess that there was a time when I loved the + Chassidim as there was a time when I hated them. And even now I am + not able to suppress these feelings. I have rather tried to guide my + feelings in such a way as to love in Chassidism what is ideal and + noble, and to hate in it what turned out bad and pernicious for + Judaism. How far I have been successful is another question. At least + I have endeavoured to write this paper in such a spirit. But of one + thing I <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page003">[pg 003]</span><a name= + "Pg003" id="Pg003" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> must warn the + reader—the desire to give some clear notion of the leading ideas of + Chassidism has compelled me to quote some passages in which the + Chassidim have spoken in very offensive terms of their opponents. In + justice to these I must remark that unfortunately religious struggles + are usually conducted on the most irreligious principles. Thus the + Chassidim imputed to their antagonists, the contemporary Rabbis, many + vices from which they were free. Certainly, there was, as one can + read in every history of Jewish religion, something wrong in the + state of Judaism. But I know people who maintain that there is + something very wrong in the present state of Judaism, and who despair + of a regeneration. But surely this is a silly exaggeration. The + Chassidim also exaggerated. It would be better to take but little + notice of their accusations and dwell more on that which was spoken + in a kind and loving spirit.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to the + literature of the subject, I can only say here that I have made use + of every book I could consult, both in English and in foreign + libraries. But I cannot pledge myself to be what early Jewish writers + called <span class="tei tei-q">“a donkey which carries books.”</span> + I exercise my own choice and my own judgment on many points.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As an active force + for good, Chassidism was short-lived. For, as I propose to show, + there lurked among its central tenets the germs of the degeneracy + which so speedily came upon it. But its early purposes were high, its + doctrines fairly pure, its aspirations ideal and sublime.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The founder of the + sect was one Israel Baalshem,<a id="noteref_3" name="noteref_3" href= + "#note_3"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">3</span></span></a> and the + story of his parentage, birth, and childhood, and the current + anecdotes of his subsequent career play a considerable part in + Chassidic literature. But the authentic <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page004">[pg 004]</span><a name="Pg004" id="Pg004" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> materials for his biography are everywhere + interwoven with much that is pure legend and with much more that is + miraculous. This was, perhaps, inevitable, and is certainly not an + unfamiliar feature in the personal histories of religious reformers + as presented by their followers and devotees.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The sayings and + doings of Baalshem are an essential—perhaps the most + essential—portion of any account of the sect. For Baalshem is the + centre of the Chassidic world, and Chassidism is so intimately bound + up with the personality of its founder that any separation between + them is well nigh impossible. To the Chassidim Baalshem is not a man + who established a theory or set forth a system; he himself was the + incarnation of a theory and his whole life the revelation of a + system.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Even those + portions of his history which are plainly legendary have their uses + in indicating the ideals and in illustrating the aspirations of the + early Chassidim; while their circulation and the ready credence they + received are valuable evidence of the real power and influence of + Baalshem's personality.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the tale as + told by the sect little is omitted of those biographical accessories + which are proper to an Avatar. There is all the conventional + heralding of a pre-ordained advent; all the usual signs and portents + of a new dispensation may be recognised in the almost preternatural + virtues of Baalshem's parents, in the miraculous annunciation and + exceptional circumstances of his nativity, and in the early + indication of a strong and fearless individuality. Everywhere it + seems to be suggested that Baalshem from his infancy was conscious of + a lofty mission. It is already in tender years that he is made + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page005">[pg 005]</span><a name="Pg005" + id="Pg005" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to give evidence of an + indifference to conventional restraints and accepted ideals.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Rabbi Eliezer and + his wife, the parents of Baalshem, dwelt, as the story goes, in + Moldavia. They are described as a pious and God-fearing couple, who, + when they had already reached old age, were still childless. They are + accredited with a spotless rectitude, which was unimpaired by a long + series of strange vicissitudes and misfortunes.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Ultimately, an + angel of God appeared to Eliezer and announced that, as he had + successfully withstood all the temptations and sufferings by which he + had been tried, God was about to reward him with a son, who was + destined to enlighten the eyes of all Israel. Therefore his name + should be Israel, for in him the words of Scripture were to be + fulfilled, <span class="tei tei-q">“Thou art my servant, Israel, in + whom I will be glorified.”</span> In due course the promise was + fulfilled, and to the aged couple a son was born, who was named + Israel according to the angel's word. The date of Baalshem's birth is + about 1700; his birthplace, in Bukowina, in a hitherto unidentified + village which the authorities call Ukop, then still belonging to + Roumania. The child's mother died soon after he was weaned, and his + father did not long survive her. But before Eliezer died he took his + child in his arms, and blessing him, bade him fear naught, for God + would always be with him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As Eliezer had + been greatly honoured in the community in which he lived, his orphan + son was carefully tended and educated. He was early supplied with an + instructor in the Holy Law. But though he learned with rare facility, + he rejected the customary methods of instruction. One day, while + still quite young, his teacher missed him, <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page006">[pg 006]</span><a name="Pg006" id="Pg006" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> and on seeking found him sitting alone in the + forest that skirted his native village, in happy and fearless + solitude. He repeated this escapade so often that it was thought best + to leave him to follow his own bent. A little later we find him + engaged as assistant to a schoolmaster. His duty was not to teach, + but to take the children from their homes to the synagogue and thence + on to the school. It was his wont while accompanying the children to + the synagogue to teach them solemn hymns which he sang with them. In + the synagogue he encouraged them to sing the responses, so that the + voices of the children penetrated through the heavens and moved the + Divine father to compassion. Satan, fearing lest his power on earth + should thereby be diminished, assumed the shape of a werewolf, and, + appearing before the procession of children on their way to the + synagogue, put them to flight. In consequence of this alarming + incident the children's services were suspended. But Israel, + recollecting his father's counsel to fear naught, besought the + parents to be allowed to lead the children once more in the old way. + His request was granted, and when the werewolf appeared a second time + Israel attacked him with a club and routed him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In his fourteenth + year Israel became a beadle at the Beth Hammidrash.<a id="noteref_4" + name="noteref_4" href="#note_4"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">4</span></span></a> Here he + assiduously but secretly pursued the study of the Law. Yet, being + anxious that none should know his design, he read and worked only at + night, when the schoolroom was empty and the usual scholars had + retired. During the daytime he slept, so that he was popularly + believed to be both ignorant and lazy. Despite these precautions, + however, his true character was revealed to one person. A certain + holy <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page007">[pg 007]</span><a name= + "Pg007" id="Pg007" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> man, the father of a + young student at the college, had discovered some old manuscripts + which contained the deepest secrets. Before his death he bade his son + repair to Ukop, Israel's birthplace, telling him that he would find + one Israel, son of Eliezer, to whom the precious documents were to be + entrusted. They possessed, so the old man declared, a certain mystic + and heavenly affinity with Israel's soul. The student carried out his + father's instructions, and at last discovered the object of his + search in the beadle of the Beth Hammidrash. Israel admitted him to + his friendship and confidence on the condition of secrecy as to his + real character. The student, however, paid dearly for this + acquaintance with Israel. Contrary to Baalshem's advice, he entered + upon a dangerous incantation in the course of which he made a mistake + so serious that it cost him his life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Upon the death of + his friend, Baalshem left his native village and settled as a teacher + in a small town near Brody. Here, although his true mission and + character were still unknown, he became much respected for his rigid + probity, and was frequently chosen as umpire in disputes among Jews. + On one of these occasions he arbitrated with so much learning and + impartiality that not only did he satisfy both parties, but one of + them, a learned man of Brody, named Abraham, offered him his own + daughter in marriage. Israel, to whom it had been revealed that + Abraham's daughter was his predestined wife, immediately accepted the + offer and the act of betrothal was drawn up. But wishing his true + character to remain unknown he stipulated that Abraham, although a + <span class="tei tei-q">“Talmid Chacham”</span> (student)<a id= + "noteref_5" name="noteref_5" href="#note_5"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">5</span></span></a> himself + and therefore presumably desirous that his daughter should marry a + scholar, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page008">[pg + 008]</span><a name="Pg008" id="Pg008" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + should omit from the betrothal-deed all the titles of honour usually + appended to the name of a learned bridegroom. While returning to + Brody, Abraham died, and Gershon his son, a scholar still greater and + more celebrated than his father, was surprised and shocked to find a + deed of betrothal among his father's papers, from which it appeared + that his sister was to wed a man with apparently no claim to + scholarship or learning. He protested to his sister, but she declined + to entertain any objections to a marriage which her father had + arranged. When the time for the wedding was at hand, Israel gave up + his post as teacher, and repaired to Brody. Disguised as a peasant he + presented himself before his future brother-in-law, who was then + fulfilling some high judicial function. Gershon taking him for a + beggar offered him alms, but Israel, refusing the money, asked for a + private interview, stating that he had an important secret to reveal. + He then, to Gershon's surprise and disgust, explained who he was and + that he had come to claim his bride. As the girl was determined to + obey her father's will the affair was settled and the day fixed. On + the morning of the wedding Israel revealed to his bride his real + character and mission, at the same time enjoining secrecy. Evil + fortunes would befall them, he said, but a better time would + eventually follow.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After the wedding, + Gershon, having in vain attempted to instruct his seemingly ignorant + brother-in-law, decided to rid himself of his presence. He gave his + sister the choice of being separated from her husband, or of leaving + the town in his company. She chose the latter, and thereupon the two + left Brody and began a life of hardship and suffering. Israel chose + for his new home a spot on one of the spurs of the Carpathian + Mountains. No Jews lived <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page009">[pg + 009]</span><a name="Pg009" id="Pg009" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + there, and Israel and his wife were thus separated from the society + of their fellows in a life of complete and unchanging solitude. + Israel dug lime in the ravines among the mountains, and his wife + conveyed it for sale to the nearest town. Their life at this period + seems to have been one of great privation, but the harder Israel's + outward lot, the more he increased in spiritual greatness. In his + solitude he gave himself up entirely to devotion and religious + contemplation. His habit was to climb to the summit of the mountains + and wander about rapt in spiritual ecstasies. He fasted, prayed, made + continual ablutions, and observed all the customary outward and + inward exercises of piety and devotion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After seven years, + Gershon, who was well aware of the bitter poverty which his sister + endured, relented and brought her and her husband back to Brody. At + first he employed Baalshem as his coachman, but as he proved wholly + unfit for this work Gershon rented a small inn in a remote village, + and there established his sister and her husband. The business of the + inn was managed by the wife, while Baalshem passed most of his time + in a hut in a neighbouring forest. Here he once more gave himself up + to meditation and preparation for his future work, and here, a little + later, when nearly forty-two years of age, to a few chosen spirits, + afterwards his most fervent disciples, he first revealed his true + character and mission.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From this point + unfortunately the materials for a continuous biography are wanting; + we next hear of Baalshem discharging the functions of an ordinary + Rabbi at Miedziboz in Podolia, but for the remainder of his personal + history we have to be content with detached anecdotes <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page010">[pg 010]</span><a name="Pg010" id="Pg010" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and fragmentary passages in his life, the + sum total of which goes to show that he resided in Podolia and + Wallachia, teaching his doctrines to his disciples and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“working Wonders.”</span> He does not seem to have + figured as a public preacher, nor has he left behind him any written + work. He appears rather to have used the method, familiar to students + of Greek philosophy, of teaching by conversations with his friends + and disciples. These conversations, and the parables with which they + were largely interspersed, were remembered and stored up by his + hearers. By his neighbours the country folk, Baalshem was regarded + simply as <span class="tei tei-q">“a man of God.”</span> He was + allowed to pursue his course undisturbed by persecution of the + serious character which his more aggressive successors provoked. Such + of the Rabbis as were aware of his existence despised him and his + ways, but the Rabbinical world was at that time too much occupied in + the controversy between Eybeschütz and Emden to concern itself with + the vagaries of an obscure and apparently <span class= + "tei tei-q">“unlearned”</span> eccentric. Baalshem also took part in + the disputes which were held in Lemberg, the capital of Galicia + (1757?), between the Rabbis and the Frankists,<a id="noteref_6" name= + "noteref_6" href="#note_6"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">6</span></span></a> who + denounced the Talmud to the Polish Government and wanted to have all + the Rabbinical books destroyed. Baalshem suffered from this + excitement in a most terrible way. The abrogation of the Oral Law + meant for him the ruin of Judaism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Baalshem, in + forming the little band of devoted followers who were destined to + spread a knowledge of his creed, travelled considerably about + Wallachia. He at one time decided to make a pilgrimage to Palestine, + but when he reached Constantinople he felt himself inspired + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page011">[pg 011]</span><a name="Pg011" + id="Pg011" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to return and continue his + work at home. He died at Miedziboz on the eve of Pentecost, 1761.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After his death + his disciples, of whom one Beer of Mizriez was the most prominent, + undertook the proselytising mission for which Baalshem had prepared + them, but from which he himself appears to have abstained. They + preached and taught in all the provinces of Russia where Jews may + reside, and in Roumania, and Galicia. The number of the sect at the + present day is probably about half a million.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Returning now to + Baalshem the founder, it may be noted that his appearance as a + teacher and reformer was accompanied and justified by a customary and + adequate number of miracles. To one disciple he revealed secrets + which could have become known to him only by divine revelation; to + another he appeared with a nimbus round his head. On the evidence of + the Chassidim we learn that Baalshem performed all the recognised + signs and marvels which have ever been the customary minor + characteristics of men of similar type in similar environment. When + Baalshem desired to cross a stream, he spread forth his mantle upon + the waters, and standing thereupon passed safely to the other side. + Ghosts evacuated haunted houses at the mere mention of his name. Was + he alone in the forest on a wintry night, he had but to touch a tree + with his finger tips and flames burst forth. When his spirit wandered + through the angelic spheres, as was frequently the case, he obtained + access to Paradise for millions of pining souls who had vainly waited + without through long thousands of mournful years. These and other + miracles need not be examined. Here, as in the case of other such + blissful seasons of grace, they were the <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page012">[pg 012]</span><a name="Pg012" id="Pg012" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> ephemeral though important accessories in + establishing the inspired character of his utterances and the + authority of his injunctions. It is not as a worker of miracles, but + as a religious teacher and reformer, that Baalshem is + interesting.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Properly to + understand the nature and special direction of his teaching, it is + necessary in some measure to realise the character of the field in + which he worked; to consider, in other words, the moral and religious + condition of the Jews in those districts where Chassidism first took + root.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In a Hebrew Hymn, + written about 1000 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>, and still recited in + the synagogue on the Day of Atonement, the poet expresses the strange + and bitter fortunes of his race in touching words of mingled sorrow + and exultation.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Destroyed lies Zion and + profaned,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Of splendour and renown + bereft,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Her ancient glories wholly + waned,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">One deathless treasure only + left;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Still ours, O Lord,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Thy Holy Word.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And this Divine + Word it was, which a persecuted religion has sought to preserve + intact through so many centuries of persecution, and for the sake of + which no labour seemed too severe, no sacrifice too large. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Bethink Thee, O God,”</span> exclaimed one + of our Jewish sages who flourished about the same period, + <span class="tei tei-q">“bethink Thee of Thy faithful children who, + amid their poverty and want, are busy in the study of Thy Law. + Bethink Thee of the poor in Israel who are willing to suffer hunger + and destitution if only they can secure for their children the + knowledge of Thy Law.”</span> And so indeed it was. Old and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page013">[pg 013]</span><a name="Pg013" + id="Pg013" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> young, weak and strong, rich + and poor, all pursued that single study, the Torah. The product of + this prolonged study is that gigantic literature which, as a long + unbroken chain of spiritual activity, connects together the various + periods of the Jews' chequered and eventful history. All ages and all + lands have contributed to the development of this supreme study. For + under the word Torah was comprised not only the Law, but also the + contributions of later times expressing either the thoughts or the + emotions of holy and sincere men; and even their honest scepticism + was not entirely excluded. As in the canon of the Bible, Ecclesiastes + and the Song of Solomon found place in the same volume that contains + the Law and the Prophets, so at a later time people did not object to + put the philosophical works of Maimonides and the songs of Judah + Hallevi on the same level with the Code of the Law compiled by R. + Isaac Alfasi, and the commentaries on the Bible by R. Solomon b. + Isaac.<a id="noteref_7" name="noteref_7" href="#note_7"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">7</span></span></a> None of + them was declared infallible, but also to none of them, as soon as + people were convinced of the author's sincerity, was denied the + homage due to seekers after truth. Almost every author was called + Rabbi (<span class="tei tei-q">“my master”</span>) or Rabbenu + (<span class="tei tei-q">“our master”</span>),<a id="noteref_8" name= + "noteref_8" href="#note_8"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">8</span></span></a> and + nearly every book was regarded more or less as a contribution to the + great bulk of the Torah. It was called Writ,<a id="noteref_9" name= + "noteref_9" href="#note_9"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">9</span></span></a> and was + treated with a certain kind of piety. But, by a series of accidents + too long to be related here, sincerity ceased and sport took its + place. I refer to the casuistic schools commonly known by the name of + Pilpulists<a id="noteref_10" name="noteref_10" href= + "#note_10"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">10</span></span></a> (the + <span class="tei tei-q">“seasoned”</span> or the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“sharp”</span> ones), who flourished in the last two + centuries preceding ours. To the authors of this unhappy period, a + few glorious exceptions always allowed, the preceding <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page014">[pg 014]</span><a name="Pg014" id="Pg014" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Jewish literature did not mean a + <span class="tei tei-q">“fountain of living waters,”</span> supplying + men with truth and religious inspiration, but rather a kind of + armoury providing them with juristic cases over which to fight, and + to out-do each other in sophistry and subtlety. As a consequence they + cared little or nothing for that part of the Jewish literature that + appeals less to the intellect than to the feelings of men. In short, + religion consisted only of complicated cases and innumerable + ordinances, in which the wit of these men found delight. But the + emotional part of it, whose root is the Faith and Love of men, was + almost entirely neglected.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it was + precisely these higher religious emotions that were Baalshem's + peculiar province, and it was to them that he assigned in his + religious system a place befitting their importance and their + dignity. And the locality where his ministration lay was curiously + adapted for such propaganda. To that universal study of the Law of + which I have just spoken there was one exception. That exception was + amongst the Jews in the territories which bordered on the Carpathian + Mountains, and comprise the principalities of Moldavia, and + Wallachia, Bukowina, and the Ukraine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is historically + certain that the first arrival of the Jews in Roumania was at a very + early date, but there is no trace of any intellectual productivity + among the immigrants until recent times, and it is admitted that the + study of the Law was almost entirely neglected. It was in these + districts of mental, and perhaps we might add of even spiritual, + darkness that Chassidism took its rise and achieved its first + success. <span class="tei tei-q">“The sect of the Chassidim,”</span> + says one of the bitterest but most trustworthy of their opponents, + <span class="tei tei-q">“first gained ground in the most uncivilised + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page015">[pg 015]</span><a name="Pg015" + id="Pg015" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> provinces; in the wild ravines + of Wallachia and the dreary steppes of the Ukraine.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Apart from the + genius of its founder, Chassidism owed its rapid growth to the + intellectual barrenness of these districts as compared with the + intellectual fertility of the other regions where Jews most thickly + congregated. The Roumanian Jews were to some extent under the + jurisdiction of the Rabbis of Poland. Now the Poles were celebrated + even in Germany for the elaboration of their casuistry. These + over-subtle Rabbis, delighting in the quibbles of their sophistry, + and reducing religion to an unending number of juristic calculations + and all sorts of possibilities and impossibilities, were but too apt + to forget the claims of feeling in their eager desire to question and + to settle everything. They may have been satisfactory guides in + matters spiritual to the men of their own stamp, but they were of no + avail to their Roumanian brethren who failed to recognise religion in + the garb of casuistry. It was, therefore, not surprising that a + revolt against the excess of intellectualism should have sprung up + and flourished in those districts where the inhabitants were + constitutionally incapable of appreciating the delights of argument. + The field was ready, and in the fulness of time came the sower in the + person of Baalshem.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the above + estimate of the Polish Rabbis there undoubtedly lurks a touch of + exaggeration. But it represents the view which the Chassidim took of + their opponents. The whole life of Baalshem is a protest against the + typical Rabbi thus conceived. The essential difference in the ideals + of the two parties is perhaps best illustrated in those portions of + their biographical literature where legend treads most closely upon + the heels of fact.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page016">[pg + 016]</span><a name="Pg016" id="Pg016" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The hero of Polish + Rabbinic biography at five years of age can recite by heart the most + difficult tractates of the Talmud; at eight he is the disciple of the + most celebrated teacher of the time, and perplexes him by the + penetrative subtlety of his questions; while at thirteen he appears + before the world as a full-fledged Doctor of the Law.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The hero of the + Chassidim has a totally different education, and his distinctive + glory is of another kind. The legendary stories about Baalshem's + youth tell us little of his proficiency in Talmudic studies; instead + of sitting in the Beth Hammidrash with the folios of some casuistic + treatise spread out before him, Baalshem passes his time singing + hymns out of doors, or under the green trees of the forest with the + children. Satan, however, says the Chassid, is more afraid of these + innocent exercises than of all the controversies in the Meheram + Shiff.<a id="noteref_11" name="noteref_11" href= + "#note_11"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">11</span></span></a> It was + through external nature, the woods of his childhood, the hills and + wild ravines of the Carpathians where he passed many of his maturer + years, that Baalshem, according to his disciples, reached his + spiritual confirmation. The Chassidic hero had no celebrated Rabbi + for his master. He was his own teacher. If not self-taught, it was + from angelic lips, or even the Divine voice itself, that he learned + the higher knowledge. From the source whence the Torah flowed + Baalshem received heavenly lore. His method of self-education, his + ways of life, his choice of associates were all instances of revolt; + not only did he teach a wholly different theory and practice, but he + and his disciples seem to have missed no opportunity of denouncing + the old teachers as misleading and ungodly. Among the many anecdotes + illustrating this feature, it is told how once, on the evening before + the great Day of Atonement, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page017">[pg + 017]</span><a name="Pg017" id="Pg017" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Baalshem was noticed by his disciples to be, contrary to his usual + custom, depressed and ill at ease. The whole subsequent day he passed + in violent weeping and lamentations. At its close he once more + resumed his wonted cheerfulness of manner. When asked for the + explanation of his behaviour, he replied that the Holy Spirit had + revealed to him that heavy accusations were being made against the + Jewish people, and a heavy punishment had been ordained upon them. + The anger of heaven was caused by the Rabbis, whose sole occupation + was to invent lying premisses and to draw from them false + conclusions. All the truly wise Rabbis of the olden time (such as the + Tannaim, the Amoraim<a id="noteref_12" name="noteref_12" href= + "#note_12"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">12</span></span></a> and + their followers, whom Baalshem regarded as so many saints and + prophets) had now stood forth as the accusers of their modern + successors by whom their words were so grossly perverted from their + original meaning. On this account Baalshem's tears had been shed, and + his prayers as usual had been successful. The impending judgment was + annulled. On another occasion, when he overheard the sounds of eager, + loud discussion issuing from a Rabbinical college, Baalshem, closing + his ears with his hands, declared that it was such disputants who + delayed the redemption of Israel from captivity. Satan, he said, + incites the Rabbis to study those portions of Jewish literature only + on which they can whet the sharpness of their intellects, but from + all writings of which the reading would promote piety and the fear of + God he keeps them away. <span class="tei tei-q">“Where there is much + study,”</span> says a disciple of Baalshem, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“there is little piety.”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jewish Devils”</span><a id="noteref_13" name= + "noteref_13" href="#note_13"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">13</span></span></a> is one + of the numerous polite epithets applied to the Rabbis by the friends + of Baalshem. <span class="tei tei-q">“Even the worst sinners are + better than they; so blind are they in <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page018">[pg 018]</span><a name="Pg018" id="Pg018" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the arrogance of their self-conceit that their + very devotion to the Law becomes a vehicle for their sin.”</span> It + will be found when we deal with the most positive side of Baalshem's + teaching that this antagonism to the attitude and methods of the + contemporary Rabbis is further emphasised, and it will readily be + seen that his whole scheme of religion and of conduct in relation to + God and man rendered this acknowledged hostility inevitable. In + approaching this part of our subject it should be remembered that, as + stated above, Baalshem himself wrote nothing. For a knowledge of his + sayings we are therefore dependent on the reports of his friends and + disciples. And it is not unfrequently necessary to supplement these + by the teaching of his followers, whom we may suppose in large + measure to have caught the spirit of their master. Unfortunately the + original authorities are in a difficult Hebrew patois which often + obscures the precise meaning of whole passages.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The originality of + Baalshem's teaching has been frequently impugned, chiefly by the + suggestion that he drew largely from the Zohar (Book of + Brightness).<a id="noteref_14" name="noteref_14" href= + "#note_14"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">14</span></span></a> This + mystical book, <span class="tei tei-q">“the Bible of the + Cabbalists,”</span> whether we regard its subject-matter or its + history and influence, is unique in literature. Its pretended author + is Simeon ben Yochai, a great Rabbi of the second century, but the + real writer is probably one Moses de Leon, a Spanish Jew, who lived + eleven centuries later. The book is one of the most interesting + literary forgeries, and is a marvellous mixture of good and evil. A + passage of delicate religious fancy is succeeded by another of gross + obscenity in illustration and suggestion; true piety and wild + blasphemy are strangely mingled together. Baalshem undoubtedly had + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page019">[pg 019]</span><a name="Pg019" + id="Pg019" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> studied the Zohar, and he even + is reported to have said that the reading of the Zohar had enabled + him to see into the whole universe of things. But, for all that, + Baalshem was no copyist; and the Zohar, although it may have + suggested a hint to him here and there, was not the source whence his + inspiration was drawn.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Its attraction for + Baalshem is sufficiently explained by the fantastic, imaginative, and + emotional nature of its contents. It lent itself more easily than the + older Rabbinical literature to new explanations unthought of by its + author. But even the Talmud and its early commentaries became + apocalyptic to the heroes of Chassidism. Nay, the driest and most + legal disquisitions about <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">meum</span></span> and <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style="font-style: italic">tuum</span></span> + could be translated into parables and allegories and symbols full of + the most exalted meanings. Baalshem, like every other religious + reformer, was partially the product of his age. The influences of the + past, the history and literature of his own people, helped to make + him what he was. But they do not rob him of his originality. He was a + religious revivalist in the best sense; full of burning faith in his + God and his cause; convinced utterly of the value of his work and the + truth of his teaching.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Although there can + be no real doubt of Baalshem's claim to originality, it should be + borne in mind that his teaching is not only distinctively Jewish, but + that for every part of it parallels and analogies could be found in + the older Hebrew literature. Indeed it is not wonderful that in a + literature, extending over 2000 years, of a people whose chief + thoughts have been religion, and who have come in contact with so + many external religious and philosophic influences, the germs can be + discovered <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page020">[pg + 020]</span><a name="Pg020" id="Pg020" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + almost every conceivable system, and the outline of almost every + imaginable doctrine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The keynote of all + Baalshem's teachings is the Omnipresence, or more strictly the + Immanence, of God. This is the source from which flows naturally + every article of his creed; the universality of the Divinity is the + foundation of the entire Chassidic fabric. The idea of the constant + living presence of God in all existence permeates the whole of + Baalshem's scheme; it is insisted on in every relation; from it is + deduced every important proposition and every rule in conduct of his + school.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">All created things + and every product of human intelligence owe their being to God. All + generation and all existence spring from the thought and will of God. + It is incumbent upon man to believe that all things are pervaded by + the divine life, and when he speaks he should remember that it is + this divine life which is speaking through him. There is nothing + which is void of God. If we imagine for a moment such a thing to be, + it would instantly fall into nothingness. In every human thought God + is present. If the thought be gross or evil, we should seek to raise + and ennoble it by carrying it back to its origin. So, if a man be + suddenly overwhelmed by the aspect of a beautiful woman, he should + remember that this splendour of beauty is owing to the all-pervading + emanation from the divine. When he remembers that the source of + corporeal beauty is God, he will not be content to let his thought + abide with the body when he can rise to the inward contemplation of + the infinite soul of beauty, which is God. A disciple of Baalshem has + said: Even as in the jewels <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page021">[pg + 021]</span><a name="Pg021" id="Pg021" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + his beloved the lover sees only the beauty of her he loves, so does + the true lover of God see in all the appearances of this world, the + vitalising and generative power of his divine master. If you do not + see the world in the light of God you separate the creation from its + Creator. He who does not fully believe in this universality of God's + presence has never properly acknowledged God's Sovereignty, for he + excludes God from an existing portion of the actual world. The word + of God (to Baalshem, a synonym for God himself), which <span class= + "tei tei-q">“is settled in heaven”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“established on earth,”</span> is still and always + speaking, acting, and generating throughout heaven and earth in + endless gradations and varieties. If the vitalising word were to + cease, chaos would come again. The belief in a single creation after + which the Master withdrew from his completed work, is erroneous and + heretical. The vivifying power is never withdrawn from the world + which it animates. Creation is continuous; an unending manifestation + of the goodness of God. All things are an affluence from the two + divine attributes of Power and Love, which express themselves in + various images and reflections.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This is the + doctrine of universality in Chassidism. God, the father of Israel, + God the Merciful, God the All-powerful, the God of Love, not only + created everything but is embodied in everything. The necessity of + believing this doctrine is the cardinal Dogma. But as creation is + continuous so also is revelation. This revelation is only to be + grasped by faith. Faith, therefore, is more efficacious than + learning. Thus it is that in times of persecution, the wise and the + foolish, the sinner and the saint, are wont alike to give up their + life for their faith. They who could <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page022">[pg 022]</span><a name="Pg022" id="Pg022" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> render no answer to the questions of the + casuist are yet willing to die the most cruel of deaths rather than + deny their faith in the One and Supreme God. Their strength to face + danger and death is owing to that divine illumination of the soul + which is more exalted than knowledge.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We should thus + regard all things in the light of so many manifestations of the + Divinity. God is present in all things; therefore there is good, + actual or potential, in all things. It is our duty everywhere to seek + out and to honour the good, and not to arrogate to ourselves the + right to judge that which may seem to be evil. In thinking therefore + of a fellow-man, we should above all things realise in him the + presence of the spirit of good. Whence we have the Doctrine that each + of us, while thinking humbly of himself, should always be ready to + think well, and always slow to think evil, of another. This explains + the Chassidic attitude towards erring humanity. Baalshem viewed human + sin and infirmity in a very different light from that of the ordinary + Rabbi. Ever conscious of the Divine side of Humanity, he vigorously + combated the gratuitous assumption of sinfulness in man which was a + fertile subject with contemporary preachers. They, among the + Roumanian Jews as in other communities, delighted chiefly to dwell on + the dark side of things, and found their favourite theme in elaborate + descriptions of the infernal punishments that were awaiting the + sinner after death. It is related how on one occasion Baalshem + rebuked one of these. The preacher had been denouncing woe to an + audience of whom he knew nothing whether for evil or for good. + Baalshem, indignant at this indiscriminative abuse and conceited + arrogation of the divine office of judgment, turned on him in the + following words: <span class="tei tei-q">“Woe <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page023">[pg 023]</span><a name="Pg023" id="Pg023" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> upon thee who darest to speak evil of + Israel! Dost not know that every Jew, when he utters ever so short a + prayer at the close of day, is performing a great work before which + the angels in heaven bow down?”</span> Great, as it would seem, was + the value set by Baalshem upon the smallest evidence of the higher + nature in man, and few there were, as he believed, who, if their + spirit was not darkened by pride, did not now and again give proof of + the divine stamp in which God had created them. No sin so separates + us from God that we need despair of return. From every rung of the + moral ladder, no matter how low, let man seek God. If he but fully + believe that nothing is void of God, and that God is concealed in the + midst of apparent ruin and degradation, he will not fear lest God be + far from him. God is regained in a moment of repentance, for + repentance <span class="tei tei-q">“transcends the limits of space + and time.”</span> And he who leads the sinner to repentance causes a + divine joy; it is as though a king's son had been in captivity and + were now brought back to his father's gaze.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Baalshem refused + to regard any one as wholly irredeemable. His was an optimistic + faith. God was to be praised in gladness by the dwellers in this + glorious world. The true believer, recognising the reflection of God + in every man, should hopefully strive, when that reflection was + obscured by sin, to restore the likeness of God in man. The peculiar + detestability of sin lies in this, that man rejects the earthly + manifestations of the Divinity and pollutes them. One of Baalshem's + disciples delighted in the saying that the most hardened sinners were + not to be despaired of, but prayed for. None knows the heart of man, + and none should judge his neighbour. Let him who burns with zeal for + God's sake, exercise his zeal on himself, <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page024">[pg 024]</span><a name="Pg024" id="Pg024" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> not others. Baalshem said, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Let no one think himself better than his neighbour, for + all serve God; each according to the measure of understanding which + God has given him.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From this position + it is a natural step to Baalshem's view of prayer. He is reputed to + have said that all the greatness he had achieved was the issue not of + study but of prayer. But true prayer <span class="tei tei-q">“must + move,”</span> as Baalshem phrased it, <span class="tei tei-q">“in the + realms above,”</span> and not be concerned with affairs sublunary. + Your prayer should not be taken up with your wishes and needs, but + should be the means to bring you nigh to God. In prayer man must lay + aside his own individuality, and not even be conscious of his + existence; for if, when he prays, Self is not absolutely quiescent, + the object of prayer is unattainable. Indeed it is only through God's + grace that after true prayer man is yet alive; to such a point has + the annihilation of self proceeded.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may be + necessary to caution the reader against ascribing to Baalshem any + modern rationalistic notions on the subject of prayer. The power of + prayer, in the old-fashioned sense, to produce an answer from God was + never doubted by Baalshem for a moment. Baalshem's deity is not + restricted towards any side by any philosophic considerations. All + Baalshem meant was that any reference or regard to earthly + requirements was unworthy and destructive of this communion of man + with God. The wise man, says Baalshem, does not trouble the king with + innumerable petitions about trifles. His desire is merely to gain + admission into the king's presence and to speak with him without a + go-between. To be with the king whom he loves so dearly is for him + the highest good. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page025">[pg + 025]</span><a name="Pg025" id="Pg025" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> But + his love for the king has its reward; for the king loves him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It has already + been implied that, with regard to our duty towards our fellow-man, we + must not only honour him for the good, and abstain from judging the + evil that may be in him, but must pray for him. Furthermore we must + work for his spiritual and moral reclamation. In giving practical + effect in his own life to this doctrine, Baalshem's conduct was in + striking contrast to that of his contemporaries. He habitually + consorted with outcasts and sinners, with the poor and uneducated of + both sexes, whom the other teachers ignored. He thus won for his + doctrines a way to the heart of the people by adapting his life and + language to their understanding and sympathies. In illustration of + this, as well as of his hatred of vanity and display, it is told how, + on the occasion of his being accorded a public reception by the Jews + on his arrival at Brody, instead of addressing to them in the + conventional fashion some subtle discourse upon a Talmudical + difficulty, he contented himself with conversing upon trivial topics + in the local dialect with some of the less important persons in the + crowd.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This incident is + perhaps the more noteworthy because it occurred in Brody, which was + at that time a seat of learning and Rabbinic culture,—a place where, + for that very reason, Chassidism was never able to gain a foothold. + It is probable enough that Baalshem in his visits to this town kept + aloof from the learned and the wise, and sought to gather round him + the neglected and humbler elements of Jewish society. It is well + known that Baalshem consorted a good deal with the innkeepers of the + district, who were held in very low repute among their brethren. The + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page026">[pg 026]</span><a name="Pg026" + id="Pg026" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> following remark by one of his + followers is very suggestive in this respect. Just as only + superficial minds attach a certain holiness to special places, whilst + with the deeper ones all places are alike holy, so that to them it + makes no difference whether prayers be said in the synagogue or in + the forest; so the latter believe that not only prophecies and + visions come from heaven, but that every utterance of man, if + properly understood, contains a message of God. Those who are + absorbed in God will easily find the divine element in everything + which they hear, even though the speaker himself be quite ignorant of + it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This line of + conduct gave a fair opening for attack to his opponents, an + opportunity of which they were not slow to avail themselves. Baalshem + was pointed at as the associate of the lowest classes. They avenged + themselves for his neglect of and hostility to the learned by + imputing the worst motives to his indifference to appearances. He was + accused of idling about the streets with disreputable characters, and + one polemical treatise draws the vilest inferences from his apparent + familiarity with women. To this charge Baalshem's conduct, innocent + in itself, gave some colour; for his views and habits in relation to + women marked a strong divergence from current customs. The position + of women in contemporary circles was neither debased nor inevitably + unhappy, but it was distinctly subordinate. Their education was + almost entirely neglected, and their very existence was practically + ignored. According to the Chassidic doctrine of Universality, woman + was necessarily to be honoured. <span class="tei tei-q">“All + Jews,”</span> says one Chassid, <span class="tei tei-q">“even the + uneducated and the women, believe in God.”</span> Baalshem frequently + associated <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page027">[pg + 027]</span><a name="Pg027" id="Pg027" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with women, assigning to them not only social equality, but a high + degree of religious importance.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">His own wife he + reverenced as a saint; when she died he abandoned the hope of rising + to heaven while yet alive, like Elijah of old, saying mournfully that + undivided such translation might have happened, but for him alone it + was impossible. Then again in a form of religion utilising so largely + the emotions of Faith and Love there was a strong appeal to the + female mind. The effect of this was soon evident, and Baalshem did + not neglect to profit by it. Among the most devoted of his early + adherents were women. One of them was the heroine of a favourite + anecdote concerning Baalshem's work of Love and Rescue. It is related + that in a certain village there dwelt a woman whose life was so + disgraceful that her brothers at last determined to kill her. With + this object they enticed her into a neighbouring wood, but guided by + the Holy Spirit Baalshem intervened at the critical moment, and + dissuading the men from their purpose rescued the sinner. The woman + afterwards became a sort of Magdalen in the new community.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Above I have + endeavoured to throw together in some order of sequence the doctrines + and practical rules of conduct which Baalshem and his early disciples + seem to have deduced from their central idea of the omnipresence of + God. This was necessary in order to give a connected idea of their + creed, but it is right to say that nowhere in Chassidic literature + have these deductions been logically co-ordinated. Perhaps their + solitary attempt to formulate and condense their distinctive views is + confined to a statement of their idea of piety or service of God, and + an examination of three cardinal virtues, Humility, Cheerfulness, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page028">[pg 028]</span><a name="Pg028" + id="Pg028" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and Enthusiasm. What the + Chassidim held as to true service brings into relief Baalshem's + characteristic manner of regarding the Law.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">By the service of + God was generally understood a life which fulfilled the precepts of + the written and oral law. Baalshem understood by it a certain + attitude towards life as a whole. For, as God is realised in life, + each activity of life when rightly conceived and executed is at once + a manifestation and a service of the Divine. All things have been + created for the glory and service of God. The smallest worm serves + Him with all its power. Thus, while eating, drinking, sleeping, and + the other ordinary functions of the body are regarded by the old + Jewish moralists as mere means to an end, to Baalshem they are + already a service of God in themselves. All pleasures are + manifestations of God's attribute of love; and, so regarded, they are + at once spiritualised and ennobled. Man should seek to reach a higher + level of purity and holiness before partaking of food and drink, than + even before the study of the Law. For when the Torah had once been + given by God the whole world became instinct with its grace. He who + speaks of worldly matters and religious matters as if they were + separate and distinct, is a heretic.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Upon the continual + and uninterrupted study of the Law, Baalshem lays but little stress. + He accepted the ordinary belief that the Law (under which term are + included not only the Pentateuch, but the whole Old Testament and the + major portion of the old Rabbinic literature) was a revelation of + God. But, as the world itself is equally a divine revelation, the + Torah becomes little more than a part of a larger whole. To + understand it aright one needs to penetrate to the inward reality—to + the infinite <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page029">[pg + 029]</span><a name="Pg029" id="Pg029" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + light which is revealed in it. We should study the Law not as we + study a science for the sake of acquiring knowledge (he who studies + it so has in truth been concerning himself with its mere outward + form), but we should learn from it the true service of God. Thus the + study of the law is no end in itself. It is studied because, as the + word of God, God is more easily discerned and absorbed in this + revelation of Him than in any other. The Torah is eternal, but its + explanation is to be made by the spiritual leaders of Judaism. It is + to be interpreted by them in accordance with the Attribute of the + age. For he regarded the world as governed in every age by a + different Attribute of God—one age by the Attribute of Love, another + by that of Power, a third again, by Beauty, and so on—and the + explanation of the Torah must be brought into agreement with it. The + object of the whole Torah is that man should become a Torah himself. + Every man being a Torah in himself, said a disciple of Baalshem, has + got not only his Abraham and Moses, but also his Balaam and Haman: he + should try to expel the Balaam and develop the Abraham within him. + Every action of man should be a pure manifestation of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reason why we + should do what the Law commands is not to gain grace thereby in the + eyes of God, but to learn how to love God and to be united to Him. + The important thing is not how many separate injunctions are obeyed, + but how and in what spirit we obey them. The object of fulfilling + these various ordinances is to put oneself, as it were, on the same + plane with God, and thus, in the ordinary phrase of the religious + mystic, to become one with Him, or to be absorbed in Him. People + should get to know, says Baalshem, what the unity of God really + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page030">[pg 030]</span><a name="Pg030" + id="Pg030" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> means. To attain a part of + this indivisible unity is to attain the whole. The Torah and all its + ordinances are from God. If I therefore fulfil but one commandment in + and through the love of God, it is as though I have fulfilled them + all.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have now briefly + to refer to the three virtues to which the Chassidim assigned the + highest place of honour. Of these the first is called in Hebrew + <span class="tei tei-q">“Shiphluth,”</span><a id="noteref_15" name= + "noteref_15" href="#note_15"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">15</span></span></a> and is + best rendered by our word <span class="tei tei-q">“Humility,”</span> + but in Chassidic usage it includes the ideas of modesty, + considerateness, and sympathy. The prominence given to these + qualities is in sharp contrast to the faults of conceit, vanity, and + self-satisfaction, against which Baalshem was never weary of + protesting. He regarded these as the most seductive of all forms of + sin. But a few minutes before his death he was heard to murmur, + <span class="tei tei-q">“O vanity, vanity! even in this hour of death + thou darest to approach me with thy temptations: <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘Bethink thee, Israel, what a grand funeral procession + will be thine because thou hast been so wise and good.’</span> O + vanity, vanity! beshrew thee.”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“It + should be indifferent to man,”</span> says the master, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“whether he be praised or blamed, loved or hated, reputed + to be the wisest of mankind or the greatest of fools. The test of the + real service of God is that it leaves behind it the feeling of + humility. If a man after prayer be conscious of the least pride or + self-satisfaction, if he think, for instance, that he has earned a + reward by the ardour of his spiritual exercises, then let him know + that he has prayed not to God but to himself. And what is this but + disguised idolatry? Before you can find God you must lose + yourself.”</span> The Chassidim treated Shiphluth from two sides: a + negative side in thinking humbly of oneself, a positive in thinking + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page031">[pg 031]</span><a name="Pg031" + id="Pg031" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> highly of one's neighbour, in + other words the love for our fellow-man.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">He who loves the + father will also love his children. The true lover of God is also a + lover of man. It is ignorance of one's own errors that makes one + ready to see the errors of others. <span class="tei tei-q">“There is + no sphere in heaven where the soul remains a shorter time than in the + sphere of merit, there is none where it abides longer than in the + sphere of Love.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The second + Cardinal Virtue is <span class="tei tei-q">“Cheerfulness,”</span> in + Hebrew <span class="tei tei-q">“Simchah.”</span><a id="noteref_16" + name="noteref_16" href="#note_16"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">16</span></span></a> Baalshem + insisted on cheerfulness of heart as a necessary attitude for the due + service of God. Once believe that you are really the servant and the + child of God and how can you fall again into a gloomy condition of + mind? Nor should the inevitable sins which we all must commit disturb + our glad serenity of soul. For is not repentance ready at hand by + which we may climb back to God? Every penitent thought is a voice of + God. Man should detect that voice in all the evidence of his senses, + in every sight and sound of external nature. It is through his want + of faith in the universality of God's presence that he is deaf to + these subtle influences and can read only the lessons which are + inscribed in books.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reader will be + prepared to learn that Baalshem, taking this cheerful view of things, + was opposed to every kind of asceticism. Judaism, or rather + Israelitism, it is true, was not originally much of an ascetic + religion. But there can be little doubt that in the course of history + there came in many ascetic doctrines and practices, quite enough at + least to encourage such tender souls the bent of whose minds lay in + this direction. To one of these, a former disciple, Baalshem wrote: + <span class="tei tei-q">“I hear that you think yourself <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page032">[pg 032]</span><a name="Pg032" id="Pg032" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> compelled from religious motives to enter + upon a course of fasts and penances. My soul is outraged at your + determination. By the counsel of God I order you to abandon such + dangerous practices, which are but the outcome of a disordered brain. + Is it not written <span class="tei tei-q">‘Thou shalt not hide + thyself from thine own flesh?’</span> Fast then no more than is + prescribed. Follow my command and God shall be with you.”</span> On + another occasion Baalshem was heard to observe that it is a + machination of Satan to drive us into a condition of gloom and + despondency in which the smallest error is regarded as a deadly sin. + Satan's object is to keep us away from the true service of God, and + God can only be truly served from a happy and confident disposition. + Anxious scrupulosity in details is therefore to be avoided. It is the + counsel of the Devil to persuade us that we never have done and shall + never do our duty fully, and that moral progress is impossible. Such + ideas beget melancholy and despair, which are of evil.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The third virtue + is called in the Hebrew Chassidic literature <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Hithlahabuth,”</span><a id="noteref_17" name= + "noteref_17" href="#note_17"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">17</span></span></a> and is + derived from a verb meaning <span class="tei tei-q">“to + kindle”</span> or <span class="tei tei-q">“set on fire.”</span> The + substantive <span class="tei tei-q">“Hithlahabuth,”</span> so far as + I am aware, was first coined by Baalshem's followers. It is best + rendered by our word <span class="tei tei-q">“Enthusiasm.”</span> + Every religious action, to be of any avail, must be done with + enthusiasm. A mere mechanical and lifeless performance of an + ordinance is valueless. A man is no step nearer the goal if he + thinks, forsooth, that he has done his duty when he has gone through + the whole round of laws in every section of the code. This essential + enthusiasm is only begotten of Love. The service of fear, if not + wholly useless, is yet necessarily accompanied by a certain repulsion + and heaviness, which effectually <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page033">[pg 033]</span><a name="Pg033" id="Pg033" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> prevent the rush and ardour of enthusiasm. The + inspiration of true service is its own end. There is no thought of + this world, and there is none of the world to come. In the Talmud + there is frequent reference to one Rabbi Elisha ben Abuyah, an + apostate from Judaism, who, when urged to repent, replied that + repentance was useless, and that for this mournful belief he had + direct divine authority. For he had been told by a voice from heaven + that even though he repented he would be excluded from sharing the + happiness of the world to come. Of him it was said by one of the + Chassidim, <span class="tei tei-q">“This man indeed missed a golden + opportunity. How purely could he have served God, knowing that for + his service there could never be a reward!”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From the + conception of Enthusiasm springs the quality of mobility, suggesting + spiritual progress, and commonly opposed by Baalshem and his + followers to the dull religious stagnation of self-satisfied + contemporaries. Man should not imagine himself to have attained the + level of the righteous; let him rather regard himself as a penitent + who should make progress every day. Always to remain on the same + religious plane, merely repeating to-day the religious routine of + yesterday, is not true service. There must be a daily advance in the + knowledge and love of the Divine Master. Mere freedom from active sin + is not sufficient; such negative virtue may be but another word for + the chance absence of temptation. What boots it never to have + committed a sin if sin lies concealed in the heart? It is only the + uninterrupted communion with God which will raise and ennoble your + thoughts and designs, and cause the roots of sin to die. The + patriarch Abraham, without any command from God, fulfilled the whole + Torah, because he perceived that the Law was the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page034">[pg 034]</span><a name="Pg034" id="Pg034" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> life of all created things. In the + Messianic age the law will no longer seem to man as something + ordained for him from without; but the law will be within the hearts + of men; it will seem natural and self-evident to them, because they + will realise that God and life are manifested through the law.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Baalshem, who + dealt largely in parable, has left the following, which we may fitly + add to our somewhat inadequate presentation of his doctrine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There was once a + king who built himself a glorious palace. By means of magical + illusion it seemed as if the palace were full of devious corridors + and mazes, preventing the approach to the royal presence. But as + there was much gold and silver heaped up in the entrance halls, most + people were content to go no further, but take their fill of + treasure. The king himself they did not notice. At last the king's + intimate had compassion upon them and exclaimed to them, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“All these walls and mazes which you see before you do + not in truth exist at all. They are mere illusions. Push forward + bravely, and you shall find no obstacle.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We must not + interpret the parable to mean that Baalshem denied the reality or + even the importance of the actual phenomenal world. The very contrary + is the truth. The world is for him full of God, penetrated through + and through by the divine, and therefore as real as God himself. It + was quite in Baalshem's manner when one of his disciples declared + that only fools could speak of the world as vanity or emptiness. + <span class="tei tei-q">“It is in truth a glorious world. We must + only learn how rightly to make use of it. Call nothing common or + profane: by God's presence all things are + holy.”</span></p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page035">[pg + 035]</span><a name="Pg035" id="Pg035" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Above we have + reviewed the essential doctrines of Baalshem and his immediate + followers; we have now to see how they fared at the hands of the sect + which he founded. This is a sad part of our task, for the subsequent + history of Chassidism is almost entirely a record of decay. As + formulated by its founder the new creed amounted to a genuine + Reformation, pure and lofty in ideal. After his death unhappily it + was rapidly corrupted and perverted. This was due almost exclusively + to the dangerous and exaggerated development of a single point in his + teaching. That point, the honour due to the divine in man, was + relatively a minor article in the original creed. But the later + Chassidism has given it a distorted and almost exclusive importance + wholly out of proportion to the grander and more essential features + of Baalshem's teaching, until the distinctive feature of the + Chassidism of to-day is an almost idolatrous service of their living + leaders. What little there is to say of the history of the sect after + Baalshem's death would be unintelligible without some explanation of + the origin and growth of this unfortunate perversion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It has been + explained that Baalshem laid but little stress upon the study of the + Law or the observance of its precepts in themselves, but regarded + them only as means to an end. The end is union with God. Man has to + discover the presence of God in the Divine word and will. Now this + mystical service of God, although perhaps sufficing to sensitive and + enthusiastic natures, is scarcely plain or definite enough for + ordinary men. Few can realise abstractions: and yet fewer can delight + in them and find in their contemplation sufficient nurture for their + religious needs. What then had Chassidism to offer to the ordinary + majority <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page036">[pg + 036]</span><a name="Pg036" id="Pg036" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> who + could not recognise God in all the plenitude of His disguise? The + want of something tangible whereon to fix the minds of the people, + which has confronted the teachers of so many creeds, was also + encountered by the Chassidim, and they unfortunately found their way + out of the difficulty by relying on and developing their doctrine of + man's position in the Universe. Man's ideal is to be a law himself; + himself a clear and full manifestation of God. Now, not only is he + God's servant and child, but in highest development he becomes + himself a part of God, albeit in human shape, so that he may become + wholly one with his divine Father. But if man may reach this highest + level of holiness, he is virtually a kind of God-man, whom his + fellow-men of lower levels perceive by reason of his manhood, but his + essential office consists in raising them up to God by reason of his + Divinity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The few chosen + spirits who through the successful persistency with which they have + sought God in all things have become, though yet on earth, absorbed + in Him, are known in Chassidic literature by the name of the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Zaddikim.”</span> The Hebrew word + Zaddik<a id="noteref_18" name="noteref_18" href= + "#note_18"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">18</span></span></a> means + <span class="tei tei-q">“just”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“righteous,”</span> and the term was probably chosen in + conscious opposition to the title of Rabbinic heroes, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“disciples of the wise.”</span> For the Zaddik is not so + much the product of learning as of intuition: his final consummation + is reached by a sudden and direct illumination from God. The Zaddik + not only resembles Moses, but, in virtue of his long communion with + the Divine, he is also the true child of God. He is, moreover, a + vivifying power in creation, for he is the connecting bond between + God and his creatures. He is the source of blessing and the fount of + grace. Man must therefore learn to love the Zaddik, <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page037">[pg 037]</span><a name="Pg037" id="Pg037" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> so that through the Zaddik he may win + God's grace. He who does not believe in the Zaddik is an apostate + from God. Here then we have the fatal exaggeration to which I have + alluded, and here its logical consequence. The step to man-worship is + short.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This peculiar + doctrine of the Intermediary soon became the distinguishing feature + of Chassidism. By a Chassid was understood not a man who held such + and such opinions in theology and religion, but a believer in the + Zaddik, and one who sought to attain salvation through the worship of + the Zaddik. Every other doctrine of Chassidism was rapidly pushed + into the background and overlooked. Even the grand and fundamental + doctrine of Omnipresence in the Creation was veiled by the special + presence in the Zaddik. Chassidism became mere Zaddikism, and its + subsequent history is identical with the downward development of that + cult.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Whether Baalshem + named his successor is doubtful. But the lead after his death was + assumed by his disciple Beer of Mizriez. This man's conversion to + Chassidism was an important event for the new community; his piety + and learning were beyond dispute, and, whereas during Baalshem's life + Chassidism had found its chief adherents among the lower classes of + society, Beer managed to gather round him many of the most learned + among his contemporaries. It was to these new and ardent disciples of + Beer that the expansion of Chassidism was chiefly due. They came + together from many quarters, and after Beer's death separated and + preached the new doctrine far and wide. Many even went forth during + the lifetime of their master, and at his command, to found fresh + branches of the new sect. Like Beer himself, they directed their + efforts <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page038">[pg 038]</span><a name= + "Pg038" id="Pg038" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> mainly to winning over + the educated sections of the Jews. The elder men paid little heed to + their word, but the youths, just fresh from their casuistic studies, + which had sharpened their wits and starved their souls, lent a ready + ear and an eager heart to the new doctrine. The uneducated were by no + means excluded; to them Chassidism held out a deeper consolation and + a grander hope than the current Rabbinism of the age; they therefore + joined the young community in large numbers without any special + effort being necessary to gain them over.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In their methods + of Prayer the Chassidim most conspicuously differed from the older + communities. Laying as they did supreme stress on the importance and + efficacy of prayer, they soon found it necessary to secede from the + existing synagogues and erect separate buildings for themselves. The + usual salaried Reader <span class="tei tei-q">“with the beautiful + voice and empty head,”</span> who naturally regarded his function as + a matter of business, was done away with and his place taken either + by the Zaddik himself or by some other distinguished person in the + community. The Chassidim also effected many changes in the liturgy. + Instead of the German they adopted the Spanish ritual. They excised + many prayers which, lacking the authority of antiquity, were cumbrous + in form or objectionable in matter. They inserted new prayers and + hymns of their own. They paid little regard to the prescribed hours + at which public worship should be held. Prayer began when they had + got themselves into the proper devotional frame of mind. Frequent + ablutions, perusal of mystical writings, introspective meditation + were the means by which they sought to gain the befitting mood. The + prayers themselves were <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page039">[pg + 039]</span><a name="Pg039" id="Pg039" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + accompanied by the usual phenomena of religious excitement. Some in + the zeal of their devotion began to dance; others were rapt in a + motionless ecstasy; some prayed aloud; others in solemn silence. They + justified their abrogation of fixed hours for prayer by saying that + you cannot order a child when to speak with its father: such + restraint were fit only for slaves.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As a rule the + larger number of the younger Chassidim were able to devote their + whole time to religious exercises. It was the custom among the Jews + in Eastern Europe for the young men to live at the expense of their + own or their wives' parents, in order that they might give themselves + up entirely to religious study. According to the old notions, this + meant the study of the Talmud and its Commentaries; the Chassidim who + cared little for the legal side of Jewish literature betook + themselves to the literature of edification and mysticism. No small + part of their time was taken up with endless conversations about the + Zaddik, his piety, goodness, and self-sacrifice and the wonderful + miracles which he had wrought. If a Zaddik was living in his own + town, the youthful Chassid spent as many hours as he could in the + Zaddik's company, in order to observe and study this embodied Torah + as constantly as possible. Where no Zaddik was at hand, periodical + pilgrimages were made to the town in which he lived, and endless were + the tales which were afterwards repeated, to those who were obliged + to stay at home, of the Zaddik's marvellous wisdom and extraordinary + deeds. The last hours of the Sabbath day were looked upon as a + special season of grace, and the Chassidim were therefore in the + habit of collecting together in the waning of the Sabbath and + celebrating the so-called <span class="tei tei-q">“Supper of the Holy + Queen.”</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page040">[pg + 040]</span><a name="Pg040" id="Pg040" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> The + meal was accompanied by the usual conversations as well as by hymns + and prayers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Chassidim were + second to no other sect in their loyalty and affection for each + other. No sacrifice for a brother Chassid was too great. They knew no + difference of rich and poor, old and young, wise and ignorant; for + they all, with one accord, worshipped one common ideal, the Zaddik, + who in his exalted position was equally raised above them all. Before + him all minor differences of rank disappeared. When a Chassid + travelled, he had no scruple in asking for lodging or entertainment + in the house of any Chassid who could afford to give them. If he was + in money difficulties the purse of his host was at his disposal. If + that was not sufficient, it was supplemented by a grant from the fund + of the community. These gifts were not looked upon in the light of + charity either by giver or receiver; they were made to the Zaddik, to + whom all Chassidim alike were debtors. It sometimes even happened + that a Zaddik said that the son of some rich merchant was to marry + the daughter of a poor schoolmaster, and both parties were equally + delighted to fulfil the wish of their beloved chief.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may easily be + imagined that the innovations of the Chassidim provoked the wrath of + the orthodox communities. But in their detestation of the Rabbis the + Chassidim returned in full measure all the hatred they received. The + Zaddik is the Moses of his age: the Rabbis its Korah and Abiram. + Where the Chassidic party in any community gained the upper hand, the + Rabbi was deposed and a Zaddik, if that was possible, elected in his + place. The issue of these bitter attacks upon the old nobility of the + Jewish race was a rigorous persecution. In many places <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page041">[pg 041]</span><a name="Pg041" id="Pg041" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the Chassidim were excommunicated, in + others their leaders were publicly scourged and put into the stocks. + Their books were burnt and their synagogues forcibly closed. But + persecution produced only the usual result of increasing the + popularity and the numbers of the sect. The devotion of the Chassidim + to each other and to their common cause was increased a hundred-fold + by suffering. In one case a distinguished Zaddik was accused of + treason, before the Russian authorities, and was thrown into prison. + In Russia, however, the power of money is considerable, and on + payment of a large ransom not only was the beloved Zaddik released + but as an obvious consequence his reputation greatly profited: the + day of his release was celebrated as a yearly festival, while his + sufferings were regarded by his followers as a sin-offering that + atoned for the iniquities of his age. From this time the government + maintained a purely neutral attitude towards the new sect, and ere + long the persecution by the orthodox ceased.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The cessation of + persecution may possibly be accounted for by the fact that Chassidism + as a secession soon ceased to be formidable. There were early + divisions within the sect. Even Beer's disciples began to quarrel + over theological differences and to found separate communities. When + once the course of corruption and spiritual decay had begun, it was + the interest of the false Zaddikim to accentuate these differences. + Each Zaddik sought to have a whole little sect to himself, from which + to draw an undivided revenue. And each deluded little sect as it + arose boasted of the exclusive possession of the true Zaddik.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It must not be + supposed that these strictures apply to the whole class of Zaddikim. + The greater number of Baalshem's leading disciples as well as Beer's + were beyond <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page042">[pg + 042]</span><a name="Pg042" id="Pg042" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + question men of pure, unalloyed piety, who would have rejected with + scorn any idea of making a trade of their sacred profession. Their + motives and their zeal were alike ideal. Many gave up highly paid + posts as Rabbis when they joined the new sect. Some emigrated to + Palestine to lead a holy life on holy ground, others sought to become + religious specialists, following out practically, although with some + exaggeration, a favourite doctrine of the Founder, that he who + observes but one commandment devotedly and lovingly, may reach the + goal desired: the union with God. Thus one Zaddik made it his + business never to tell the smallest falsehood, whatever the cost or + the inconvenience of truth might be. It is related that the Russian + Government, suspecting the Jews of his town of smuggling, consented + to withdraw the charge if he declared his brethren innocent. Having + no alternative but either to bring misfortune on his brethren or to + tell an untruth, he prayed to God to save him from this dilemma by + sending death upon him. And lo! when the officials came to fetch him + before the law court they found him dead. Another, thinking that the + commandment in Exodus xxiii. 3, relating to the help that should be + given to a neighbour or enemy when <span class="tei tei-q">“his ass + is lying under its burden,”</span> was practically unobserved, + devoted himself to its fulfilment. He was continually to be seen in + the streets, helping one man to load his waggon, and another to drag + his cart out of the mire. A third made the service of the oppressed + his religious specialty. It is said that one day his wife, having had + a quarrel with her maid, was setting out to the magistrate of the + town to obtain satisfaction. Noticing that her husband was about to + accompany her, she asked him whither he was bound. He replied, + <span class="tei tei-q">“to the magistrate.”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page043">[pg 043]</span><a name="Pg043" id="Pg043" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> His wife declared that it was below his + dignity to take any part in a quarrel with a servant. She could deal + with the matter herself. The Zaddik replied, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“That may be, but I intend to represent your maid, who + when accused by my wife will find no one willing to take her + part.”</span> And then, bursting into a passion of tears, he quoted + Job xxxi. 13: <span class="tei tei-q">“If I did despise the cause of + my man-servant or of my maid-servant, when they contended with me, + what shall I do when God riseth up?”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Several Zaddikim + were learned men and thinkers of no ordinary kind. The works of + Solomon Ladier or of Mendel Witipsker, read with attention and + without Western preconceptions, certainly give the impression of both + originality and depth of thought. But most characteristic of all is + the passionate yearning of authors such as these towards the Divine. + The reader is astonished and moved by the intense sincerity and + ardour of their longing after God. But, despite the adherence of + these worthy men, the fate of Chassidism, as a regenerative force, + was sealed from the day when Zaddikism replaced the original + doctrines of the sect.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For, apart from + the obvious theological considerations already suggested, there are + two points of inherent weakness in the cult of the Zaddik which + naturally doomed it to perversion and failure. The necessary + qualifications for <span class="tei tei-q">“Zaddikship”</span> are + wholly undefined. We hear a great deal about what a Zaddik actually + is, but we hear very little about what he should be. The Zaddik has + many virtues, but we are nowhere told what are his indispensable + qualifications. Moreover, the Zaddik is a being who can be + comprehended by the understanding as little as an angel, or as God + Himself. He is realised by faith, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page044">[pg 044]</span><a name="Pg044" id="Pg044" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> not conceived by thought. Hence there is no + human test of a true Zaddik except the test of miracles; and every + student of religious history knows the deceitful character of that + test.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The second source + of danger arose from the Chassidim holding it to be their sacred duty + to provide for the Zaddik a life of comfort and ease. The Zaddik must + pursue his divine avocations undisturbed by grosser cares. But what + were the consequences? The Chassidim believed they could win the + grace and blessing of the Zaddik by the richness and variety of their + gifts. A Zaddik's career became a very profitable concern. The result + of both defects was that not only was the opportunity given for every + scheming charlatan to become a Zaddik, but inducements were offered + to make the deception lucrative. Hence the anxiety of the false + Zaddikim, already noticed, to found separate communities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Among the + Chassidim of to-day there is not one in ten thousand who has the + faintest conception of those sublime ideas which inspired Baalshem + and his immediate disciples. It is still the interest of the wretched + ringleaders of a widely spread delusion to crush and keep down every + trace of reflection and thought so that they may play at will with + the conscience and purses of their adherents. The new scientific + movement, inaugurated by such men as Krochmal, Zunz, and others who + came under the influence of the German critical spirit, found in them + its hottest and most fanatical opponents. That the cult of the + Zaddikim has not led to still more disastrous consequences is solely + due to the fact that the Chassidim in general have remained faithful + to the Law. It is the Law, against the excessive study of which the + original <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page045">[pg + 045]</span><a name="Pg045" id="Pg045" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Chassidim protested, that has put limits to the license of its modern + false prophets.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Amid much that is + bad, the Chassidim have preserved through the whole movement a warm + heart, and an ardent, sincere faith. There is a certain openness of + character and a ready friendliness about even the modern Chassidim + which are very attractive. Religion is still to them a matter of life + and death. Their faith is still real enough to satisfy the demands of + a Luther, but it is diverted and wasted upon unworthy objects. If + Chassidism is to be reformed, its worship must no longer be of man; + it must be brought back again to the source of all Beauty, all + Wisdom, and all Goodness; it must be restored to God.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page046">[pg 046]</span><a name= + "Pg046" id="Pg046" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc7" id="toc7"></a> <a name="pdf8" id="pdf8"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">II. Nachman Krochmal and the</span> + <span class="tei tei-q" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 173%">“</span><span style="font-size: 173%">Perplexities + Of The Time</span><span style="font-size: 173%">”</span></span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In her + good-natured panegyric of mediocrity which is known under the title + of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Scenes + of Clerical Life</span></span>, George Eliot remarked: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Let us hope that there is a saving + ignorance.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Strange as this + demand may sound, the wish of the great novelist to see her favoured + mediocrities <span class="tei tei-q">“saved,”</span> has been shared + by the great majority of mankind. I know that I, at least, echo that + desire with all my heart. And I am afraid that I am prompted by some + rather selfish reasons. It would be somewhat hard, when one is born + with small abilities, but a great desire for being saved, to be + deprived of the hope held out by the author of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Adam + Bede</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But there are + some, I am afraid, who are not satisfied with this dictum of George + Eliot. They show a strong tendency to make salvation a monopoly of + ignorance. This is a little too selfish. With all due respect to + every form of ignorance, sacred as well as profane, we ought, I + think, to believe that there is also such a thing as a saving + knowledge. Nay, we might go even farther. There may be certain epochs + in history when there is hardly any <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page047">[pg 047]</span><a name="Pg047" id="Pg047" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> other path to salvation than knowledge, and the + deep search after truth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We all know the + words of the Psalmist, <span class="tei tei-q">“The Lord preserveth + the simple.”</span> But as there are periods in the life of the + individual when naïveté has to give way to sagacity and reflection, + so there are times in history at which Providence does not choose to + leave men in simplicity. At such times doubts arise, as though of + themselves; questions suddenly become open when they had been + supposed solved for centuries; and the human mind is stirred by a + sceptical breeze of which no man can tell whence it came. One may + under those circumstances be indifferent, but one can be simple no + more.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Even in such + cases, however, man has no cause to despair. When our dearest beliefs + are shaken by all kinds of doubts, Providence sends us also great + thinkers, earnest lovers of truth, who devote their lives to + enlightening our puzzled minds. Not that these men try to answer all + the questions by which we feel perplexed. They endeavour to satisfy + us, partly by showing that many of our difficulties are not + difficulties at all, but merely arise from superficiality, and partly + by proving that the great cause about which we feel so much anxiety + does not exactly depend on the solution of the questions that are + troubling us. They give to the things which are dearer to us than our + life a fresh aspect, which enables us to remain attached to them with + the same devotion and love as before. To speak again in the words of + the Psalmist: <span class="tei tei-q">“Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, + and they are created, and Thou renewest the face of the + earth.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This spirit that + renews the face of things is what I understand by <span class= + "tei tei-q">“saving knowledge.”</span> As men of that <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page048">[pg 048]</span><a name="Pg048" id="Pg048" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> saving knowledge we may regard Rabban + Johanan ben Zaccai<a id="noteref_19" name="noteref_19" href= + "#note_19"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">19</span></span></a> and his + disciples, who made it possible for Judaism to survive the + destruction of the Temple, which some believed to involve the end of + the religion. As such men we may look upon R. Saadiah Gaon and his + followers, who worked at a time when Judaism was menaced in its inner + life, namely in the tradition, by the attempts of the narrow-minded + Caraites to convert it into a bookish religion.<a id="noteref_20" + name="noteref_20" href="#note_20"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">20</span></span></a> Such men + were Maimonides and his successors, who came to the aid of religion + when it had got into dogmatic troubles by reason of its coming into + contact with various philosophical systems. And in order to approach + the subject of the present essay, I venture to say that a man of such + saving knowledge was also Nachman Krochmal, who lived and laboured in + the first half of the present century, when Judaism had been terribly + shaken by the scepticism of Voltaire, and the platitudes of the + so-called Mendelssohnian school.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nachman Krochmal + was born on the 17th of February in the year 1785. His father, + Solomon Krochmal, was a merchant of Brody, a commercial frontier town + in the north-east of Galicia in Austria. In his early years Solomon + often used to visit Berlin for business purposes. He is said to have + seen Mendelssohn there on one occasion, and to have learned greatly + to revere the Jewish sage. And it is not unlikely that Nachman's + subsequent admiration for Mendelssohn was partly due to his father's + influence.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Solomon was a man + of considerable wealth, and he, therefore, endeavoured to give his + son the best possible education. But as a respectable member of a + Polish community a hundred years ago, Solomon had to follow the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page049">[pg 049]</span><a name="Pg049" + id="Pg049" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> fashion adopted by his + neighbours, and the best possible education consisted in affording + the child an opportunity to study the Talmud and other Rabbinical + works. All other languages and their literatures were sealed books to + the child—a very absurd and regrettable fashion indeed. But let us + not be too hard on Polish Jews. I have been told that there are + countries on our globe where people have been driven by the force of + fashion into the opposite extreme; where, with few exceptions, they + think that the Talmud, as well as the whole Hebrew literature, must + needs be excluded from the programme of a gentleman's education.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Happily, or the + reverse, Krochmal's childhood did not last long, for in the year 1798 + we find that Nachman, a boy of fourteen, was already married to a + Miss Haberman in Zolkiew. As a result of this foolish custom of + marrying at so very early an age, Nachman was hardly ever a boy; we + have at once to deal with him as a man.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It was then + customary in Poland, and perhaps is so still, for the father of the + bride to provide for the support of the young couple for some years + after their marriage. In order to reduce the expense of this + arrangement, the bridegroom had to reside in the same house as his + father-in-law. Thus we see Krochmal removing from Brody to Zolkiew, + the native town of his wife. Here Krochmal lived in the house of her + father for many years, entirely devoted to his studies; and he + certainly needed all his time for them. For he now began to expand + the sphere of his education, to embrace subjects quite new to him. By + his marriage Nachman seems to have gained a certain amount of + independence, and the first use he made of it was to study the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide of + the Perplexed</span></span><a id="noteref_21" name="noteref_21" href= + "#note_21"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">21</span></span></a> of + Maimonides, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page050">[pg + 050]</span><a name="Pg050" id="Pg050" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Commentaries</span></span> of Ibn Ezra on the + Bible,<a id="noteref_22" name="noteref_22" href= + "#note_22"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">22</span></span></a> and + other more or less philosophical works written in the Hebrew + language. His next step was to learn German; but, as his biographers + inform us, he was not able to follow this course without undergoing + many struggles, and overcoming many obstacles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It would lead us + too far to give a full account of the difficulties which the young + scholar had to conquer while pursuing his new studies. They will be + sufficiently characterised by the following extract from a Hebrew + letter of his disciple, Solomon Leb Rapoport, who, writing in 1841 + concerning his master and friend, remarks: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Consider this, ye inhabitants of Germany”</span>—and, I + may add, ye inhabitants of England—<span class="tei tei-q">“and you + will be astounded. It is easy for you to avoid being one-sided, and + to study different sciences, for you possess many schools and + teachers from every branch of learning. It is not so in Poland and + Russia even at present, much less was it so forty years ago. There is + no teacher, no guide, no supporter, for the Jew who desires any sort + of improvement. The Jew who wishes to enter on a new path of learning + has to prepare the road for himself. And when he has entered on it, + his friend will come to him and ask, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Is it + true that you have got scientific books in your house? Mind you do + not mention it to any one. There are enough bigots in the town to + persecute you and all your family if they get scent of + it.’</span> ”</span> It was under these conditions that Krochmal + pursued his studies, which were by no means few or easy, for he was + not content with a knowledge of only the lighter portions of German + literature. He soon began to read the works of Lessing, Mendelssohn, + and more especially of Kant, who always <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page051">[pg 051]</span><a name="Pg051" id="Pg051" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> remained his favourite philosopher. In his + later years he also became acquainted with the writings of Fichte, + Schelling, and Hegel. But to the last he could not console himself + for having missed the advantages of a systematic university + education.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After having + learned German, Krochmal proceeded to acquire a knowledge of Latin + and French, and to read the best books written in those languages. To + deepen his knowledge of Hebrew, he studied Arabic and Syraic, but we + are unable to say how far he succeeded in mastering these languages. + With these studies, which appear to have occupied our philosopher for + an interval of ten years after his marriage, the first period of his + life seems also to end. But the hard work of ten years did not pass + over the delicate youth without undermining his health for ever. At + the age of twenty-four, Krochmal fell sick of an illness which + compelled him to interrupt his work. He was forced to go to Lemberg + to consult the doctors of that town, and he had to remain there for a + long time. And now began Krochmal's career as a teacher. For during + his stay at Lemberg there gathered round him a band of young scholars + whom Krochmal's fame had already reached. It is useless to enumerate + the names of all these students. Among them figured Isaac Erter, + Samson Bloch, A. Bodek, and many others. The most gifted of them was + undoubtedly Rapoport, who afterwards became even more famous than his + master Krochmal. It is not easy to define accurately the relation + that subsisted between these two men. Graetz, in his history, calls + Rapoport a disciple of Krochmal. Rapoport himself, in his memoir of + Krochmal, describes the latter as a dear friend with whom he was wont + to discuss literary topics. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page052">[pg + 052]</span><a name="Pg052" id="Pg052" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Zunz does not mention Rapoport at all in his account of our author. + It seems to me that this relation may be most aptly defined by the + Talmudic term <span class="tei tei-q">“Talmid-Chaber,”</span><a id= + "noteref_23" name="noteref_23" href="#note_23"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">23</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“disciple-colleague.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, Krochmal's + whole method of teaching was rather that of a companion than of a + professor. He gave no set lectures on particular subjects, but + conveyed his instruction rather by means of suggestive conversations + with his younger friends. His usual habit was to walk with his pupils + in the neighbourhood of the town, and to try to influence their minds + each in accordance with its bent. If any of his disciples showed an + inclination for poetry, Krochmal sought to refine his taste by + directing his attention to the best works in Hebrew and German + literature. To another, whose fancy strayed into mysticism, he + recommended the writings of Philo and Ibn Ezra, at the same time + suggesting how the works of the latter should be interpreted. A third + who, like Rapoport, was interested in historical researches, Krochmal + instructed in the methods of critical inquiry.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There must have + been some fascinating charm in Nachman's personality, which made him + irresistible to all who came into contact with him. Rapoport has + described his first interview with Krochmal. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“It is more than thirty years since I first made his + acquaintance, and beheld the glory of his presence. Though he was in + weak health, still his soul was strong; and as soon as I conversed + with him there came over me a spirit of judgment and knowledge. I + felt almost transformed into another man.”</span> Elsewhere the same + writer says: <span class="tei tei-q">“Oh, how sweet to me were these + walks with Krochmal—sweeter than all the pleasures of this world. I + could never have enough <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page053">[pg + 053]</span><a name="Pg053" id="Pg053" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + his wisdom; with his every word he conveyed a new lesson.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After a lengthy + stay at Lemberg, Krochmal partially, though not entirely, recovered + from his severe illness; he remained weak and pale for the rest of + his days. His antagonists, the Chassidim, believed him to be + possessed by a demon who could find no better dwelling-place than in + the person of this arch-heretic. Had it been in their power they + would probably have dragged him to some exorcist for the purpose of + driving out his German, French, Latin, and other symptoms of + demoniacal heresy. Happily the orthodox were powerless to do this, so + Krochmal was left unmolested, and was allowed to resume his walks and + studies. It may be here remarked that Krochmal in general avoided + giving the Chassidim any cause for reasonable complaint. Rapoport + asserts that his master was <span class="tei tei-q">“deeply religious + and a strict observer of the law. He was zealously anxious to perform + every ordinance, Biblical or Rabbinical.”</span> The only liberty + that Krochmal claimed for himself and his disciples was the right to + study what they thought best and in the way they thought best. When + this liberty was attacked, he showed a firmness and resolution which + would hardly have been expected from this quiet and gentle man. To + one of his pupils, who made concessions to the Chassidim and their + Zaddikim worship, Krochmal wrote: <span class="tei tei-q">“Be firm in + this matter unless you wish to earn the contempt of every honest man. + One who is afraid of these people, and debases himself before them + bears a mean soul that was born to slavery. The man that wishes to + rise above the mob, with its confused notions and corrupt morality, + must be courageous as a lion in conquering the obstacles that beset + his path. Consideration <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page054">[pg + 054]</span><a name="Pg054" id="Pg054" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + what people will say, what bigots will whisper, what crafty enemies + will scheme—questions such as these can have but one effect,—to + darken the intellect and confuse the faculty of judgment.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">So Krochmal + continued his studies without interruption till 1814, when the death + of his wife's mother brought his period of ease and comfort to an + end. His father-in-law seems to have died some time before, and + Krochmal was forced to seek his own living. He became a merchant, but + it is to be regretted that he did not prove as successful a man of + business as he was a man of letters. He found it a hard struggle to + earn a living. But the severest trial which he had to undergo was the + death of his wife in 1826. In a letter, dating from about this time, + to a friend who had asked him for assistance in his philosophical + inquiries, Krochmal wrote—<span class="tei tei-q">“How can I help you + now? I am already an old man; my head is gray, and my health is + broken. In the last three years I have met with many misfortunes. My + beloved wife died after a long illness. My daughter will soon leave + me to get married, my elder son will depart to seek his livelihood, + and I shall be left alone with only a child of ten years, the son of + my old age. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills: From whence + shall my help come?”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nachman was + evidently in very low spirits at this time, but he was in too true a + sense a philosopher to despair. He turned for comfort to his studies, + and at this dark epoch of his life he first became acquainted with + the Philosophy of Hegel, whose system he was wont to call the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Philosophy of Philosophies.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For the next ten + years the works of Hegel and inquiries into Jewish history appear to + have absorbed all the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page055">[pg + 055]</span><a name="Pg055" id="Pg055" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + leisure that his mercantile occupation left him. We shall presently + see what the result of these studies was. No fresh subjects were + undertaken by Krochmal in the last years of his life; he had already + acquired a fund of knowledge vast enough to engage all his thoughts. + There are, however, some remaining points in his private + circumstances which it may not be uninteresting to mention.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Krochmal, as has + been already related, was not prosperous in his business. Things went + from bad to worse, and he was compelled in 1836 to seek a situation. + <span class="tei tei-q">“There ought to be literary men poor,”</span> + some writer has maintained, <span class="tei tei-q">“to show whether + they are genuine or not.”</span> This test Krochmal successfully + passed through. Even as a young man Nachman's strength of character + was admired by his contemporaries not less than his rare learning. In + his subsequent distress, he gave evidence of the truth of this + judgment. Despite his poverty, his friends could not prevail upon him + to accept the post of Rabbi in any Jewish community. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“I am unwilling,”</span> he wrote to a friend, + <span class="tei tei-q">“to be the cause of dissensions in any Jewish + congregation. I should prefer to die of hunger rather than become a + Rabbi under present circumstances.”</span> He expressed his views on + this subject even more decidedly on a later occasion when the Berlin + congregation offered him the post of Chief Rabbi in that town. In a + letter, conveying his refusal of this honourable office, he says: + <span class="tei tei-q">“I never thought of becoming the + Conscience-counsellor (<span lang="de" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="de"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gewissensrath</span></span>) of men. My line of + studies was not directed to that end, nor would it accord with my + disposition and sentiments. The only post that I should care to + accept would be that of teacher in the Jewish Theological Seminary, + which, as I was informed, you were thinking of establishing in + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page056">[pg 056]</span><a name="Pg056" + id="Pg056" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Berlin.”</span> The plan to + found such an institution was not realised till forty years later, + and in the interval Nachman had to look for his living in other + regions than Jewish theology. Being in poor circumstances, and as his + children and friends had left him, he felt very lonely at Zolkiew. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Nobody cares for me here,”</span> he writes, + <span class="tei tei-q">“and I am equally indifferent.”</span> His + one desire was to obtain a situation at Brody, possibly as + book-keeper with a salary of some thirty pounds a year, on condition + that he would be expected to devote only half the day to his business + duties, thus securing for himself leisure for philosophical + studies.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">His terms were + accepted, and he obtained the humble post he sought. He remained in + Brody for the next two years, 1836-8, but at the end of 1838 he fell + so dangerously ill that he could no longer resist the pressing + request of his daughter to live with her at Tarnopol. She had urged + him to take this step even previous to his removal to Brody, but he + had declined on the plea that he preferred to live by the labour of + his hands. Now, however, he yielded to her wish, and betook himself + to Tarnopol, where for two years longer he lived affectionately + tended by his children and respected by all who knew him. In May + 1840, Krochmal's illness began to develop fatal symptoms, and he died + in the arms of his daughter on the 31st of July (the first of Ab), at + the age of fifty-five. As Zunz happily remarked: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“This great man was born on the 7th of Adar, the birthday + of Moses (according to Jewish tradition), and died on the first of + Ab, the anniversary of the death of Aaron, the High + Priest.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have tried in + the foregoing remarks to give a short sketch of our Rabbi's life + according to the accounts of Zunz, Rapoport, and Letteris. There is + one other point <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page057">[pg + 057]</span><a name="Pg057" id="Pg057" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to + which I must allude, as it involves a consideration on which Letteris + seems to lay much stress. This biographer appears to think that + Krochmal was in his youth greatly influenced by the society in which + he moved, consisting as it did of many learned and enlightened men. + There is, too, the oft-quoted saying of Goethe:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Wer den Dichter will + verstehen</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Muss in Dichters Lande + gehen.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And I am probably + expected to give some account of the state of society in which + Nachman grew up. I regret that I must ask to be excused from doing + so. I cannot consent to take the reader to Krochmal's land. And if I + might venture to give him my humble advice, I should only say, + <span class="tei tei-q">“By all means stop at home.”</span> Goethe + may be right about the poet, but his remark does not apply to the + case of the scholar. It may be true, as some think, that every great + man is the product of his time, but it certainly does not follow that + he is the product of his country. Nor could I name any other country + of which Krochmal was the product. Many a city no doubt boasted + itself a town full of <span class="tei tei-q">“<span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chakhamim</span></span> and <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sopherim</span></span>”</span><a id="noteref_24" + name="noteref_24" href="#note_24"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">24</span></span></a> as the + Hebrew phrase is, or, as we would express it, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“a seat of learning,”</span> full of scholars of the + ancient and modern schools. But neither these ancient scholars nor + the modern were of a kind to produce a real scholar and an + enlightened thinker like Krochmal. There were many men who knew by + heart the whole of the Halachic works of Maimonides, the Mishnah, and + even the whole of the Babylonian Talmud. This is very imposing. But + if you look a little closer, you will find that with a few + exceptions—such as the school of R. Elijah Wilna—these men, generally + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page058">[pg 058]</span><a name="Pg058" + id="Pg058" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> speaking, hardly deserve the + name of scholars at all. They were rather a sort of studying engines. + The steam-engine passes over a continent, here through romantic + scenery, there in the midst of arid deserts, by stream and mountain + and valley, always with the same monotonous hum and shriek. So these + scholars went through the Talmud with never changing feelings. They + did not rejoice at the description which is given in tractate + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Biccurim</span></span><a id="noteref_25" name= + "noteref_25" href="#note_25"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">25</span></span></a> of the + procession formed when the first-fruits were brought into the Holy + Temple. They were not much saddened when reading in tractate + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Taanith</span></span><a id="noteref_26" name= + "noteref_26" href="#note_26"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">26</span></span></a> of the + unhappy days so recurrent in Jewish history. They were not delighted + by the wisdom of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Seder Nezikin</span></span>,<a id="noteref_27" + name="noteref_27" href="#note_27"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">27</span></span></a> which + deals with civil law; nor were they vexed of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Seder + Taharoth</span></span>,<a id="noteref_28" name="noteref_28" href= + "#note_28"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">28</span></span></a> which + treats of the laws of cleanliness and uncleanliness, that by their + exaggeration gave cause to much dissension in the time of the Temple. + The pre-Talmudic literature, such as the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Siphra</span></span>, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphré</span></span>, and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span><a id="noteref_29" name= + "noteref_29" href="#note_29"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">29</span></span></a>—the only + existing means of obtaining an insight into the Talmud—were + altogether neglected. All that these readers cared for was to push on + to the end, and the prayer recited at the close was of more + importance to them than the treatise they had perused.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Not less + melancholy was the spectacle presented by the so-called men of + <span class="tei tei-q">“Enlightenment”</span> (<span lang="de" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="de"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Aufklärung</span></span>). They belonged chiefly + to the rationalistic school of Mendelssohn, but they equalled their + master neither in knowledge nor in moral character. It was an + enlightenment without foundation in real scholarship, and did not + lead to an ideal life, though again I must add that there were + exceptions. These men were rather what Germans would term <span lang= + "de" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="de"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Schöngeister</span></span>, a set of dilettanti + who cared to study as little as <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page059">[pg 059]</span><a name="Pg059" id="Pg059" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> possible, and to write as much as possible. + They wrote bad grammars, superficial commentaries on the Bible, and + terribly dull poems. Of this literature, with the exception of + Erter's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Watchman</span></span>,<a id="noteref_30" name= + "noteref_30" href="#note_30"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">30</span></span></a> there is + scarcely a work that one would care to read twice. Most of them + despised Rabbinism, but without understanding its noblest forms as + they are to be traced in the Talmud and later Hebrew literature. They + did not dislike Judaism, but the only Judaism they affected was one + <span class="tei tei-q">“which does not oppose itself to anything in + particular”</span>; or, as Heine would have described it, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Eine reinliche Religion.”</span> In one + respect these little men were great: in mutual admiration, which + reached such a pitch that such titles as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Great Luminary,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“World-famed Sage,”</span> were considered altogether too + insignificant and commonplace.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I will now pass to + the writings of Krochmal. It must be premised that Krochmal was not a + voluminous author. All his writings, including a few letters which + were published in various Hebrew periodicals, would scarcely occupy + four hundred pages. Krochmal used to call himself <span class= + "tei tei-q">“der ewige Student”</span> (the perpetual pupil). He did + not read books, nor study philosophical systems, with the object of + writing books of his own on them. He read and studied in order that + he might become a better and a wiser man. Besides, he did not think + himself competent to judge on grave subjects, nor did he consider his + judgment, even if he formed one, worthy of publication. He counselled + his friends to be equally slow in publishing their views to the + world. <span class="tei tei-q">“Be not,”</span> he wrote to a + correspondent,—<span class="tei tei-q">“be not hasty in forming your + opinions before you have studied the literature of the subject with + care and devotion. This is no easy matter, for no man can + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page060">[pg 060]</span><a name="Pg060" + id="Pg060" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> obtain any real knowledge of + the Torah and philosophy unless he is prepared to give himself up in + single-hearted devotion to his studies.”</span> Severe though he was + to his friends, he was still more severe to himself. Though he had + been collecting materials on subjects of Jewish history and + philosophy from his early youth, it was not until he had endured much + persuasion and pressure from his friends that he began to write down + his thoughts in a connected form. We thus possess only one work from + the pen of this author; but that work is the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide of the Perplexed + of the Time</span></span>,<a id="noteref_31" name="noteref_31" href= + "#note_31"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">31</span></span></a> a + posthumous book published in 1851, eleven years after Krochmal's + death. His work had been much interrupted by illness during the last + years of his life, and as a necessary consequence many parts of his + treatise finally remained in an unfinished state. Krochmal + commissioned his children to hand over his papers to Zunz, who was to + arrange and edit them as best he might. Zunz, who in his reverence + for Krochmal went so far as to call him the man of God, gladly + accepted the task, in which he was aided by Steinschneider. + Unfortunately, the work was published in Lemberg, a place famous for + spoiling books. Even the skill of these two great masters did not + suffice to save Krochmal's work from the fate to which all the books + printed in Lemberg seem inevitably doomed. Thus Krochmal's work is + printed on bad paper, and with faint ink; it is full of misprints and + the text is sometimes confused with the notes. A second edition + appeared in Lemberg in 1863; but, it is scarcely necessary to add, + the reprint is even worse than the original issue.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The work occupies + some 350 pages, and is divided into seventeen chapters. The opening + six treat of Religion in general. The author first indicates the + opposite dangers <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page061">[pg + 061]</span><a name="Pg061" id="Pg061" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to + which men are liable. On the one hand, men are exposed to extravagant + phantasy (<span lang="de" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "de"><span style="font-style: italic">Schwärmerei</span></span>), + superstition and ceremonialism (<span lang="de" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="de"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Werkheiligkeit</span></span>). Some, on the + other hand, in their endeavour to avoid this danger, fall into the + opposite extreme, materialism, unbelief, and moral degeneracy as a + consequence of their neglect of all law. He proceeds to say: Even in + the ritual part of religion, such as the regulations of the Sabbath, + the dietary laws and so forth, we find abstract definitions + necessary, and differences of opinions prevalent. In the dogmatic + aspects of religion, dealing as they do with the grave subjects of + metaphysics, the mystery of life and death, the destiny of man, his + relation to God, reward and punishment, the inner meaning of the + laws,—in these spiritual matters, the difficulty of accurate + definition must be far greater and the opportunities for difference + of opinion more frequent and important. What guide are we to follow, + seeing that every error involves the most dangerous consequences? + Shall we abandon altogether the effort of thinking on these grave + subjects? Such a course is impossible. Do not believe, says Krochmal, + that there ever was a time when the religious man was entirely + satisfied by deeds of righteousness, as some people maintain. On the + contrary, every man, whether an independent thinker or a simple + believer, always feels the weight of these questions upon him. Every + man desires to have some ideal basis for his actions which must + constitute his real life in its noblest moments. Krochmal here quotes + a famous passage from the Midrash.<a id="noteref_32" name= + "noteref_32" href="#note_32"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">32</span></span></a> The + Torah, according to one of our ancient sages, may be compared to two + paths, the one burning with fire, the other covered with snow. If a + man enters on the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page062">[pg + 062]</span><a name="Pg062" id="Pg062" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + former path he will die by the heat; if he walks by the latter path + he will be frozen by the snow. What, then, must he do? He must walk + in the middle, or, as we should say, he must choose the golden mean. + But, as Krochmal suggests, the middle way in historical and + philosophical doubts does not consist, as some idle heads suppose, in + a kind of compromise between two opposing views. If one of two + contending parties declares that twice two make six, while his + opponent asserts that twice two make eight, a sort of compromise + might be arrived at by conceding that twice two make seven. But such + a compromise would be as false as either extreme; and the seeker + after the truth must revert to that mean which is the heart of all + things, independently of all factions, placing himself above + them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Having dealt with + the arguments relating to the existence of God as elaborated in the + philosophical systems of his time, Krochmal leads up to his treatment + of the History of Israel by a chapter on the ideal gifts bestowed + upon the various ancient nations, which, possessed by them through + many centuries, were lost when their nationality ceased. We next + come, in Chapter VII., to the ideal gifts of Israel. These are the + religious gift and the faculty and desire for seeking the ideal of + all ideals, namely, God. But Israel, whose mission it was to + propagate this ideal, was, even as other nations, subject to natural + laws; and its history presents progress and reaction, rise and + decline. Krochmal devotes his next three chapters to showing how, in + the history of Israel, as in other histories, may be detected a + triple process. These three stages are the budding, the period of + maturity, and the decay. As the history of Israel is <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page063">[pg 063]</span><a name="Pg063" id="Pg063" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> more a history of religion than of + politics and battles, its rise and decline correspond more or less + with Israel's attachment to God, and its falling away from Him. The + decay would be associated with the adoption of either of the + extremes, the dangerous effects of which have been already mentioned. + But <span class="tei tei-q">“through progress and backsliding, amid + infectious contact with idolatry, amid survival of old growths of + superstition, of the crude practices of the past; amid the + solicitation of new aspects of life; in material prosperity and in + material ruin,”</span> Israel was never wholly detached from God. In + the worst times it had its judges or its prophets, its heroes or its + sages, its Rabbis or its philosophers, who strove to bring Israel + back to its mission, and who succeeded in their efforts to do so. + Even in its decay traces of the Divine spirit made themselves felt, + and revived the nation, which entered again on a triple course and + repeated its three phases. The first of these three-fold epochs + began, according to Krochmal's eighth chapter, with the times of the + Patriarchs, and ended with the death of Gedaliah after the + destruction of the first Temple. Next, in the following two chapters, + Krochmal finds the second triple movement in the interval between the + prophets of the exile in Babylon and the death of Bar-Cochba about + 135 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span> The author also hints + at the existence of a third such epoch beginning with R. Judah the + Patriarch, the compiler of the Mishnah (220 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>),<a id="noteref_33" + name="noteref_33" href="#note_33"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">33</span></span></a> and + ending with the expulsion of the Jews from Spain (1492). This idea is + not further developed by Krochmal; but it would be interesting to + ask, by the way, in which phase of the three-fold process—rise, + maturity, or decay—are we at the present time?</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page064">[pg 064]</span><a name="Pg064" id="Pg064" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next five + chapters may be regarded as an excursus on the preceding two. + Krochmal discusses the Biblical books which belong to the period of + the Exile and of the Second Temple, such as the Second Isaiah, + certain Exilic and Maccabean psalms, Ecclesiastes, certain Apocryphal + books, and the work of the Men of the Great Synagogue. They contain, + again, researches on the various sects, such as the Assideans, + Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, the Gnostics, the Cabbalists and their + relation to the latter, and the Minim,<a id="noteref_34" name= + "noteref_34" href="#note_34"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">34</span></span></a> who are + mentioned in the Talmud. In another part of this excursus Krochmal + describes the systems of the Alexandrian Jewish philosophers, such as + Philo and Aristobulus, and discusses their relation to certain + theosophic ideas in various Midrash-collections. The author also + attempts to prove the necessity of Tradition; he shows its first + traces in the Bible, and explains the term Sopherim (scribes); and he + points out the meaning of the phrase <span class="tei tei-q">“A law + unto Moses from Mount Sinai,”</span><a id="noteref_35" name= + "noteref_35" href="#note_35"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">35</span></span></a> and + similar expressions. He gives a summary of the development of the + Halachah in its different stages, the criteria by which the older + Halachahs may be discriminated; he seeks to arrive at the origin of + the Mishnah, and deals with various cognate topics. In another + discourse Krochmal endeavours to explain the term Agadah,<a id= + "noteref_36" name="noteref_36" href="#note_36"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">36</span></span></a> its + origin and development; the different kinds of Agadah and their + relative value. Chapter XVI. contains the Prolegomena to a philosophy + of the Jewish religion in accordance with the principles laid down by + Hegel. In the seventeenth and last chapter the author gives a general + introduction to the Philosophy of Ibn Ezra, and quotes illustrative + extracts.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The space of an + essay does not permit me to give <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page065">[pg 065]</span><a name="Pg065" id="Pg065" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> further details of Krochmal's book. I am + conscious that the preceding outline is deficient in quality as well + as in quantity. Yet, even from this meagre abstract, the reader will + gather that Krochmal reviews many of the great problems which concern + religion in general and Judaism in particular. Zunz somewhere remarks + that Krochmal was inspired in his work by the study of Hegel, just as + Maimonides had been by the study of Aristotle. I give this statement + solely on the authority of Zunz, as I myself have never made a study + of the works of the German philosopher, and am therefore unable to + express an opinion on the question.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now there is no + doubt that Krochmal's book is not without defects. The materials are + not always well arranged, there is at times a want of proportion in + the length at which the various points are treated, and the author + occasionally seems to wander from the subject in hand. But we shall + be better able to account for these and similar technical faults, as + well as to appreciate the real value of the author's work, if we + consider the following fact. Nachman Krochmal's object was to + elaborate a philosophy of Jewish history, to trace the leading ideas + that ran through it, and the ultimate causes that led to its various + phases. But, unfortunately, at the time when Krochmal began to write, + there did not exist a Jewish history at all. The labours of Zunz were + conducted in an altogether different field. Not to mention the names + of the younger scholars then unborn, Graetz, the author of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">History of + the Jews</span></span>, and Weiss, who wrote a history of the + Tradition, were still studying at college. Frankel's masterly essays + on the Essenes and the Septuagint, his well-known work, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Introduction to + the</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page066">[pg + 066]</span><a name="Pg066" id="Pg066" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mishnah</span></span>, and the results of + Geiger's most interesting and suggestive researches on the older and + later Halachah, and on the Pharisees and Sadducees, had yet to be + written. Rapoport's great treatise, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Erech + Millin</span></span>,<a id="noteref_37" name="noteref_37" href= + "#note_37"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">37</span></span></a> had not + been published at that time, and Steinschneider was not yet working + at his historical sketch of Jewish literature. It was not till six + years after Krochmal's death (viz. in 1846) that Landauer's memorable + studies on the Jewish mystics were given to the world. Even the bad + books of Julius Fürst, such as his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">History of the + Canon</span></span>, and his still worse <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">History of Jewish + Literature in Babylon</span></span>, were then unwritten. Neither the + most charlatanic <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">History of the Opinions and Teachings of All the + Jewish Sects</span></span>, by Peter Beer, the universal provider, + nor Jost's most honest but narrow-minded and superficial <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">History of the + Jews</span></span>, was of much use to Krochmal. Jost's more + scholarly works were not published till long afterwards. Krochmal was + thus without the guidance of those authorities to which we are now + accustomed to turn for information. Excepting the aid that he derived + from the writings of Azariah de Rossi,<a id="noteref_38" name= + "noteref_38" href="#note_38"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">38</span></span></a> Krochmal + was therefore compelled to prosecute all the necessary research for + himself; he had to establish the facts of Jewish history as well as + to philosophise upon them. Hence, in the very midst of his + philosophical analysis, the author was bound to introduce digressions + on historical subjects, in order to justify as well as to form the + basis of that analysis. He had to survey the ground and to collect + the materials, besides constructing the plan of the edifice and + working at its erection. Nevertheless, it is precisely for these + historical excursuses that Krochmal has deserved the gratitude of + posterity. He it was who taught Jewish scholars how to <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page067">[pg 067]</span><a name="Pg067" id="Pg067" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> submit the ancient Rabbinic records to + the test of criticism and the way in which they might be utilised for + the purpose of historical studies; he it was who enabled them to + trace the genesis of the tradition, and to watch the inner + germination of that vast organism. He even indicated to them how they + might continue to connect their own lives with it, how they might + derive nourishment from it, and in their turn further its growth. I + may assert with the utmost confidence that there is scarcely a single + page in Krochmal's book that did not afterwards give birth to some + essay or monograph or even elaborate treatise, though their authors + were not always very careful about mentioning the source of their + inspiration. Thus Krochmal justly deserves the honourable title + assigned to him by one of our greatest historians, who terms him the + Father of Jewish Science.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">So far, I have + been speaking of the importance of Krochmal's treatise and of its + significance in the region of Jewish Science. It is necessary, I + think, to add a few words with regard to the general tendency of his + whole work. I have already alluded to the characteristic modesty of + Krochmal; I have pointed out how little he cared for publicity, how + dearly he loved retirement. The question accordingly presents + itself—What can have been the real and sufficient causes that + prevailed upon him to yield to the solicitations of his friends and + to write upon what the Talmud would term <span class= + "tei tei-q">“matters standing on the heights of the + world”</span>?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The answer to this + question may, I think, be found in the title of Krochmal's book, the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide of + the Perplexed of the Time</span></span>. It is indeed a rather + unusual coincidence for the title of a Hebrew book to have any + connection <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page068">[pg + 068]</span><a name="Pg068" id="Pg068" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with its subject matter. The same merit is possessed by the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide of + the Perplexed</span></span> of Maimonides, the title of which + undoubtedly suggested that of Krochmal's treatise. There is, however, + one little addition in Krochmal's title that contains a most + important lesson for us. I mean the words <span class="tei tei-q">“of + the Time.”</span> By these words Krochmal reminds us that, great as + are the merits of the immortal work of Maimonides—and it would be + difficult to exaggerate its value and importance—still it will no + longer suffice for us. For, as Krochmal himself remarks, every time + has its own perplexities, and therefore needs its own guide. In order + to show that these words are no idle phrase, I shall endeavour to + illustrate them by one example at least. In the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide of the + Perplexed</span></span> of Maimonides, Part II., Chapter XXVI., + occurs a passage which runs thus: <span class="tei tei-q">“In the + famous chapters known as the <span class="tei tei-q">‘Chapters of R. + Eliezer the Great,’</span><a id="noteref_39" name="noteref_39" href= + "#note_39"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">39</span></span></a> I find + R. Eliezer the Great saying something more extraordinary than I have + ever seen in the utterances of any believer in the Law of Moses. I + refer to the following passage: <span class="tei tei-q">‘Whence were + the heavens created? He (God) took part of the light of His garment, + He stretched it like a cloth, and thus the heavens were extending + continually, as it is said (Ps. civ. 2): He covereth Himself with + light as with a garment, He stretcheth the heavens like a curtain. + Whence was the earth created? He took of the snow under the throne of + glory, and threw it; according to the words (in Job xxxvii. 6), He + said to the snow be thou earth.’</span> These are the words given + there (in the <span class="tei tei-q">‘Chapters of R. Eliezer the + Great’</span>), and I, in my surprise, ask, What was the belief of + this sage? Did he think it impossible <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page069">[pg 069]</span><a name="Pg069" id="Pg069" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> that something be produced from nothing?... If + the terms <span class="tei tei-q">‘the light of His garment’</span> + and the <span class="tei tei-q">‘snow of glory’</span> mean something + eternal (as matter) they <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">must</span></em> be rejected.... In short, it is + a passage that greatly confuses the notions of all intelligent and + religious persons. I am unable to explain it + sufficiently.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">So far Maimonides; + and we are quite able to conceive his perplexity in dealing with this + passage. On one side, Maimonides himself believed that Judaism is a + dogmatic religion, and that one of its dogmas is the principle of + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creatio ex nihilo</span></span>. On the other + side, he found R. Eliezer—one of the greatest authorities of the + early part of the second century—apparently denying this dogma. The + perplexity was indeed a serious one for Maimonides, but we find no + difficulty whatever in extricating ourselves from it. In the first + place, there are many who cling to the theory which holds that there + are no dogmas in Judaism at all, and to them Maimonides' difficulty + would have no relevance. Secondly, those who believe that there are + dogmas in Judaism may regard such expressions as those quoted above + from the <span class="tei tei-q">“Chapters of R. Eliezer”</span> in + the light of mere poetical metaphors, or may call them fairy tales or + legends, or include them in some other section of literature, known + under the name of folklore, which is an excuse for every absurdity, + the fortunate authors of which are responsible neither to philosophy + nor to religion, and sometimes not even to common sense. But there is + a third consideration that affords the best solution of the + difficulty. The <span class="tei tei-q">“Chapters of R. + Eliezer,”</span> despite their pompous title, are not the work of R. + Eliezer at all. Criticism has taught us to attach no importance to + the heading of a chapter or the title-page of a book. We are + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page070">[pg 070]</span><a name="Pg070" + id="Pg070" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> now in a position to judge + from the tone, style, and contents of the work, that the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chapters of R. Eliezer”</span> is a later compilation of + the eighth century, and that its author could not have been R. + Eliezer, the teacher of R. Akiba, in the second century. In this way, + these particular difficulties of Maimonides solve themselves for us + in a sufficiently easy way. But it is just these solutions that open + up new difficulties and perplexities which did not exist for the + generation of the great Spanish philosopher. Suppose that we accept + the view that Judaism is not a dogmatic religion. But how are we to + conceive a religion without dogmas, or, if you prefer the expression, + without principles or bases of belief? Or is Judaism, as some + platitudinarians think, a mere national institute with some useful + dietary and sanitary laws, but with nothing that makes for the + sanctification of man, with no guidance to offer us in the great + problems of our life, and in the greatest anxieties of the human + soul? On the other hand, granted that we may consider certain things + as mere legend, how are we to discriminate between these and the + things that must be taken seriously? Does it depend on the nature of + the subject, or on the position of the book in the canon of Hebrew + literature? In the thirteenth century symbolical meanings were given + to certain difficult passages in the Talmud; but the process was + carried further, and the Biblical narratives were subjected by + philosophers to a like treatment. R. Solomon ben Adereth and his + colleagues (in the thirteenth century) settled the question by + indiscriminately excommunicating all young men who should study + philosophy; but this method is scarcely one to be commended for + present use.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The third, or the + philological solution of difficulties, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page071">[pg 071]</span><a name="Pg071" id="Pg071" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> leads to fresh troubles. A hundred years ago + men were in that happy state of mind in which they knew everything. + They knew the exact author and date of every Psalm; they knew the + author of each and every ancient Midrash; they knew the originator of + every law and ordinance; they even knew the writer of the Zohar, and + of other mystical books. There were certainly a few who did not know + all these things, among them Ibn Ezra, Azariah de Rossi, and the two + Delmedigos.<a id="noteref_40" name="noteref_40" href= + "#note_40"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">40</span></span></a> But they + were merely a miserable historical blunder, men who had no right to + be born when they were. But the philological method has swept away + all this knowingness as by a deluge from heaven, and men find that + they know nothing. True, there linger on a few who still know all + these things, but it is they who are now the anachronism. These, and + such as these, are the perplexities of our time, to the resolution of + which the labours of Krochmal and of a noble band of scholars have + been directed in this century.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Have these + perplexities, we must ask, and these puzzles been solved by Krochmal + and his coadjutors? We may with all certainty answer: They have only + pointed out the way, it is for ourselves to proceed by it. It would + be unreasonable to expect that difficulties which have been + accumulating during the course of thousands of years should be solved + by the men of one or two generations. Again, we live in a century in + which excavations and discoveries in other fields have added at once + to our knowledge and to our uncertainty. Each country, we might + almost say, over and above the perplexities that trouble mankind in + general, has its own special difficulties which are entirely unknown + to those who dwell outside its frontiers. I am not disposed to + discuss these difficulties <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page072">[pg + 072]</span><a name="Pg072" id="Pg072" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> in + this place. Nor have I the ability to do so. But of two things I am + perfectly certain: the first is, that for a solution of these + difficulties which, in the language of Maimonides, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“confuse the notions of all intelligent and religious + persons,”</span> the only hope is in true knowledge and not in + ignorance; and secondly, this knowledge can only be obtained by a + combination of the utmost reverence for religion and the deepest + devotion to truth. The poor old Rabbis who have been so foully + decried by their calumniators as hedonists, and so foolishly praised + by sorry apologists as materialistic optimists, strongly insisted + that when a man woos the truth, his suit can only prosper if he is + influenced by the purest and most single-hearted affection. + <span class="tei tei-q">“A man,”</span> says the Siphré, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“must not say: <span class="tei tei-q">‘I will study the + Torah in order that I may attain the title of Rabbi or savant, or + that I may become rich by it, or that I may be rewarded for it in the + world to come.’</span> He must study for love's sake.”</span> Such a + knowledge, which is free from all taint of worldliness and of + other-worldliness, a knowledge sought simply and solely for pure love + of God, who is Truth,—such a knowledge is in the highest sense a + saving knowledge, and Nachman Krochmal was in possession of it.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page073">[pg 073]</span><a name= + "Pg073" id="Pg073" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc9" id="toc9"></a> <a name="pdf10" id="pdf10"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">III. Rabbi Elijah Wilna, + Gaon</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The three great + stars of German literature are usually characterised by German + scholars in the following way: Goethe they say represents the + beautiful, Schiller the ideal, while Lessing represents truth. I + think that we may apply the same characteristics to the three great + luminaries, with which the Jewish middle ages ceased—for as Zunz + somewhere remarked, the Jewish middle ages lasted till the beginning + of the eighteenth century—and the modern age of Judaism opened. I am + thinking of Mendelssohn in Germany, Israel Baalshem, the founder of + the sect of the Chassidim in Podolia, and Elijah Wilna, or as he is + more frequently called, the Gaon,<a id="noteref_41" name="noteref_41" + href="#note_41"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">41</span></span></a> the + Great One, in Lithuania.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to Mendelssohn, + enough, and perhaps more than enough, has already been written and + spoken about his merits in awakening the sense for the beautiful and + the harmonious which was almost entirely dormant among the Jews of + his age. In regard to the second, namely, Israel Baalshem, I have + only to refer the reader to the first essay in this volume. The + subject of the present essay will be R. Elijah Wilna, who, among the + Jews, as Lessing among the Germans, represented truth, both by his + life and by his literary activity.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page074">[pg 074]</span><a name="Pg074" id="Pg074" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I say that the + Gaon represented truth, but these words must be taken <span lang="la" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">cum grano salis</span></span>. For I do not mean + at all to say that he was in possession of the whole truth, still + less in <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">exclusive</span></em> possession of it. It is + true as we shall learn in the course of this essay, that the Gaon was + a genius of the first order. But there are matters of truth, the + obtaining of which cannot be accomplished by genius alone. R. Elijah + Wilna did not know any other language than Hebrew. Truths, therefore, + which are only to be reached through the medium of other languages, + remained a secret to him. Again, records of ancient times which are + buried in the shelves of remote libraries or under the ruins of past + civilisations are not always a matter of intuition. Even the most + gifted of men have to wait patiently till these are brought to light + by the aid of spade and shovel, or the pen of some obscure copyist. + But R. Elijah lived at a time when excavation had as yet done very + little for Semitic studies, and when a Jew scarcely got admittance + into the great libraries of Europe. Thus much truth which we get now + in a very easy way was beyond this seer's eye.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But even if all + the libraries on earth had been at his disposal, even if he had read + all the cuneiform writings which ornament the British Museum, and had + deciphered all the Hieroglyphics which the Louvre possesses, even in + that case we should not be justified in terming him a representative + of the truth, without qualifying our words.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Truth,”</span> said the old Rabbis, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“is the Seal of the Holy One, praised be He.”</span> But + Heaven has no Lord Chancellor. Neither men nor angels are trusted + with the great Seal. They are only allowed to catch a glimpse of it, + or rather to long after this glimpse. However, even the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page075">[pg 075]</span><a name="Pg075" id="Pg075" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> longing and effort for this glimpse will + bring man into communion with God, and make his life divine. And the + life of the Gaon was, as we shall see, one long effort and unceasing + longing after the truth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, if I say + that the Gaon represented truth, you must not think that he lacked + the two other qualities. A life entirely devoted to such a great + cause as that of seeking the truth is, <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style="font-style: italic">ipso + facto</span></span>, ideal and harmonious. It is only in his + influence on Judaism—more particularly on the Jews in the North of + Europe—that this feature in his life becomes more prominent than his + other admirable qualities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In what this truth + consisted, how the Gaon arrived at it, and by what means he conveyed + it to others, we shall see in the course of this essay.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">R. Elijah was born + at Wilna in the year 1720. His father, Solomon Wilna, is called by + his biographers the great Rabbi Solomon, and is said to have been the + descendant of R. Moses Rivkas, the author of a learned work, + containing notes to the Code of the Law by R. Joseph Caro.<a id= + "noteref_42" name="noteref_42" href="#note_42"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">42</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Having quoted the + biographers, I must point out that there are only two biographies of + the Gaon: the one by Finn, in his book <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Faithful + City</span></span>,<a id="noteref_43" name="noteref_43" href= + "#note_43"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">43</span></span></a> on the + celebrities of Wilna, the other by Nachman of Horodna, in his book + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ascension + of Elijah</span></span>.<a id="noteref_44" name="noteref_44" href= + "#note_44"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">44</span></span></a> The + former is a very honest account of the Gaon's life, but a little too + short. The latter is too long, or rather too much intermixed with + that sort of absurd legend, the authors of which are incapable of + marking the line which separates the monster from the hero.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Even in the region + of imagination we must not for a moment forget the good advice given + to us by one of our <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page076">[pg + 076]</span><a name="Pg076" id="Pg076" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + greatest scholars who had to deal with a kindred subject: + <span class="tei tei-q">“He,”</span> says this scholar, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“who banishes the thought of higher and lower from his + study, degrades it into a mere means of gratifying his curiosity, and + disqualifies it for the lofty task which it is called upon to perform + for modern society.”</span> We shall thus cling to the higher and + stop at the hero.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Our hero was the + first-born of five brothers. They were all famous men in their little + world. According to the tradition in Wilna, Elijah was a lovely + child, with beautiful eyes, and goodly to look at, or as it is + expressed in another place, <span class="tei tei-q">“as beautiful as + an angel!”</span> The tradition, or rather the legend, relates that + as a child of six years he was already the pupil of R. Moses + Margalith, the famous author of a commentary on the Talmud of + Jerusalem. At the age of seven years he is said to have already + perplexed the Chief Rabbi of his native town by his controversial + skill in Talmudical subjects. At the early age of nine he was + acquainted with the contents of the Bible, the Mishnah, the Talmud + and its ancient commentaries; and even the Cabbalistic works of R. + Isaac Loria were no secret to the youthful scholar.<a id="noteref_45" + name="noteref_45" href="#note_45"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">45</span></span></a> At the + age of twelve years he is said to have acquired the seven liberal + arts, and to have puzzled the scholars of Wilna by his astronomical + knowledge. At thirteen, when according to Jewish law he attained his + majority, he was already the accomplished or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the great one”</span> (Gaon); so far tradition. I am + afraid that tradition is here, against all experience, too exact in + its dates. But we may learn from it that the child Elijah showed many + signs of the future Gaon, and was therefore considered as the prodigy + of his age. Again it is likewise pretty certain that no man could + boast of having been the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page077">[pg + 077]</span><a name="Pg077" id="Pg077" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + master of Elijah. He was not the product of any school, nor was he + biassed by the many prejudices of his time. He was allowed to walk + his own way in his struggle after truth.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is rather an + unfortunate thing that history is so much made up of parallels and + contrasts that the historian or even the biographer cannot possibly + point out the greatness of some men without touching, however + slightly, on the smallness of others. It is only natural that every + strong shining object should push the minor lights of its + surroundings into the background and darken them. Thus, when we are + speaking of the superiority of the Gaon, we cannot escape hinting at + least at the shortcomings of his contemporaries, as well as of his + predecessors.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To indicate + briefly in what this superiority consisted, I will premise here a few + words from a <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Responsum</span></span> by one of his great + predecessors, the Gaon Rabbi Hai.<a id="noteref_46" name="noteref_46" + href="#note_46"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">46</span></span></a> + Consulted by a student as to the meaning of certain mystical passages + in the tractate <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chagigah</span></span>,<a id="noteref_47" name= + "noteref_47" href="#note_47"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">47</span></span></a> Rabbi + Hai, in warning his correspondent not to expect from him a long + philosophical dissertation, writes as follows: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Know that it never was our business to palliate matters + and explain them in a way of which the author never could have + thought. This is fashionable with other people, but our method is to + explain the words of this or that authority in accordance with his + own meaning. We do not pledge ourselves that this meaning is + <span class="tei tei-q">‘right rule’</span> in itself, for there + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">do</span></em> exist statements made by the old + authorities that cannot be accepted as norm.”</span> Thus far the + words of the Gaon of the tenth century, which speak volumes. The Gaon + of the eighteenth century followed the same course. All his + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page078">[pg 078]</span><a name="Pg078" + id="Pg078" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> efforts were directed to this + point; namely, to find out the true meaning of the Mishnah, the true + meaning of the Gemara,<a id="noteref_48" name="noteref_48" href= + "#note_48"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">48</span></span></a> the true + meaning of the Gaonim, the true meaning of the great codifiers, and + the true meaning of the commentators on the ancient Rabbinical + literature. Whether this meaning would be acceptable to us mattered + very little to him. His only object was to understand the words of + his predecessors, and this he obtained, as we shall soon see, by the + best critical means. This was the method of the Gaon; that of other + scholars (at least of the great majority) was dictated by entirely + different considerations. They would not suffer the idea that the + great man could be wrong at times. To them, all that he said was + <span class="tei tei-q">“right rule.”</span> Now suppose a great + author like Maimonides had overlooked an important passage in the + Talmud or any other statement by a great authority, the alternative + remaining to them was either to explain away the passage of the + Talmud or to give the words of Maimonides a strange meaning. This led + originally to the famous method of the <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pilpul</span></span> (casuistry), a kind of + spiritual gymnastic, which R. Liva of Prague in the sixteenth + century, and many others condemned as most pernicious to Judaism and + leading to the decay of the study of the Torah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now it is beyond + doubt that the method of the two Gaonim is the only right one. But, + in justice to the casuistic school, which includes many a great name, + it is only right to remember that this impartiality towards + acknowledged authorities as maintained by our hero is not at all such + an easy matter as we imagine. We quote often with great satisfaction + the famous saying, <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">Amicus Plato, amicus Socrates, + sed magis amica veritas</span></span>, <span class="tei tei-q">“Plato + is our <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page079">[pg 079]</span><a name= + "Pg079" id="Pg079" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> friend, so is + Socrates, but Truth is, or rather ought to be, our greatest + friend.”</span> This sounds very nicely, but let us only realise what + difficulties it involves. To be a friend of Socrates or Plato means + to know them, or in other words to have a thorough knowledge of the + writings of the one and the recorded utterances of the other. But + such a knowledge can with most men only be obtained by devoting one's + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">whole</span></em> life to the study of their + works, so that there is not left much time for new friendships. And + the few who are able to save a few years after long wanderings with + these Greek philosophers, seldom see the necessity of new + friendships. For what else did those long courtships of Plato or + Aristotle mean except that those who conducted them thought that + thereby they would wed Truth?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This impartiality + is the more difficult when these friends are invested with a kind of + religious authority where humility and submission are most important + factors. The history of Lanfranc, the predecessor of Anselm of + Canterbury, gives a striking example of what this submission meant in + the Middle Ages. One day, we are told, when he was still an ordinary + monk, he was reading at the table and pronounced a word as it ought + to be pronounced, but not as seemed right to the person presiding, + who bade him say it differently; <span class="tei tei-q">“as if he + had said <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">docēre</span></span>, with the + middle syllable long, as is right, and the other had corrected it + into <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">docĕre</span></span>, with the + middle short, which is wrong; for that Prior was not a scholar. But + the wise man, knowing that he owed obedience rather to Christ than to + Donatus, the grammarian, gave up his pronunciation, and said what he + was wrongly told to say; for to make a short syllable long, or a long + one short, he knew <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page080">[pg + 080]</span><a name="Pg080" id="Pg080" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to + be no deadly sin, but not to obey one set over him in God's behalf + was no light transgression.”</span><a id="noteref_49" name= + "noteref_49" href="#note_49"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">49</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But this + admiration—and here we turn again to the Gaon—must not prevent us + from believing that Providence is not confined to such ungrammatical + Priors, and that the men who are really working on behalf of God are + those who teach us to pronounce rightly, and to think rightly, and to + take matters as they are, not as we desire them to be on account of + our friends.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As for the + critical means to which I have alluded, the Gaon himself said + somewhere that simplicity is the best criterion of truth, and this is + the most characteristic feature of all his literary career. The Gaon + studied Hebrew grammar in order to obtain a clear notion of the + language in which the Scriptures are written. He tried to attain to + the knowledge of the Bible by reading the Bible itself; and was not + satisfied to become acquainted with its contents from the numerous + quotations which are made from it in Rabbinical literature. Again, he + studied mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy, as far as they could + be found in Hebrew books. Certainly the Gaon did not study these + subjects for their own sake, and they were considered by him only as + a means to the end, or as the phrase goes, as the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“hand-maidens”</span> of Theology, the queen of all + sciences. But it may be looked upon as a mark of great progress in an + age when Queen Theology had become rather sulky, continually finding + fault with her hand-maidens, and stigmatising every attention paid to + them as conducive to disloyalty. To these accusations the Gaon + answered that Queen Theology does not study her own interests. + Knowledge of all arts and sciences, the Gaon maintained, is necessary + for the real <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page081">[pg + 081]</span><a name="Pg081" id="Pg081" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + understanding of the Torah which embraces the whole of them. From his + own writings it is evident that he himself was familiar with Euclid, + and his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ayil Meshulash</span></span> contains several + original developments of Euclid. It was at his suggestion that a + certain Baruch of Sclow translated Euclid into the Hebrew + language.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another way which + led the Gaon to the discovery of many truths was his study of the + pre-Talmudic literature, and of the Jerusalem Talmud. By some + accident or other it came to pass that only the Babylonian Talmud was + recognised as a guide <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">in the practices of religious life</span></em>. + As the great teachers and their pupils cared more for satisfying the + religious wants of their flocks than for theoretic researches, the + consequence was that a most important part of the ancient Rabbinic + literature was almost entirely neglected by them for many centuries. + And it was certainly no exaggeration, when R. Elijah said that even + the Gaonim and Maimonides, occupied as they were with the practical + part of the law, did not pay sufficient attention to the Talmud of + Jerusalem and the Tosephta.<a id="noteref_50" name="noteref_50" href= + "#note_50"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">50</span></span></a> The Gaon + was no official head of any Jewish community, and was but little + troubled by decisions of questions which concern daily life. He was + thus in a position to leave for a little while the Babylonian Talmud + and to become acquainted with the guides of the guide. I refer to + Siphra, Siphré, Mechilta, Tosephta, the Seder Olam,<a id="noteref_51" + name="noteref_51" href="#note_51"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">51</span></span></a> the + Minor Tractates,<a id="noteref_52" name="noteref_52" href= + "#note_52"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">52</span></span></a> and + above all the Talmud of Jerusalem, which, regarded from an historical + and critical point of view, is even of more importance than its + Babylonian twin-brother. But by this means there came a new light + upon the whole of ancient Rabbinic literature. The words of the + Torah, the Midrash <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page082">[pg + 082]</span><a name="Pg082" id="Pg082" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + says, are poor in one place, but we shall find them rich in another + place. The Gaon by his acquaintance with the <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">whole</span></em> of + the Torah had no difficulty whatever in discovering the rich places. + If there was a difficult passage in this or that Tractate, he showed, + by giving a reference to some other place, that it was wanting in + some words or lines. Obscure passages in the Mishnah he tried to + elucidate by parallel passages in the Tosephta. The too complicated + controversies of the Babylonian Talmud he tried to explain by + comparing them with the more ancient and more simple Talmud of + Jerusalem.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is little to + be told of the Gaon's private affairs. Even the date of his marriage + with a certain Miss Anna of Kaidon is not mentioned by his + biographers. But it may be taken for granted that, in accordance with + the custom in Poland, he married at a very early age, say about + eighteen years. It was also when a young man that he travelled for + some years through Poland and Germany. It is rather difficult to say + what his object may have been in making these travels—for the Gaon + was not the man to travel for pleasure's sake. Perhaps it was to + become acquainted with the great Rabbis of these countries. It is + also possible, as others maintain, that the Gaon considered the many + privations which a traveller had to endure a hundred and fifty years + ago, as an atonement for his imaginary sins. Indeed we find in many + ascetic books that travelling, or as they term it <span class= + "tei tei-q">“receiving upon oneself to be banished into the + exile,”</span><a id="noteref_53" name="noteref_53" href= + "#note_53"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">53</span></span></a> is + recommended as a very successful substitute for penance. At least it + seems that the coachmen whom the Gaon employed on his journeys looked + at it from this point of view. One of them went so far in adding to + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page083">[pg 083]</span><a name="Pg083" + id="Pg083" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the privations of the Gaon as + to run away with his carriage when the Rabbi alighted from it in + order to read his prayers. But the reading of the Eighteen + Benedictions<a id="noteref_54" name="noteref_54" href= + "#note_54"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">54</span></span></a> must not + be interrupted excepting in the case of danger; and the Gaon did not + consider it very dangerous to be left without money and without + luggage.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These travels + ended in the year 1745. The Gaon left Wilna again at a later date + with the purpose of going to Palestine and settling there. But he + found so many obstacles on his way that he was soon compelled to give + up his favourite plan and to return to his native town. It is not + known whether he left Wilna again.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The position which + the Gaon occupied in Wilna was, as already hinted, that of a private + man. He could never be prevailed upon to accept the post of Rabbi or + any other office in a Jewish community. I am unable to give the + reason for his declining all the offers made to him in this + direction. But it may be suggested here that it was in the time of + the Gaon that there arose a bitter struggle between the Rabbi and the + Jewish wardens of his native town, which ended in the abolition of + the office of Rabbi. The history of the struggle is the more + irritating, as it arose from the pettiest reasons imaginable. People + actually discovered that there was no light in the house of the Rabbi + after the middle of the night, which fact might lead to the + conclusion that he did not study later than 12 o'clock <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">p.m.</span></span> What an idle man! And + this idleness was the less pardonable in the eyes of the community, + as the Rabbi's wife was so unfortunate as not to have been polite + enough to some Mrs. Warden. Under such circumstances we must not + wonder if the Gaon did not find it very desirable to meddle with + congregational affairs in an <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page084">[pg 084]</span><a name="Pg084" id="Pg084" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> official capacity. The relation of the Gaon to + his contemporaries resembles rather the position in the olden times + of a Tanna or Amora,<a id="noteref_55" name="noteref_55" href= + "#note_55"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">55</span></span></a> who + neither enjoyed the title of Nasin or that of Ab Beth Din.<a id= + "noteref_56" name="noteref_56" href="#note_56"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">56</span></span></a> Like R. + Akiba, or Mar Samuel, the Gaon became influential among his + contemporaries only by his teaching and his exemplary life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It must be said in + praise of the Jews of Wilna that, notwithstanding their petty + behaviour towards their ecclesiastical chief, they willingly + submitted to the authority of the Gaon (who was devoid of all + official authority). They revered him as a saint. To converse with + the Gaon was considered as a happy event in the life of a Jew in + Wilna, to be of any use to him as the greatest distinction a man + could attain on earth. But what is remarkable is the readiness with + which even scholars acknowledged the authority of the Gaon. Scholars + are usually more slow in recognising greatness than simple mortals. + Every new luminary does not only outshine their minor lights and thus + hurt their personal vanity, but it threatens also sometimes to + obscure certain traditions which they wish to keep prominently in + view. But the literary genius of the Gaon was too great to be opposed + with success, and his piety and devotion to religion far above + suspicion. Thus the Gaon was very soon recognised by his + contemporaries as their master and guide; not only in literary + questions, but also in matters of belief and conduct.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It would lead me + too far to name here all the Gaon's disciples. It seems as if all the + great scholars in his country considered themselves to be more or + less his pupils. The Gaon used to give in the Beth Hammidrash, which + he founded, public lectures on various subjects, and the students who + attended these lectures also claimed the honour <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page085">[pg 085]</span><a name="Pg085" id="Pg085" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of being called his pupils. I shall + mention here only his greatest disciple, R. Chayim Walosin, who, + after the Gaon, influenced his countrymen more than any other scholar + of that time. This R. Chayim also did not occupy any official post + among his brethren. He was a cloth manufacturer by profession, and + was very prosperous in his business. But it did not prevent him from + being devoted to Hebrew literature, and he enjoyed a wide-spread fame + as a great scholar. But as soon as the fame of the Gaon reached him, + he left cloth manufactory and scholarship behind, and went to Wilna + to <span class="tei tei-q">“learn Torah”</span> from the mouth of the + great master. It must be noticed that even the giving up of his claim + to scholarship was no little sacrifice. All our learning, said some + scholar in Wilna, disappeared as soon as we crossed the threshold of + the Gaon's house. He made every disciple who came into close contact + with him begin at the beginning. He taught them Hebrew grammar, + Bible, Mishnah, and many other subjects, which were, as already + mentioned, very often neglected by the Talmudists of that time. R. + Chayim had also to go through all this course. Some would have + considered such treatment a degradation. R. Chayim, however, became + the more attached to his master for it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In such a way the + life of the Gaon was spent, studying by himself or teaching his + pupils. It must be understood that to learn Torah meant for the Gaon + more than mere brain work for the purpose of gaining knowledge. To + him it was a kind of service to God. Contemporaries who watched him + when he was studying the Torah observed that the effect wrought on + the personality of the Gaon was the same as when he was praying. With + every word his countenance flushed with joy; with every line he was + gaining <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page086">[pg 086]</span><a name= + "Pg086" id="Pg086" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> strength for + proceeding further. Only by looking at matters from this point of + view shall we be able to understand the devotion and the love of the + Gaon for study.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There has been, no + doubt, among the Russian Jews a strong tendency to exaggerate the + intellectual qualities of the Gaon. But one can readily excuse such a + tendency. He was gifted by nature with such a wonderful memory that, + having read a book once, he was able to recite it by heart for the + rest of his life. Not less admirable was his sure grasp. The most + complicated controversies in the Talmud, into which other scholars + would require whole days and weeks to find their way, the Gaon was + able to read by a glance at the pages. Already as a boy he is said to + have gone through in a single night the tractates <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Zebachim</span></span> + and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Menachoth</span></span>,<a id="noteref_57" name= + "noteref_57" href="#note_57"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">57</span></span></a> + containing not less than two hundred and thirty pages, the contents + of which are sometimes so difficult as to make even an aged scholar + despair of understanding them. Again, he possessed so much + common-sense that all the intellectual tricks of the casuistic + schools did not exist for him. And nevertheless his biographers tell + us that he was so much occupied by his studies, that he could not + spare more than one hour and a half for sleep out of twenty-four + hours. This is, no doubt, an exaggeration. But let us say five hours + a day. He had not time to take his meals regularly. He used also, + according to tradition, to repeat every chapter in the Bible, every + passage in the Talmud, hundreds of times, even if they presented no + difficulty at all. But it was, as already said, a matter of love for + the Gaon; of love, not of passing affection.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nothing on earth + could be more despicable to the Gaon than amateurs who dabble with + ancient literature. To <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page087">[pg + 087]</span><a name="Pg087" id="Pg087" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + understand a thing clearly made him happy. He is said to have spent + more than six months on a single Mishnah in the tractate <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Kilayim</span></span>,<a id="noteref_58" name= + "noteref_58" href="#note_58"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">58</span></span></a> and felt + himself the happiest man when he succeeded in grasping its real + meaning. Not to be able to go into the depth of a subject, to miss + the truth embedded in a single passage, caused him the most bitter + grief. A story told by his pupil, R. Chayim, may illustrate this + fact. One Friday, narrates R. Chayim, the servant of the Gaon came to + him with the message that his master wanted to see him as soon as + possible. R. Chayim went instantly. When he came into the house, he + found the Gaon lying in bed with a bandage on his head and looking + very ill. The wife of the Gaon also reported to him that it was more + than three days since her husband had taken any food, and that he had + hardly enjoyed any sleep all this time. All this misery was caused by + reason of not having been able to understand some difficult passages + in the Talmud of Jerusalem. The Gaon now asked his disciples to + resume with him their researches. Heaven, he said, might have mercy + upon them and open their eyes, for it is written, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Two are better than one”</span>: and lo! Heaven did have + mercy on them; they succeeded in getting the true meaning of the + passage. The Gaon recovered instantly, and master and disciple had a + very joyful Sabbath.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">He is also + reported to have said on one occasion, he would not like to have an + angel for his teacher who would reveal to him all the mysteries of + the Torah. Such a condition is only befitting the world to come, but + in <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">this</span></em> world only things which are + acquired by hard labour and great struggle are of any value. The + German representative of truth expressed the same thought in other + words, which <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page088">[pg + 088]</span><a name="Pg088" id="Pg088" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> are + well worth repeating here: <span class="tei tei-q">“Did the + Almighty,”</span> says Lessing, <span class="tei tei-q">“holding in + His right hand Truth and in His left Search after Truth, deign to + tender me the one I might prefer, in all humility and without + hesitation I should select Search after Truth.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This absorption of + all his being in the study of the Torah may also, I think, account + for the fact that his biographers have so little to say about the + family of the Gaon. Of his wife, we know only that she died in the + year 1783. Not much fuller is our knowledge about his children. The + biographers speak of them as of the family <span class= + "tei tei-q">“which the Lord has blessed,”</span> referring to his two + sons, Rabbi Aryeh Leb and Rabbi Abraham, who were known as great + scholars and very pious men. The latter one is best known by his + edition of a collection of smaller Midrashim. Mention is also made of + the Gaon's sons-in-law, especially one Rabbi Moses of Pinsk. But this + is all, and we are told nothing either about their lives or their + callings. From his famous letter which he sent to his family when on + his way to Palestine, we see that he was rather what one may call a + severe father. He bids his wife punish his children most severely for + swearing, scolding, and speaking untruth. He also advises her to live + as retired a life as possible. Retirement he considers as a condition + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">sine qua non</span></span> for a religious life. + He even advises his daughter to read her prayers at home, for in the + synagogue she may get envious of the finer dresses of her friends, + which is a most terrible sin. The only tender feature in this letter + is perhaps where he implores his wife to be kind to his mother on + account of her being a widow, and it were a great sin to cause her + the least annoyance. From other passages we may gather that his + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page089">[pg 089]</span><a name="Pg089" + id="Pg089" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> family had at times to suffer + hunger and cold by the excessive occupation of their father with the + study of the Torah and other religious works. In short, the Gaon was + a one-sided, severe ascetic, and would never have deserved the title + of a good father, a good husband, an amiable man or any other + appellation derived from those ordinary <span class= + "tei tei-q">“household decencies”</span> which, as Macaulay informs + us, half of the tombstones claim for those who lie behind them. But I + am very much afraid that many a great man who has made his mark in + history could never claim these household virtues as his own. I do + not want to enter here into the question whether Judaism be an + ascetic religion or not. But even those who think Judaism identical + with what is called <span class="tei tei-q">“making the best of this + life,”</span> will not dispute the fact that Jewish literature + contains within it enough ascetic elements to justify the conduct of + our greatest men whose lives were one long-continued self-denial and + privation. <span class="tei tei-q">“The Torah,”</span> says the + Talmud, <span class="tei tei-q">“cannot be obtained unless a man is + prepared to give his life for it,”</span> or as the Talmud puts it, + in another place, <span class="tei tei-q">“if it be thy desire not to + die, cease to live before thou diest.”</span> This was the principle + by which the Gaon's life was actuated. And as he did not spare + himself, he could not spare others. We could not expect him to act + differently. The Scriptures tell us: <span class="tei tei-q">“Thou + shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”</span> But how is it with the + man who never loved himself, who never gave a thought to himself, who + never lived for himself, but only for what he considered to be his + duty and his mission from God on earth? Such a man we cannot expect + to spend his time on coaxing and caressing us. As to the charge of + one-sidedness at which I have hinted, if the giving up of everything + else for the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page090">[pg + 090]</span><a name="Pg090" id="Pg090" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + purpose of devoting oneself to a scholarly and saintly life is + one-sidedness, the Gaon must certainly bear this charge; but in a + world where there are so many on the other side, we ought, I think, + to be only too grateful to Providence for sending us from time to + time great and strong one-sided men, who, by their counterbalancing + influence, bring God's spoilt world to a certain equilibrium again. + To appease my more tender readers, I should like only to say that + there is no occasion at all for pitying Mrs. Gaon. It would be a + miserable world indeed if a good digestion and stupidity were, as a + certain author maintained, the only conditions of happiness. Saints + are happy in their sufferings, and noble souls find their happiness + in sacrificing themselves for these sufferers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another severe + feature in the life of the Gaon showed itself in his dispute with the + Chassidim. I regret not to be able to enter here even into a brief + account of the history of this struggle. I shall only take leave to + say that I am afraid each party was right, the Gaon as well as the + Chassidim; the latter, in attacking the Rabbis of their time, who + mostly belonged to the casuistic schools, and in their intellectual + pursuits almost entirely neglected the emotional side of religion; + but none the less was the Gaon right in opposing a system which, as I + have shown above, involved the danger of leading to a worship of + men.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Excepting this + incident, the Gaon never meddled with public affairs. He lived in + retirement, always occupied with his own education and that of his + disciples and friends. It is most remarkable that, in spite of his + hard work and the many privations he had to endure, he enjoyed good + health almost all his life. He never consulted <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page091">[pg 091]</span><a name="Pg091" id="Pg091" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> a doctor. It was not until the year 1791, + in the seventieth year of his life, that he began to feel the decline + of his health. But he was not much interrupted by the failure of his + powers. As a means of recovery, he esteemed very highly the + conversation of the preacher Jacob of Dubna, better known as the + Dubna Maggid,<a id="noteref_59" name="noteref_59" href= + "#note_59"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">59</span></span></a> whose + parables and sallies of wit the Gaon used to enjoy very much. On the + eve of the Day of Atonement in the year 1797, he fell very ill and + gave his blessing to his children. He died on the third day of the + Feast of Tabernacles, with the branch of the Lulab<a id="noteref_60" + name="noteref_60" href="#note_60"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">60</span></span></a> in his + hands. The Feast of Joy, relates a contemporary, was turned into days + of mourning. In all the streets of Wilna were heard only lamenting + and crying voices. The funeral orations delivered on this occasion in + Wilna, as well as in other Jewish communities, would form a small + library. His disciples wept for their master, the people of Wilna for + the ornament of their native town, and the feeling of the Jews in + general was that <span class="tei tei-q">“the Ark of God was taken + away.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After the + foregoing sketch, the reader will hardly expect me to give an account + of the Gaon's literary productions. The results of so long a life and + such powers of mind devoted to one cause with such zeal and fervour, + would furnish by themselves the subject of a whole series of essays. + The tombstone set on his grave by his pious admirers bears the + inscription, <span class="tei tei-q">“The Gaon gave heed and sought + and set in order”</span>—that is to say, he wrote commentaries or + notes on—<span class="tei tei-q">“the Bible, the Mishnah, both + Talmuds, the Siphré, Siphra, the Zohar, and many other works.”</span> + Inscriptions on tombstones are proverbial for exaggeration, and we + all know the saying, <span class="tei tei-q">“as mendacious as an + epitaph.”</span> But a glance at the catalogue of the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page092">[pg 092]</span><a name="Pg092" id="Pg092" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> British Museum under the heading of + Elijah Wilna, will show that this inscription makes a praiseworthy + exception. We will find that this list might be lengthened by many + other works of great importance for Jewish life and thought. His + commentary to the Code of R. Joseph Caro, in which one will find that + in many cases he knew the sources of the religious customs and + usages, put together in this work, better than its compiler himself, + would have been sufficient to place him at the head of Halachic + scholarship, whilst his notes and textual emendations to the Tosephta + and Seder Olam, to the restoration of which he contributed so much, + would have sufficed to establish his fame as a critic of the first + order. And this is the more astonishing when we consider that all + this was done without manuscripts or any other aid, and by mere + intuition. We cannot wonder that scholars who had the opportunity of + visiting great libraries and saw how the emendations of the Gaon + agreed sometimes with the readings given in the best manuscripts + exclaimed very often: <span class="tei tei-q">“Only by inspiration + could he have found out these secrets.”</span> We have no need to go + so far; we shall simply say with the Talmud, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The powers of the real sage surpass those of the + prophet.”</span> Nay, even had we possessed only his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gleanings</span></span>, which form a kind of + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">obiter dicta</span></span> on various topics of + Jewish literature, the Gaon would have remained a model of clear + thinking and real ingenuity for all future generations.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, a real + appreciation of the Gaon's greatness as a scholar would only be + possible either by a thorough study of his works, to which I have + alluded, or by giving many specimens of them. The short space I am + limited to makes such an undertaking impossible. I shall therefore + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page093">[pg 093]</span><a name="Pg093" + id="Pg093" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> use what remains to me to say + a few words on the salutary influence the Gaon had on his countrymen, + the Russian Jews.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Russian Jew is + still a riddle to us. We know this strange being only from the + Reports of the Board of Guardians or from bombastic phrases in public + speeches; for he has always been the victim of platform orators,</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">So over violent or over + civil,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">That every man with them is God or + Devil.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From all, however, + that I can gather from the best Jewish writers in Russia, I can only + judge that the Russian Jew, when transplanted to a foreign soil, + where he is cut off from the past and uncertain of his future, is for + the time at least in a position in which his true character cannot be + truly estimated. His real life is to be sought in his own country. + There, amidst his friends and kinsmen who are all animated by the + same ideals, attached to the same traditions, and proud of the same + religious and charitable institutions, everything is full of life and + meaning to him. Thus, a certain Russian writer addresses his younger + colleagues who find so much fault with the bygone world: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Go and see how rich we always were in excellent men. In + every town and every village you would find scholars, saints, and + philanthropists. Their merits could sustain worlds, and each of them + was an ornament of Israel.”</span> And he proceeds to give dozens of + names of such excellent men, who are not all indeed known to us, but + with whom the Russian Jew connects many noble and pious reminiscences + of real greatness and heroic self-denial, and of whom he is justly + proud.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page094">[pg + 094]</span><a name="Pg094" id="Pg094" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The focus, + however, of all this spiritual life is the Yeshibah (Talmudical + College)<a id="noteref_61" name="noteref_61" href= + "#note_61"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">61</span></span></a> in + Walosin. I hope that a glance at its history and constitution will + not be found uninteresting. The intellectual originator of this + institution which bears the name <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Yeshibah Ets + Chayim</span></span> (Tree of Life College),<a id="noteref_62" name= + "noteref_62" href="#note_62"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">62</span></span></a> was the + Gaon himself. Being convinced that the study of the Torah is the very + life of Judaism, but that this study must be conducted in a + scientific, not in a scholastic way, he bade his chief disciple, the + R. Chayim already mentioned, to found a college in which Rabbinical + literature should be taught according to his own true method. It + would seem that, as long as the Gaon was alive, R. Chayim preferred + to be a pupil rather than a teacher. When, however, the Gaon died, R. + Chayim did not rest till he had carried out the command of his + master, and in the year 1803 the College was opened in Walosin. The + cloth manufacturer and disciple now became Rabbi and master. He began + on a small scale, teaching at first only a few pupils. But even for + the sustenance of a small number he had not sufficient means, and his + pious wife sold her jewellery to help him in accomplishing his + favourite plan. This is the best refutation of the French proverb + <span lang="fr" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="fr"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Avare comme une Rabbine</span></span>. The + number, however, increased daily, and before he died (1828), he was + fortunate enough to lecture to a hundred students. The number of + students in the year 1888 amounted to 400, and the Russian Jews are + thus right in asserting that they have the greatest Talmudical + College in the world. It is evident that no private charity by a + single man, however great, could suffice to maintain such large + numbers. Thus R. Chayim was already compelled to appeal to the + liberality of his Russian brethren. The name of R. Chayim, and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page095">[pg 095]</span><a name="Pg095" + id="Pg095" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the still greater name of his + master, were recommendation enough, and besides private offerings, + many communities promised large sums towards supporting the students + in Walosin. From time to time also messengers are sent out by the + committee to promote the interests of the Yeshibah. The writers to + whom I owe these data tell us that these messengers travel to all + parts of the world to collect offerings for Walosin: so that it is a + standing joke with the students that the existence of the mythical + river Sambatyon<a id="noteref_63" name="noteref_63" href= + "#note_63"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">63</span></span></a> may be + questioned after all, otherwise it must long have been discovered by + these messengers who explore the whole world in their journeys. But + it would seem that this world is only a very small one. For the whole + income of the Yeshibah has never exceeded the sum of about £1800. Of + this a certain part is spent in providing the salaries of the + teaching staff and proctors, and on the repairs of the building; + whilst the rest is distributed amongst the students. Considering that + no scholarship exceeds £13—it is only the forty immortals of Walosin + who receive such high stipends—considering again that the great + majority of the students belong to the poorer classes and thus + receive no remittance from their parents, we may be sure that the + words of the Talmud: <span class="tei tei-q">“This is the way to + study the Torah; eat bread and salt, drink water by measure, sleep on + the earth, and live a life of care,”</span> are carried out by them + literally. But it would seem that the less they eat and the less they + sleep, the more they work. Indeed the industry and the enthusiasm of + these Bachurim (<span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">alumni</span></span>)<a id= + "noteref_64" name="noteref_64" href="#note_64"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">64</span></span></a> in the + study of the Torah is almost unsurpassable. The official hours alone + extend from nine in the morning until ten in the evening, while many + of the students volunteer to continue their <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page096">[pg 096]</span><a name="Pg096" id="Pg096" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> studies till the middle of the night, or to + begin the day at three in the morning.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to the subject + of these studies, it is confined, as may be imagined, to the + exploration of the old Rabbinic literature in all its branches. But + it would be a mistake to think that the modern spirit has left + Walosin quite untouched. It would be impossible that among 400 + thinking heads there should not be a few who are interested in + mathematics, others again in philosophy or history, while yet others + would conjugate the irregular verbs of some classical language when + moving to and fro over their Talmud folios and pretending to + <span class="tei tei-q">“<em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">learn</span></em>.”</span> Indeed, almost all + the writers who demand that these subjects should be introduced as + obligatory into the programme of Walosin, belonged themselves to this + Yeshibah. And it is these writers who betray the secret how secular + knowledge is now invading the precincts of Walosin, as well as of + other Talmudical Colleges in spite of all obstacles and prohibitions. + In conquering these difficulties seem to consist the pleasures of + life of many Bachurim at Walosin. Look only at that undergraduate, + how, after a heavy day's work he is standing there in the street + reading Buckle's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">History of Civilisation</span></span> in the + moonlight! Poor man, he is not so romantic as to prefer the moonlight + to a cheerful, warm room, with the more prosaic light of a candle, + but he has got tired of knocking at the door, for his landlady, to + whom he has neglected to pay rent for the last three terms, made up + her mind to let him freeze to-night. But still more cruel to him is + his fellow-sufferer, who is also wandering in the streets with an + overloaded brain and empty stomach; he roughly shakes him out of his + dreams by telling him that Buckle is long ago antiquated, and that he + had better <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page097">[pg + 097]</span><a name="Pg097" id="Pg097" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + study the works of Herbert Spencer, who has spoken the last word on + every vital subject in the world. Still these two starving and + freezing representatives of English thought in Walosin form only an + exception. The general favourites are the representatives of Jewish + thought. That such books as the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide of the Perplexed</span></span>, by + Maimonides, the Metaphysical Researches of Levi b. Gershom,<a id= + "noteref_65" name="noteref_65" href="#note_65"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">65</span></span></a> and + other philosophical works of the Spanish school are read by the + Walosin students it is needless to say. These books now form a part + of the Rabbinic literature, and it would be almost unorthodox to + suspect their readers. But is worth noticing that even the + productions of the modern historico-critical school, such as the + works of Zunz, Frankel, Graetz, Weiss, are very popular with the + Bachurim, being much read and discussed by them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus Walosin + deserves rightly to be considered as the centre of Jewish thought in + Russia, in which the spirit of the Gaon is still working.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have very often, + however, heard doubts expressed as to the continuance of this spirit + when, as it is to be hoped, better times come for the Jews in Russia. + Is it not to be feared that liberty and emancipation will render + untenable ideas and notions which arose under entirely different + circumstances? There is no need of entertaining such fears. Rabbi + Jedaiah of Bedres<a id="noteref_66" name="noteref_66" href= + "#note_66"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">66</span></span></a> + concludes his philosophical work <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Examination of the + World</span></span>, with the following words: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The conclusion of the whole matter is, go either to the + right, my heart, or go to the left, but believe all that R. Moses ben + Maimon (Maimonides) has believed, the last of the Gaonim by time, but + the first in rank.”</span> About five hundred years have passed away + since these lines were written. Time, as we have seen, has brought + another <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page098">[pg 098]</span><a name= + "Pg098" id="Pg098" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Gaon, and probably + Time will favour us in future with still another. But times have also + altered. The rebellious hearts of a liberal age are not likely to + obey always the command, <span class="tei tei-q">“believe all that + the Gaon said.”</span> But the heart of man will in all ages retain + idealism enough to love and revere the greatest of men and to follow + what was best in them.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page099">[pg 099]</span><a name= + "Pg099" id="Pg099" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc11" id="toc11"></a> <a name="pdf12" id="pdf12"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">IV. Nachmanides</span><a id= + "noteref_67" name="noteref_67" href="#note_67"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">67</span></span></a></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">R. Chayim Vital, + in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Book + of the Transmigrations of Souls</span></span>, gives the following + bold characteristic of the two great teachers of Judaism, Maimonides + and Nachmanides. Their souls both sprang forth from the head of + Adam—it is a favourite idea of the Cabbalists to evolve the whole of + ideal humanity from the archetype Adam—but the former, Maimonides, + had his genius placed on the left curl of Adam, which is all judgment + and severity, whilst that of the latter, Nachmanides, had its place + on the right curl, which represents rather mercy and tenderness.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I start from these + words in order to avoid disappointment. For Nachmanides was a great + Talmudist, a great Bible student, a great philosopher, a great + controversialist, and, perhaps, also a great physician; in one word, + great in every respect, possessed of all the culture of his age. But, + as I have already indicated by the passage quoted by way of + introduction, it is not of Nachmanides in any of these excellent + qualities that I wish to write here. For these aspects of his life + and mind I must refer the reader to the works of Graetz, Weiss, + Steinschneider, Perles, and others. I shall mostly confine myself to + those features and peculiarities in his career and works which will + illustrate Nachmanides the tender and compassionate, the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page100">[pg 100]</span><a name="Pg100" id="Pg100" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Nachmanides who represented Judaism from + the side of emotion and feeling, as Maimonides did from the side of + reason and logic.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">R. Moses ben + Nachman, or Bonastruc de Portas, as he was called by his + fellow-countrymen, or Nachmanides, as he is commonly called now, was + born in Gerona about the year 1195. Gerona is a little town in the + province of Catalonia in Spain. But though in Spain, Gerona was not + distinguished for its philosophers or poets like Granada, Barcelona, + or Toledo. Situated as it was in the North of Spain, Gerona was under + the influence of Franco-Jewish sympathies, and thus its boast lay in + the great Talmudists that it produced. I shall only mention the name + of R. Zerahiah Hallevi Gerundi—so-called after his native place—whose + strictures on the Code of R. Isaac Alfasi, which he began as a youth + of nineteen years, will always remain a marvel of critical insight + and independent research. Nachmanides is supposed by some authors to + have been a descendant of R. Isaac ben Reuben of Barcelona, whose + hymns are still to be found in certain rituals. The evidence for this + is insufficient, but we know that he was a cousin of R. Jonah + Gerundi, not less famous for his Talmudic learning than for his + saintliness and piety. Nachmanides thus belonged to the best Jewish + families of Gerona. Various great men are mentioned as his teachers, + but we have certainty only about two, namely R. Judah ben Yakar, the + commentator of the prayers, and R. Meir ben Nathan of Trinquintaines. + The mystic, R. Ezra (or Azriel), is indeed alleged to have been his + instructor in the Cabbalah, and this is not impossible, as he also + was an inhabitant of Gerona; but it is more probable that Nachmanides + was initiated into the Cabbalah by <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page101">[pg 101]</span><a name="Pg101" id="Pg101" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the R. Judah just mentioned, who also belonged + to the mystical school.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Whoever his + masters were, they must have been well satisfied with their promising + pupil, for he undertook, at the age of fifteen, to write supplements + to the Code of R. Isaac Alfasi. Nor was it at a much later date that + he began to compose his work, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">The Wars of the Lord</span></span>, in which he + defends this great codifier against the strictures of R. Zerahiah, to + which we have referred above. I shall in the course of this essay + have further occasion to speak of this latter work; for the present + we will follow the career of its author.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Concerning the + private life of Nachmanides very little has come down to us. We only + know that he had a family of sons and daughters. He was not spared + the greatest grief that can befall a father, for he lost a son; it + was on the day of the New Year.<a id="noteref_68" name="noteref_68" + href="#note_68"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">68</span></span></a> On the + other hand, it must have been a great source of joy to him when he + married his son Solomon to the daughter of R. Jonah, whom he revered + as a saint and a man of God. As a token of the admiration in which he + held his friend, the following incident may be mentioned. It seems + that it was the custom in Spain to name the first child in a family + after his paternal grandfather; but Nachmanides ceded his right in + behalf of his friend, and thus his daughter-in-law's first son was + named Jonah. Another son of Nachmanides whom we know of was Nachman, + to whom his father addressed his letters from Palestine, and who also + wrote Novellæ to the Talmud, still extant in MS. But the later + posterity of Nachmanides is better known to fame. R. Levi ben Gershom + was one of his descendants; so was also R. Simeon Duran;<a id= + "noteref_69" name="noteref_69" href="#note_69"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">69</span></span></a> whilst + R. Jacob <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page102">[pg + 102]</span><a name="Pg102" id="Pg102" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Sasportas, in the eighteenth century,<a id="noteref_70" name= + "noteref_70" href="#note_70"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">70</span></span></a> derived + his pedigree from Nachmanides in the eleventh generation.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to his calling, + he was occupied as Rabbi and teacher, first in Gerona and afterwards + in Barcelona. But this meant as much as if we should say of a man + that he is a philanthropist by profession, with the only difference + that the treasures of which Nachmanides disposed were more of a + spiritual kind. For his livelihood he probably depended upon his + medical practice.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I need hardly say + that the life of Nachmanides, <span class="tei tei-q">“whose words + were held in Catalonia in almost as high authority as the + Scriptures,”</span> was not without its great public events. At least + we know of two.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The one was about + the year 1232, on the occasion of the great struggle about + Maimonides' <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide of the Perplexed</span></span>, and the + first book of his great Compendium of the Law. The Maimonists looked + upon these works almost as a new revelation, whilst the + Anti-Maimonists condemned both as heretical, or at least conducive to + heresy.<a id="noteref_71" name="noteref_71" href= + "#note_71"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">71</span></span></a> It would + be profitless to reproduce the details of this sad affair. The + motives may have been pure and good, but the actions were decidedly + bad. People denounced each other, excommunicated each other, and did + not (from either side) spare even the dead from the most bitter + calumnies. Nachmanides stood between two fires. The French Rabbis, + from whom most of the Anti-Maimonists were recruited, he held in very + high esteem and considered himself as their pupil. Some of the + leaders of this party were also his relatives. He, too, had, as we + shall see later on, a theory of his own about God and the world + little in agreement with that of Maimonides. It is worth noting that + Nachmanides objected <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page103">[pg + 103]</span><a name="Pg103" id="Pg103" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to + calling Maimonides <span class="tei tei-q">“our teacher Moses”</span> + (Rabbenu Mosheh),<a id="noteref_72" name="noteref_72" href= + "#note_72"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">72</span></span></a> thinking + it improper to confer upon him the title by which the Rabbis honoured + the Master of the Prophets. The very fact, however, that he had some + theory of the Universe shows that he had a problem to solve, whilst + the real French Rabbis were hardly troubled by difficulties of a + metaphysical character. Indeed, Nachmanides pays them the rather + doubtful compliment that Maimonides' work was not intended for them, + who were barricaded by their faith and happy in their belief, wanting + no protection against the works of Aristotle and Galen, by whose + philosophy others might be led astray. In other words, their strength + lay in an ignorance of Greek philosophy, to which the cultivated Jews + of Spain would not aspire. Nachmanides was also a great admirer of + Maimonides, whose virtues and great merits in the service of Judaism + he describes in his letter to the French Rabbis. Thus, the only way + left open to him was to play the part of the conciliator. The course + of this struggle is fully described in every Jewish history. It is + sufficient to say that, in spite of his great authority, Nachmanides + was not successful in his effort to moderate the violence of either + party, and that the controversy was at last settled through the harsh + interference of outsiders who well-nigh crushed Maimonists and + Anti-Maimonists alike.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The second public + event in the life of Nachmanides was his Disputation, held in + Barcelona, at the Court and in the presence of King Jayme I., of + Aragon, in the year 1263. It was the usual story. A convert to + Christianity, named Pablo Christiani, who burned with zealous anxiety + to see his former co-religionists saved, after many vain attempts in + this direction, applied to the King of Aragon <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page104">[pg 104]</span><a name="Pg104" id="Pg104" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to order Nachmanides to take part in a + public disputation. Pablo maintained that he could prove the justice + of the Messianic claims of Jesus from the Talmud and other Rabbinic + writings. If he could only succeed in convincing the great Rabbi of + Spain of the truth of his argument, the bulk of the Jews was sure to + follow. By the way, it was the same Talmud which some twenty years + previously was, at the instance of another Jewish convert, burned in + Paris, for containing passages against Christianity. Nachmanides had + to conform with the command of the king, and, on the 21st of July, + 1263, was begun the controversy, which lasted for four or five + days.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I do not think + that there is in the whole domain of literature less profitable + reading than that of the controversies between Jews and Christians. + These public disputations occasionally forced the Jews themselves to + review their position towards their own literature, and led them to + draw clearer distinctions between what they regarded as religion and + what as folklore. But beyond this, the polemics between Jews and + Christians were barren of good results. If you have read one you have + read enough for all time. The same casuistry and the same disregard + of history turn up again and again. Nervousness and humility are + always on the side of the Jews, who know that, whatever the result + may be, the end will be persecution; arrogance is always on the side + of their antagonists, who are supported by a band of Knights of the + Holy Cross, prepared to prove the soundness of their cause at the + point of their daggers.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Besides, was there + enough common ground between Judaism and thirteenth century + Christianity to have justified the hope of a mutual understanding? + The Old <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page105">[pg 105]</span><a name= + "Pg105" id="Pg105" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Testament was almost + forgotten in the Church. The First Person in the Trinity was leading + a sort of shadowy existence in art, which could only be the more + repulsive to a Jew on that account. The largest part of Church + worship was monopolised by devotion to the Virgin Mother, prayers to + the saints, and kneeling before their relics. And a Jew may well be + pardoned if he did not entertain higher views of this form of worship + than Luther and Knox did at a later period. It will thus not be worth + our while to dwell much on the matter of this controversy, in which + the essence of the real dispute is scarcely touched. There are only + two points in it which are worth noticing. The first is that + Nachmanides declared the Agadoth<a id="noteref_73" name="noteref_73" + href="#note_73"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">73</span></span></a> in the + Talmud to be only a series of sermons (he uses this very word), + expressing the individual opinions of the preacher, and thus + possessing no authoritative weight. The convert Pablo is quite aghast + at this statement, and accuses Nachmanides of heterodoxy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Secondly,—and here + I take leave to complete the rather obscure passage in the + controversy by a parallel in his book, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Date of + Redemption</span></span>,<a id="noteref_74" name="noteref_74" href= + "#note_74"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">74</span></span></a> quoted + by Azariah de Rossi—that the question of the Messiah is not of that + dogmatic importance to the Jews that Christians imagine. For even if + Jews supposed their sins to be so great that they forfeited all the + promises made to them in the Scriptures, or that, on some hidden + ground, it would please the Almighty never to restore their national + independence, this would in no way alter the obligations of Jews + towards the Torah. Nor is the coming of the Messiah desired by Jews + as an end in itself. For it is not the goal of their hopes that they + shall be able again to eat of the fruit of <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page106">[pg 106]</span><a name="Pg106" id="Pg106" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Palestine, or enjoy other pleasures there; not + even the chance of the restoration of sacrifices and the worship of + the Temple is the greatest of Jewish expectations (connected with the + appearance of the Messiah). What makes them long for his coming is + the hope that they will then witness, in the company of the prophets + and priests, a greater spread of purity and holiness than is now + possible. In other words, the possibility for them to live a holy + life after the will of God will be greater than now. But, on the + other hand, considering that such a godly life under a Christian + government requires greater sacrifices than it would under a Jewish + king; and, considering again that the merits and rewards of a good + act increase with the obstacles that are in the way of executing + it—considering this, a Jew might even prefer to live under the King + of Aragon than under the Messiah, where he would perforce act in + accordance with the precepts of the Torah.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now there is in + this statement much that has only to be looked upon as a compliment + to the government of Spain. I am inclined to think that if the + alternative laid before Nachmanides had been a really practical one, + he would have decided in favour of the clement rule of the Messiah in + preference to that of the most cruel king on earth. But the fact that + he repeats this statement in another place, where there was no + occasion to be over polite to the Government, tends to show, as we + have said, that the belief in the Messiah was not the basis on which + Nachmanides' religion was built up.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The result of the + controversy is contested by the different parties; the Christian + writers claim the victory for Pablo, whilst the Jewish documents + maintain that <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page107">[pg + 107]</span><a name="Pg107" id="Pg107" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the + issue was with Nachmanides. In any case, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“<span lang="de" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "de"><span style="font-style: italic">Der Jude wird + verbrannt</span></span>.”</span> For in the next year (1264) all the + books of the Jews in Aragon were confiscated and submitted to the + censorship of a commission, of which the well-known author of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Pugio + Fidei</span></span>, Raymund Martini, was, perhaps, the most + important member. The books were not burned this time, but had to + suffer a severe mutilation; the anti-Christian passages, or such as + were supposed to be so, were struck out or obliterated. Nachmanides' + account of the controversy, which he probably published from a sense + of duty towards those whom he represented, was declared to contain + blasphemies against the dominant religion. The pamphlet was condemned + to be burned publicly, whilst the author was, as it seems, punished + with expulsion from his country. It is not reported where Nachmanides + found a home during the next three years; probably he had to accept + the hospitality of his friends, either in Castile or in the south of + France; but we know that in the year 1267 he left Europe and + emigrated to Palestine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nachmanides was, + at this juncture of his life, already a man of about seventy. But it + would seem as if the seven decades which he had spent in the Spanish + Peninsula were only meant as a preparation for the three years which + he was destined to live in the Holy Land, for it was during this + stage of his life that the greatest part of his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Commentary on the + Pentateuch</span></span> was written. In this work, as is agreed on + all sides, his finest thoughts and noblest sentiments were put + down.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before proceeding + to speak of his works, let us first cast a glance at his letters from + Palestine, forming as they do a certain link between his former life + and that <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page108">[pg + 108]</span><a name="Pg108" id="Pg108" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + which was to occupy him exclusively for the rest of his days. We have + three letters, the first of which I shall translate here <span lang= + "la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">in extenso</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The letter was + written soon after his arrival at Jerusalem in the year 1267. It was + addressed to his son Nachman, and runs as follows:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">The Lord shall bless thee, my son Nachman, and thou + shalt see the good of Jerusalem. Yea, thou shalt see thy children's + children (Ps. cxxviii.), and thy table shall be like that of our + father Abraham!</span><a id="noteref_75" name="noteref_75" href= + "#note_75"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">75</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">In Jerusalem, the Holy City, I write + this letter. For, thanks and praise unto the rock of my salvation, I + was thought worthy by God to arrive here safely on the 9th of the + month of Elul, and I remained there till the day after the Day of + Atonement. Now I intend going to Hebron, to the sepulchre of our + ancestors, to prostrate myself, and there to dig my grave. But what + am I to say to you with regard to the country? Great is the solitude + and great the wastes, and, to characterise it in short, the more + sacred the places, the greater their desolation! Jerusalem is more + desolate than the rest of the country: Judæa more than Galilee. But + even in this destruction it is a blessed land. It has about 2000 + inhabitants, about 300 Christians live there who escaped the sword of + the Sultan. There are no Jews. For since the arrival of the Tartars, + some fled, others died by the sword. There are only two brothers, + dyers by trade, who have to buy their ingredients from the + government. There the Ten Men</span><a id="noteref_76" name= + "noteref_76" href="#note_76"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">76</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">meet, and on Sabbaths they hold service + at their house. But we encouraged them, and we succeeded in finding a + vacant house, built on pillars of marble with a beautiful arch. That + we took for a synagogue. For the town is without a master, and + whoever will take possession of the ruins can do so. We gave our + offerings towards the repairs of the house. We have sent already to + Shechem to fetch some scrolls of the Law from there which had been + brought thither from Jerusalem at the invasion of the Tartars. Thus + they will organise a synagogue and worship there. For continually + people crowd to Jerusalem, men and women, from Damascus, Zobah</span> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page109">[pg 109]</span><a name="Pg109" + id="Pg109" class="tei tei-anchor"></a><span style= + "font-size: 90%">(Aleppo),</span><a id="noteref_77" name= + "noteref_77" href="#note_77"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">77</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">and from all parts of the country to + see the Sanctuary and to mourn over it. He who thought us worthy to + let us see Jerusalem in her desertion, he shall bless us to behold + her again, built and restored, when the glory of the Lord will + return unto her. But you, my son, and your brothers and the whole + of our family, you all shall live to see the salvation of Jerusalem + and the comfort of Zion. These are the words of your father who is + yearning and forgetting, who is seeing and enjoying, Moses ben + Nachman. Give also my peace to my pupil Moses, the son of Solomon, + the nephew of your mother. I wish to tell him ... that there, + facing the holy temple, I have read his verses, weeping bitterly + over them. May he who caused his name to rest in the Holy Temple + increase your peace together with the peace of the whole + community.</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span></p> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This letter may be + illustrated by a few parallels taken from the appendix to + Nachmanides' <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Commentary to the Pentateuch</span></span>, + which contains some rather incoherent notes which the author seems to + have jotted down when he arrived in Jerusalem. After a lengthy + account of the material as well as the spiritual glories of the holy + city in the past, he proceeds to say:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">A mournful sight I have perceived in thee + (Jerusalem); only one Jew is here, a dyer, persecuted, oppressed and + despised. At his house gather great and small when they can get the + Ten Men. They are wretched folk, without occupation and trade, + consisting of a few pilgrims and beggars, though the fruit of the + land is still magnificent and the harvests rich. Indeed, it is still + a blessed country, flowing with milk and honey.... Oh! I am the man + who saw affliction. I am banished from my table, far removed from + friend and kinsman, and too long is the distance to meet again.... I + left my family, I forsook my house. There with my sons and daughters, + and with the sweet and dear children whom I have brought up on my + knees, I left also my soul. My heart and my eyes will dwell with them + for ever.... But the loss of all this and of every other glory my + eyes saw is compensated by having</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page110">[pg 110]</span><a name="Pg110" id="Pg110" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a><span style="font-size: 90%">now the joy of + being a day in thy courts (O Jerusalem), visiting the ruins of the + Temple and crying over the ruined Sanctuary; where I am permitted + to caress thy stones, to fondle thy dust, and to weep over thy + ruins. I wept bitterly, but I found joy in my tears. I tore my + garments, but I felt relieved by it.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span></p> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of some later date + is his letter from Acra, which may be considered as a sort of ethical + will, and which has been justly characterised as a eulogy of + humility. Here is an extract from it:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Accustom yourself to speak gently to all men at all + times, and thus you will avoid anger, which leads to so much sin.... + Humility is the first of virtues; for if you think how lowly is man, + how great is God, you will fear Him and avoid sinfulness. On the + humble man rests the divine glory; the man that is haughty to others + denies God. Look not boldly at one whom you address.... Regard every + one as greater than thyself.... Remember always that you stand before + God, both when you pray and when you converse with others.... Think + before you speak.... Act as I have bidden you, and your words, and + deeds, and thoughts, will be honest, and your prayers pure and + acceptable before God.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span></p> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The third letter + is addressed to his son (R. Solomon?) who was staying (in the service + of the king) in Castile. It is in its chief content a eulogy of + chastity.<a id="noteref_78" name="noteref_78" href= + "#note_78"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">78</span></span></a> Probably + Nachmanides had some dread of the dangerous allurements of the court, + and he begs his son never to do anything of which he knows that his + father would not approve, and to keep his father's image always + before his eyes.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to his works, + we may divide them into two classes. The one would contain those of a + strictly legalistic (Halachic), whilst the other those of a more + homiletic-exegetical and devotional character (Agadic). As already + indicated in the preliminary lines of this paper, I cannot dwell long + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page111">[pg 111]</span><a name="Pg111" + id="Pg111" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> on the former class of our + author's writings. It consists either of Glosses or Novellæ to the + Talmud, in the style and manner of the French Rabbis, or of Compendia + of certain parts of the Law after the model set by R. Isaac Alfasi or + Maimonides, or in defences of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Earlier + Authorities”</span> against the strictures made on them by a later + generation. A few words must be said with regard to these defences; + for they reveal that deep respect for authority which forms a special + feature of Nachmanides' writings. His <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Wars of the + Lord</span></span>, in which he defends Alfasi against R. Zerahiah of + Gerona, was undertaken when he was very young, whilst his defence of + the author of the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Halachoth Gedoloth</span></span><a id= + "noteref_79" name="noteref_79" href="#note_79"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">79</span></span></a> against + the attacks of Maimonides, which he began at a much more mature age, + shows the same deference <span class="tei tei-q">“to the great ones + of the past.”</span> Indeed, he says in one place, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“We bow before them (the earlier authorities), and though + their words are not quite evident to us we submit to them”</span>; + or, as he expresses himself elsewhere, <span class="tei tei-q">“Only + he who dips (deeply enough) in the wisdom of the <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘ancient ones’</span> will drink the pure (old) + wine.”</span> But it would be unjust to the genius of Nachmanides to + represent him as a blind worshipper of authority. Humble and generous + in disposition, he certainly would bow before every recognised + authority, and he would also think it his duty to take up the cudgels + for him as long as there was even the least chance of making an + honourable defence. But when this chance had gone, when Nachmanides + was fully convinced that his hero was in the wrong, he followed no + guide but truth. <span class="tei tei-q">“Notwithstanding,”</span> he + says in his introduction to the defences of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Halachoth + Gedoloth</span></span>, <span class="tei tei-q">“my desire and + delight to be the disciple of the Earlier Authorities, to maintain + their views and to assert them, I <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page112">[pg 112]</span><a name="Pg112" id="Pg112" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> do not consider myself a <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘donkey carrying books.’</span> I will explain their way + and appreciate their value, but when their views are inconceivable to + my thoughts, I will plead in all modesty, but shall judge according + to the sight of my eyes. And when the meaning is clear I shall + flatter none, for the Lord gives wisdom in all times and + ages.”</span> But, on the other hand, there seems to have been a + certain sort of literary agnosticism about Nachmanides which made it + very difficult for him to find the <span class="tei tei-q">“clear + meaning.”</span> The passage in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Wars of the + Lord</span></span> to the effect <span class="tei tei-q">“that there + is in the art (of commenting) no such certain demonstration as in + mathematics or astronomy,”</span> is well known and has often been + quoted; but still more characteristic of this literary agnosticism is + the first paragraph of the above-mentioned defences of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Halachoth + Gedoloth</span></span>. Whilst all his predecessors accepted, on the + authority of R. Simlai,<a id="noteref_80" name="noteref_80" href= + "#note_80"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">80</span></span></a> the + number (613) of the commandments as an uncontested fact, and based + their compositions on it, Nachmanides questions the whole matter, and + shows that the passages relating to this enumeration of laws are only + of a homiletical nature, and thus of little consequence. Nay, he goes + so far as to say, <span class="tei tei-q">“Indeed the system how to + number the commandments is a matter in which I suspect all of us (are + mistaken) and the truth must be left to him who will solve all + doubts.”</span> We should thus be inclined to think that this + adherence to the words of the earlier Authorities was at least as + much due to this critical scepticism as to his conservative + tendencies.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The space left to + me I shall devote to the second class of his writings, in which + Nachmanides worked less after given types. These reveal to us more of + his inner being, and offer us some insight into his theological + system. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page113">[pg 113]</span><a name= + "Pg113" id="Pg113" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> The great problem + which seems to have presented itself to Nachmanides' mind was less + how to reconcile religion with reason than how to reconcile man with + religion. What is man? The usual answer is not flattering. He is an + animal that owes its existence to the same instinct that produces + even the lower creatures, and he is condemned, like them, to go to a + place of worm and maggot. But, may not one ask, why should a creature + so lowly born, and doomed to so hapless a future, be burdened with + the awful responsibility of knowing that he is destined <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to give reckoning and judgment before the King of kings, + the Holy One, blessed be He”</span>? It is true that man is also + endowed with a heavenly soul, but this only brings us back again to + the antithesis of flesh and spirit which was the stumbling-block of + many a theological system. Nor does it help us much towards the + solution of the indicated difficulty; for what relation can there be + between this <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">materia impura</span></span> of + body and the pure intellect of soul? And again, must not the + unfavourable condition in which the latter is placed through this + uncongenial society heavily clog and suppress all aspiration for + perfection? It is <span class="tei tei-q">“a house divided against + itself,”</span> doomed to an everlasting contest, without hope for + co-operation or even of harmony.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The works + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Sacred + Letter</span></span> and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">The Law of Man</span></span> may be considered + as an attempt by Nachmanides, if not to remove, at least to relieve + the harshness of this antithesis. The former, in which he blames + Maimonides for following Aristotle in denouncing certain desires + implanted in us by nature as ignominious and unworthy of man, may, + perhaps, be characterised as a vindication of the flesh from a + religious point of view. The contempt in <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page114">[pg 114]</span><a name="Pg114" id="Pg114" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> which <span class="tei tei-q">“that + Greek,”</span> as Nachmanides terms Aristotle, held the flesh is + inconsistent with the theory of the religious man, who believes that + everything (including the body, with all its functions) is created by + God, whose work is perfect and good, without impure or inharmonious + parts. It is only sin and neglect that disfigure God's creations. I + cannot enter into any further details of this work, but I may be + permitted to remark that there is a very strong similarity between + the tendency of the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sacred Letter</span></span> and certain leading + ideas of Milton. Indeed, if the first two chapters of the former were + a little condensed and put into English, they could not be better + summarised than by the famous lines in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Paradise + Lost</span></span>:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Whatever hypocrites austerely + talk</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Of purity, and place, and + innocence,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Defaming as impure what God + declares</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Pure, and commands to some, leaves + free to all,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Our Maker bids increase; who bids + abstain</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">But our destroyer, foe to God and + man?</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Hail, wedded love, mysterious + law!...</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Far be it that I should write thee + sin or blame</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Or think thee unbefitting holiest + place,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Perpetual fountain of domestic + sweets.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The second of + these two works, the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Law of Man</span></span>, may be regarded as a + sanctification of grief, and particularly of the grief of griefs, + death. The bulk of the book is legalistic, treating of mourning + rites, burial customs, and similar topics; but there is much in the + preface which bears on our subject. For here again Nachmanides takes + the opportunity of combating a chilling philosophy, which tries to + arm us against suffering by stifling our emotions. <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page115">[pg 115]</span><a name="Pg115" id="Pg115" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> <span class="tei tei-q">“My son,”</span> + he says, <span class="tei tei-q">“be not persuaded by certain + propositions of the great philosophers who endeavour to harden our + hearts and to deaden our sensations by their idle comfort, which + consists in denying the past and despairing of the future. One of + them has even declared that there is nothing in the world over the + loss of which it is worth crying, and the possession of which would + justify joy. This is an heretical view. Our perfect Torah bids us to + be joyful in the day of prosperity and to shed tears in the day of + misfortune. It in no way forbids crying or demands of us to suppress + our grief. On the contrary, the Torah suggests to us that to mourn + over heavy losses is equivalent to a service of God, leading us, as + it does, to reflect on our end and ponder over our + destiny.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This destiny, as + well as Reward and Punishment in general, is treated in the + concluding chapter of the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Law of Man</span></span>, which is known under + the title of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">The Gate of Reward</span></span>.<a id= + "noteref_81" name="noteref_81" href="#note_81"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">81</span></span></a> + Nachmanides does not conceal from himself the difficulties besetting + inquiries of this description. He knows well enough that in the last + instance we must appeal to that implicit faith in the inscrutable + justice of God with which the believer begins. Nevertheless he thinks + that only the <span class="tei tei-q">“despisers of wisdom”</span> + would fail to bring to this faith as full a conviction as possible, + which latter is only to be gained by speculation. I shall have by and + by occasion to refer to the results of this speculation. Here we must + only notice the fact of Nachmanides insisting on the <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">bodily</span></em> + resurrection which will take place after the coming of the Messiah, + and will be followed by the <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Olam + Habba</span></span><a id="noteref_82" name="noteref_82" href= + "#note_82"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">82</span></span></a> (the + life in the world to come) of which the Rabbis spoke.</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page116">[pg 116]</span><a name="Pg116" id="Pg116" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Irrational as this + belief may look, it is only a consequence of his theory, which, as we + have seen, assigns even to the flesh an almost spiritual importance. + Indeed, he thinks that the soul may have such an influence on the + body as to transform the latter into so pure an essence that it will + become safe for eternity. For, as he hints in another place, by the + continual practising of a thing the whole man, the body included, + becomes so identified with the thing that we call him after it, just + as the Holy Singer said: I am prayer,<a id="noteref_83" name= + "noteref_83" href="#note_83"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">83</span></span></a> so + that—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 5.40em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Oft converse with heavenly + habitants</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Begins to cast a beam on the + outward shape,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The unpolluted temple of the + mind,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And turns it by degrees to the + soul's essence,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Till all be made immortal.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But if even the + body holds such a high position as to make all its instincts and + functions, if properly regulated, a service of God, and to destine it + for a glorious future of eternal bliss and rejoicing in God, we can + easily imagine what a high place the soul must occupy in the system + of Nachmanides. To be sure it is a much higher one than that to which + philosophy would fain admit her. A beautiful parable of the Persian + poet Yellaladeen (quoted by the late Mr. Lowell) narrates that + <span class="tei tei-q">“One knocked at the beloved's door, and a + voice asked from within, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Who is + there?’</span> and he answered, <span class="tei tei-q">‘It is + I.’</span> Then the voice said, <span class="tei tei-q">‘This house + will not hold me and thee,’</span> and the door was not opened. Then + went the lover into the desert and fasted and prayed in solitude, and + after a year he returned and knocked again at the door, and again the + voice asked <span class="tei tei-q">‘Who is there?’</span> and he + said <span class="tei tei-q">‘It is thyself’</span>; and the door + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page117">[pg 117]</span><a name="Pg117" + id="Pg117" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> was opened to him.”</span> + This is also the difference between the two schools—the mystical and + the philosophical—with regard to the soul. With the rationalist the + soul is indeed a superior abstract intelligence created by God, but, + like all His creations, has an existence of its own, and is thus + separated from God. With the mystic, however, the soul is God, or a + direct emanation from God. <span class="tei tei-q">“For he who + breathes into another thing (Gen. ii. 7) gives unto it something of + his own breath (or soul),”</span> and as it is said in Job xxxii. 8, + <span class="tei tei-q">“And the soul of the Almighty giveth them + understanding.”</span> This emanation, or rather immanence—for + Nachmanides insists in another place that the Hebrew term employed + for it, <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Aziluth</span></span>,<a id= + "noteref_84" name="noteref_84" href="#note_84"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">84</span></span></a> means a + permanent dwelling with the thing emanating—which became manifest + with the creation of man, must not be confounded with the moving soul + (or the <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Nephesh + Chayah</span></span>),<a id="noteref_85" name="noteref_85" href= + "#note_85"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">85</span></span></a> which is + common to man with all creatures.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may be remarked + here that Nachmanides endows all animals with a soul which is derived + from the <span class="tei tei-q">“Superior Powers,”</span> and its + presence is proved by certain marks of intelligence which they show. + By this fact he tries to account for the law prohibiting cruelty to + animals, <span class="tei tei-q">“all souls belonging to God.”</span> + Their original disposition was, it would seem, according to + Nachmanides, peaceful and harmless.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 14.40em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">About them frisking played</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">All beasts of earth, since wild, + and of all chase</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">In wood or wilderness, forest or + den.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It was only after + man had sinned that war entered into creation, but with the coming of + the Messiah, when sin will disappear, all the living beings will + regain their <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page118">[pg + 118]</span><a name="Pg118" id="Pg118" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + primæval gentleness, and be reinstituted in their first rights.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The special soul + of man, however, or rather the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“over-soul,”</span> was pre-existent to the creation of + the world, treasured up as a wave in the sea or fountain of + souls—dwelling in the eternal light and holiness of God. There, in + God, the soul abides in its ideal existence before it enters into its + material life through the medium of man; though it must be noted + that, according to Nachmanides' belief in the Transmigration of + souls, it is not necessary to perceive in the soul of every new-born + child, <span class="tei tei-q">“a fresh message from heaven”</span> + coming directly from the fountain-head. Nachmanides finds this belief + indicated in the commandment of levirate marriage, where the child + born of the deceased brother's wife inherits not only the name of the + brother of his actual father, but also his soul, and thus perpetuates + his existence on earth. The fourth verse of Ecclesiastes ii. + Nachmanides seems to interpret to mean that the very generation which + passes away comes up again, by which he tries to explain the + difficulty of God's visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their + children; the latter being the very fathers who committed the sins. + However, whatever trials and changes the soul may have to pass + through during its bodily existence, its origin is in God and thither + it will return in the end, <span class="tei tei-q">“just as the + waters rise always to the same high level from which their source + sprang forth.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is for this + man, with a body so superior, and a soul so sublime—more sublime than + the angels—that the world was <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">created</span></em>. I emphasise the last word, + for the belief in the creation of the world by God from nothing + forms, according to Nachmanides, the first of the three fundamental + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page119">[pg 119]</span><a name="Pg119" + id="Pg119" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> dogmas of Judaism. The other + two also refer to God's relation to the world and man. They are the + belief in God's Providence and his <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Yediah</span></span>.<a id="noteref_86" name= + "noteref_86" href="#note_86"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">86</span></span></a> Creation + from nothing is for Nachmanides the keynote to his whole religion, + since it is only by this fact, as he points out in many places, that + God gains real dominion over nature. For, as he says, as soon as we + admit the eternity of matter, we must (logically) deny God even + <span class="tei tei-q">“the power of enlarging the wing of a fly, or + shortening the leg of an ant.”</span> But the whole Torah is nothing + if not a record of God's mastery in and over the world, and of His + miraculous deeds. One of the first proclamations of Abraham to his + generation was that God is the Lord (or Master) of the world (Gen. + xviii. 33). The injunction given to Abraham, and repeated afterwards + to the whole of Israel (Gen. xvii. 2, and Deut. xviii. 13), to be + perfect with God, Nachmanides numbers as one of the 613 commandments, + and explains it to mean that man must have a whole belief in God + without blemish or reservation, and acknowledge Him possessed of + power over nature and the world, man and beast, devil and angel, + power being attributable to Him alone. Indeed, when the angel said to + Jacob, <span class="tei tei-q">“Why dost thou ask after my + name”</span> (Gen. xxxii. 29), he meant to indicate by his question + the impotence of the heavenly host, so that there is no use in + knowing their name, the power and might belonging only to God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We may venture + even a step further, and maintain that in Nachmanides' system there + is hardly room left for such a thing as nature or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the order of the world.”</span> There are only two + categories of miracles by which the world is governed, or in which + God's Providence is seen. The one is the category of the manifest + miracles, as the ten <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page120">[pg + 120]</span><a name="Pg120" id="Pg120" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + plagues in Egypt, or the crossing of the Red Sea; the other is that + of the hidden miracles, which we do not perceive as such, because of + their frequency and continuity. <span class="tei tei-q">“No + man,”</span> he declares, <span class="tei tei-q">“can share in the + Torah of our Teacher, Moses (that is, can be considered a follower of + the Jewish religion), unless he believes that all our affairs and + events, whether they concern the masses or the individual, are all + miracles (worked by the direct will of God), attributing nothing to + nature or to the order of the world.”</span> Under this second order + he classes all the promises the Torah makes to the righteous, and the + punishments with which evil-doers are threatened. For, as he points + out in many places, there is nothing in the nature of the + commandments themselves that would make their fulfilment necessarily + prolong the life of man, and cause the skies to pour down rain, or, + on the other hand, would associate disobedience to them with famine + and death. All these results can, therefore, only be accomplished in + a supernatural way by the direct workings of God.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus miracles are + raised to a place in the regular scheme of things, and the difficulty + regarding the possibility of God's interferences with nature + disappears by their very multiplication. But a still more important + point is, that, by this unbroken chain of miracles, which + unconditionally implies God's presence to perform them, Nachmanides + arrives at a theory establishing a closer contact between the Deity + and the world than that set forth by other thinkers. Thus, he insists + that the term <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Shechinah</span></span>, or + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Cabod</span></span><a id="noteref_87" name= + "noteref_87" href="#note_87"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">87</span></span></a> (Glory + of God), must not be understood, with some Jewish philosophers, as + something separate from God, or as <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">glory + created</span></em> by God. <span class="tei tei-q">“Were this the + case,”</span> he proceeds to say, <span class="tei tei-q">“we could + not possibly <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page121">[pg + 121]</span><a name="Pg121" id="Pg121" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + say, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Blessed be the glory of the Lord from + his place,’</span> since every mark of worship to anything <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">created</span></em> + involves the sin of idolatry.”</span> Such terms as <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shechinah</span></span>, or <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Cabod</span></span>, can therefore only mean the + immediate divine presence. This proves, as may be noted in passing, + how unphilosophical the idea of those writers is who maintain that + the rigid monotheism of the Jews makes God so transcendental that He + is banished from the world. As we see, it is just this assertion of + His absolute Unity which not only suffers no substitute for God, but + also removes every separation between Him and the world. Hence also + Nachmanides insists that the prophecy even of the successors of Moses + was a direct communion of God with the prophet, and not, as others + maintained, furnished through the medium of an angel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The third + fundamental dogma, <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Yediah</span></span>, includes, + according to Nachmanides, not only the omniscience of God—as the term + is usually translated—but also His recognition of mankind and His + special concern in them. Thus, he explains the words in the Bible + with regard to Abraham, <span class="tei tei-q">“For I know + him”</span> (Gen. xviii. 19), to indicate the special attachment of + God's Providence to the patriarch, which, on account of his + righteousness, was to be uninterrupted for ever; whilst in other + places we have to understand, under God's knowledge of a thing, his + determination to deal with it compassionately, as, for instance, when + Scripture says that God knew (Exod. ii. 25), it means that His + relation to Israel emanated from His attribute of mercy and love. But + just as God knows (which means loves) the world, He requires also to + be recognised and known by it. <span class="tei tei-q">“For this was + the purpose of the whole creation, that man should recognise and know + Him and give praise to His name,”</span> as <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page122">[pg 122]</span><a name="Pg122" id="Pg122" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> it is said, <span class="tei tei-q">“Everything + that is called by my name (meaning, chosen to promulgate God's name), + for my glory have I created it.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is this fact + which gives Israel their high prerogative, for by receiving the Torah + they were the first to know God's name, to which they remained true + in spite of all adversities; and thus accomplished God's intention in + creating the world. It is, again, by this Torah that the whole of + Israel not only succeeded in being real prophets (at the moment of + the Revelation), but also became <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Segulah</span></span>,<a id="noteref_88" name= + "noteref_88" href="#note_88"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">88</span></span></a> which + indicates the inseparable attachment between God and His people, + whilst the righteous who never disobey His will become the seat of + His throne.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The position of + the rest of humanity is also determined by their relation to the + Torah. <span class="tei tei-q">“It is,”</span> Nachmanides tells us, + <span class="tei tei-q">“a main principle to know that all that man + contrives to possess of knowledge and wisdom is only the fruits of + the Torah or the fruits of its fruits. But for this knowledge there + would be no difference between man and the lower animated species. + The existence of the civilised nations of the world does not disprove + this rule both Christians and Mahometans being also the heirs of the + Torah. For when the Romans gained strength over Israel they made them + translate the Torah which they studied, and they even accommodated + some of their laws and institutions to those of the Bible.”</span> + Those nations, however, who live far away from the centre of the + world (the Holy Land) and never come into contact with Israel are + outside the pale of civilisation, and can hardly be ranked together + with the human species. <span class="tei tei-q">“They are the isles + afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my + glory.”</span></p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page123">[pg + 123]</span><a name="Pg123" id="Pg123" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">What Nachmanides + meant by maintaining that all knowledge and wisdom were <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the fruits of the Torah, or the fruits of these + fruits,”</span> will be best seen from his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Commentary on the + Pentateuch</span></span>. I have already made use of this Commentary + in the preceding quotations, but, being the greatest of the works of + Nachmanides, it calls for some special attention by itself. Its + general purpose is edification, or as he says, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to appease the mind of the students (labouring under + persecution and troubles) when they read the portion on Sabbaths and + festivals, and to attract their heart by simple explanations and + sweet words.”</span> The explanations occupy a considerable space. As + Dr. Perles has shown in his able essay on this work of Nachmanides, + our author neglected no resource of philology or archæology + accessible in his age which could contribute to establish the + <span class="tei tei-q">“simple explanations”</span> on a sound + scientific basis. The prominent feature of this Commentary, however, + is the <span class="tei tei-q">“sweet words.”</span> Indeed, how + sweet and soothing to his contemporaries must have been such words as + we read at the end of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Song of + Moses”</span> (Deut. xxxii.): <span class="tei tei-q">“And behold + there is nothing conditional in this Song. It is a charter testifying + that we shall have to suffer heavily for our sins, but that, + nevertheless, God will not destroy us, being reconciled to us (though + we shall have no merits), and forgiving our sins for his name's sake + alone.... And so our Rabbis said, Great is this song, embracing as it + does both the past (of Israel) and the future, this world and the + world to come.... And if this song were the composition of a mere + astrologer we should be constrained to believe in it, considering + that all its words were fulfilled. How much more have we to hope with + all our hearts and to trust to the word of God, through the mouth + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page124">[pg 124]</span><a name="Pg124" + id="Pg124" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of his prophet Moses, the + faithful in all his house, like unto whom there was none, whether + before him or after him.”</span> A part of these sweet words may also + be seen in the numerous passages in which he attempts to account for + various laws, and to detect their underlying principles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">For though + <span class="tei tei-q">“the Torah is the expression of God's simple + and absolute will, which man has to follow without any consideration + of reward,”</span> still this will is not arbitrary, and even that + class of laws which are called <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">chukkim</span></span><a id="noteref_89" name= + "noteref_89" href="#note_89"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">89</span></span></a> (which + means, according to some Jewish commentators, motiveless decrees) + have their good reasons, notwithstanding that they are unfathomable + to us. <span class="tei tei-q">“They are all meant for the good of + man, either to keep aloof from us something hurtful, or to educate us + in goodness, or to remove from us an evil belief and to make us know + his name. This is what they (the Rabbis) meant by saying that + commandments have a purifying purpose, namely, that man being + purified and tried by them becomes as one without alloy of bad + thoughts and unworthy qualities.”</span> Indeed, the soul of man is + so sensitive to every impurity that it suffers a sort of infection + even by an unintentional sin. Hence the injunction to bring a + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Korban</span></span> (sacrifice) even in this + case; the effect of the <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Korban</span></span>, + as its etymology (<span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Karab</span></span>)<a id= + "noteref_90" name="noteref_90" href="#note_90"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">90</span></span></a> + indicates, is to bring man back to God, or rather to facilitate this + approach. All this again is, as Nachmanides points out, only an + affluence from God's mercy and love to mankind. God derives no + benefit from it. <span class="tei tei-q">“If he be righteous what can + he give thee?”</span> And even those laws and institutions which are + intended to commemorate God's wonders and the creation of the world + (for instance, the Passover festival and the Sabbath) are not meant + for His glorification, or, as Heine maliciously expressed + it:—</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page125">[pg 125]</span><a name= + "Pg125" id="Pg125" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Der Weltkapellenmeister hier + oben</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Er selbst sogar hört gerne + loben</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Gleichfalls seine Werke....</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“For all the honour (we give to Him), and the praising of + His work are counted by Him less than nothing and as vanity to + Him.”</span> What He desires is that we may know the truth, and be + confirmed in it, for this makes us worthy of finding in Him + <span class="tei tei-q">“our Protector and King.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The lessons which + Nachmanides draws from the various Biblical narratives also belong to + these <span class="tei tei-q">“sweet words.”</span> They are mostly + of a typical character. For, true as all the stories in the + Scriptures are, <span class="tei tei-q">“the whole Torah is,”</span> + as he tells us (with allusion to Gen. v. 1.), <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the book of the generations of Adam,”</span> or, as we + should say, a history of humanity written in advance. Thus the + account of the six days of the creation is turned into a prophecy of + the most important events which would occur during the succeeding six + thousand years, whilst the Sabbath is a forecast of the millennium in + the seventh thousand, which will be the day of the Lord. Jacob and + Esau are, as in the old Rabbinic homilies generally, the prototypes + of Israel and Rome; and so is the battle of Moses and Joshua with + Amalek indicative of the war which Elijah and the Messiah the son of + Joseph will wage against Edom (the prototype of Rome), before the + Redeemer from the house of David will appear.<a id="noteref_91" name= + "noteref_91" href="#note_91"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">91</span></span></a> + Sometimes these stories convey both a moral and a pre-justification + of what was destined to happen to Israel. So Nachmanides' remarks + with reference to Sarah's treatment of Hagar (Gen. xvi. 6): + <span class="tei tei-q">“Our mother Sarah sinned greatly by + inflicting this pain on Hagar, as did also Abraham, who allowed such + a thing to pass; but God saw her affliction and rewarded her by a + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page126">[pg 126]</span><a name="Pg126" + id="Pg126" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> son (the ancestor of a wild + race), who would inflict on the seed of Abraham and Sarah every sort + of oppression.”</span> In this he alluded to the Islamic empires. Nor + does he approve of Abraham's conduct on the occasion of his coming to + Egypt, when he asked Sarah to pass as his sister (Gen. xii.). + <span class="tei tei-q">“Unintentionally,”</span> Nachmanides says, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Abraham, under the fear of being murdered, + committed a great sin when he exposed his virtuous wife to such a + temptation. For he ought to have trusted that God would save both him + and his wife.... It is on account of this deed that his children had + to suffer exile under the rule of Pharaoh. There, where the sin was + committed, also the judgment took place.”</span> It is also worth + noticing that, in opposition to Maimonides, he allows no apology for + the attack of Simeon and Levi on the population of Shechem (Gen. + xxxiv. 25). It is true that they were idolaters, immoral, and steeped + in every abomination; but Jacob and his sons were not commissioned + with executing justice on them. The people of Shechem trusted their + word, therefore they ought to have spared them. Hence Jacob's + protest, and his curse against their wrath, which would have been + quite unjustified had he looked on the action of his sons as a good + work.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Besides these + typical meanings, the matters of the Torah have also their symbolical + importance, which places them almost above the sphere of human + conception; they are neither exactly what they seem to be nor + entirely what their name implies, but a reflex from things unseen, + which makes any human interference both preposterous and dangerous. + Of <span class="tei tei-q">“the things <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">called</span></em> + Tree of Life and Tree of Knowledge,”</span> Nachmanides tells us that + their mystery is very great, reaching into higher worlds. Otherwise, + why <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page127">[pg 127]</span><a name= + "Pg127" id="Pg127" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> should God, who is + good and the dispenser of good, have prevented Adam from eating the + fruit (of the latter), whilst in another place he says: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“And if thou wilt be worthy, and understand the mystery + of the word <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Bereshith</span></span><a id= + "noteref_92" name="noteref_92" href="#note_92"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">92</span></span></a> (with + which the Torah begins), thou wilt see that in truth the Scripture, + though apparently speaking of matters here below (on earth), is + always pointing to things above (heaven);”</span> for <span class= + "tei tei-q">“every glory and every wonder, and every deep mystery, + and all beautiful wisdom are hidden in the Torah, sealed up in her + treasures.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is very + characteristic of the bent of Nachmanides' mind, that he is perhaps + the first Jewish writer who mentions the apocryphal book <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Wisdom of + Solomon</span></span>, which he knew from a Syriac version, and which + he believed to be genuine. And when we read there (vii. 7-25), + <span class="tei tei-q">“Wherefore I prayed and understanding was + given to me. I called upon God and the spirit of wisdom came upon + me.... For God has given me unmistakable knowledge to know how the + world was made, and the operations of the planets. The beginning, + ending, and midst of the times, the alterations and the turnings of + the sun, the changes of the seasons, the natures of the living + creatures and the furies of the wild beasts, the force of the spirits + and the reasonings of men, the diversities of plants and the virtues + of the roots. All such things that are either secret or manifest, + them I knew”</span>—the wise king was, according to Nachmanides (who + quotes the passages which I have just cited), speaking of the Torah, + which is identical with this wisdom, a wisdom which existed before + the creation, and by which God planned the world. Hence it bears the + impression of all the universe, whilst on the other hand when it is + said, <span class="tei tei-q">“The king brought me into his + chambers,”</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page128">[pg + 128]</span><a name="Pg128" id="Pg128" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + those secret recesses of the Torah are meant in which all the great + mysteries relating to Creation and to the Chariot (Ezekiel i.) are + hidden.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We must content + ourselves with these few sparks struck from the glowing fires of + these inner compartments, which, imperfectly luminous as my treatment + has left them, may yet shed some light on the personality of + Nachmanides, which is the main object of this essay. But I do not + propose to accompany the mystic into the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“chambers of the king,”</span> lest we may soon get into + a labyrinth of obscure terms and strange ways of thinking for which + the Ariadne thread is still wanting. We might also be confronted by + the Fifty Gates of Understanding, the Thirty-Two Paths of Wisdom, and + the Two Hundred and Thirty-One Permutations or Ciphers of the + Alphabet, the key to which I do not hold. It is also questionable + whether it would always be worth while to seek for it. When one, for + instance, sees such a heaping on of nouns (with some Cabbalists) as + the Land of Life, the Land of Promise, the Lord of the World, the + Foundation Stone, Zion, Mother, Daughter, Sister, the Congregation of + Israel, the Twin Roes, the Bride, Blue, End, Oral Law, Sea, Wisdom, + etc., meant to represent the same thing or attribute, and to pass one + into another, one cannot possibly help feeling some suspicion that + one stands before a conglomerate of words run riot, over which the + writer had lost all control.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed Nachmanides + himself, in the preface to the above-mentioned Commentary, gives us + the kind advice not to meditate, or rather brood, over the mystical + hints which are scattered over this work, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“speculation being (in such matters) folly, and reasoning + over them fraught <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page129">[pg + 129]</span><a name="Pg129" id="Pg129" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with danger.”</span> Indeed, the danger is obvious. I have, to give + one or two instances, already alluded to the theory which accepts the + Torah or the Wisdom as an agent in the creation of the world. But the + mystic pushes further, and asks for the Primal Being to which this + Wisdom owes its origin. The answer given is from the great Nothing, + as it is written, And the Wisdom shall be found from Nothing.<a id= + "noteref_93" name="noteref_93" href="#note_93"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">93</span></span></a> What is + intended by this, if it means anything, is probably to divest the + first cause of every possible quality which by its very qualifying + nature must be limiting and exclusive. Hence, God becomes the + Unknowable. But suppose a metaphysical Hamlet, who, handling words + indelicately, should impetuously exclaim, To be or not to be, that is + the question?—into what abyss of utter negations would he drag all + those who despair, by his terrible Nothing.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">On the other hand, + into what gross anthropomorphisms may we be drawn by roughly handling + certain metaphors which some Cabbalists have employed in their + struggling after an adequate expression of God's manifestations in + His attribute of love, if we forget for a single moment that they are + only figures of speech, but liable to get defiled by the slightest + touch of an unchaste thought.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But the greater + the dangers that beset the path of mysticism, the deeper the interest + which we feel in the mystic. In connection with the above-mentioned + warning, Nachmanides cites the words from the Scriptures, + <span class="tei tei-q">“But let not the priests and the people break + through to come up unto the Lord, lest he break forth upon + them”</span> (Exod. xix. 24). Nevertheless, when we read in the + Talmud the famous story of the four Rabbis<a id="noteref_94" name= + "noteref_94" href="#note_94"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">94</span></span></a> who went + up into the <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Pardes</span></span>, or Garden + of Mystical Contemplation, we do not <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page130">[pg 130]</span><a name="Pg130" id="Pg130" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> withhold our sympathy, either from Ben Azzai, + who shot a glance and died, or from Ben Zoma, who shot a glance and + was struck (in his mind). Nay, we feel the greatest admiration for + these daring spirits, who, in their passionate attempt to + <span class="tei tei-q">“break through”</span> the veil before the + Infinite, hazarded their lives, and even that which is dearer than + life, their minds, for a single glance. And did R. Meir deny his + sympathies even to Other One or Elisha ben Abuyah, who <span class= + "tei tei-q">“cut down the plants”</span>? He is said to have heard a + voice from heaven, <span class="tei tei-q">“Return, oh backsliding + children, except Other One,”</span> which prevented his repentance. + Poor fallen Acher, he mistook hell for heaven. But do not the + struggle and despair which led to this unfortunate confusion rather + plead for our commiseration?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nachmanides, + however, in his gentle way, did not mean to storm heaven. Like R. + Akiba, <span class="tei tei-q">“he entered in peace, and departed in + peace.”</span> And it was by this peacefulness of his nature that he + gained an influence over posterity which is equalled only by that of + Maimonides. <span class="tei tei-q">“If he was not a profound + thinker,”</span> like the author of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide of the + Perplexed</span></span>, he had that which is next best—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“he felt profoundly.”</span> Some writers of a rather + reactionary character even went so far as to assign to him a higher + place than to Maimonides. This is unjust. What a blank would there + have been in Jewish thought but for Maimonides' great work, on which + the noblest thinkers of Israel fed for centuries! As long as Job and + Ecclesiastes hold their proper place in the Bible, and the Talmud + contains hundreds of passages suggesting difficulties relating to + such problems as the creation of the world, God's exact relation to + it, the origin of evil, free will and predestination, <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page131">[pg 131]</span><a name="Pg131" id="Pg131" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> none will persuade me that philosophy + does not form an integral part of Jewish tradition, which, in its + historical developments, took the shape which Maimonides and his + successors gave to it. If Maimonides' <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide</span></span>, + which he considered as an interpretation of the Bible and of many + strange sayings in the old Rabbinic homilies in the Talmud, is + Aristotelian in its tone, so is tradition too; even the Talmud in + many places betrays all sorts of foreign influences, and none would + think of declaring it un-Jewish on this ground. I may also remark in + passing that the certainty with which some writers deprecate the aids + which religion may receive from philosophy is a little too hasty. For + the question will always remain, What religion? The religion of R. + Moses of Tachau or R. Joseph Jabez<a id="noteref_95" name= + "noteref_95" href="#note_95"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">95</span></span></a> would + certainly have been greatly endangered by the slightest touch of + speculation, while that of Bachya,<a id="noteref_96" name= + "noteref_96" href="#note_96"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">96</span></span></a> + Maimonides, Jedaiah of Bedres, and Delmedigo undoubtedly received + from philosophy its noblest support, and became intensified by the + union.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But apart from + that consideration, the sphere of the activity of these two leaders + seems to have been so widely different that it is hardly just to + consider them as antagonists, or at least to emphasise the antagonism + too much. Maimonides wrote his chief work, the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Guide</span></span>, + for the few elect, who, like Ibn Tibbon<a id="noteref_97" name= + "noteref_97" href="#note_97"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">97</span></span></a> for + instance, would traverse whole continents if a single syllogism went + wrong. And if he could be of use to one wise man of this stamp, + Maimonides would do so at the risk of <span class="tei tei-q">“saying + things unsuitable for ten thousand fools.”</span> But with + Nachmanides, it would seem, it was these ten thousand who formed the + main object of his tender care. They are, as we have seen, cultivated + men, indeed <span class="tei tei-q">“students,”</span> having + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page132">[pg 132]</span><a name="Pg132" + id="Pg132" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> enjoyed a proper education; + but the happy times of abstract thinking have gone, and being under a + perpetual strain of persecutions and cares, they long for the Sabbath + and Festivals, which would bring them both bodily and spiritual + recreation. They find no fault with religion, a false syllogism does + not jar on their ears; what they are afraid of is that, being engaged + as they are, all the six days of work, in their domestic affairs, + religion may be too good a thing for them. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“To appease their minds,”</span> to edify them, to make + life more sweet and death less terrible to them, and to show them + that even their weaknesses, as far as they are conditioned by nature, + are not irreconcilable with a holy life, was what Nachmanides strove + after. Now and then he permits them a glance into the mystical world + in which he himself loved to move, but he does not care to stifle + their senses into an idle contemplation, and passes quickly to some + more practical application. To be sure, the tabernacle is nothing but + a complete map of the superlunar world; but nevertheless its rather + minute description is meant to teach us <span class="tei tei-q">“that + God desires us to work.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This tendency + toward being useful to the great majority of mankind may account for + the want of consistency of which Nachmanides was so often accused. It + is only the logician who can afford to be thoroughgoing in his + theory, and even he would become most absurd and even dangerous but + for the redeeming fact <span class="tei tei-q">“that men are better + than their principles.”</span> But with Nachmanides these + <span class="tei tei-q">“principles”</span> would have proved even + more fatal. Could he, for instance, have upset authority in the face + of the ten thousand? They need to be guided rather than to guide. But + he does not want them to follow either the Gaon or <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page133">[pg 133]</span><a name="Pg133" id="Pg133" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> anybody else slavishly, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the gates of wisdom never having been shut,”</span> + whilst on the other hand he hints to them that there is something + divine in every man, which places him at least on the same high level + with any authority. Take another instance—his wavering attitude + between the Maimonists and the Anti-Maimonists, for which he was + often censured. Apart from other reasons, to which I have pointed + above, might he not have felt that, in spite of his personal + admiration for Maimonides' genius, he had no right to put himself + entirely on the side where there was little room for the ten thousand + who were entrusted to his guidance, whilst the French Rabbis, with + all their prejudices and intolerance, would never deny their + sympathies to simple emotional folk?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This tender and + absorbing care for the people in general may also account for the + fact that we do not know of a single treatise by Nachmanides of a + purely Cabbalistic character in the style of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Book of + Weight</span></span>, by Moses de Leon, or the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Orchard</span></span>, + by R. Moses Cordovora, or the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tree of Life</span></span> by R. Isaac + Loria.<a id="noteref_98" name="noteref_98" href= + "#note_98"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">98</span></span></a> The + story that attributes to him the discovery of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Zohar</span></span> in + a cave in Palestine, from whence he sent it to Catalonia, needs as + little refutation as the other story connected with his conversion to + the Cabbalah, which is even more silly and of such a nature as not to + bear repetition. The <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Lilac of Mysteries</span></span><a id= + "noteref_99" name="noteref_99" href="#note_99"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">99</span></span></a> and + other mystical works passed also for a long time under his name, but + their claim to this honour has been entirely disproved by the + bibliographers, and they rank now among the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">pseudepigraphica</span></span>. It is true that + R. Nissim, of Gerona, said of Nachmanides that he was too much + addicted to the belief in the Cabbalah, and as a fellow-countryman he + may have had some personal <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page134">[pg + 134]</span><a name="Pg134" id="Pg134" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + knowledge about the matter. But as far as his writings go, this + belief finds expression only in incidental remarks and occasional + citations from the Bahir,<a id="noteref_100" name="noteref_100" href= + "#note_100"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">100</span></span></a> which + he never thrusts upon the reader. It was chiefly when philosophy + called in question his deep sympathies with even lower humanity, and + threatened to withdraw them from those ennobling influences under + which he wanted to keep them, that he asserted his mystical + theories.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nachmanides' + inconsistency has also proved beneficial in another respect. For + mysticism has, by its over-emphasising of the divine in man, shown a + strong tendency to remove God altogether and replace Him by the + creature of His hands. Witness only the theological bubble of + Shabbethai Tsebi—happily it burst quickly enough—which resulted in + mere idolatry (in more polite language, Hero Worship) on the one + side, and in the grossest antinomianism on the other. Nachmanides, + however, with a happy inconsistency, combined with the belief of + man's origin in God, a not less strong conviction of man's liability + to sin, of the fact that he <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">does</span></em> sin—even the patriarchs were + not free from it, as we have seen above—and that this sin <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">does</span></em> + alienate man from God. This healthy control over man's extravagant + idea of his own species was with Nachmanides also a fruit of the + Torah, within the limits of which everything must move, the mystic + and his aspirations included, whilst its fair admixture of 365 + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">Do + not's</span></em> with 248 <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Do's</span></em> preserved him from that + <span class="tei tei-q">“holy doing nothing”</span> which so many + mystics indulged in, and made his a most active life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Much of this + activity was displayed in Palestine, <span class="tei tei-q">“the + land to which the providence of God is especially attached,”</span> + and which was, as with R. Judah Hallevi, always <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page135">[pg 135]</span><a name="Pg135" id="Pg135" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> <span class="tei tei-q">“his ideal + home.”</span> There he not only completed his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Commentary on the + Pentateuch</span></span>, but also erected synagogues, and engaged in + organising communities, whose tone he tried to elevate both by his + lectures and by his sermons. His career in Palestine was not a long + one, for he lived there only about three years, and in 1270 he must + already have been dead. A pretty legend narrates that when he + emigrated to Palestine his pupils asked him to give them a sign + enabling them to ascertain the day of his death. He answered them + that on that day a rift in the shape of a lamp would be seen in the + tombstone of his mother. After three years a pupil suddenly noticed + this rift, when the mourning over the Rabbi began. Thus, stone, or + anything else earthly, breaks finally, and the life of the master + passes into light.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">What life meant to + him, how deeply he was convinced that there is no other life but that + originating in God, how deeply stirred his soul was by the + consciousness of sin, what agonies the thought of the alienation from + God caused him, how he felt that there is nothing left to him but to + throw himself upon the mercy of God, and how he rejoiced in the hope + of a final reunion with Him—of all these sentiments we find the best + expression in the following religious poem, with which this paper may + conclude. Nachmanides composed it in Hebrew, and it is still + preserved in some rituals as a hymn, recited on the Day of Atonement. + It is here given in the English translation of Mrs. Henry + Lucas.<a id="noteref_101" name="noteref_101" href= + "#note_101"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">101</span></span></a></p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Ere time began, ere age to age had + thrilled,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">I waited in his storehouse, as he + willed;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He gave me being, but, my years + fulfilled,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">I shall be summoned back before + the King.</span> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page136">[pg 136]</span><a name= + "Pg136" id="Pg136" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He called the hidden to the light + of day,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">To right and left, each side the + fountain lay,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">From out the stream and down the + steps, the way</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">That led me to the garden of the + King.</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Thou gavest me a light my path to + guide,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">To prove my heart's recesses still + untried;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And as I went, thy voice in + warning cried:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">"Child! fear thou him who is thy + God and King!"</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">True weight and measure learned my + heart from thee;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">If blessings follow, then what joy + for me!</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">If nought but sin, all mine the + shame must be,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">For that was not determined by the + King.</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">I hasten, trembling, to confess + the whole</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Of my transgressions, ere I reach + the goal</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Where mine own words must witness + 'gainst my soul,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">And who dares doubt the writing of + the King?</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Erring, I wandered in the + wilderness,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">In passion's grave nigh sinking + powerless;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Now deeply I repent, in sore + distress,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">That I kept not the statutes of + the King!</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">With worldly longings was my bosom + fraught,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Earth's idle toys and follies all + I sought;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Ah! when he judges joys so dearly + bought,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">How greatly shall I fear my Lord + and King!</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Now conscience-stricken, humbled + to the dust,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Doubting himself, in thee alone + his trust,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He shrinks in terror back, for God + is just—</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">How can a sinner hope to reach the + King?</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Oh, be thy mercy in the balance + laid,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">To hold thy servant's sins more + lightly weighed,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">When, his confession penitently + made,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">He answers for his guilt before + the King.</span> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page137">[pg 137]</span><a name= + "Pg137" id="Pg137" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Thine is the love, O God, and + thine the grace,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">That folds the sinner in its mild + embrace;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Thine the forgiveness, bridging + o'er the space</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">'Twixt man's works and the task + set by the King.</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Unheeding all my sins, I cling to + thee;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">I know that mercy shall thy + footstool be:</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Before I call, oh, do thou answer + me,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "margin-left: 3.60em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">For nothing dare I claim of thee, + my King!</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">O thou, who makest guilt to + disappear,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">My help, my hope, my rock, I will + not fear;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Though thou the body hold in + dungeon drear,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style= + "text-align: left; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">The soul has found the palace of + the King!</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">Postscript</span></span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The third letter + of Nachmanides to which I have alluded above, is embodied in the + following will by R. Solomon, son of the martyr Isaac. Neither the + date nor the country of the testator is known, but style and language + make it probable that he was a Spanish Jew, and lived in the + fourteenth century. I give here a translation from the whole document + as it is to be found in the Manuscripts.</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">These are the regulations which I, Solomon, the son + of the martyr, Rabbi Isaac, the son of R. Zadok, of blessed memory, + draw up for myself. That as long as I am in good health, and free + from accident, and think of it, I shall not eat before I have studied + one page of the Talmud or of its commentaries. Should I transgress + this rule intentionally, I must not drink wine on that day, or I + shall pay half a</span> <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span><a id= + "noteref_102" name="noteref_102" href="#note_102"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">102</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">to charity. Again, that I shall every + week read the Lesson twice in the Hebrew text, and once in the + Aramaic version. Should I intentionally omit completing the Lesson as + above, then I must pay two</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehubs</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">to charity. Again, that I shall every + Sabbath take three meals, consisting of bread or fruit. Should I + omit to do so, I must give in charity half a</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">.</span> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page138">[pg 138]</span><a name= + "Pg138" id="Pg138" class="tei tei-anchor"></a><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Again, in order to subdue my appetites, and not to + enjoy in this world more than is necessary for the maintenance of + my body, I must not eat at one meal more than one course of meat, + and not more than two courses altogether; nor must I drink more + than two cups of wine at one meal, apart from the blessing-cup + (over which grace is said), except on Sabbath, Festivals, Chanukah + (the Maccabean Dedication Feast), New Moon, and at other religious + meals (for instance, wedding-dinners and similar festive + occasions). Again, I must not have any regular meal on the day + preceding Sabbath or Festivals. I must not have during the day more + than one course, so that I shall enter upon the holy day with a + good appetite. Should I transgress this resolve intentionally I + shall have to fast a day, or to pay two</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehubs</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">. + Again, that I shall not eat the fish called</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">burbot</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">,</span><a id="noteref_103" + name="noteref_103" href="#note_103"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">103</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">if I think of it. Again, even on the + above-mentioned days, I must not eat more than three courses at a + meal, nor drink more than three cups of wine, exclusive of the + blessing-cup. Again, ... I must not swear by God, nor mention the + name of Heaven without a purpose, nor curse any man in the name of + God. Should I, God forbid, transgress it, I must not drink more + than one cup of wine on that day exclusive of the blessing-cup. + Should I, however, transgress this after dinner, I must abstain + from wine the following day. Should I transgress it, I have to pay + half a</span> <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">. + Again, that I shall get up every night to praise God, to supplicate + for His mercy, and to confess. On those nights when confession is + not to be said (Sabbaths and Festivals), I shall say hymns and + psalms. This I shall do when I am in my house, and in good health, + free from any accident. Should I transgress it, I shall drink not + more than one cup of wine the following day, except the + blessing-cup. I again take upon myself to give in charity the + following proportion of my expenditure—from each dress which I + shall have made for myself or for one member of my family, costing + more than ten</span> <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehubs</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">, + I must pay one</span> <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Pashut</span></span><a id= + "noteref_104" name="noteref_104" href="#note_104"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">104</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">for each ten</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehubs</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">. + Again, if I should buy an animal, or a slave, or a female slave, or + ground, that I shall also pay at the same rate. And if I shall buy + clothes for sale, called</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">fashas</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">, + I shall pay two</span> <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Pashuts</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">for each garment. As often as I have + occasion to say the benediction of thanksgivings</span> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page139">[pg 139]</span><a name= + "Pg139" id="Pg139" class="tei tei-anchor"></a><span style= + "font-size: 90%">for having escaped danger I shall pay a</span> + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">, + except when I am travelling [also involving danger in those + times!], in which case I shall have to pay a</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">on my arrival, and two</span> + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Pashuts</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">daily + during the journey. Again, from every kind of fish bought for me, + costing more than a</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">, + I shall pay a</span> <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Pashut</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">for each</span> <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">. + And also, if I shall be deemed worthy by God to marry my children, + and to be present at their wedding, to cause them to give to the + poor from the dowry brought to them by their wives, whether in + money or in kind, at the rate of one per cent. If God will find me + worthy of having sons, I must give in charity according to my means + at the time.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">I shall also, between New Year and the Day of + Atonement in each year, calculate my profits during the past year + and (after deducting expenses) give a tithe thereof to the poor. + Should I be unable to make an accurate calculation, then I shall + give approximately. This tithe I shall put aside, together with the + other money for religious (charitable) purpose, to dispose of it as + I shall deem best. I also propose to have the liberty of employing + the money in any profitable speculation with a view to augmenting + it. But in respect of all I have written above I shall not hold + myself guilty if I transgress, if such transgression be the result + of forgetfulness; but in order to guard against it, I shall read + this through weekly.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">I also command my children to take upon themselves + as many of the above regulations as may be in their power to + observe, and also to bind them (</span><span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">the regulations), from generation to + generation, upon their children. And he who carries them out, and + even adds to them, at pain of discomfort to himself, shall merit a + special blessing. And this is the text of the will which I, the + above-mentioned Solomon, draw up for my children, may God preserve + them. That they shall pray thrice daily, and endeavour always to + utter their prayers with devotion. Again, that this prayer shall be + said in the</span> <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Beth + Hammidrash</span></span><span style="font-size: 90%">, or in the + synagogue together with the congregation. Again, that they shall + apply all their powers to maintain the synagogues and the houses of + study, which our ancestors have built, as well as to continue the + endowments established by my ancestors and myself. They must always + endeavour</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page140">[pg + 140]</span><a name="Pg140" id="Pg140" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a><span style="font-size: 90%">to imitate them, + so that goodness shall never cease from among them. Again, that + they shall always have a chair on which a volume of the Talmud, or + some other Talmudical work, shall lie; so that they shall always + open a book when they come home. At least, they shall read in any + book they like four lines before taking their meal. Again, that + they shall every week read the Lesson twice in the Hebrew text, and + once in the Aramaic version. Again, to take three meals on the + Sabbath....</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">Again, that they shall be always modest, merciful, + and charitable, for these are the qualities by which the children + of Israel are known. Let also all their thoughts and meditations be + always directed to the service of the Lord, and be as charitable + and benevolent as possible, for this is all that remains to man of + his labour. They shall also endeavour to regulate their diet + according to the rules laid down by Rabbi Moses (b. Maimon, or + Maimonides), so as to fulfil the words of Scripture:</span> + <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">The righteous + eateth to the satisfying of his soul.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span> <span style="font-size: 90%">And + let them always be careful not to take the name of God in vain, to + be honest in all business transactions, and let their yea be always + yea. They shall always be under the obligation to train their + children to the Study of the Torah, but one shall devote his life + exclusively to the study thereof. And it shall be incumbent upon + his brothers to support this one, and to invest his moneys, and to + provide for him that he and his family may live respectably, so + that he be not distracted by worldly cares from his studies. Let + also the elder love the younger brothers as their own children, and + the younger respect the elder as a parent. Thus they may always + bear in mind that they are of a God-fearing family. Let them love + and honour scholars, thus to merit the honour of having scholars + for their sons and sons-in-law. This will they shall themselves + read weekly, and shall also make it incumbent upon their children, + from generation to generation, to read weekly, in order to fulfil + what is written (Gen. xviii. 19),</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">For I know him that he will command his + children,</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">etc., and also the words of Isaiah + (lix. 21),</span> <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">“</span><span style="font-size: 90%">And this is + my covenant,</span><span style="font-size: 90%">”</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">etc. But as often as they shall read + this will, they shall also read the two letters below written, + which Rabbi Moses ben Nachman sent to his sons, with a view of + being serviceable to them in many respects.</span> <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page141">[pg 141]</span><a name="Pg141" id="Pg141" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a><span style="font-size: 90%">Should, + heaven forbid, they be by any sad accident prevented from + fulfilling the injunctions above laid down, they must fine + themselves by not drinking wine on that day, or by eating one + course less at the dinner, or by giving some fine in + charity....</span></p> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And this is the + letter which the above-mentioned Rabbi sent from the Holy Land to + Castile, when his son was staying before the king (in his + service):—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em"> + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 0.90em"><span class= + "tei tei-q"><span style="font-size: 90%">“</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">... May God bless you and preserve you from sin and + punishment. Behold, our master, King David, had a son, wise and of an + understanding heart, like unto whom there was never one before or + after. Nevertheless he said to him (1 Kings ii. 2):</span> + <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">‘</span><span style="font-size: 90%">And keep the + charge of the Lord thy God,</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">’</span></span> <span style="font-size: 90%">etc. He + also said to him:</span> <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">‘</span><span style="font-size: 90%">And thou, my + son, know the God of thy father</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">’</span></span> <span style="font-size: 90%">(1 + Chron. xxviii. 9). Now, my son, if thou wilt measure thyself with + Solomon, thou wilt find thyself a worm—not a man, merely an insect; + nevertheless, if thou wilt seek God, he will make thee great; and if + thou wilt forsake him, thou wilt be turned out and forsaken. My son, + be careful that thou read the</span> <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-size: 90%; font-style: italic">Shema</span></span><a id= + "noteref_105" name="noteref_105" href="#note_105"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">105</span></span></a> + <span style="font-size: 90%">morning and evening, as well as that + thou say the daily prayers. Have always with thee a Pentateuch + written correctly, and read therein the Lesson for each + Sabbath....</span> <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">‘</span><span style="font-size: 90%">Cast thy burden + upon the Lord,</span><span style="font-size: 90%">’</span></span> + <span style="font-size: 90%">for the thing which thou believest far + from thee is often very near unto thee. Know, again, that thou art + not master over thy words, nor hast power over thy hand; but + everything is in the hand of the Lord, who formeth thy heart.... Be + especially careful to keep aloof from the women [of the court?]. Know + that our God hates immorality, and Balaam could in no other way + injure Israel than by inciting them to unchastity. [Here come many + quotations from Malachi and Ezra.]... My son, remember me always, and + let the image of my countenance be never absent from before thine + eyes. Love not that which I hate.... Let the words of the Psalmist be + always upon thy lips,</span> <span class="tei tei-q"><span style= + "font-size: 90%">‘</span><span style="font-size: 90%">I am a stranger + in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">’</span></span> <span style="font-size: 90%">(Ps. + cxix. 19); and God, who is good and the dispenser of good, shall + increase thy peace and prolong thy life in peace and happiness, and + promote thy honour according to thy wish and the wish of thy father + who begat thee, Moses ben Nachman.</span><span style= + "font-size: 90%">”</span></span></p> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page142">[pg 142]</span><a name= + "Pg142" id="Pg142" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc13" id="toc13"></a> <a name="pdf14" id="pdf14"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">V. A Jewish Boswell</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is a saying + in the Talmud <span class="tei tei-q">“Nothing exists of which there + is not some indication in the Torah.”</span> These words are often + quoted, and some modern authors have pressed them so far as to find + even the discoveries of Columbus and the inventions of Watt and + Stephenson indicated in the Law. This is certainly misapplied + ingenuity. But it is hardly an exaggeration to maintain that there is + no noble manifestation of real religion, no expression of real piety, + reverence, and devotion, to which Jewish literature would not offer a + fair parallel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus it will + hardly be astonishing to hear that Jewish literature has its Boswell + to show, more than three centuries before the Scottish gentleman came + to London to admire his Johnson, and more than four centuries before + the Sage of Chelsea delivered his lectures on Hero Worship. And this + Jewish Boswell was guided only by the motives suggested to him in the + old Rabbinic literature. In this literature the reverence for the + great man, and the absorption of one's whole self in him, went so far + that one Rabbi declared that the whole world was only created to + serve such a man as company.<a id="noteref_106" name="noteref_106" + href="#note_106"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">106</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, the fact + that, in the language of the Rabbis, the term for studying the Law + and discussing it is <span class="tei tei-q">“to <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page143">[pg 143]</span><a name="Pg143" id="Pg143" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> attend”</span> or rather <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to serve the disciples of the Wise”</span> may also have + led people to the important truth that the great man is not a + lecturing machine, but a sort of living Law himself. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“When the man,”</span> said one Rabbi, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“has wholly devoted himself to the Torah, and thoroughly + identified himself with it, it becomes almost his own Torah.”</span> + Thus people have not only to listen to his words but to observe his + whole life, and to profit from all his actions and movements.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This was what the + Jewish Boswell sought to do. His name was Rabbi Solomon, of St. Goar, + a small town on the Rhine, while the name of the master whom he + served was R. Jacob, the Levite, better known by his initials + Maharil, who filled the office of Chief Rabbi in Mayence and Worms + successively. The main activity of Maharil falls in the first three + decades of the fifteenth century. Those were troublous times for a + Rabbi. For the preceding century with its persecution and + sufferings—one has only to think of the Black Death and its terrible + consequences for the Jews—led to the destruction of the great + Schools, the decay of the study of the Law, and to the dissolution of + many congregations. Those which remained lost all touch with each + other, so that almost every larger Jewish community had its own + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Minhag</span></span> or ritual custom.<a id= + "noteref_107" name="noteref_107" href="#note_107"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">107</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It was Maharil who + brought some order into this chaos, and in the course of time his + influence asserted itself so strongly that the rules observed by him + in the performing of religious ceremonies were accepted by the great + majority of the Jewish communities. Thus the personality of Maharil + himself became a standing Minhag, suppressing all the other Minhagim + (customs).</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page144">[pg + 144]</span><a name="Pg144" id="Pg144" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But there must + have been something very strong and very great about the personality + of the man who could succeed in such an arduous task. For we must not + forget that the Minhag or custom in its decay degenerates into a kind + of religious fashion, the worst disease to which religion is liable, + and the most difficult to cure. It is therefore an irreparable loss + both for Jewish literature and for Jewish history, that the greatest + part of Maharil's posthumous writings are no longer extant, so that + our knowledge about him is very small. But the little we know of him + we owe chiefly to the communicativeness of his servant, the Solomon + of St. Goar whom I mentioned above.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Solomon not only + gave us the <span class="tei tei-q">“Customs”</span> of his master, + but also observed him closely in all his movements, and + conscientiously wrote down all that he saw and heard, under the name + of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Collectanea</span></span>. It seems that the + bulk of these <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Collectanea</span></span> was also lost. But in + the fragments that we still possess we are informed, among other + things, how Maharil addressed his wife, how he treated his pupils, + how careful he was in the use of his books, and even how clean his + linen was. Is this not out-Boswelling Boswell?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The most striking + point of agreement between the Boswell of the fifteenth and him of + the eighteenth century, is that they both use the same passage from + the Talmud to excuse the interest in trifles which their labours of + love betrayed. Thus Solomon prefaces his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Collectanea</span></span> with the following + words: <span class="tei tei-q">“It is written, His leaf shall not + wither. These words were explained by our Sages to mean that even the + idle talk of the disciples of the wise deserves a study. Upon this + interpretation I have relied. In my love to R. Jacob the Levite, I + collected everything about him. I did not refuse even small things, + though many <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page145">[pg + 145]</span><a name="Pg145" id="Pg145" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + derided me. Everything I wrote down, for such was the desire of my + heart.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus far Solomon. + Now, if we turn to the introduction to Boswell's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Life of + Johnson</span></span>, we read the following sentence: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“For this almost superstitious reverence, I have found + very old and venerable authority quoted by our great modern prelate, + Secker, in whose tenth sermon there is the following passage: + <span class="tei tei-q">‘Rabbi Kimchi, a noted Jewish commentator who + lived about five hundred years ago, explains that passage in the + first Psalm, <span class="tei tei-q">“His leaf also shall not + wither”</span> from Rabbins yet older than himself, that even the + idle talk, so he expressed it, of a good man ought to be + regarded.’</span> ”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Croker's note to + this passage sounds rather strange. This editor says: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Kimchi was a Spanish Rabbi, who died in 1240. One + wonders that Secker's good sense should have condescended to quote + this far-fetched and futile interpretation of the simple and + beautiful metaphor, by which the Psalmist illustrates the prosperity + of the righteous man.”</span> Now Kimchi died at least five years + earlier than Croker states, but dates, we know from Macaulay's essay + on the subject, were not Croker's strong point. But one can hardly + forgive the editor of Boswell this lack of sympathy. Had he known + what strong affinity there was between his most Christian author and + the humble Jew Solomon, he would have less resented this + condescension of Archbishop Secker.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As for the Jewish + Boswell himself, we know very little about him. The only place in + which he speaks about his own person is that in which he derives his + pedigree from R. Eleazar ben Samuel Hallevi (died 1357), and says + that he was generally called <span class="tei tei-q">“Der gute (the + good) R. Salman.”</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page146">[pg + 146]</span><a name="Pg146" id="Pg146" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> He + well deserved this appellation. In his Will we find the following + injunction to his children: <span class="tei tei-q">“Be honest, and + conscientious in your dealing with men, with Jews as well as + Gentiles, be kind and obliging to them; do not speak what is + superfluous.”</span> And wisdom is surely rare enough to render + inappropriate a charge of superfluousness against the work of those + who in bygone times spent their energies in gathering the crumbs that + fell from the tables of the wise.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page147">[pg 147]</span><a name= + "Pg147" id="Pg147" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc15" id="toc15"></a> <a name="pdf16" id="pdf16"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">VI. The Dogmas Of Judaism</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The object of this + essay is to say about the dogmas of Judaism a word which I think + ought not to be left unsaid.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In speaking of + dogmas it must be understood that Judaism does not ascribe to them + any saving power. The belief in a dogma or a doctrine without abiding + by its real or supposed consequences (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span> the + belief in <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">creatio ex nihilo</span></span> + without keeping the Sabbath) is of no value. And the question about + certain doctrines is not whether they possess or do not possess the + desired charm against certain diseases of the soul, but whether they + ought to be considered as characteristics of Judaism or not.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It must again be + premised that the subject, which occupied the thoughts of the + greatest and noblest Jewish minds for so many centuries, has been + neglected for a comparatively long time. And this for various + reasons. First, there is Mendelssohn's assertion, or supposed + assertion, in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jerusalem</span></span>, that Judaism has no + dogmas—an assertion which has been accepted by the majority of modern + Jewish theologians as the only dogma Judaism possesses. You can hear + it pronounced in scores of Jewish pulpits; you can read it written in + scores of Jewish books. To admit the possibility that Mendelssohn was + in error was hardly permissible, especially for those with + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page148">[pg 148]</span><a name="Pg148" + id="Pg148" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> whom he enjoys a certain + infallibility. Nay, even the fact that he himself was not consistent + in his theory, and on another occasion declared that Judaism + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">has</span></em> dogmas, only that they are purer + and more in harmony with reason than those of other religions; or + even the more important fact that he published a school-book for + children, in which the so-called Thirteen Articles were embodied, + only that instead of the formula <span class="tei tei-q">“I + believe,”</span> he substituted <span class="tei tei-q">“I am + convinced,”</span>—even such patent facts did not produce much effect + upon many of our modern theologians.<a id="noteref_108" name= + "noteref_108" href="#note_108"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">108</span></span></a> They + were either overlooked or explained away so as to make them harmonise + with the great dogma of dogmalessness. For it is one of the + attributes of infallibility that the words of its happy possessor + must always be reconcilable even when they appear to the eye of the + unbeliever as gross contradictions.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another cause of + the neglect into which the subject has fallen is that our century is + an <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">historical</span></em> one. It is not only books + that have their fate, but also whole sciences and literatures. In + past times it was religious speculation that formed the favourite + study of scholars, in our time it is history with its critical + foundation on a sound philology. Now as these two most important + branches of Jewish science were so long neglected—were perhaps never + cultivated in the true meaning of the word, and as Jewish literature + is so vast and Jewish history so far-reaching and eventful, we cannot + wonder that these studies have absorbed the time and the labour of + the greatest and best Jewish writers in this century.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is, besides, + a certain tendency in historical studies that is hostile to mere + theological speculation. The historian deals with realities, the + theologian with abstractions. <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page149">[pg 149]</span><a name="Pg149" id="Pg149" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> The latter likes to shape the universe after + his system, and tells us how things <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">ought to + be</span></em>, the former teaches us how they <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">are</span></em> or + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">have + been</span></em>, and the explanation he gives for their being so and + not otherwise includes in most cases also a kind of justification for + their existence. There is also the <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">odium theologicum</span></span>, which has been + the cause of so much misfortune that it is hated by the historian, + whilst the superficial, rationalistic way in which the theologian + manages to explain everything which does not suit his system is most + repulsive to the critical spirit.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it cannot be + denied that this neglect has caused much confusion. Especially is + this noticeable in England, which is essentially a theological + country, and where people are but little prone to give up speculation + about things which concern their most sacred interest and greatest + happiness. Thus whilst we are exceedingly poor in all other branches + of Jewish learning, we are comparatively rich in productions of a + theological character. We have a superfluity of essays on such + delicate subjects as eternal punishment, immortality of the soul, the + day of judgment, etc., and many treatises on the definition of + Judaism. But knowing little or nothing of the progress recently made + in Jewish theology, of the many protests against all kinds of + infallibility, whether canonised in this century or in olden times, + we in England still maintain that Judaism has no dogmas as if nothing + to the contrary had ever been said. We seek the foundation of Judaism + in political economy, in hygiene, in everything except religion. + Following the fashion of the day to esteem religion in proportion to + its ability to adapt itself to every possible and impossible + metaphysical and social system, we are <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page150">[pg 150]</span><a name="Pg150" id="Pg150" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> anxious to squeeze out of Judaism the last drop + of faith and hope, and strive to make it so flexible that we can turn + it in every direction which it is our pleasure to follow. But alas! + the flexibility has progressed so far as to classify Judaism among + the invertebrate species, the lowest order of living things. It + strongly resembles a certain Christian school which addresses itself + to the world in general and claims to satisfy everybody alike. It + claims to be socialism for the adherents of Karl Marx and Lassalle, + worship of man for the followers of Comte and St. Simon; it carefully + avoids the word <span class="tei tei-q">“God”</span> for the comfort + of agnostics and sceptics, whilst on the other hand it pretends to + hold sway over paradise, hell, and immortality for the edification of + believers. In such illusions many of our theologians delight. For + illusions they are; you cannot be everything if you want to be + anything. Moreover, illusions in themselves are bad enough, but we + are menaced with what is still worse. Judaism, divested of every + higher religious motive, is in danger of falling into gross + materialism. For what else is the meaning of such declarations as + <span class="tei tei-q">“Believe what you like, but conform to this + or that mode of life”</span>; what else does it mean but <span class= + "tei tei-q">“We cannot expect you to believe that the things you are + bidden to do are commanded by a higher authority; there is not such a + thing as belief, but you ought to do them for conventionalism or for + your own convenience.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But both these + motives—the good opinion of our neighbours, as well as our bodily + health—have nothing to do with our nobler and higher sentiments, and + degrade Judaism to a matter of expediency or diplomacy. Indeed, + things have advanced so far that well-meaning but ill-advised writers + even think to render a service to Judaism <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page151">[pg 151]</span><a name="Pg151" id="Pg151" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> by declaring it to be a kind of enlightened + Hedonism, or rather a moderate Epicureanism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have no + intention of here answering the question, What is Judaism? This + question is not less perplexing than the problem, What is God's + world? Judaism is also a great Infinite, composed of as many endless + Units, the Jews. And these Unit-Jews have been, and are still, + scattered through all the world, and have passed under an immensity + of influences, good and bad. If so, how can we give an exact + definition of the Infinite, called Judaism?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But if there is + anything sure, it is that the highest motives which worked through + the history of Judaism are the strong belief in God and the unshaken + confidence that at last this God, the God of Israel, will be the God + of the whole world; or, in other words, Faith and Hope are the two + most prominent characteristics of Judaism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In the following + pages I shall try to give a short account of the manner in which + these two principles of Judaism found expression, from the earliest + times down to the age of Mendelssohn; that is, to present an outline + of the history of Jewish Dogmas. First, a few observations on the + position of the Bible and the Talmud in relation to our theme. + Insufficient and poor as they may be in proportion to the importance + of these two fundamental documents of Judaism, these remarks may + nevertheless suggest a connecting link between the teachings of + Jewish antiquity and those of Maimonides and his successors.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I begin with the + Scriptures.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Bible itself + hardly contains a command bidding us <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">to + believe</span></em>. We are hardly ordered, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span>, to + believe in the existence of God. I say hardly, but I do not + altogether deny the existence of such a command. It is true that we + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page152">[pg 152]</span><a name="Pg152" + id="Pg152" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> do not find in the Scripture + such words as: <span class="tei tei-q">“You are commanded to believe + in the existence of God.”</span> Nor is any punishment assigned as + awaiting him who denies it. Notwithstanding these facts, many Jewish + authorities—among them such important men as Maimonides, R. Judah + Hallevi, Nachmanides—perceive, in the first words of the Ten + Commandments, <span class="tei tei-q">“I am the Lord thy God,”</span> + the command to believe in His existence.<a id="noteref_109" name= + "noteref_109" href="#note_109"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">109</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Be this as it may, + there cannot be the shadow of a doubt that the Bible, in which every + command is dictated by God, and in which all its heroes are the + servants, the friends, or the ambassadors of God, presumes such a + belief in every one to whom those laws are dictated, and these heroes + address themselves. Nay, I think that the word <span class= + "tei tei-q">“belief”</span> is not even adequate. In a world with so + many visible facts and invisible causes, as life and death, growth + and decay, light and darkness; in a world where the sun rises and + sets; where the stars appear regularly; where heavy rains pour down + from the sky, often accompanied by such grand phenomena as thunder + and lightning; in a world full of such marvels, but into which no + notion has entered of all our modern true or false explanations—who + but God is behind all these things? <span class="tei tei-q">“Have the + gates,”</span> asks God, <span class="tei tei-q">“have the gates of + death been open to thee? or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of + death?... Where is the way where light dwelleth? and as for darkness, + where is the place thereof?... Hath the rain a father? or who hath + begotten the drops of dew?... Canst thou bind the sweet influences of + Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion?... Canst thou send lightnings, + that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are?”</span> (Job + xxxviii.). Of all these wonders, God <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page153">[pg 153]</span><a name="Pg153" id="Pg153" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> was not merely the <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">prima causa</span></span>; they were the result + of His direct action, without any intermediary causes. And it is as + absurd to say that the ancient world believed in God, as for a future + historian to assert of the nineteenth century that it believed in the + effects of electricity. We <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">see</span></em> them, and so antiquity + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">saw</span></em> God. If there was any danger, it + lay not in the denial of the existence of a God, but in having a + wrong belief. Belief in as many gods as there are manifestations in + nature, the investing of them with false attributes, the + misunderstanding of God's relation to men, lead to immorality. Thus + the greater part of the laws and teachings of the Bible are either + directed against polytheism, with all its low ideas of God, or rather + of gods; or they are directed towards regulating God's relation to + men. Man is a servant of God, or His prophet, or even His friend. But + this relationship man obtains only by his conduct. Nay, all man's + actions are carefully regulated by God, and connected with His + holiness. The 19th chapter of Leviticus, which is considered by the + Rabbis as the portion of the Law in which the most important articles + of the Torah are embodied, is headed, <span class="tei tei-q">“Ye + shall be holy, for I the Lord your own God am holy.”</span> And each + law therein occurring, even those which concern our relations to each + other, is <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">not</span></em> founded on utilitarian reasons, + but is ordained because the opposite of it is an offence to the + holiness of God, and profanes His creatures, whom He desired to be as + holy as He is.<a id="noteref_110" name="noteref_110" href= + "#note_110"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">110</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the whole + structure of the Bible is built upon the visible fact of the + existence of a God, and upon the belief in the relation of God to + men, especially to Israel. In spite of all that has been said to the + contrary, the Bible <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">does</span></em> lay stress upon belief, where + belief is required. The <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page154">[pg + 154]</span><a name="Pg154" id="Pg154" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + unbelievers are rebuked again and again. <span class="tei tei-q">“For + all this they sinned still, and believed not for His wondrous + work,”</span> complains Asaph (Ps. lxxviii. 32). And belief is + praised in such exalted words as, <span class="tei tei-q">“Thus saith + the Lord, I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of + thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a + land that was not sown”</span> (Jer. ii. 2). The Bible, especially + the books of the prophets, consists, in great part, of promises for + the future, which the Rabbis justly termed the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Consolations.”</span><a id="noteref_111" name= + "noteref_111" href="#note_111"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">111</span></span></a> For our + purpose, it is of no great consequence to examine what future the + prophets had in view, whether an immediate future or one more remote, + at the end of days. At any rate, they inculcated hope and confidence + that God would bring to pass a better time. I think that even the + most advanced Bible critic—provided he is not guided by some modern + Aryan reasons—must perceive in such passages as, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The Lord shall reign for ever and ever,”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Lord shall rejoice in his works,”</span> + and many others, a hope for more than the establishment of the + <span class="tei tei-q">“national Deity among his votaries in + Palestine.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have now to + pass over an interval of many centuries, the length of which depends + upon the views held as to the date of the close of the canon, and + examine what the Rabbis, the representatives of the prophets, thought + on this subject. Not that the views of the author of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Wisdom of + Solomon</span></span>, of Philo and Aristobulus, and many others of + the Judæo-Alexandrian school would be uninteresting for us. But + somehow their influence on Judaism was only a passing one, and their + doctrines never became authoritative in the Synagogue. We must here + confine ourselves to those who, even by the <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page155">[pg 155]</span><a name="Pg155" id="Pg155" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> testimony of their bitterest enemies, occupied + the seat of Moses.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The successors of + the prophets had to deal with new circumstances, and accordingly + their teachings were adapted to the wants of their times. As the + result of manifold foreign influences, the visible fact of the + existence of God as manifested in the Bible had been somewhat + obscured. Prophecy ceased, and the Holy Spirit which inspired a few + chosen ones took its place. Afterwards this influence was reduced to + the hearing of a Voice from Heaven, which was audible to still fewer. + On the other hand the Rabbis had this advantage that they were not + called upon to fight against idolatry as their predecessors the + prophets had been. The evil inclination to worship idols was, as the + Talmud expresses it allegorically, killed by the Men of the Great + Synagogue, or, as we should put it, it was suppressed by the + sufferings of the captivity in Babylon. This change of circumstances + is marked by the following fact:—Whilst the prophets mostly + considered idolatry as the cause of all sin, the Rabbis show a strong + tendency to ascribe sin to a defect in, or a want of, belief on the + part of the sinner. They teach that Adam would not have sinned unless + he had first denied the <span class="tei tei-q">“Root of all”</span> + (or the main principle), namely, the belief in the Omnipresence of + God. Of Cain they say that before murdering his brother he declared: + <span class="tei tei-q">“There is no judgment, there is no judge, + there is no world to come, and there is no reward for the just, and + no punishment for the wicked.”</span><a id="noteref_112" name= + "noteref_112" href="#note_112"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">112</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In another place + we read that the commission of a sin in secret is an impertinent + attempt by the doer to oust God from the world. But if unbelief is + considered as <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page156">[pg + 156]</span><a name="Pg156" id="Pg156" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the + root of all evil, we may expect that the reverse of it, a perfect + faith, would be praised in the most exalted terms. So we read: Faith + is so great that the man who possesses it may hope to become a worthy + vessel of the Holy Spirit, or, as we should express it, that he may + hope to obtain by this power the highest degree of communion with his + Maker. The Patriarch Abraham, notwithstanding all his other virtues, + only became <span class="tei tei-q">“the possessor of both + worlds”</span> by the merit of his strong faith. Nay, even the + fulfilment of a single law when accompanied by true faith is, + according to the Rabbis, sufficient to bring man nigh to God. And the + future redemption is also conditional on the degree of faith shown by + Israel.<a id="noteref_113" name="noteref_113" href= + "#note_113"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">113</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It has often been + asked what the Rabbis would have thought of a man who fulfils every + commandment of the Torah, but does not believe that this Torah was + given by God, or that there exists a God at all. It is indeed very + difficult to answer this question with any degree of certainty. In + the time of the Rabbis people were still too simple for such a + diplomatic religion, and conformity in the modern sense was quite an + unknown thing. But from the foregoing remarks it would seem that the + Rabbis could not conceive such a monstrosity as atheistic orthodoxy. + For, as we have seen, the Rabbis thought that unbelief must needs end + in sin, for faith is the origin of all good. Accordingly, in the case + just supposed they would have either suspected the man's orthodoxy, + or would have denied that his views were really what he professed + them to be.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Still more + important than the above cited Agadic passages is one which we are + about to quote from the tractate Sanhedrin. This tractate deals with + the constitution, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page157">[pg + 157]</span><a name="Pg157" id="Pg157" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + the supreme law-court, the examination of the witnesses, the + functions of the judges, and the different punishment to be inflicted + on the transgressors of the law. After having enumerated various + kinds of capital punishment, the Mishnah adds the following words: + <span class="tei tei-q">“These are (the men) who are excluded from + the life to come: He who says there is no resurrection from death; he + who says there is no Torah given from heaven, and the + Epikurus.”</span><a id="noteref_114" name="noteref_114" href= + "#note_114"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">114</span></span></a> This + passage was considered by the Rabbis of the Middle Ages, as well as + by modern scholars, the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="la"><span style="font-style: italic">locus + classicus</span></span> for the dogma question. There are many + passages in the Rabbinic literature which exclude man from the world + to come for this or that sin. But these are more or less of an Agadic + (legendary) character, and thus lend themselves to exaggeration and + hyperbolic language. They cannot, therefore, be considered as serious + legal dicta, or as the general opinion of the Rabbis.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Mishnah in + Sanhedrin, however, has, if only by its position in a legal tractate, + a certain <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Halachic</span></span> (obligatory) character. + And the fact that so early an authority as R. Akiba made additions to + it guarantees its high antiquity. The first two sentences of this + Mishnah are clear enough. In modern language, and positively + speaking, they would represent articles of belief in Resurrection and + Revelation. Great difficulty is found in defining what was meant by + the word <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Epikurus</span></span>. The authorities of the + Middle Ages, to whom I shall again have to refer, explain the + Epikurus to be a man who denies the belief in reward and punishment; + others identify him with one who denies the belief in Providence; + while others again consider the Epikurus to be one who denies + Tradition. But the parallel <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page158">[pg + 158]</span><a name="Pg158" id="Pg158" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + passages in which it occurs incline one rather to think that this + word cannot be defined by one kind of heresy. It implies rather a + frivolous treatment of the words of Scripture or of Tradition. In the + case of the latter (Tradition) it is certainly not honest difference + of opinion that is condemned; for the Rabbis themselves differed very + often from each other, and even Mediæval authorities did not feel any + compunction about explaining Scripture in variance with the Rabbinic + interpretation, and sometimes they even went so far as to declare + that the view of this or that great authority was only to be + considered as an isolated opinion not deserving particular attention. + What they did blame was, as already said, scoffing and impiety. We + may thus safely assert that reverence for the teachers of Israel + formed the third essential principle of Judaism.<a id="noteref_115" + name="noteref_115" href="#note_115"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">115</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have still to + remark that there occur in the Talmud such passages as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Jew, even if he has sinned, is still a Jew,”</span> + or <span class="tei tei-q">“He who denies idolatry is called a + Jew.”</span> These and similar passages have been used to prove that + Judaism was not a positive religion, but only involved the negation + of idolatry. But it has been overlooked that the statements quoted + have more a legal than a theological character. The Jew belonged to + his nationality even after having committed the greatest sin, just as + the Englishman does not cease to be an Englishman—in regard to + treason and the like—by having committed a heinous crime. But he has + certainly acted in a very un-English way, and having outraged the + feelings of the whole nation will have to suffer for his misconduct. + The Rabbis in a similar manner did not maintain that he who gave up + the belief in Revelation and Resurrection, and treated irreverently + the teachers <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page159">[pg + 159]</span><a name="Pg159" id="Pg159" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + Israel, severed his connection with the Jewish nation, but that, for + his crime, he was going to suffer the heaviest punishment. He was to + be excluded from the world to come.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Still, important + as is the passage quoted from Sanhedrin, it would be erroneous to + think that it exhausted the creed of the Rabbis. The liturgy and + innumerable passages in the Midrashim show that they ardently clung + to the belief in the advent of the Messiah. All their hope was turned + to the future redemption and the final establishment of the Kingdom + of Heaven on earth. Judaism, stripped of this belief, would have been + for them devoid of meaning. The belief in reward and punishment is + also repeated again and again in the old Rabbinic literature. A more + emphatic declaration of the belief in Providence than is conveyed by + the following passages is hardly conceivable. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Everything is foreseen, and free will is given. And the + world is judged by grace.”</span> Or, <span class="tei tei-q">“the + born are to die, and the dead to revive, and the living to be judged. + For to know and to notify, and that it may be known that He (God) is + the Framer and He the Creator, and He the Discerner, and He the + Judge, and He the Witness,”</span> etc.<a id="noteref_116" name= + "noteref_116" href="#note_116"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">116</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it must not be + forgotten that it was not the habit of the Rabbis to lay down, either + for conduct or for doctrine, rules which were commonly known. When + they urged the three points stated above there must have been some + historical reason for it. Probably these principles were controverted + by some heretics. Indeed, the whole tone of the passage cited from + Sanhedrin is a protest against certain unbelievers who are threatened + with punishment. Other beliefs, not less essential, but less + disputed, remain <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page160">[pg + 160]</span><a name="Pg160" id="Pg160" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + unmentioned, because there was no necessity to assert them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It was not till a + much later time, when the Jews came into closer contact with new + philosophical schools, and also new creeds which were more liable + than heathenism was to be confused with Judaism, that this necessity + was felt. And thus we are led at once to the period when the Jews + became acquainted with the teachings of the Mohammedan schools. The + Caraites came very early into contact with non-Jewish systems. And so + we find that they were also the first to formulate Jewish dogmas in a + fixed number, and in a systematic order. It is also possible that + their separation from the Tradition, and their early division into + little sects among themselves, compelled them to take this step, in + order to avoid further sectarianism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The number of + their dogmas amounts to ten. According to Judah Hadasi (1150), who + would appear to have derived them from his predecessors, their dogmas + include the following articles:—1. <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creatio ex nihilo</span></span>; 2. The + existence of a Creator, God; 3. This God is an absolute unity as well + as incorporeal; 4. Moses and the other prophets were sent by God; 5. + God has given to us the Torah, which is true and complete in every + respect, not wanting the addition of the so-called Oral Law; 6. The + Torah must be studied by every Jew in the original (Hebrew) language; + 7. The Holy Temple was a place elected by God for His manifestation; + 8. Resurrection of the dead; 9. Punishment and reward after death; + 10. The Coming of the Messiah, the son of David.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">How far the + predecessors of Hadasi were influenced by a certain Joseph Albashir + (about 950), of whom there exists a manuscript work, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Rudiments of Faith,”</span> I am unable to <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page161">[pg 161]</span><a name="Pg161" id="Pg161" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> say. The little we know of him reveals + more of his intimacy with Arabic thoughts than of his importance for + his sect in particular and for Judaism in general. After Hadasi I + shall mention here Elijah Bashazi, a Caraite writer of the end of the + fifteenth century. This author, who was much influenced by + Maimonides, omits the second and the seventh articles. In order to + make up the ten he numbers the belief in the eternity of God as an + article, and divides the fourth article into two. In the fifth + article Bashazi does not emphasise so strongly the completeness of + the Torah as Hadasi, and omits the portion which is directed against + Tradition. It is interesting to see the distinction which Bashazi + draws between the Pentateuch and the Prophets. While he thinks that + the five books of Moses can never be altered, he regards the words of + the Prophets as only relating to their contemporaries, and thus + subject to changes. As I do not want to anticipate Maimonides' + system, I must refrain from giving here the articles laid down by + Solomon Troki in the beginning of the eighteenth century. For the + articles of Maimonides are copied by this writer with a few slight + alterations so as to dress them in a Caraite garb.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I must dismiss the + Caraites with these few remarks, my object being chiefly to discuss + the dogmas of the Synagogue from which they had separated themselves. + Besides, as in everything Caraitic, there is no further development + of the question. As Bashazi laid them down, they are still taught by + the Caraites of to-day. I return to the Rabbanites.<a id= + "noteref_117" name="noteref_117" href="#note_117"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">117</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As is well known, + Maimonides (1130-1205), was the first Rabbanite who formulated the + dogmas of the Synagogue. But there are indications of earlier + attempts. R. Saadiah <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page162">[pg + 162]</span><a name="Pg162" id="Pg162" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Gaon's (892-942) work, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creeds and Opinions</span></span>, shows such + traces. He says in his preface, <span class="tei tei-q">“My heart + sickens to see that the belief of my co-religionists is impure and + that their theological views are confused.”</span> The subjects he + treats in this book, such as creation, unity of God, resurrection of + the dead, the future redemption of Israel, reward and punishment, and + other kindred theological subjects might thus, perhaps, be considered + as the essentials of the creed that the Gaon desired to present in a + pure and rational form. R. Hannaneel, of Kairowan,<a id="noteref_118" + name="noteref_118" href="#note_118"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">118</span></span></a> in the + first half of the eleventh century, says in one of his commentaries + that to deserve eternal life one must believe in <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">four</span></em> + things: in God, in the prophets, in a future world where the just + will be rewarded, and in the advent of the Redeemer. From R. Judah + Hallevi's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Cusari</span></span>, written in the beginning + of the twelfth century, we might argue that the belief in the + election of Israel by God was the cardinal dogma of the author.<a id= + "noteref_119" name="noteref_119" href="#note_119"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">119</span></span></a> Abraham + Ibn Daud, a contemporary of Maimonides, in his book <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The High + Belief</span></span>,<a id="noteref_120" name="noteref_120" href= + "#note_120"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">120</span></span></a> speaks + of <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">rudiments</span></em>, among which, besides such + metaphysical principles as unity, rational conception of God's + attributes, etc., the belief in the immutability of the Law, etc., is + included. Still, all these works are intended to furnish evidence + from philosophy or history for the truth of religion rather than to + give a definition of this truth. The latter task was undertaken by + Maimonides.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I refer to the + thirteen articles embodied in his first work, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Commentary to the + Mishnah</span></span>. They are appended to the Mishnah in Sanhedrin, + with which I dealt above. But though they do not form an independent + treatise, Maimonides' remarks must not be considered as merely + incidental.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page163">[pg + 163]</span><a name="Pg163" id="Pg163" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">That Maimonides + was quite conscious of the importance of this exposition can be + gathered from the concluding words addressed to the reader: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Know these (words) and repeat them many + times, and think them over in the proper way. God knows that thou + wouldst be deceiving thyself if thou thinkest thou hast understood + them by having read them once or even ten times. Be not, therefore, + hasty in perusing them. I have not composed them without deep study + and earnest reflection.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The result of this + deep study was that the following Thirteen Articles constitute the + creed of Judaism. They are:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">1. The belief in + the existence of a Creator; 2. The belief in His Unity; 3. The belief + in His Incorporeality; 4. The belief in His Eternity; 5. The belief + that all worship and adoration are due to Him alone; 6. The belief in + Prophecy; 7. The belief that Moses was the greatest of all Prophets, + both before and after him; 8. The belief that the Torah was revealed + to Moses on Mount Sinai; 9. The belief in the Immutability of this + revealed Torah; 10. The belief that God knows the actions of men; 11. + The belief in Reward and Punishment; 12. The belief in the coming of + the Messiah; 13. The belief in the Resurrection of the dead.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The impulse given + by the great philosopher and still greater Jew was eagerly followed + by succeeding generations, and Judaism thus came into possession of a + dogmatic literature such as it never knew before Maimonides. + Maimonides is the centre of this literature, and I shall accordingly + speak in the remainder of this essay of Maimonists and + Anti-Maimonists. These terms really apply to the great controversy + that raged round Maimonides' <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide of</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page164">[pg 164]</span><a name="Pg164" id="Pg164" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a><span style="font-style: italic">the + Perplexed</span></span>, but I shall, chiefly for brevity's sake, + employ them in these pages in a restricted sense to refer to the + dispute concerning the Thirteen Articles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Among the + Maimonists we may probably include the great majority of Jews, who + accepted the Thirteen Articles without further question. Maimonides + must indeed have filled up a great gap in Jewish theology, a gap, + moreover, the existence of which was very generally perceived. A + century had hardly elapsed before the Thirteen Articles had become a + theme for the poets of the Synagogue. And almost every country where + Jews lived can show a poem or a prayer founded on these Articles. R. + Jacob Molin (1420) of Germany speaks of metrical and rhymed songs in + the German language, the burden of which was the Thirteen Articles, + and which were read by the common people with great devotion. The + numerous commentaries and homilies written on the same topic would + form a small library in themselves.<a id="noteref_121" name= + "noteref_121" href="#note_121"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">121</span></span></a> But on + the other hand it must not be denied that the Anti-Maimonists, that + is to say those Jewish writers who did not agree with the creed + formulated by Maimonides, or agreed only in part with him, form also + a very strong and respectable minority. They deserve our attention + the more as it is their works which brought life into the subject and + deepened it. It is not by a perpetual Amen to every utterance of a + great authority that truth or literature gains anything.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The + Anti-Maimonists can be divided into two classes. The one class + categorically denies that Judaism has dogmas. I shall have occasion + to touch on this view when I come to speak of Abarbanel. Here I pass + at once to the second class of Anti-Maimonists. This consists of + those who agree with Maimonides as to the existence of dogmas + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page165">[pg 165]</span><a name="Pg165" + id="Pg165" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> in Judaism, but who differ + from him as to what these dogmas are, or who give a different + enumeration of them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As the first of + these Anti-Maimonists we may regard Nachmanides, who, in his famous + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Sermon in + the Presence of the King</span></span>, speaks of three fundamental + principles: Creation (that is, non-eternity of matter), Omniscience + of God, and Providence. Next comes R. Abba Mari ben Moses, of + Montpellier. He wrote at the beginning of the fourteenth century, and + is famous in Jewish history for his zeal against the study of + philosophy. We possess a small pamphlet by him dealing with our + subject, and it forms a kind of prologue to his collection of + controversial letters against the rationalists of his time.<a id= + "noteref_122" name="noteref_122" href="#note_122"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">122</span></span></a> He lays + down three articles as the fundamental teachings of Religion: 1. + Metaphysical: The existence of God, including His Unity and + Incorporeality; 2. Mosaic: <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="la"><span style="font-style: italic">Creatio ex + nihilo</span></span> by God—a consequence of this principle is the + belief that God is capable of altering the laws of nature at His + pleasure; 3. Ethical: Special Providence—<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span> God + knows all our actions in all their details. Abba Mari does not + mention Maimonides' Thirteen Articles. But it would be false to + conclude that he rejected the belief in the coming of the Messiah, or + any other article of Maimonides. The whole tone and tendency of this + pamphlet is polemical, and it is therefore probable that he only + urged those points which were either doubted or explained in an + unorthodox way by the sceptics of his time.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another scholar, + of Provence, who wrote but twenty years later than Abba Mari—R. David + ben Samuel d'Estella (1320)—speaks of the seven pillars of religion. + They are: Revelation, Providence, Reward and Punishment, <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page166">[pg 166]</span><a name="Pg166" id="Pg166" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the Coming of the Messiah, Resurrection + of the Dead, <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">Creatio ex + nihilo</span></span>, and Free Will.<a id="noteref_123" name= + "noteref_123" href="#note_123"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">123</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of authors living + in other countries, I have to mention here R. Shemariah, of Crete, + who flourished at about the same time as R. David d'Estella, and is + known from his efforts to reconcile the Caraites with the Rabbanites. + This author wrote a book for the purpose of furnishing Jewish + students with evidence for what he considered the five fundamental + teachings of Judaism, viz.: 1. The Existence of God; 2. The + Incorporeality of God; 3. His Absolute Unity; 4. That God created + heaven and earth; 5. That God created the world after His will 5106 + years ago—5106 (1346 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>), being the year in + which Shemariah wrote these words.<a id="noteref_124" name= + "noteref_124" href="#note_124"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">124</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In Portugal, at + about the same time, we find R. David ben Yom-Tob Bilia adding to the + articles of Maimonides thirteen of his own, which he calls the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Fundamentals of the Thinking Man.”</span> + Five of these articles relate to the functions of the human soul, + that, according to him, emanated from God, and to the way in which + this divine soul receives its punishment and reward. The other eight + articles are as follows: 1. The belief in the existence of spiritual + beings—angels; 2. <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">Creatio ex + nihilo</span></span>; 3. The belief in the existence of another + world, and that this other world is only a spiritual one; 4. The + Torah is above philosophy; 5. The Torah has an outward (literal) + meaning and an inward (allegorical) meaning; 6. The text of the Torah + is not subject to any emendation; 7. The reward of a good action is + the good work itself, and the doer must not expect any other reward; + 8. It is only by the <span class="tei tei-q">“commands relating to + the heart,”</span> for instance, the belief in one eternal God, the + loving and fearing Him, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page167">[pg + 167]</span><a name="Pg167" id="Pg167" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> not + through good actions, that man attains the highest degree of + perfection.<a id="noteref_125" name="noteref_125" href= + "#note_125"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">125</span></span></a> Perhaps + it would be suitable to mention here another contemporaneous writer, + who also enumerates twenty-six articles. The name of this writer is + unknown, and his articles are only gathered from quotations by later + authors. It would seem from these quotations that the articles of + this unknown author consisted mostly of statements emphasising the + belief in the attributes of God: as, His Eternity, His Wisdom and + Omnipotence, and the like.<a id="noteref_126" name="noteref_126" + href="#note_126"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">126</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">More important for + our subject are the productions of the fifteenth century, especially + those of Spanish authors. The fifteen articles of R. Lipman + Muhlhausen, in the preface to his well-known <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Book of + Victory</span></span><a id="noteref_127" name="noteref_127" href= + "#note_127"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">127</span></span></a> (1410), + differ but slightly from those of Maimonides. In accordance with the + anti-Christian tendency of his polemical book, he lays more stress on + the two articles of Unity and Incorporeality, and makes of them four. + We can therefore dismiss him with this short remark, and pass at once + to the Spanish Rabbis.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The first of these + is R. Chasdai Ibn Crescas, who composed his famous treatise, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Light + of God</span></span>, about 1405. Chasdai's book is well known for + its attacks on Aristotle, and also for its influence on Spinoza. But + Chasdai deals also with Maimonides' Thirteen Articles, to which he + was very strongly opposed. Already in his preface he attacks + Maimonides for speaking, in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Book of the Commandments</span></span>, of the + belief in the existence of God as an <span class= + "tei tei-q">“affirmative precept.”</span> Chasdai thinks it absurd; + for every commandment must be dictated by some authority, but on + whose authority can we dictate the acceptance of this authority? His + general objection to the Thirteen Articles <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page168">[pg 168]</span><a name="Pg168" id="Pg168" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> is that Maimonides confounded dogmas or + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">fundamental + beliefs</span></em> of Judaism, without which Judaism is + inconceivable, with beliefs or <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">doctrines</span></em> which Judaism inculcates, + but the denial of which, though involving a strong heresy, does not + make Judaism impossible. He maintains that if Maimonides meant only + to count fundamental teachings, there are not more than seven; but + that if he intended also to include doctrines, he ought to have + enumerated sixteen. As beliefs of the first class—namely, fundamental + beliefs—he considers the following articles: 1. God's knowledge of + our actions; 2. Providence; 3. God's omnipotence—even to act against + the laws of nature; 4. Prophecy; 5. Free will; 6. The aim of the + Torah is to make man long after the closest communion with God. The + belief in the existence of God, Chasdai thinks, is an axiom with + which every religion must begin, and he is therefore uncertain + whether to include it as a dogma or not. As to the doctrines which + every Jew is bound to believe, but without which Judaism is not + impossible, Chasdai divides them into two sections: (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>) 1. + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creatio ex nihilo</span></span>; 2. Immortality + of the soul; 3. Reward and Punishment; 4. Resurrection of the dead; + 5. Immutability of the Torah; 6. Superiority of the prophecy of + Moses; 7. That the High Priest received from God the instructions + sought for, when he put his questions through the medium of the Urim + and Thummim; 8. The coming of the Messiah. (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>) + Doctrines which are expressed by certain religious ceremonies, and on + belief in which these ceremonies are conditioned: 1. The belief in + the efficacy of prayer—as well as in the power of the benediction of + the priests to convey to us the blessing of God; 2. God is merciful + to the penitent; 3. Certain days in the year—for instance, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page169">[pg 169]</span><a name="Pg169" + id="Pg169" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the Day of Atonement—are + especially qualified to bring us near to God, if we keep them in the + way we are commanded. That Chasdai is a little arbitrary in the + choice of his <span class="tei tei-q">“doctrines,”</span> I need + hardly say. Indeed, Chasdai's importance for the dogma-question + consists more in his critical suggestions than in his positive + results. He was, as we have seen, the first to make the distinction + between fundamental teachings which form the basis of Judaism, and + those other simple Jewish doctrines without which Judaism is not + impossible. Very daring is his remark, when proving that Reward and + Punishment, Immortality of the soul, and Resurrection of the dead + must not be considered as the basis of Judaism, since the highest + ideal of religion is to serve God without any hope of reward. Even + more daring are his words concerning the Immutability of the Law. He + says: <span class="tei tei-q">“Some have argued that, since God is + perfection, so must also His law be perfect, and thus unsusceptible + of improvement.”</span> But he does not think this argument + conclusive, though the fact in itself (the Immutability of the Law) + is true. For one might answer that this perfection of the Torah could + only be in accordance with the intelligence of those for whom it was + meant; but as soon as the recipients of the Torah have advanced to a + higher state of perfection, the Torah must also be altered to suit + their advanced intelligence. A pupil of Chasdai illustrates the words + of his master by a medical parallel. The physician has to adapt his + medicaments to the various stages through which his patient has to + pass. That he changes his prescription does not, however, imply that + his medical knowledge is imperfect, or that his earlier remedies were + ignorantly chosen; the varying condition of the invalid was the cause + of the variation <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page170">[pg + 170]</span><a name="Pg170" id="Pg170" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> in + the doctor's treatment. Similarly, were not the Immutability of the + Torah a <span class="tei tei-q">“doctrine,”</span> one might maintain + that the perfection of the Torah would not be inconsistent with the + assumption that it was susceptible of modification, in accordance + with our changing and progressive circumstances. But all these + arguments are purely of a theoretic character; for, practically, + every Jew, according to Chasdai, has to accept all these beliefs, + whether he terms them fundamental teachings or only Jewish + doctrines.<a id="noteref_128" name="noteref_128" href= + "#note_128"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">128</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Some years later, + though he finished his work in the same year as Chasdai, R. Simeon + Duran (1366-1444,) a younger contemporary of the former, made his + researches on dogmas. His studies on this subject form a kind of + introduction to his commentary on Job, which he finished in the year + 1405. Duran is not so strongly opposed to the Thirteen Articles as + Chasdai, or as another <span class="tei tei-q">“thinker of our + people,”</span> who thought them an arbitrary imitation of the + thirteen attributes of God. Duran tries to justify Maimonides; but + nevertheless he agrees with <span class="tei tei-q">“earlier + authorities,”</span> who formulated the Jewish creed in Three + Articles—The Existence of God, Revelation, and Reward and + Punishment—under which Duran thinks the Thirteen Articles of + Maimonides may be easily classed. Most interesting are his remarks + concerning the validity of dogmas. He tells us that only those are to + be considered as heretics who abide by their own opinions, though + they know that they are contradictory to the views of the Torah. + Those who accept the fundamental teachings of Judaism, but are led by + their deep studies and earnest reflection to differ in details from + the opinions current among their co-religionists, and explain certain + passages <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page171">[pg + 171]</span><a name="Pg171" id="Pg171" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> in + the Scripture in their own way, must by no means be considered as + heretics. We must, therefore, Duran proceeds to say, not blame such + men as Maimonides, who gave an allegorical interpretation to certain + passages in the Bible about miracles, or R. Levi ben Gershom, who + followed certain un-Jewish views in relation to the belief in + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creatio ex nihilo</span></span>. Only the views + are condemnable, not those who cherish them. God forbid, says Duran, + that such a thing should happen in Israel as to condemn honest + inquirers on account of their differing opinions. It would be + interesting to know of how many divines as tolerant as this + persecuted Jew the fifteenth century can boast.<a id="noteref_129" + name="noteref_129" href="#note_129"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">129</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We can now pass to + a more popular but less original writer on our theme. I refer to R. + Joseph Albo, the author of the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Roots</span></span>,<a id="noteref_130" name= + "noteref_130" href="#note_130"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">130</span></span></a> who was + the pupil of Chasdai, a younger contemporary of Duran, and wrote at a + much later period than these authors. Graetz has justly denied him + much originality. The chief merit of Albo consists in popularising + other people's thoughts, though he does not always take care to + mention their names. And the student who is a little familiar with + the contents of the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Roots</span></span> will easily find that Albo + has taken his best ideas either from Chasdai or from Duran. As it is + of little consequence to us whether an article of faith is called + <span class="tei tei-q">“stem,”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“root,”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“branch,”</span> there is scarcely anything fresh left to + quote in the name of Albo. The late Dr. Löw, of Szegedin, was indeed + right, when he answered an adversary who challenged him—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“Who would dare to declare me a heretic as long as I + confess the Three Articles laid down by Albo?”</span> with the words + <span class="tei tei-q">“Albo himself.”</span> For, after all the + subtle distinctions Albo makes between <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page172">[pg 172]</span><a name="Pg172" id="Pg172" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> different classes of dogmas, he declares that + every one who denies even the immutability of the Law or the coming + of the Messiah, which are, according to him, articles of minor + importance, is a heretic who will be excluded from the world to come. + But there is one point in his book which is worth noticing. It was + suggested to him by Maimonides, indeed; still Albo has the merit of + having emphasised it as it deserves. Among the articles which he + calls <span class="tei tei-q">“branches”</span> Albo counts the + belief that the perfection of man, which leads to eternal life, can + be obtained by the fulfilling of <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">one</span></em> + commandment. But this command must, as Maimonides points out, be done + without any worldly regard, and only for the love of God. When one + considers how many platitudes are repeated year by year by certain + theologians on the subject of Jewish legalism, we cannot lay enough + stress on this article of Albo, and we ought to make it better known + than it has hitherto been.<a id="noteref_131" name="noteref_131" + href="#note_131"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">131</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Though I cannot + enter here into the enumeration of the Maimonists, I must not leave + unmentioned the name of R. Nissim ben Moses of Marseilles, the first + great Maimonist, who flourished about the end of the thirteenth + century, and was considered as one of the most enlightened thinkers + of his age.<a id="noteref_132" name="noteref_132" href= + "#note_132"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">132</span></span></a> Another + great Maimonist deserving special attention is R. Abraham ben + Shem-Tob Bibago, who may perhaps be regarded as the most prominent + among those who undertook to defend Maimonides against the attacks of + Chasdai and others. Bibago wrote <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Path of + Belief</span></span><a id="noteref_133" name="noteref_133" href= + "#note_133"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">133</span></span></a> in the + second half of the fifteenth century, and was, as Dr. Steinschneider + aptly describes him, a <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Denkgläubiger</span></span>. But, above all, he + was a believing Jew. When he was once asked, at the table of King + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page173">[pg 173]</span><a name="Pg173" + id="Pg173" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> John II., of Aragon, by a + Christian scholar, <span class="tei tei-q">“Are you the Jewish + philosopher?”</span> he answered, <span class="tei tei-q">“I am a Jew + who believes in the Law given to us by our teacher Moses, though I + have studied philosophy.”</span> Bibago was such a devoted admirer of + Maimonides that he could not tolerate any opposition to him. He + speaks in one passage of the prudent people of his time who, in + desiring to be looked upon as orthodox by the great mob, calumniated + the Teacher (Maimonides), and depreciated his merits. Bibago's book + is very interesting, especially in its controversial parts; but in + respect to dogmas he is, as already said, a Maimonist, and does not + contribute any new point on our subject.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To return to the + Anti-Maimonists of the second half of the fifteenth century. As such + may be considered R. Isaac Aramah, who speaks of three foundations of + religion: <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">Creatio ex + nihilo</span></span>, Revelation (?), and the belief in a world to + come.<a id="noteref_134" name="noteref_134" href= + "#note_134"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">134</span></span></a> Next to + be mentioned is R. Joseph Jabez, who also accepts only three + articles: <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">Creatio ex + nihilo</span></span>, Individual Providence, and the Unity of + God.<a id="noteref_135" name="noteref_135" href= + "#note_135"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">135</span></span></a> Under + these three heads he tries to classify the Thirteen Articles of + Maimonides.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The last Spanish + writer on our subject is R. Isaac Abarbanel. His treatise on the + subject is known under the title <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Top of + Amanah</span></span>,<a id="noteref_136" name="noteref_136" href= + "#note_136"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">136</span></span></a> and was + finished in the year 1495. The greatest part of this treatise forms a + defence of Maimonides, many points in which are taken from Bibago. + But, in spite of this fact, Abarbanel must not be considered a + Maimonist. It is only a feeling of piety towards Maimonides, or + perhaps rather a fondness for argument, that made him defend + Maimonides against Chasdai and others. His own view is that it is a + mistake <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page174">[pg 174]</span><a name= + "Pg174" id="Pg174" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to formulate dogmas of + Judaism, since every word in the Torah has to be considered as a + dogma for itself. It was only, says Abarbanel, by following the + example of non-Jewish scholars that Maimonides and others were + induced to lay down dogmas. The non-Jewish philosophers are in the + habit of accepting in every science certain indisputable axioms from + which they deduce the propositions which are less evident. The Jewish + philosophers in a similar way sought for first principles in religion + from which the whole of the Torah ought to be considered as a + deduction. But, thinks Abarbanel, the Torah as a revealed code is + under no necessity of deducing things from each other, for all the + commands came from the same divine authority, and, therefore, all are + alike evident, and have the same certainty. On this and similar + grounds Abarbanel refused to accept dogmatic articles for Judaism, + and he thus became the head of the school that forms a class by + itself among the Anti-Maimonists to which many of the greatest + Cabbalists also belong. But it is idle talk to cite this school in + aid of the modern theory that Judaism has no dogmas. As we have seen, + it was rather an <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">embarras de richesse</span></span> that + prevented Abarbanel from accepting the Thirteen Articles of + Maimonides. To him and to the Cabbalists the Torah consists of at + least 613 Articles.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Abarbanel wrote + his book with which we have just dealt, at Naples. And it is Italy to + which, after the expulsion of the Jews from Spain, we have to look + chiefly for religious speculation. But the philosophers of Italy are + still less independent of Maimonides than their predecessors in + Spain. Thus we find that R. David Messer Leon, R. David Vital, and + others were Maimonists. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page175">[pg + 175]</span><a name="Pg175" id="Pg175" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Even the otherwise refined and original thinker, R. Elijah Delmedigo + (who died about the end of the fifteenth century) becomes almost + impolite when he speaks of the adversaries of Maimonides in respect + to dogmas. <span class="tei tei-q">“It was only,”</span> he says, + <span class="tei tei-q">“the would-be philosopher that dared to + question the articles of Maimonides. Our people have always the bad + habit of thinking themselves competent to attack the greatest + authorities as soon as they have got some knowledge of the subject. + Genuine thinkers, however, attach very little importance to their + objections.”</span><a id="noteref_137" name="noteref_137" href= + "#note_137"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">137</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Indeed, it seems + as if the energetic protests of Delmedigo scared away the + Anti-Maimonists for more than a century. Even in the following + seventeenth century we have to notice only two Anti-Maimonists. The + one is R. Tobijah, the Priest (1652), who was of Polish descent, + studied in Italy, and lived as a medical man in France. He seems to + refuse to accept the belief in the Immutability of the Torah, and in + the coming of the Messiah, as fundamental teachings of Judaism.<a id= + "noteref_138" name="noteref_138" href="#note_138"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">138</span></span></a> The + other, at the end of the seventeenth century (1695), is R. Abraham + Chayim Viterbo, of Italy. He accepts only six articles: 1. Existence + of God; 2. Unity; 3. Incorporeality; 4. That God was revealed to + Moses on Mount Sinai, and that the prophecy of Moses is true; 5. + Revelation (including the historical parts of the Torah); 6. Reward + and Punishment. As to the other articles of Maimonides, Viterbo, in + opposition to other half-hearted Anti-Maimonists, declares that the + man who denies them is <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">not</span></em> to be considered as a heretic; + though he ought to believe them.<a id="noteref_139" name= + "noteref_139" href="#note_139"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">139</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have now arrived + at the limit I set to myself at the beginning of this essay. For, + between the times of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page176">[pg + 176]</span><a name="Pg176" id="Pg176" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Viterbo and those of Mendelssohn, there is hardly to be found any + serious opposition to Maimonides worth noticing here. Still I must + mention the name of R. Saul Berlin (died 1794); there is much in his + opinions on dogmas which will help us the better to understand the + Thirteen Articles of Maimonides. As the reader has seen, I have + refrained so far from reproducing here the apologies which were made + by many Maimonists in behalf of the Thirteen Articles. For, after all + their elaborate pleas, none of them was able to clear Maimonides of + the charge of having confounded dogmas or fundamental teachings with + doctrines. It is also true that the Fifth Article—that prayer and + worship must only be offered to God—cannot be considered even as a + doctrine, but as a simple precept. And there are other difficulties + which all the distinctions of the Maimonists will never be able to + solve. The only possible justification is, I think, that suggested by + a remark of R. Saul. This author, who was himself—like his friend and + older contemporary Mendelssohn—a strong Anti-Maimonist, among other + remarks, maintains that dogmas must never be laid down but with + regard to the necessities of the time.<a id="noteref_140" name= + "noteref_140" href="#note_140"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">140</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now R. Saul + certainly did not doubt that Judaism is based on eternal truths which + can in no way be shaken by new modes of thinking or changed + circumstances. What he meant was that there are in every age certain + beliefs which ought to be asserted more emphatically than others, + without regard to their theological or rather logical importance. It + is by this maxim that we shall be able to explain the articles of + Maimonides. He asserted them, because they were necessary for his + time.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page177">[pg + 177]</span><a name="Pg177" id="Pg177" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We know, for + instance, from a letter of his son and from other contemporaries, + that it was just at his time that the belief in the incorporeality of + God was, in the opinion of Maimonides, a little relaxed. Maimonides, + who thought such low notions of the Deity dangerous to Judaism, + therefore laid down an article against them. He tells us in his + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide</span></span> that it was far from him to + condemn any one who was not able to demonstrate the Incorporeality of + God, but he stigmatised as a heretic one who refused to believe it. + This position might be paralleled by that of a modern astronomer who, + while considering it unreasonable to expect a mathematical + demonstration of the movements of the earth from an ordinary + unscientific man, would yet regard the person who refused to believe + in such movements as an ignorant faddist.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Again, Maimonides + undoubtedly knew that there may be found in the Talmud—that + bottomless sea with its innumerable undercurrents—passages that are + not quite in harmony with his articles; for instance, the well-known + dictum of R. Hillel, who said, there is no Messiah for Israel—a + passage which has already been quoted <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style="font-style: italic">ad + nauseam</span></span> by every opponent of Maimonides from the + earliest times down to the year of grace 1896. Maimonides was well + aware of the existence of this and similar passages. But, being + deeply convinced of the necessity of the belief in a future + redemption of <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Israel</span></em>—in opposition to other creeds + which claim this redemption exclusively for their own + adherents—Maimonides simply ignored the saying of R. Hillel, as an + isolated opinion which contradicts all the consciousness and + traditions of the Jew as expressed in thousands of other passages, + and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page178">[pg 178]</span><a name= + "Pg178" id="Pg178" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> especially in the + liturgy. Most interesting is Maimonides' view about such isolated + opinions in a letter to the wise men of Marseilles. He deals there + with the question of free will and other theological subjects. After + having stated his own view he goes on to say: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“I know that it is possible to find in the Talmud or in + the Midrash this or that saying in contradiction to the views you + have heard from me. But you must not be troubled by them. One must + not refuse to accept a doctrine, the truth of which has been proved, + on account of its being in opposition to some isolated opinion held + by this or that great authority. Is it not possible that he + overlooked some important considerations when he uttered this strange + opinion? It is also possible that his words must not be taken + literally, and have to be explained in an allegorical way. We can + also think that his words were only to be applied with regard to + certain circumstances of his time, but never intended as permanent + truths.... No man must surrender his private judgment. The eyes are + not directed backwards but forwards.”</span> In another place + Maimonides calls the suppression of one's own opinions—for the reason + of their being irreconcilable with the isolated views of some great + authority—a moral suicide.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">By such motives + Maimonides was guided when he left certain views hazarded in the + Rabbinic literature unheeded, and followed what we may perhaps call + the religious instinct, trusting to his own conscience. We may again + be certain that Maimonides was clear-headed enough to see that the + words of the Torah: <span class="tei tei-q">“And there arose no + prophet since in Israel like unto Moses”</span> (Deut. xxxiv. 10), + were as little intended to imply a doctrine as the passage relating + to the king Josiah, <span class="tei tei-q">“And like unto + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page179">[pg 179]</span><a name="Pg179" + id="Pg179" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> him was there no king before + him that turned to the Lord with all his heart ... neither after him + arose there any like him”</span> (2 Kings xxiii. 25). And none would + think of declaring the man a heretic who should believe another king + to be as pious as Josiah. But living among followers of the + <span class="tei tei-q">“imitating creeds”</span> (as he calls + Christianity and Mohammedism), who claimed that their religion had + superseded the law of Moses, Maimonides, consciously or + unconsciously, felt himself compelled to assert the superiority of + the prophecy of Moses. And so we may guess that every article of + Maimonides which seems to offer difficulties to us contains an + assertion of some relaxed belief, or a protest against the + pretensions of other creeds, though we are not always able to + discover the exact necessity for them. On the other hand, Maimonides + did not assert the belief in free will, for which he argued so + earnestly in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide</span></span>. The common <span class= + "tei tei-q">“man,”</span> with his simple unspeculative mind, for + whom these Thirteen Articles were intended, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“never dreamed that the will was not free,”</span> and + there was no necessity of impressing on his mind things which he had + never doubted.<a id="noteref_141" name="noteref_141" href= + "#note_141"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">141</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">So much about + Maimonides. As to the Anti-Maimonists, it could hardly escape the + reader that in some of the quoted systems the difference from the + view of Maimonides is only a logical one, not a theological. Of some + authors again, especially those of the thirteenth and fourteenth + centuries, it is not at all certain whether they intended to oppose + Maimonides. Others again, as for instance R. Abba Mari, R. Lipman, + and R. Joseph Jabez, acted on the same principle as Maimonides, + urging only those teachings of Judaism which they thought endangered. + One could now, indeed, animated by the praiseworthy example + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page180">[pg 180]</span><a name="Pg180" + id="Pg180" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> given to us by Maimonides, + also propose some articles of faith which are suggested to us by the + necessities of our own time. One might, for instance, insert the + article, <span class="tei tei-q">“I believe that Judaism is, in the + first instance, a divine religion, <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">not</span></em> a + mere complex of racial peculiarities and tribal customs.”</span> One + might again propose an article to the effect that Judaism is a + proselytising religion, having the mission to bring about God's + kingdom on earth, and to include in that kingdom all mankind. One + might also submit for consideration whether it would not be advisable + to urge a little more the principle that religion means chiefly a + <span lang="de" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="de"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Weltanschauung</span></span> and worship of God + by means of holiness both in thought and in action. One would even + not object to accept the article laid down by R. Saul, that we have + to look upon ourselves as sinners. Morbid as such a belief may be, it + would, if properly impressed on our mind, have perhaps the wholesome + effect of cooling down a little our self-importance and our mutual + admiration that makes all progress among us almost impossible.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it was not my + purpose to ventilate here the question whether Maimonides' articles + are sufficient for us, or whether we ought not to add new ones to + them. Nor do I attempt to decide what system we ought to prefer for + recitation in the Synagogue—that of Maimonides or that of Chasdai, or + of any other writer. I do not think that such a recital is of much + use. My object in this sketch has been rather to make the reader + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">think</span></em> about Judaism, by proving that + it regulates not only our actions, but also our thoughts. We usually + urge that in Judaism religion means life; but we forget that a life + without guiding principles and thoughts is a life not worth living. + At <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page181">[pg 181]</span><a name= + "Pg181" id="Pg181" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> least it was so + considered by the greatest Jewish thinkers, and hence their efforts + to formulate the creed of Judaism, so that men should not only be + able to do the right thing, but also to think the right thing. + Whether they succeeded in their attempts towards formulating the + creed of Judaism or not will always remain a question. This concerns + the logician more than the theologian. But surely Maimonides and his + successors <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">did</span></em> succeed in having a religion + depending directly on God, with the most ideal and lofty aspirations + for the future; whilst the Judaism of a great part of our modern + theologians reminds one very much of the words with which the author + of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Marius + the Epicurean</span></span> characterises the Roman religion in the + days of her decline: a religion which had been always something to be + done rather than something to be thought, or believed, or loved.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Political economy, + hygiene, statistics, are very fine things. But no sane man would for + them make those sacrifices which Judaism requires from us. It is only + for God's sake, to fulfil His commands and to accomplish His purpose, + that religion becomes worth living and dying for. And this can only + be possible with a religion which possesses dogmas.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is true that + every great religion is <span class="tei tei-q">“a concentration of + many ideas and ideals,”</span> which make this religion able to adapt + itself to various modes of thinking and living. But there must always + be a point round which all these ideas concentrate themselves. This + centre is Dogma.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page182">[pg 182]</span><a name= + "Pg182" id="Pg182" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc17" id="toc17"></a> <a name="pdf18" id="pdf18"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">VII. The History of Jewish + Tradition</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is an + anecdote about a famous theologian to the effect that he used to tell + his pupils, <span class="tei tei-q">“Should I ever grow old and + weak—which usually drives people to embrace the safer side—and alter + my opinions, then pray do not believe me.”</span> The concluding + volume of Weiss's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">History of Jewish Tradition</span></span><a id= + "noteref_142" name="noteref_142" href="#note_142"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">142</span></span></a> shows + that there was no need for our author to warn his pupils against the + dangers accompanying old age. For though Weiss had, when he began to + write this last volume, already exceeded his three-score and ten, + and, as we read in the preface, had some misgivings as to whether he + should continue his work, there is no trace in it of any abatement of + the great powers of the author. It is marked by the same freshness in + diction, the same marvellous scholarship, the same display of + astonishing critical powers, and the same impartial and + straightforward way of judging persons and things, for which the + preceding volumes were so much distinguished and admired.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This book, which + is recognised as a standard work abroad, is, I fear, owing to the + fact of its being written in the Hebrew language, not sufficiently + known in this country. Weiss does not want <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">our</span></em> + recognition; we are rather in need of his instruction. Some general + view <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page183">[pg 183]</span><a name= + "Pg183" id="Pg183" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of his estimate of + Jewish Tradition may, therefore, be of service to the student. It is, + indeed, the only work of its kind. Zunz has confined himself to the + history of the Agadah. Graetz gave most of his attention to the + political side of Jewish history. But comparatively little has been + done for the Halachah, though Frankel, Geiger, Herzfeld, and others + have treated some single points in various monographs. Thus it was + left for Weiss to write the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">History of Tradition</span></span>, which + includes both the Agadah and the Halachah. The treatment of this + latter must have proved, in consequence of the intricate and + intractable nature of its materials, by far the more difficult + portion of his task.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In speaking of the + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">History</span></em> of Tradition, a term which + suggests the fluctuating character of a thing, its origin, + development, progress, and retrogression, we have already indicated + that Weiss does not consider even the Halachah as having come down + from heaven, ready-made, and definitely fixed for all time. To define + it more clearly, Tradition is, apart from the few ordinances and + certain usages for which there is no precedent in the Bible, the + history of interpretation of the Scriptures, which was constantly + liable to variation, not on grounds of philology, but through the + subjective notions of successive generations regarding religion and + the method and scope of its application.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Weiss's standpoint + with reference to the Pentateuch is the conservative one, maintaining + both its unity and its Mosaic authorship. Those passages and accounts + in the Bible in which the modern critic discerns traces of different + traditional sources, are for Weiss only indicative of the various + stages of interpretation through which the <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page184">[pg 184]</span><a name="Pg184" id="Pg184" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Pentateuch had to pass. The earliest stage was + a very crude one, as may be seen from the case of Jephthah's vow, for + which only a misinterpretation of certain passages in the Pentateuch + (Gen. xxii. 2; Num. xxv. 4) could be made responsible. Nor was + Jephthah, who felt himself bound to carry out his vow, acquainted + with the provision for dissolving vows<a id="noteref_143" name= + "noteref_143" href="#note_143"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">143</span></span></a> that + was sufficiently familiar to later ages. When, on the other hand, + Jeremiah declared sacrifices to be altogether superfluous, and said + that God did not command Israel, when he brought them from the land + of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices (vii. 22), he was + not in contradiction with Leviticus, but interpreted the laws + contained in this book as a concession to popular custom, though not + desirable on their own account. This concession, whenever it was of a + harmless nature, the prophets carried so far as to permit altars + outside the Tabernacle or Temple, though this was against the plain + sense of Deuteronomy. Elijah even bewailed their destruction (1 Kings + xix. 10). He and other prophets probably interpreted the law in + question as directed against the construction and maintenance of + several chief sanctuaries, but not against sacrificing in different + places on minor occasions. This is evidently a free interpretation, + or rather application, of the Law. Occasionally the conception as to + when and how a law should be applied took a completely negative form. + In this manner is to be explained the action of Solomon in suspending + the Fast of the Day of Atonement before the festival he was going to + celebrate in honour of the consecration of the Temple (1 Kings viii. + 65), the king being convinced that on this unique occasion the latter + was of more religious importance than the former. Weiss <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page185">[pg 185]</span><a name="Pg185" id="Pg185" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> thinks that the later custom of holding + public dances in the vineyards on the 10th of Tishri might have had + its origin in this solemn, but also joyful, festival. Ezekiel, again, + though alluding more frequently than any other prophet to the laws in + the Pentateuch, is exceedingly bold in his interpretation of them, + as, for instance, when he says that <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">priests</span></em> + shall not eat anything that is dead or torn (xliv. 31), which shows + that he took the verses in Exod. xxii. 30, and Deut. xiv. 20, to have + been meant only as a good advice to the laymen to refrain from eating + these unclean things, but not as having for them the force of a real + commandment.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Starting from this + proposition, that there existed always some sort of interpretation + running side by side with the recognised Scriptures, which from the + very looseness of its connection with the letter of the Scripture + could claim to be considered a thing independent in itself, and might + therefore be regarded as the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Oral Law</span></span>, in contradistinction to + the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Written + Law</span></span>, the author passes to the age of the Second Temple, + the period to which the rest of the first volume is devoted. In these + pages Weiss reviews the activity of Ezra and Nehemiah, the ordinances + of the Men of the Great Synagogue, the institutions of the Scribes, + the Lives of the so-called Pairs,<a id="noteref_144" name= + "noteref_144" href="#note_144"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">144</span></span></a> the + characteristics of the three sects, the Sadducees, Pharisees, and + Essenes, and the differences between the schools of Shammai and + Hillel. To each of these subjects Weiss gives his fullest attention, + and his discussions of them would form perfect monographs in + themselves. To reproduce all the interesting matter would mean to + translate the whole of this portion of his work into English. I shall + only draw attention to one or two points.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page186">[pg 186]</span><a name="Pg186" id="Pg186" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">First, this + liberal interpretation was active during the whole period referred + to. Otherwise no authority could have abolished the <span lang="la" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">lex talionis</span></span>, or have permitted + war on Sabbath, or made the condition that no crime should be + punished without a preceding warning (which was chiefly owing to the + aversion of the Rabbis to the infliction of capital punishment), or + have sanctioned the sacrificing of the Passover when the 14th of + Nisan fell on Sabbath. Indeed Shemaiah and Abtalyon, in whose name + Hillel communicated this last law, were called the Great + Interpreters.<a id="noteref_145" name="noteref_145" href= + "#note_145"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">145</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Secondly, as to + the so-called <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">laws given to Moses on + Sinai</span></span>.<a id="noteref_146" name="noteref_146" href= + "#note_146"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">146</span></span></a> Much + has been said about these. The distinction claimed for them by some + scholars, viz. that they were never contested, is not tenable, + considering that there prevailed much difference of opinion about + some of them. Nor is the theory that they were ancient religious + usages, dating from time immemorial, entirely satisfactory. For + though the fact may be true in itself, this could not have justified + the Rabbis in calling them all Sinaitic laws, especially when they + were aware that not a few of them were contested by certain of their + colleagues, a thing that would have been quite impossible if they had + a genuine claim to Mosaic authority. But if we understand Weiss + rightly these laws are only to be considered as a specimen of the + whole of the Oral Law, which was believed to emanate, both in its + institutional and in its expository part, from the same authority. + The conviction was firmly held that everything wise and good, be it + ethical or ceremonial in its character, whose effect would be to + strengthen the cause of religion, was at least potentially contained + in the Torah, and that it only required an earnest religious mind + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page187">[pg 187]</span><a name="Pg187" + id="Pg187" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> to find it there. Hence the + famous adage that <span class="tei tei-q">“everything which any + student will teach at any future time was already communicated to + Moses on Mount Sinai”</span>; or the injunction that any acceptable + truth, even if discovered by an insignificant man in Israel, should + be considered as having the authority of a great sage or prophet, or + even of Moses himself. The principle was that the words of the Torah + are <span class="tei tei-q">“fruitful and multiply.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It will probably + be said that the laws of clean and unclean, and such like, have + proved rather too prolific; but if we read Weiss carefully, we shall + be reminded that it was by the same process of propagation that the + Rabbis developed from Deut. xxii. 8, a whole code of sanitary and + police-laws which could even now be studied with profit; from the few + scanty civil laws in Exod. xxi., a whole <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">corpus juris</span></span>, which might well + excite the interest and the admiration of any lawyer; and from the + words <span class="tei tei-q">“And thou shalt teach them diligently + unto thy children,”</span> a complete school-system on the one hand, + and on the other the <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">résumé</span></span> of a liturgy that appears + to have sufficed for the spiritual needs of more than fifty + generations of Israelites.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Before we pass to + the age of the Tannaim,<a id="noteref_147" name="noteref_147" href= + "#note_147"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">147</span></span></a> the + subject of Weiss's second volume, we must take account of two + important events which have greatly influenced the further + development of Tradition. I refer to the destruction of the Temple + and the rise of Christianity. With the former event Judaism ceased to + be a political commonwealth, and if <span class="tei tei-q">“the + nation was already in the times of Ezra converted into a + church,”</span>—an assertion, by the way, which has not the least + basis in fact,—it became the more so after it had lost the last + remains of its independence. But it was a church without priests, or, + since such a thing, as far as <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page188">[pg 188]</span><a name="Pg188" id="Pg188" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> history teaches us, has never existed, let us + rather call it a Synagogue.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From this fact + diverse results flowed. A Synagogue can exist not only without + priests, but also without sacrifices, for which prayer and charity + were a sufficient substitute. With the progress of time also many + agricultural laws, as well as others relating to sacerdotal purity, + gradually became obsolete, though they lingered on for some + generations, and, as a venerable reminiscence of a glorious time, + entered largely into Jewish literature. This disappearance of so many + laws and the weakening of the national element, however, required, if + Judaism was to continue to exist, the strengthening of religion from + another side. The first thing needed was the creation of a new + religious centre which would not only replace the Temple to a certain + degree, but also bring about a greater solidarity of views, such as + would render impossible the ancient differences that divided the + schools of Hillel and Shammai. The creator of this centre was R. + Johanan ben Zaccai, who founded the school of Jamnia, and invested it + with the same authority and importance as the Sanhedrin had enjoyed + during Temple times. The consciousness that they were standing before + a new starting-point in history, with a large religious inheritance + from the past, actuated them not only to collect the old traditional + laws and to take stock of their religious institutions, but also to + give them more definite shape and greater stability. As many of these + traditions were by no means undisputed, the best thing was to bring + them under one or other heading of the Scriptures. This desire gave + the impulse to the famous hermeneutic schools of R. Akiba and R. + Ishmael.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The next cause + that contributed to give a more determinate <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page189">[pg 189]</span><a name="Pg189" id="Pg189" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> expression to the Law was the rise of + Christianity. This is not the place to give an account of the views + which the Rabbis entertained of Christianity. Suffice it to say they + could not see in the destruction of the Law its fulfilment. They also + thought that under certain conditions it is not only the letter that + killeth, but also the spirit, or rather that the spirit may sometimes + be clothed in a letter, which, in its turn, will slay more victims + than the letter against which the loudest denunciations have been + levelled. Spirit without letter, let theologians say what they will, + is a mere phantasm. However, the new sect made claims to the gift of + prophecy, which, as they thought, placed them above the Law. It would + seem that this was a time of special excitement. The student of the + Talmud finds that such marvels as predicting the future, reviving the + dead, casting out demons, crossing rivers dry-shod, curing the sick + by a touch or prayer, were the order of the day, and performed by + scores of Rabbis. Voices from heaven were often heard, and strange + visions were frequently beheld. Napoleon I. is said to have forbidden + the holy coat of Treves to work miracles. The Jewish legislature, + however, had no means of preventing these supernatural workings; but + when the Rabbis saw their dangerous consequences, they insisted that + miracles should have no influence on the interpretation and + development of the Law. Hence the saying with regard to Lev. xxvii. + 34, that no prophet is authorised to add a new law. And when R. + Eliezer b. Hyrkanos (about 120 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>) thought to prove the + justice of his case by the intervention of miracles, the majority + answered that the fact of this or that variation, effected at his + bidding, in the established order of nature, proved nothing for the + soundness of his argument. Nay, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page190">[pg 190]</span><a name="Pg190" id="Pg190" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> they even ignored the <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bath-Kol</span></span><a id="noteref_148" name= + "noteref_148" href="#note_148"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">148</span></span></a> (the + celestial voice), which declared itself in favour of R. Eliezer, + maintaining that the Torah having once been given to mankind, it is + only the opinion of the majority that should decide on its + interpretation and application. Very characteristic is the legend + connected with this fact. When one of the Rabbis afterwards met + Elijah and asked him what they thought in heaven of the audacity of + his colleagues, the prophet answered, <span class="tei tei-q">“God + rejoiced and said, my children have conquered me.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Into such + discredit did miracles fall at that period, whilst the opinion of the + interpreting body, or the Sanhedrin, became more powerful than ever. + These were merely dogmatical consequences. But new laws were enacted + and old ones revived, with the object of resisting Christian + influences over the Jews. To expand the Oral Law, and give it a firm + basis in the Scriptures, were considered the best means of preserving + Judaism intact. <span class="tei tei-q">“Moses desired,”</span> an + old legend narrates, <span class="tei tei-q">“that the Mishnah also + (that is Tradition) should be written down;”</span> but foreseeing + the time when the nations of the world would translate the Torah into + Greek, and would assert their title to rank as the Children of God, + the Lord refused to permit tradition to be recorded otherwise than by + word of mouth. The claim of the Gentiles might then be refuted by + asking them whether they were also in possession of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Mystery.”</span> The Rabbis therefore concentrated + their attention upon <span class="tei tei-q">“the Mystery,”</span> + and this contributed largely towards making the expository methods of + R. Akiba and R. Ishmael, to which I have above referred, the main + object of their study in the schools.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It would, however, + be a mistake to think that the Sanhedrin <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page191">[pg 191]</span><a name="Pg191" id="Pg191" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> now spent their powers in <span class= + "tei tei-q">“enforcing retrograde measures and creating a strange + exegesis.”</span> I especially advise the student to read carefully + that admirable chapter (VII., of Vol. II.) in which Weiss classifies + all the Ordinances, <span class="tei tei-q">“Fences,”</span> Decrees, + and Institutions, dating both from this and from earlier ages, under + ten headings, and also shows their underlying principles. The main + object was to preserve the Jewish religion by strengthening the + principle of Jewish nationality, and to preserve the nationality by + the aid of religion. But sometimes the Rabbis also considered it + necessary to preserve religion against itself, so to speak, or, as + they expressed it, <span class="tei tei-q">“When there is time to + work for the Lord, they make void thy Torah.”</span> This authorised + the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Din</span></span><a id="noteref_149" name="noteref_149" href= + "#note_149"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">149</span></span></a> to act + in certain cases against the letter of the Torah. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The welfare of the World”</span> was another great + consideration. By <span class="tei tei-q">“World”</span> they + understood both the religious and the secular world. From a regard to + the former resulted such <span class="tei tei-q">“Fences”</span> and + Ordinances as were directed against <span class="tei tei-q">“the + transgressors,”</span> as well as the general injunction to + <span class="tei tei-q">“keep aloof from what is morally unseemly, + and from whatever bears any likeness thereto.”</span> In the + interests of the latter—the welfare of the secular world—they enacted + such laws as either tended to elevate the position of women, or to + promote the peace and welfare of members of their own community, or + to improve the relations between Jews and their Gentile neighbours. + They also held the great principle that nothing is so injurious to + the cause of religion as increasing the number of sinners by needless + severity. Hence the introduction of many laws <span class= + "tei tei-q">“for the benefit of penitents,”</span> and the maxim not + to issue any decree which may prove too heavy a burden to the + majority of the community. <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page192">[pg + 192]</span><a name="Pg192" id="Pg192" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> The + relaxation of certain traditional laws was also permitted when they + involved a serious loss of property, or the sacrifice of a man's + dignity. Some old decrees were even permitted to fall into oblivion + when public opinion was too strong against them, the Rabbis holding + that it was often better for Israelites to be unconscious sinners + than wilful transgressors. The <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Minhag</span></span>, or religious custom, also + played an important part, it being assumed that it must have been + first introduced by some eminent authority; but, if there was reason + to believe that the custom owed its origin to some fancy of the + populace, and that it had a pernicious effect on the multitude, no + compunction was felt in abolishing it.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Very important it + is to note that the Oral Law had not at this period assumed a + character of such rigidity that all its ordinances, etc., had to be + looked upon as irremovable for all times. With those who think + otherwise, a favourite quotation is the administratory measure laid + dawn in Tractate <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Evidences</span></span>,<a id="noteref_150" + name="noteref_150" href="#note_150"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">150</span></span></a> I. 5, + where we read that no <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Beth Din</span></span> has the right of + annulling the dicta of another <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Beth Din</span></span>, unless it is stronger in + numbers (having a larger majority) and greater in wisdom than its + fellow tribunal. Confess with becoming modesty that the world is + always going downhill, decreasing both in numbers and in wisdom, and + the result follows that any decision by the earlier Rabbis is fixed + law for all eternity. Weiss refutes such an idea not only as + inconsistent with the nature of Tradition, but also as contradictory + to the facts. He proves by numerous instances that the Rabbis did + abolish ordinances and decrees introduced by preceding authorities, + and that the whole conception is based on a misunderstanding. For the + rule in question, as Weiss clearly points out, originally only meant + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page193">[pg 193]</span><a name="Pg193" + id="Pg193" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> that a <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth Din</span></span> + has no right to undo the decrees of another <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">contemporary Beth + Din</span></span>, unless it was justified in doing so by the weight + of its greater authority. This was necessary if a central authority + was to exist at all. Weiss is indeed of opinion that the whole + passage is a later interpolation from the age of R. Simeon b. + Gamaliel II., when certain Rabbis tried to emancipate themselves from + the authority of the Patriarch. But it was not meant that the + decision of a <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Beth Din</span></span> should have perpetual + binding power for all posterity. This was left to the discretion of + the legislature of each generation, who had to examine whether the + original cause for maintaining such decision still existed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The rest of this + volume is for the greater part taken up with complete monographs of + the Patriarchs and the heads of the schools of that age, whilst the + concluding chapters give us the history of the literature, the + Midrash, Mechilta, Siphra, Siphré, Mishnah, etc., which contain both + the Halachic and the Agadic sayings emanating from these + authorities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">With regard to + these Patriarchs, I should like only to remark that Weiss defends + them against the charge made by Schorr and others, who accuse them of + having assumed too much authority on account of their noble descent, + and who describe their opponents as the true friends of the people. + Weiss is no lover of such specious phrases. The qualifications + required for the leadership of the people were a right instinct for + the necessities of their time, a fair amount of secular knowledge, + and, what is of chief importance, an unbounded love and devotion to + those over whose interests they were called to watch. These + distinctions, as Weiss proves, the descendants of Hillel possessed in + the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page194">[pg 194]</span><a name= + "Pg194" id="Pg194" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> highest degree. It is + true that occasionally, as for instance in the famous controversy of + R. Gamaliel II. with R. Joshua b. Hananiah, or that of R. Simeon b. + Gamaliel II. with R. Nathan and R. Meir, they made their authority + too heavily felt;<a id="noteref_151" name="noteref_151" href= + "#note_151"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">151</span></span></a> but + this was again another necessity of those troubled times, when only + real unity could save Israel.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, Weiss is + no partisan, and the love he lavishes on his favourite heroes does + not exhaust his resources of sympathy and appreciation for members of + the other schools. Weiss is no apologist either, and does not make + the slightest attempt towards explaining away even the defects of R. + Akiba in his somewhat arbitrary method of interpretation, which our + author thinks much inferior to the expository rules of R. Ishmael; + but this does not prevent him from admiring his excellences.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Altogether it + would seem that Weiss thinks R. Akiba more happy in his quality as a + great saint than in that of a great exegete. What is most admirable + is the instinct with which Weiss understands how to emphasise the + right thing in its right place. As an indication of the literary + honesty and marvellous industry of our author, I would draw attention + to the fact that the sketch of R. Akiba and his school alone is based + on more than two thousand quotations scattered over the whole area of + the Rabbinic literature; but he points in a special note to a + sentence attributed to R. Akiba, which presents the whole man and his + generation in a single stroke. I refer to that passage in Tractate + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Joys</span></span>,<a id="noteref_152" name= + "noteref_152" href="#note_152"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">152</span></span></a> in + which R. Akiba speaks of the four types of sufferers. He draws the + comparison of a king chastising his children; the first son maintains + stubborn silence, the second simply rebels, the third supplicates + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page195">[pg 195]</span><a name="Pg195" + id="Pg195" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> for mercy, and the fourth (the + best of sons) says: <span class="tei tei-q">“Father, proceed with thy + chastisement, as David said, Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity + and cleanse me from my sin”</span> (Ps. li. 4). This absolute + submission to the will of God, which perceives in suffering only an + expression of His fatherly love and mercy, was the ideal of R. + Akiba.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The great literary + production of this period was the Mishnah, which, through the high + authority of its compiler, R. Judah the Patriarch, his saintliness + and popularity, soon superseded all the collections of a similar + kind, and became the official text-book of the Oral Law. But a text + requires interpretation, whilst other collections also demanded some + attention. This brings us to the two <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Talmuds</span></span>, + namely, the Talmud of Jerusalem and the Talmud of Babylon, the origin + and history of which form the subject of Weiss's third volume.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Here again the + first chapters are more of a preliminary character, giving the + student some insight into the labyrinth of the Talmud. The two + chapters entitled <span class="tei tei-q">“The instruments employed + in erecting the great Edifice,”</span> and the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Workmanship displayed by the Builders,”</span> give + evidence of almost unrivalled familiarity with the Rabbinical + literature, and of critical powers of the rarest kind. Now these + instruments were by no means new, for, as Weiss shows, the Amoraim + employed in interpreting the Mishnah the same explanatory rules that + are known to us from the School of R. Ishmael as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Thirteen Rules by which the Torah is + explained,”</span> though they appear in the Talmud under other + names, and are in reality only a species of Midrash. Besides this + there comes another element into play. It was the exaggerated awe of + all <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page196">[pg 196]</span><a name= + "Pg196" id="Pg196" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> earlier authorities + that endeavoured to reconcile the most contradictory statements by + means of a subtle dialectic for which the schools in Babylon were + especially famous. There were certainly many opponents of this + system, and from the monographs which Weiss gives on the various + heads of the western and eastern schools we see that not all followed + this method, and some among them even condemned it in the strongest + words. However, it cannot be denied that there is a strong scholastic + feature in the Talmud, which is very far from what we should look for + in a trustworthy exegesis. Thus we must not always expect to find in + the Talmud the true meaning of the sayings of their predecessors, and + it is certain that a more scientific method in many cases has led to + results the very opposite of those at which the later Rabbis have + arrived. This fact was already recognised in the sixteenth century, + though only in part, by R. Yom-Tob Heller and others. Only he + insisted that in this matter a line must be drawn between theory and + practice. But Weiss gives irrefragable proofs that even this line was + often overstepped by the greatest authorities, though they remained + always within the limits of Tradition. Indeed, as Weiss points out, + not every saying to be found in the Talmud is to be looked upon as + representing Tradition; for there is much in it which only gives the + individual opinion or is merely an interpolation of later hands; nor + does the Talmud contain the <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">whole</span></em> of Tradition, this latter + proceeding and advancing with the time, and corresponding to its + conditions and notions. As we read Weiss, the conviction is borne in + upon us that there was a Talmud before, and another after + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The + Talmud</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Much space in this + volume is given to the Agadah and <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page197">[pg 197]</span><a name="Pg197" id="Pg197" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> the so-called <span class="tei tei-q">“Teachers + of the Agadah.”</span> Weiss makes no attempt at apology for that + which seems to us strange, or even repugnant in this part of the + Rabbinic literature. The greatest fault to be found with those who + wrote down such passages as appear objectionable to us is, perhaps, + that they did not observe the wise rule of Johnson, who said to + Boswell on a certain occasion, <span class="tei tei-q">“Let us get + serious, for there comes a fool.”</span> And the fools unfortunately + did come in the shape of certain Jewish commentators and Christian + controversialists, who took as serious things which were only the + expression of a momentary impulse, or represented the opinion of some + isolated individual, or were meant simply as a piece of humorous + by-play, calculated to enliven the interest of a languid audience. + But on the other hand, as Weiss proves, the Agadah contains also many + elements of real edification and eternal truths as well as abundant + material for building up the edifice of dogmatic Judaism. Talmudical + quotations of such a nature are scattered by thousands over Weiss's + work, particularly in those chapters in which he describes the lives + of the greatest Rabbinical heroes. But the author lays the student + under special obligations by putting together in the concluding pages + of this volume some of these sentences, and classifying them under + various headings. I give here a few extracts. For the references to + authorities I must direct the reader to the original:—</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“The unity of God is the keystone of dogmatic Judaism. + The Rabbis give Israel the credit of having proclaimed to the world + the unity of God. They also say that Israel took an oath never to + change Him for another God. This only God is eternal, incorporeal, + and immutable. And though the prophets saw Him in different aspects, + He <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page198">[pg 198]</span><a name= + "Pg198" id="Pg198" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> warned them that they + must not infer from the visions vouchsafed to them that there are + different Gods. <span class="tei tei-q">‘I am the first,’</span> He + tells them, which implies that he had no father, and the words, + <span class="tei tei-q">‘There is no God besides me,’</span> mean + that he has no son. Now, this God, the God of Israel, is holy in + every thinkable way of holiness. He is merciful and gracious, as it + is said, <span class="tei tei-q">‘And I will be gracious to whom I + will be gracious,’</span> even though he who is the recipient of + God's grace has no merit of his own. <span class="tei tei-q">‘And I + will show mercy to whom I will show mercy,’</span> that is, even to + those who do not deserve it. His attributes are righteousness, + loving-kindness, and truth. God speaks words of eternal truth, even + as He himself is the eternal life. All that the Merciful One does is + only for good, and even in the time of His anger He remembers His + graciousness, and often suppresses His attribute of judgment before + His attribute of mercy. But with the righteous God is more severe + than with the rest of the world, and when His hand falls in + chastening on His saints His name becomes awful, revered, and + exalted. This God of Israel, again, extends His providence over all + mankind, and especially over Israel. By His eye everything is + foreseen, yet freedom of choice is given, and the world is judged by + grace, yet all according to the works wrought. Hence, know what is + above thee, a seeing eye and a hearing ear, and that all thy deeds + are written in a book.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“They [the Rabbis] believed that God created the world + out of nothing, without toil and without weariness. This world was + created by the combination of His two attributes, mercy and justice. + He rejoices in His creation, and if the Maker praises it, who dares + to blame it? And if He exults in it, who shall find a blemish in it? + Nay, it is <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page199">[pg + 199]</span><a name="Pg199" id="Pg199" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> a + glorious and a beautiful world. It is created for man, and its other + denizens were all meant but to serve him. Though all mankind are + formed after the type of Adam, no one is like his fellow-man (each + one having an individuality of his own). Thus he is able to say, + <span class="tei tei-q">‘For my sake, also, was the world + created’</span>; and with this thought his responsibilities increase. + But the greatest love shown to man is that he was created in the + image of God. Man is a being possessed of free will, and, though + everything is given on pledge, whosoever wishes to borrow may come + and borrow. Everything is in the gift of Heaven except the fear of + God. In man's heart abide both the evil inclination and the good + inclination; and the words of Scripture, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘Thou shalt not bow down before a strange god,’</span> + point to the strange god who is within man himself, who entices him + to sin in this world, and gives evidence against him in the next. But + the Holy One—blessed be He!—said, <span class="tei tei-q">‘I have + created the evil inclination, but I have also created its antidote, + the Torah.’</span> And when man is occupied with the Torah and in + works of charity, he becomes the master of the evil inclination; + otherwise, he is its slave. When man reflects the image of God, he is + the lord of creation, and is feared by all creatures; but this image + is defaced by sin, and then he has no power over the universe, and is + in fear of all things.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Another principle of Judaism is the belief in reward and + punishment. <span class="tei tei-q">‘I am the Lord, your God,’</span> + means, <span class="tei tei-q">‘it is I who am prepared to recompense + you for your good actions, and to bring retribution upon you for your + evil deeds.’</span> God does not allow to pass unrewarded even the + merit of a kind and considerate word. By the same measure which man + metes out, it shall be meted out to <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page200">[pg 200]</span><a name="Pg200" id="Pg200" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> him. Because thou drownedst others, they have + drowned thee, and at the last they who drowned thee shall themselves + be drowned. Though it is not in our power to explain either the + prosperity of the wicked or the affliction of the righteous, + nevertheless know before whom thou toilest, and who thy employer is, + who will pay thee the reward of thy labour. Here at thy door is a + poor man standing, and at his right hand standeth God. If thou + grantest his request, be certain of thy reward; but if thou refusest, + think of him who is by the side of the poor, and will avenge it on + thee. <span class="tei tei-q">‘God seeketh the persecuted’</span> to + defend him, even though it be the wicked who is persecuted by the + righteous. The soul of man is immortal, the souls of the righteous + being treasured up under the throne of God. Know that everything is + according to the reckoning, and let not thy imagination give thee + hope that the grave will be a place of refuge for thee, for perforce + thou wast formed, and perforce thou wast born, and thou livest + perforce, and perforce thou wilt die, and perforce thou wilt in the + future have to give account and reckoning before the Supreme King of + kings, the Holy One, blessed be He.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“The advent of the Messiah is another article of the + belief of the Rabbis. But if a man tell thee that he knows when the + redemption of Israel will take place, believe him not, for this is + one of the unrevealed secrets of the Almighty. The mission of Elijah + is to bring peace into the world, while the Messiah, in whose days + Israel will regain his national independence, will lead the whole + world in repentance to God. On this, it is believed, will follow the + resurrection of the dead.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Another main principle in the belief of the Rabbis + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page201">[pg 201]</span><a name="Pg201" + id="Pg201" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> is the election of Israel, + which imposes on them special duties, and gives them a peculiar + mission. Beloved are Israel, for they are called the children of God, + and His firstborn. <span class="tei tei-q">‘They shall endure for + ever’</span> through the merit of their fathers. There is an especial + covenant established between God and the tribes of Israel. God is + their father, and He said to them, My children, even as I have no + contact with the profanity of the world, so also withdraw yourselves + from it. And as I am holy, be ye also holy. Nay, sanctify thyself by + refraining even from that which is not forbidden thee. There is no + holiness without chastity.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“The main duty of Israel is to sanctify the name of God, + for the Torah was only given that His great name might be glorified. + Better is it that a single letter of the law be cast out than that + the name of Heaven be profaned. And this also is the mission of + Israel in this world: to sanctify the name of God, as it is written, + <span class="tei tei-q">‘This people have I formed for myself, that + they may show forth my praise.’</span> Or, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘And thou shalt love the Lord thy God,’</span> which + means, Thou shalt make God beloved by all creatures, even as Abraham + did. Israel is the light of the world; as it is said, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘And nations shall walk by thy light.’</span> But he who + profanes the name of Heaven in secret will suffer the penalty thereof + in public; and this whether the Heavenly Name be profaned in + ignorance or in wilfulness.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Another duty towards God is to love Him and to fear Him. + God's only representative on earth is the God-fearing man. Woe unto + those who are occupied in the study of the Torah, but who have no + fear of God. But a still higher duty it is to perform the + commandments of God from love. For greater is he who submits to the + will of God from love than he who does so from + fear.</span></p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page202">[pg + 202]</span><a name="Pg202" id="Pg202" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Now, how shall man love God? This is answered in the + words of Scripture, <span class="tei tei-q">‘And these words shall be + upon thy heart.’</span> For by them thou wilt recognise Him whose + word called the world into existence, and follow His divine + attributes.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“God is righteous; be ye also righteous, O Israel. By + righteousness the Rabbis understand love of truth, hatred of lying + and backbiting. The seal of the Holy One, blessed be He, is Truth, of + which the actions of man should also bear the impress. Hence, let thy + yea be yea, and thy nay, nay. He who is honest in money transactions, + unto him this is reckoned as if he had fulfilled the whole of the + Torah. Greater is he who earns his livelihood by the labour of his + hands than even the God-fearing man; whilst the righteous judge is, + as it were, the companion of God in the government of the world. For + upon three things the world stands: upon truth, upon judgment, upon + peace; as it is said, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Judge ye the truth and + the judgment of peace in your gates.’</span> But he who breaks his + word, his sin is as great as if he worshipped idols; and God, who + punished the people of the time of the Flood, will also punish him + who does not stand by his word. Such a one belongs to one of the four + classes who are not admitted into the presence of the Shechinah; + these are the scoffers, the hypocrites (who bring the wrath of God + into the world), the liars, and the slanderers. The sin of the + slanderer is like that of one who would deny the root (the root of + all religion, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span> the existence of God). The + greatest of liars, however, is he who perjures himself, which also + involves the sin of profanation of the name of God. The hypocrite, + who insinuates himself into people's good opinions, who wears his + phylacteries and is enwrapped <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page203">[pg 203]</span><a name="Pg203" id="Pg203" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> in his gown with the fringes, and secretly + commits sins, equally transgresses the command, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in + vain.’</span></span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“God is gracious and merciful; therefore man also should + be gracious and merciful. Hence, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Thou shalt + love thy neighbour as thyself,’</span> which is a main principle in + the Torah. What is unpleasant to thyself, do not unto thy neighbour. + This is the whole Torah, to which the rest is only to be considered + as a commentary. And this love is also extended to the stranger, for + as it is said with regard to Israel, <span class="tei tei-q">‘And + thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,’</span> so is it also said, + <span class="tei tei-q">‘And thou shalt love him (the stranger) as + thyself.’</span> And thus said God to Israel, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘My beloved children, Am I in want of anything that I + should request it of you? But what I ask of you is that you should + love, honour, and respect one another.’</span> Therefore, love + mankind, and bring them near to the Torah. Let the honour of thy + friend be as dear to thee as thine own. Condemn not thy fellow-man + until thou art come into his place, and judge all men in the scale of + merit. Say not <span class="tei tei-q">‘I will love scholars, but + hate their disciples;’</span> or even, <span class="tei tei-q">‘I + will love the disciples, but hate the ignorant,’</span> but love all, + for he who hates his neighbour is as bad as a murderer. Indeed, + during the age of the second Temple, men studied the Torah and the + commandments, and performed works of charity, but they hated each + other, a sin that outweighs all other sins, and for which the holy + Temple was destroyed. Be careful not to withdraw thy mercy from any + man, for he who does so rebels against the kingdom of God on earth. + Walk in the ways of God, who is merciful even to the wicked, and as + He is gracious alike to those who know Him, and to those who know + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page204">[pg 204]</span><a name="Pg204" + id="Pg204" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Him not, so be thou. Indeed, + charity is one of the three pillars on which the world is based. It + is more precious than all other virtues. The man who gives charity in + secret is greater even than Moses our teacher. An act of charity and + love it is to pray for our fellow-man, and to admonish him. + <span class="tei tei-q">‘Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, + and not suffer sin upon him’</span> (Lev. xix. 18), means it is thy + duty to admonish him a hundred times if need be, even if he be thy + superior; for Jerusalem was only destroyed for the sin of its people + in not admonishing one another. The man whose protest would be of any + weight, and who does not exercise his authority (when any wrong is + about to be committed), is held responsible for the whole + world.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Peacefulness and humility are also the fruit of love. Be + of the disciples of Aaron, loving peace, and pursuing peace. Let + every man be cautious in the fear of God; let him ever give the soft + answer that turneth away wrath; let him promote peace, not only among + his own relatives and acquaintances, but also among the Gentiles. For + (the labour of) all the prophets was to plant peace in the world. Be + exceeding lowly of spirit, since the hope of man is but the worm. Be + humble as Hillel, for he who is humble causes the Divine presence to + dwell with man. But the proud man makes God say, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘I and he cannot dwell in the same place.’</span> He who + runs after glory, glory flees from him, and he who flees from glory, + glory shall pursue him. Be of those who are despised rather than of + those who despise; of the persecuted rather than of the persecutors; + be of those who bear their reproach in silence and answer + not.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Another distinctive mark of Judaism is faith in God, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page205">[pg 205]</span><a name="Pg205" + id="Pg205" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and perfect confidence in Him. + Which is the right course for a man to choose for himself? Let him + have a strong faith in God, as it is said, <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘Mine eye shall be upon the faithful (meaning those + possessing faith in God) of the land.’</span> And so also Habakkuk + based the whole Torah on the principle of faith, as it is said, + <span class="tei tei-q">‘And the just shall live by his faith’</span> + (ii. 4). He who but fulfils a single commandment in absolute faith in + God deserves that the Holy Spirit should rest on him. Blessed is the + man who fears God in private, and trusts in Him with all his heart, + for such fear and trust arms him against every misfortune. He who + puts his trust in the Holy One, blessed be He, God becomes his shield + and protection in this world and in the next. He who has bread in his + basket for to-day, and says, <span class="tei tei-q">‘What shall I + have to eat to-morrow?’</span> is a man of little faith. One + consequence of real faith is always to believe in the justice of + God's judgments. It is the duty of man to thank God when he is + visited with misfortune as he does in the time of prosperity. + Therefore, blessed is the man who, when visited by suffering, + questions not God's justice. But what shall he do? Let him examine + his conduct and repent.</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“For repentance is the greatest prerogative of man. + Better is one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world than + the whole life of the world to come. The aim of all wisdom is + repentance and good deeds. The place where the truly penitent shall + stand is higher than that of the righteous. Repentance finds its + special expression in prayer; and when it is said in Scripture, + <span class="tei tei-q">‘Serve God with all thy heart,’</span> by + this is meant, serve Him by prayer, which is even greater than + worship by means of sacrifices. Never is a prayer entirely unanswered + by God. Therefore, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page206">[pg + 206]</span><a name="Pg206" id="Pg206" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + even though the sword be on a man's neck, let him not cease to + supplicate God's mercy. But regard not thy prayer as a fixed + mechanical task, but as an appeal for mercy and grace before the + All-Present; as it is said, <span class="tei tei-q">‘For He is + gracious and full of mercy, slow to anger, abounding in + loving-kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.’</span> ”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The last two + volumes of Weiss's work deal with the history of Tradition during the + Middle Ages, that is, from the conclusion of the Talmud to the + compilation of the Code of the Law by R. Joseph Caro. I have already + indicated that with Weiss Tradition did not terminate with the + conclusion of the Talmud. It only means that a certain undefinable + kind of literature, mostly held in dialogue form and containing many + elements of Tradition, was at last brought to an end. The authorities + who did this editorial work were the so-called <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style="font-style: italic">Rabbanan + Saburai</span></span><a id="noteref_153" name="noteref_153" href= + "#note_153"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">153</span></span></a> and the + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gaonim</span></span>, whose lives and literary + activity are fully described by Weiss. But, while thus engaged in + preserving their inheritance from the past, they were also enriching + Tradition by new contributions, both the Saburai and the Gaonim + having not only added to and diminished from the Talmud, but having + also introduced avowedly new ordinances and decrees, and created new + institutions.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now, it cannot be + denied that a few of these ordinances and decrees had a reforming + tendency (see the second and twentieth chapters of vol. iv.); in + general, however, they took a more conservative turn than was the + case in the previous ages. This must be ascribed to the event of the + great schism within the Rabbinical camp itself. I refer to the rise + of Caraism, which took place during the first half of the eighth + century.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page207">[pg + 207]</span><a name="Pg207" id="Pg207" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is probably + no work in which the Halachic or legalistic side of this sect is + better described than in this volume of Weiss. I regret that I am + unable to enter into its details. But I cannot refrain from pointing + to one of the main principles of the Caraites. This was <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Search the Scriptures.”</span> Now this does not look + very dissimilar from the principle held by the Rabbis. For what else + is the Talmud, but a thorough searching through the Bible for + whatever was suggestive by time and circumstances? The light which + the Caraites applied to the searching of the Scriptures was the same + which illumined the paths of the Rabbis' investigations. They + employed most of the expository rules of the Tannaite schools. The + fact is that they were only determined to find something different + from what the Rabbis found in the Scriptures. They wanted to have + gloomy Sabbaths and Festivals, and discovered authority for it in the + Bible; they wanted to retain most of the dietary laws which had their + root only in Tradition, but insisted on petty differences which they + thought might be inferred from the Scriptures, and they created a new + <span class="tei tei-q">“order of inheritance,”</span> and varied the + forbidden degrees in marriage, in all which the only merit was that + they were in contradiction to the interpretation of the Rabbis. They + also refused to accept the Liturgy of Rabbinical Judaism, but never + succeeded in producing more than a patch-work from verses of the + Bible, which, thus recast, they called a prayer-book. There were + undoubtedly among their leaders many serious and sincere men, but + they give us the impression of prigs, as for instance, Moses Darai, + when he reproaches the Rabbinical Jews for having an <span class= + "tei tei-q">“easy religion,”</span> or Israel Hammaarabi, when he + recommended his book on the laws regarding the slaughtering + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page208">[pg 208]</span><a name="Pg208" + id="Pg208" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of animals, as having the + special advantage that his decisions were always on the more + stringent side. Those who made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land were by + the Caraites canonised as <span class="tei tei-q">“mourners.”</span> + The Rabbanite R. Judah Hallevi also visited the ruins of Jerusalem, + but he did something more than <span class="tei tei-q">“mourn and + sigh and cry,”</span> he became a God-intoxicated singer, and wrote + the <span class="tei tei-q">“Zion-Elegy.”</span> The novel + terminology which they use in their exegetical and theological works, + was only invented to spite the Rabbanites, and marks its authors as + pedants. On the other hand, it is not to be denied that their + opponents did not employ the best means to conciliate them. The + Middle Ages knew no other remedy against schism than excommunication, + and the Gaonim were the children of their time. Nor were the + arguments which the latter brought forward in defence of Tradition + always calculated to convince the Caraites of their error. When R. + Saadiah, in his apology for the institution of the Second Day of the + Festival,<a id="noteref_154" name="noteref_154" href= + "#note_154"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">154</span></span></a> went + the length of assigning to it a Sinaitic origin, he could only + succeed in making the Caraites more suspicious of the claims of + Tradition than before. In a later generation one of his own party, R. + Hai Gaon, had to declare his predecessor's words a <span class= + "tei tei-q">“controversial exaggeration.”</span> The zeal which some + of the Gaonim showed in their defence of such works as the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chambers</span></span> and the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Measure of the + Stature</span></span><a id="noteref_155" name="noteref_155" href= + "#note_155"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">155</span></span></a> was a + not less unfortunate thing, for it involved the Rabbanites in + unnecessary responsibilities for a new class of literature of + doubtful origin, which in succeeding centuries was disowned by the + best minds in Judaism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Gaonic period, + to which we also owe the rise of the Massorah and the introduction of + points in the text of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page209">[pg + 209]</span><a name="Pg209" id="Pg209" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Bible—of which Weiss treats fully in the twenty-third and + twenty-fourth chapters of vol. iv.—comes to an end with the death of + R. Hai. The famous schools of Sura and Pumbeditha, over which these + two Gaonim presided, fell into decay, and Babylon ceased to be the + centre of Judaism. To be more exact, we should say that Judaism had + no longer any real centre. Instead of dwelling in one place for + centuries, we now have to be perpetually on our journey, accompanying + our authors through all the inhabited parts of the world—France, + Italy, Spain, Germany, with an occasional trip to Africa and Russia. + There we shall meet with the new schools, each of which, though + interpreting the same Torah, occupied with the study of the same + Talmud, and even conforming more or less to the same mode of life, + has an individuality and character of its own, reflecting the thought + and habits of the country which it represents. Thus <span class= + "tei tei-q">“geographical Judaism”</span> becomes a factor in history + which no scholar can afford to neglect. It is true that Judaism never + remained entirely unbiassed by foreign ideas, and our author points + in many a place to Persian, Greek, and Roman influences on Tradition; + still, these influences seem to have undergone such a thorough + <span class="tei tei-q">“Judaization”</span> that it is only the + practised eye of the scholar that is able to see through the + transformation. But it requires no great skill to discriminate + between the work produced by a Spanish and that of a French Rabbi. + Though both would write in Hebrew, they betray themselves very soon + by the style, diction, and train of thought peculiar to each country. + The Spaniard is always logical, clear, and systematising, whilst the + French Rabbi has very little sense of order, is always writing + occasional notes, has a great tendency to be <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page210">[pg 210]</span><a name="Pg210" id="Pg210" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> obscure, but is mostly profound and critical. + Hence the fact that whilst Spain produced the greatest codifiers of + the law, we owe to France and Germany the best commentaries on the + Talmud. What these codes and commentaries meant for Judaism the + student will find in Weiss's book, and still more fully in his + admirable essays on Rashi (Solomon b. Isaac), Maimonides, and R. + Jacob Tam (published in his periodical, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Talmud</span></span>, and also separately). It is enough for us here + only to notice the fact of the breadth of Tradition, which could + include within its folds men of such different types as the sceptics, + Maimonides, Solomon b. Gabirol, and Abn Ezra on one side, and the + simple <span class="tei tei-q">“non-questioning”</span> Rabbenu + Gershom, Rashi, and Jacob Tam on the other.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The last three + centuries, which occupy our author's attention in the fifth volume, + are not remarkable for their progress. The world lives on the past. + The rationalists write treatises on Maimonides' philosophical works, + whilst the German Talmudists add commentary to commentary. It is, + indeed, the reign of authority, <span class="tei tei-q">“modified by + accidents.”</span> Such an accident was the struggle between the + Maimonists and Anti-Maimonists, or the rise of the Cabbalah, or the + frequent controversies with Christians, all of which tended to direct + the minds of people into new channels of thought. But though this + period is less original in its work, it is not on that account less + sympathetic. One cannot read those beautiful descriptions which Weiss + gives of R. Meir of Rothenburg and his school, or of R. Asher and his + descendants, without feeling that one is in an atmosphere of saints, + who are the more attractive the less they were conscious of their own + saintliness. The only mistake, perhaps, was that the successors of + these <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page211">[pg 211]</span><a name= + "Pg211" id="Pg211" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chassidim or pious men of Germany”</span> looked on many + of the religious customs that were merely the voluntary expression of + particularly devout souls as worthy of imitation by the whole + community, and made them obligatory upon all.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This brings us to + the question of the Code already mentioned (by R. Joseph Caro), with + which Weiss's work concludes. I have already transgressed the limits + of an essay, without flattering myself that I have done anything like + justice to the greatest work on Jewish Tradition which modern Jewish + genius has produced. But I should not like the reader to carry away + with him the false impression that our author shares in the general + cry, <span class="tei tei-q">“Save us from the Codifiers.”</span> + Weiss, himself a Rabbi, and the disciple of the greatest Rabbis of + the first half of this century, is quite aware of the impossibility + of having a law without a kind of manual to it, which brings the + fluid matter into some fixed form, classifying it under its proper + headings, and this is what we call codifying the law. And thus he + never passes any attempt made in this direction without paying due + tribute to its author—be it Maimonides or Caro. But however great the + literary value of a code may be, it does not invest it with the + attribute of infallibility, nor does it exempt the student or the + Rabbi who makes use of it from the duty of examining each paragraph + on its own merits, and subjecting it to the same rules of + interpretation that were always applied to Tradition. Indeed, Weiss + shows that Maimonides deviated in some cases from his own code, when + it was required by circumstances.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nor do I know any + modern author who is more in favour of strong authority than Weiss. + His treatment of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page212">[pg + 212]</span><a name="Pg212" id="Pg212" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the + struggle between the Patriarch R. Gamaliel and his adversaries, which + I have touched on above, proves this sufficiently. What Weiss really + objects to, is a <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">weak</span></em> authority—I mean that + phonograph-like authority which is always busy in reproducing the + voice of others without an opinion of its own, without originality, + without initiative and discretion. The real authorities are those + who, drawing their inspiration from the past, also understand how to + reconcile us with the present and to prepare us for the future.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page213">[pg 213]</span><a name= + "Pg213" id="Pg213" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc19" id="toc19"></a> <a name="pdf20" id="pdf20"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">VIII. The Doctrine of Divine + Retribution in Rabbinical Literature</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“Blessed be he who knows.”</span> These are the words + with which Nachmanides, in his classical treatise, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gate of + Reward</span></span>, dismisses a certain theory of the Gaonim with + regard to this question; after which he proceeds to expound another + theory, which seems to him more satisfactory. This mode of treatment + implies that, unsatisfactory as the one or other theory may appear to + us, it would be presumptuous to reject either entirely, there being + only One who knows the exact truth about the great mystery. But we + may indicate our doubt about one doctrine by putting by its side + another, which we may affirm to be not more absolutely true, but more + probable. This seems to have been the attitude, too, of the compilers + of the ancient Rabbinical literature, in which the most conflicting + views about this grave subject were embodied. Nor did the Synagogue + in general feel called upon to decide between these views. There is + indeed no want of theodicies, for almost every important expounder of + Job, as well as every Jewish philosopher of note, has one with its + own system of retribution. Thus Judaism has no fixed doctrine on the + subject. It refused a hearing to no theory, for fear that it should + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page214">[pg 214]</span><a name="Pg214" + id="Pg214" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> contain some germ of truth, + but on the same ground it accepted none to the exclusion of the + others.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These theories + may, perhaps, be conveniently reduced to the two following main + doctrines that are in direct opposition to each other, whilst all + other views about the subject will be treated as the more or less + logical results of the one or other doctrine.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">1. There is no + death without (preceding) sin, nor affliction without (preceding) + transgression.<a id="noteref_156" name="noteref_156" href= + "#note_156"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">156</span></span></a> This + view is cited in the name of R. Ammi, who quoted in corroboration the + verses Ez. xviii. 20, and Ps. lxxxix. 33. Though this Rabbi + flourished towards the end of the third century, there is hardly any + doubt that his view was held by the authorities of a much earlier + date. For it can only be under the sway of such a notion of + Retribution that the Tannaim were so anxious to assign some great + crime as the antecedent to every serious calamity by which mankind + was visited. The following illustrations will suffice:—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“Pestilence comes into the world for capital crimes + mentioned in the Torah, which are not brought before the earthly + tribunal.... Noisome beasts come into the world for vain swearing and + for profanation of the name (of God). Captivity comes upon the world + for strange worship and incest, and for shedding of blood and for + (not) giving release to the land.”</span> As an example of the + misfortune befalling the individual I will merely allude to a passage + in another tractate of the Talmud, according to which leprosy is to + be regarded as the penalty for immorality, slander, perjury, and + similar sins.<a id="noteref_157" name="noteref_157" href= + "#note_157"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">157</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">If we were now to + complement R. Ammi's view by adding that there is no happiness + without some preceding merit—and there is no serious objection to + making this <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page215">[pg + 215]</span><a name="Pg215" id="Pg215" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + addition—then it would resolve itself into the theory of Measure for + Measure, which forms a very common standard of reward and punishment + in Jewish literature. Here are a few instances:—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“Because the Egyptians wanted to destroy Israel by water + (Exod. i. 22), they were themselves destroyed by the waters of the + Red Sea, as it is said, Therefore I will <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">measure</span></em> + their former work into their bosom (Is. lxv. 7);”</span> whilst, on + the other hand, we read, <span class="tei tei-q">“Because Abraham + showed himself hospitable towards strangers, providing them with + water (Gen. xviii. 4), God gave to his children a country blessed + with plenty of water (Deut. viii. 1).”</span> Sometimes this form of + retribution goes so far as to define a special punishment to that + part of the body which mostly contributed to the committing of the + sin. Thus we read, <span class="tei tei-q">“Samson rebelled against + God by his eyes, as it is said, Get her (the Philistine woman) for + me, for she pleases <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">my eyes</span></em> (Judg. xvi. 21); therefore + his <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">eyes</span></em> were put out by the Philistines + (Judg. xviii. 9)”</span>; whilst Absalom, whose sinful pride began by + his <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">hair</span></em> (2 Sam. xiv. 25), met his fate + by his <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">hair</span></em> (2 Sam. xviii. 9).<a id= + "noteref_158" name="noteref_158" href="#note_158"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">158</span></span></a> Nahum + of Gemzo himself explained his blindness and the maimed condition of + his arms and legs as a consequence of a specific offence in having + neglected the duty of succouring a poor man. Addressing the dead body + of the suppliant who perished while Nahum was delaying his help, he + said, <span class="tei tei-q">“Let my eyes (which had no pity for + your pitiful gaze) become blind; may my hands and legs (that did not + hasten to help thine) become maimed, and finally my whole body be + covered with boils.”</span><a id="noteref_159" name="noteref_159" + href="#note_159"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">159</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“This was the hand that wrote it,”</span> + said Cranmer at the stake; <span class="tei tei-q">“therefore it + shall first suffer punishment.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is worth + noticing that this retribution does not always <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page216">[pg 216]</span><a name="Pg216" id="Pg216" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> consist in a material reward, but, as Ben + Azzai expressed it: <span class="tei tei-q">“The reward of a command + is a command, and the reward of a transgression is a + transgression.”</span><a id="noteref_160" name="noteref_160" href= + "#note_160"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">160</span></span></a> So + again: <span class="tei tei-q">“Because Abraham showed himself so + magnanimous in his treatment of the king of Sodom, and said, I will + not take from thee a thread; therefore, his children enjoyed the + privilege of having the command of Zizith, consisting in putting a + thread or fringe in the border of their garments.”</span> In another + passage we read, <span class="tei tei-q">“He who is anxious to do + acts of charity will be rewarded by having the means enabling him to + do so.”</span><a id="noteref_161" name="noteref_161" href= + "#note_161"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">161</span></span></a> In more + general terms the same thought is expressed when the Rabbis explained + the words, Ye shall sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy (Lev. + xi. 44), to the effect that if man takes the initiative in holiness, + even though in a small way, Heaven will help him to reach it to a + much higher degree.<a id="noteref_162" name="noteref_162" href= + "#note_162"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">162</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Notwithstanding + these passages, to which many more might be added, it cannot be + denied that there are in the Rabbinical literature many passages + holding out promises of <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">material</span></em> reward to the righteous as + well as threatening the wicked with <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">material</span></em> + punishment. Nor is there any need of denying it. Simple-minded + men—and such the majority of the Rabbis were—will never be persuaded + into looking with indifference on pain and pleasure; they will be far + from thinking that poverty, loss of children, and sickness are no + evil, and that a rich harvest, hope of posterity, and good health, + are not desirable things. It <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">does</span></em> lie in our nature to consider + the former as curses and the latter as blessings; <span class= + "tei tei-q">“and if this be wrong there is no one to be made + responsible for it but the Creator of nature.”</span> Accordingly the + question must arise, How can a just and omnipotent God allow it to + happen that men <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page217">[pg + 217]</span><a name="Pg217" id="Pg217" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + should suffer innocently? The most natural suggestion towards solving + the difficulty would be that we are <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">not</span></em> + innocent. Hence R. Ammi's assertion that affliction and death are + both the outcome of sin and transgression; or, as R. Chanina ben + Dossa expressed it, <span class="tei tei-q">“It is not the wild beast + but sin which kills.”</span><a id="noteref_163" name="noteref_163" + href="#note_163"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">163</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We may thus + perceive in this theory an attempt <span class="tei tei-q">“to + justify the ways of God to man.”</span> Unfortunately it does not + correspond with the real facts. The cry wrung from the prophets + against the peace enjoyed by the wicked, and the pains inflicted on + the righteous, which finds its echo in so many Psalms, and reaches + its climax in the Book of Job, was by no means silenced in the times + of the Rabbis. If long experience could be of any use, it only served + to deepen perplexity. For all this suffering of the people of God, + and the prosperity of their wicked persecutors, which perplexed the + prophets and their immediate followers, were repeated during the + death-struggle for independence against Rome, and were not lessened + by the establishment of Christianity as the dominant religion. The + only comfort which time brought them was, perhaps, that the long + continuance of misfortune made them less sensible to suffering than + their ancestors were. Indeed, a Rabbi of the first century said that + his generation had by continuous experience of misery become as + insensible to pain as the dead body is to a prick of a needle.<a id= + "noteref_164" name="noteref_164" href="#note_164"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">164</span></span></a> The + anæsthetic effect of long suffering may, indeed, help one to endure + pain with more patience, but it cannot serve as an apology for the + deed of the inflictors of the pain. The question, then, how to + reconcile hard reality with the justice of God, remained as difficult + as ever.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page218">[pg + 218]</span><a name="Pg218" id="Pg218" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The most important + passage in Rabbinical literature relating to the solution of this + problem is the following:—With reference to Exod. xxxiii. 13, R. + Johanan said, in the name of R. José, that, among other things, Moses + also asked God to explain to him the method of his Providence, a + request that was granted to him. He asked God, Why are there + righteous people who are prosperous, and righteous who suffer; wicked + who are prosperous and wicked who suffer? The answer given to him + was, according to the one view, that the prosperity of the wicked and + the suffering of the righteous are a result of the conduct of their + ancestors, the former being the descendants of righteous parents and + enjoying their merits, whilst the latter, coming from a bad stock, + suffer for the sins of those to whom they owe their existence. This + view was suggested by the Scriptural words, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Keeping mercy for thousands (of generations) ... + visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children”</span> (Exod. + xxxiv. 7), which were regarded as the answer to Moses' question in + the preceding chapter of Exodus.<a id="noteref_165" name= + "noteref_165" href="#note_165"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">165</span></span></a> + Prevalent, however, as this view may have been in ancient times, the + Rabbis never allowed it to pass without some qualification. It is + true that they had no objection to the former part of this doctrine, + and they speak very frequently of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Merits + of the Fathers”</span> for which the remotest posterity is rewarded; + for this could be explained on the ground of the boundless goodness + of God, which cannot be limited to the short space of a lifetime. But + there was no possibility of overcoming the moral objection against + punishment of people for sins they have not committed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It will suffice to + mention here that, with reference to Joshua vii. 24, 25, the Rabbis + asked the question, If he <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page219">[pg + 219]</span><a name="Pg219" id="Pg219" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + (Achan) sinned, what justification could there be for putting his + sons and daughters to death? And by the force of this argument they + interpreted the words of the Scriptures to mean that the children of + the criminal were only compelled to be present at the execution of + their father.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such passages, + therefore, as would imply that children have to suffer for the sins + of their parents are explained by the Rabbis as referring to cases in + which the children perpetuate the crimes of their fathers.<a id= + "noteref_166" name="noteref_166" href="#note_166"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">166</span></span></a> The + view of R. José, which I have already quoted, had, therefore, to be + dropped, and another version in the name of the same Rabbi is + accepted. According to this theory the sufferer is a person either + <span class="tei tei-q">“entirely wicked”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“not perfectly righteous,”</span> whilst the prosperous + man is a person either <span class="tei tei-q">“perfectly + righteous,”</span> or <span class="tei tei-q">“not entirely + wicked.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is hardly + necessary to say that there is still something wanting to supplement + this view, for the given classification would place the not entirely + wicked on the same level with the perfectly righteous, and on a much + higher level than the imperfectly righteous, who are undoubtedly far + superior. The following passage may be regarded as supplying this + missing something:—<span class="tei tei-q">“The wicked who have done + some good work are as amply rewarded for it in <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">this</span></em> + world as if they were men who have fulfilled the whole of the Torah, + so that they may be punished for their sins in the next world + (without interruption); whilst the righteous who have committed some + sin have to suffer for it (in this world) as if "they were men who + burned the Law,”</span> so that they may enjoy their reward in the + world to come (without interruption).<a id="noteref_167" name= + "noteref_167" href="#note_167"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">167</span></span></a> Thus + the real retribution takes place in the next world, the fleeting + existence on earth not being the fit time either to compensate + righteousness <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page220">[pg + 220]</span><a name="Pg220" id="Pg220" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> or + to punish sin. But as, on the one hand, God never allows <span class= + "tei tei-q">“that the merit of any creature should be cut + short,”</span> whilst, on the other hand, He deals very severely with + the righteous, punishing them for the slightest transgression; since, + too, this reward and punishment are only of short duration, they must + take place in this short terrestrial existence. There is thus + established a sort of divine economy, lest the harmony of the next + world should be disturbed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Yet another + objection to the doctrine under discussion remains to be noticed. It + is that it justifies God by accusing man, declaring every sufferer as + more or less of a sinner. But such a notion, if carried to its last + consequences, must result in tempting us to withhold our sympathies + from him. And, indeed, it would seem that there were some non-Jewish + philosophers who argued in this way. Thus a certain Roman official is + reported to have said to R. Akiba, <span class="tei tei-q">“How can + you be so eager in helping the poor? Suppose only a king, who, in his + wrath against his slave, were to set him in the gaol, and give orders + to withhold from him food and drink; if, then, one dared to act to + the contrary, would not the king be angry with him?”</span><a id= + "noteref_168" name="noteref_168" href="#note_168"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">168</span></span></a> There + is some appearance of logic in this notion put into the mouth of a + heathen. The Rabbis, however, were inconsistent people, and responded + to the appeal which suffering makes to every human heart without + asking too many questions. Without entering here into the topic of + charity in the Rabbinic literature, which would form a very + interesting chapter, I shall only allude now to the following + incident, which would show that the Rabbis did not abandon even those + afflicted with leprosy, which, according to their own <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page221">[pg 221]</span><a name="Pg221" id="Pg221" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> notion, given above, followed only as a + punishment for the worst crimes. One Friday, we are told, when the + day was about to darken, the Chassid Abba Tachnah was returning home, + bearing on his shoulders the baggage that contained all his fortune; + he saw a leprous man lying on the road, who addressed him: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Rabbi, do me a deed of charity and take me + into the town.”</span> The Rabbi now thought, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“If I leave my baggage, where shall I find the means of + obtaining subsistence for myself and my family? But if I forsake this + leprous man I shall commit a mortal sin.”</span> In the end, he + allowed the good inclination to prevail over the evil one, and first + carried the sufferer to the town.<a id="noteref_169" name= + "noteref_169" href="#note_169"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">169</span></span></a> The + only practical conclusion that the Rabbis drew from such theories as + identify suffering with sin were for the sufferer himself, who + otherwise might be inclined to blame Providence, or even to + blaspheme, but would now look upon his affliction as a reminder from + heaven that there is something wrong in his moral state. Thus we read + in tractate <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>:<a id="noteref_170" + name="noteref_170" href="#note_170"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">170</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“If a man sees that affliction comes upon + him, he ought to inquire into his actions, as it is said, Let us + search and try our ways, and turn again to the Lord (Lam. iii. + 40).”</span> This means to say that the sufferer will find that he + has been guilty of some offence. As an illustration of this statement + we may perhaps consider the story about R. Huna, occurring in the + same tractate.<a id="noteref_171" name="noteref_171" href= + "#note_171"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">171</span></span></a> Of this + Rabbi it is said that he once experienced heavy pecuniary losses, + whereupon his friends came to his house and said to him, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Let the master but examine his conduct a little + closer.”</span> On this R. Huna answered, <span class="tei tei-q">“Do + you suspect me of having committed some misdeed?”</span> His friends + rejoined, <span class="tei tei-q">“And do you think that God would + pass judgment without <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page222">[pg + 222]</span><a name="Pg222" id="Pg222" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + justice?”</span> R. Huna then followed their hint, and found that he + did not treat his tenant farmer so generously as he ought. He offered + redress, and all turned out well in the end. Something similar is to + be found in the story of the martyrdom of R. Simeon ben Gamaliel and + R. Ishmael ben Elisha. Of these Rabbis we are told that on their way + to be executed the one said to the other, <span class="tei tei-q">“My + heart leaves me, for I am not aware of a sin deserving such a + death”</span>; on which the other answered, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“It might have happened that in your function as judge + you sometimes—for your own convenience—were slow in administering + justice.”</span><a id="noteref_172" name="noteref_172" href= + "#note_172"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">172</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But even if the + personal actions of the righteous were blameless, there might still + be sufficient ground for his being afflicted and miserable. This may + be found in his relations to his kind and surroundings, or, to use + the term now more popular, by reason of human solidarity. Now, after + the above remarks on the objections entertained by the Rabbis against + a man's being punished for the sins of others, it is hardly necessary + to say that their idea of solidarity has little in common with the + crude notions of it current in very ancient times. Still, it can + hardly be doubted that the relation of the individual to the + community was more keenly felt by the Rabbis than by the leaders in + any other society, modern or ancient. According to the view given by + an ancient Rabbi whose name is unknown, it would, indeed, seem that + to them the individual was not simply a member of the Jewish + commonwealth, or a co-religionist, but a limb of the great and single + body <span class="tei tei-q">“Israel,”</span> and that as such he + communicated both for good and evil the sensations of the one part to + the whole. In the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Midrash</span></span>, where a parallel is to be + found to this idea, the responsibility <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page223">[pg 223]</span><a name="Pg223" id="Pg223" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of the individual towards the community is + further illustrated by R. Simeon ben Yochai, in the following way: + <span class="tei tei-q">“It is,”</span> we read there, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to be compared to people sitting on board a ship, one of + the passengers of which took an awl and began to bore holes in the + bottom of the vessel. Asked to desist from his dangerous occupation, + he answered, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Why, I am only making holes on + my own seat,’</span> forgetting that when the water came in it would + sink the whole ship.”</span> Thus the sin of a single man might + endanger the whole of humanity. It was in conformity with the view of + his father that R. Eliezer, the son of R. Simeon (ben Yochai) said, + <span class="tei tei-q">“The world is judged after the merits or + demerits of the majority, so that a single individual by his good or + bad actions can decide the fate of his fellow-creatures, as it may + happen that he is just the one who constitutes this + majority.”</span><a id="noteref_173" name="noteref_173" href= + "#note_173"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">173</span></span></a> Nor + does this responsibility cease with the man's own actions. According + to the Rabbis man is responsible even for the conduct of others—and + as such liable to punishment—if he is indifferent to the wrong that + is being perpetrated about him, whilst an energetic protest from his + side could have prevented it. And the greater the man the greater is + his responsibility. He may suffer for the sins of his family which is + first reached by his influence; he may suffer for the sins of the + whole community if he could hope to find a willing ear among them, + and he may even suffer for the sins of the whole world if his + influence extend so far, and he forbear from exerting it for + good.<a id="noteref_174" name="noteref_174" href= + "#note_174"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">174</span></span></a> Thus + the possibility is given that the righteous man may suffer with + justice, though he himself has never committed any transgression.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As a much higher + aspect of this solidarity—and as may have already suggested itself to + the reader from the passage <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page224">[pg + 224]</span><a name="Pg224" id="Pg224" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + cited above from the anonymous Rabbi—we may regard the suffering of + the righteous as an atonement for the sins of their contemporaries. + <span class="tei tei-q">“When there will be neither Tabernacle nor + the Holy Temple,”</span> Moses is said to have asked God, + <span class="tei tei-q">“what will become of Israel?”</span> + Whereupon God answers, <span class="tei tei-q">“I will take from + among them the righteous man whom I shall consider as pledged for + them, and will forgive all their sins;”</span> the death of the + perfect man, or even his suffering being looked upon as an expiation + for the shortcoming of his generation.<a id="noteref_175" name= + "noteref_175" href="#note_175"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">175</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is hardly + necessary to remind the reader of the affinity of this idea with that + of sacrifices in general, as in both cases it is the innocent being + which has to suffer for the sins of another creature. But there is + one vital point which makes all the difference. It is that in our + case the suffering is not enforced, but is a voluntary act on the + part of the sacrifice, and is even desired by him. Without entering + here on the often-discussed theme of the suffering of the Messiah, I + need only mention the words of R. Ishmael who, on a very slight + provocation, exclaimed, <span class="tei tei-q">“I am the atonement + for the Jews,”</span> which means that he took upon him all their + sins to suffer for them.<a id="noteref_176" name="noteref_176" href= + "#note_176"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">176</span></span></a> This + desire seems to have its origin in nothing else than a deep sympathy + and compassion with Israel. To suffer <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">for</span></em>, or, + at least <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">with</span></em> Israel was, according to the + Rabbis, already the ideal of Moses. He is said, indeed, to have + broken the Two Tables with the purpose of committing some sin, so + that he would have either to be condemned together with Israel (for + the sin of the golden calf), or to be pardoned together with + them.<a id="noteref_177" name="noteref_177" href= + "#note_177"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">177</span></span></a> And + this conduct was expected not only from the leaders of Israel, but + almost from every Jew. <span class="tei tei-q">“When Israel is in a + state of affliction (as, for instance, famine) one <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page225">[pg 225]</span><a name="Pg225" id="Pg225" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> must not say, I will rather live by + myself, and eat and drink, and peace be unto thee, my soul. To those + who do so the words of the Scriptures are to be applied: And in that + day did the Lord God of Hosts call to weeping and to mourning, ... + and behold joy and gladness.... Surely this iniquity shall not be + purged out from you till ye die”</span> (Is. xxii. 12-14). Another + passage is to the effect that, when a man shows himself indifferent + to the suffering of the community, there come the two angels (who + accompany every Jew), put their hands on his head, and say, + <span class="tei tei-q">“This man who has separated himself shall be + excluded from their consolations.”</span><a id="noteref_178" name= + "noteref_178" href="#note_178"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">178</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We might now + characterise this sort of suffering as the chastisement of love (of + the righteous) to mankind, or rather to Israel. But we must not + confuse it with the Chastisement of Love often mentioned in the + Talmud, though this idea also seems calculated to account for the + suffering of the righteous. Here the love is not on the side of the + sufferer, but proceeds from him who inflicts this suffering. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Him,”</span> says R. Huna, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“in whom God delights he crushes with suffering.”</span> + As a proof of this theory the words of Is. liii. 10 are given, which + are interpreted to mean: him whom the Lord delights in He puts to + grief. Another passage, by the same authority, is to the effect that + where there is no sufficient cause for punishment (the man being + entirely free from sin), we have to regard his suffering as a + chastisement of love, for it is said: <span class="tei tei-q">“Whom + the Lord loveth He correcteth”</span> (Proverbs iii. 11).<a id= + "noteref_179" name="noteref_179" href="#note_179"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">179</span></span></a> To what + purpose He corrects him may, perhaps, be seen from the following + passage: <span class="tei tei-q">“R. Eleazar ben Jacob says: If a man + is visited by affliction he has to be thankful to God for it: for + suffering draws man to, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page226">[pg + 226]</span><a name="Pg226" id="Pg226" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + reconciles him with God, as it is said: For whom God loveth he + correcteth.”</span><a id="noteref_180" name="noteref_180" href= + "#note_180"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">180</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is in + conformity with such a high conception that affliction, far from + being dreaded, becomes almost a desirable end, and we hear many + Rabbis exclaim, <span class="tei tei-q">“Beloved is + suffering,”</span> for by it fatherly love is shown to man by God; by + it man obtains purification and atonement, by it Israel came in + possession of the best gifts, such as the Torah, the Holy Land, and + eternal life.<a id="noteref_181" name="noteref_181" href= + "#note_181"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">181</span></span></a> And so + also the sufferer, far from being considered as a man with a + suspected past, becomes an object of veneration, on whom the glory of + God rests, and he brings salvation to the world if he bears his + affliction with joyful submission to the will of God.<a id= + "noteref_182" name="noteref_182" href="#note_182"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">182</span></span></a> + Continuous prosperity is by no means to be longed after, for, as R. + Ishmael taught, <span class="tei tei-q">“He who has passed forty days + without meeting adversity has already received his (share of the) + world (to come) in this life.”</span><a id="noteref_183" name= + "noteref_183" href="#note_183"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">183</span></span></a> Nay, + the standing rule is that the really righteous suffer, whilst the + wicked are supposed to be in a prosperous state. Thus, R. Jannai + said, <span class="tei tei-q">“We (average people) enjoy neither the + prosperity of the wicked nor the afflictions of the + righteous,”</span><a id="noteref_184" name="noteref_184" href= + "#note_184"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">184</span></span></a> whilst + his contemporary, Rab, declared that he who experiences no affliction + and persecution does not belong to them (the Jews).<a id= + "noteref_185" name="noteref_185" href="#note_185"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">185</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">2. The second main + view on Retribution is that recorded by the Rabbis as in direct + opposition to that of R. Ammi. It is that there is suffering as well + as death without sin and transgression. We may now just as well infer + that there is prosperity and happiness without preceding merits. And + this is, indeed, the view held by R. Meir. For in contradiction to + the view cited above, R. Meir declares that the request of Moses to + have <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page227">[pg 227]</span><a name= + "Pg227" id="Pg227" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> explained to him the + mysterious ways of Providence was <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">not</span></em> + granted, and the answer he received was, <span class="tei tei-q">“And + I will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy”</span> (Exod. xxxiii. + 19), which means to say, even though he to whom the mercy is shown be + unworthy of it. The old question arises how such a procedure is to be + reconciled with the justice and omnipotence of God. The commentaries + try to evade the difficulty by suggesting some of the views given + above, as that the real reward and punishment are only in the world + to come, or that the affliction of the righteous is only chastisement + of love, and so on. From the passages I am about to quote, however, + one gains the impression that some Rabbis rather thought that this + great problem will indeed not bear discussion or solution at all. + Thus we have the legend: <span class="tei tei-q">“The angels said to + God, why have you punished Adam with death? He answered, On account + of his having transgressed my commandment (with regard to the eating + of the tree of knowledge). But why had Moses and Aaron to die? The + reply given to them is the words, Eccl. ix. 2: <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘All things come alike to all; there is one event to the + righteous and to the wicked, to the good and to the clean and to the + unclean.’</span> ”</span><a id="noteref_186" name="noteref_186" href= + "#note_186"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">186</span></span></a> Another + legend records, <span class="tei tei-q">“When Moses ascended to + heaven, God showed him also the great men of futurity. R. Akiba was + sitting and interpreting the law in a most wonderful way. Moses said + to God: Thou hast shown me his worth, show me also his reward; on + which he is bidden to look back. There he perceives him dying the + most cruel of deaths, and his flesh being sold by weight. Moses now + asks: Is this the reward of such a life? whereupon God answers him: + Be silent; this I have determined.”</span><a id="noteref_187" name= + "noteref_187" href="#note_187"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">187</span></span></a></p><span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page228">[pg 228]</span><a name="Pg228" id="Pg228" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is impossible + not to think of the fine lines of the German poet:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Warum schleppt sich blutend, + elend,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Unter Kreuzlast der + Gerechte,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Während glücklich als ein + Sieger</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Trabt auf hohem Ross der + Schlechte?</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Also fragen wir beständig,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Bis man uns mit einer + Handvoll</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Erde endlich stopft die + Mäuler—</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Aber ist das eine Antwort?</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Still, one might + perhaps suggest that these passages when examined a little closer, + not only contain a rebuke to man's importunity in wanting to intrude + into the secrets of God, but also hint at the possibility that even + God's omnipotence is submitted to a certain law—though designed by + His own holy will—which He could not alter without detriment to the + whole creation. Indeed, in one of the mystical accounts of the + martyrdom of R. Akiba and other great Rabbis, God is represented as + asking the sufferers to accept His hard decree without protest, + unless they wish Him to destroy the whole world. In another place + again, we read of a certain renowned Rabbi, who lived in great + poverty, that once in a dream he asked the divine Shechinah how long + he would have still to endure this bitter privation? The answer given + to him was: <span class="tei tei-q">“My son, will it please you that + I destroy the world for your sake?”</span><a id="noteref_188" name= + "noteref_188" href="#note_188"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">188</span></span></a> It is + only in this light that we shall be able to understand such passages + in the Rabbinic literature as that God almost suffers Himself when He + has to inflict punishment either on the individual or on whole + communities. Thus God is represented as mourning for <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page229">[pg 229]</span><a name="Pg229" id="Pg229" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> seven days (as in the case when one loses + a child) before He brought the deluge on the world; He bemoans the + fall of Israel and the destruction of the Temple, and the Shechinah + laments even when the criminal suffers his just punishment. And it is + not by rebelling against these laws that He tries to redeem His + suffering. He himself has recourse to prayer, and says: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“May it be my will that my mercy conquer my wrath, that + my love over-rule my strict justice, so that I may treat my children + with love.”</span><a id="noteref_189" name="noteref_189" href= + "#note_189"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">189</span></span></a> If now + man is equal to God, he has nevertheless, or rather on that account, + to submit to the law of God without any outlook for reward or + punishment; or, as Antigonos expressed it, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Be not as slaves that minister to the Lord with a view + to receive recompense.”</span><a id="noteref_190" name="noteref_190" + href="#note_190"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">190</span></span></a> + Certainly it would be hazardous to maintain that Antigonos's saying + was a consequence of this doctrine; but, at any rate, we see a clear + tendency to keep the thought of reward (in spite of the prominent + part it holds in the Bible) out of view. Still more clearly is it + seen when, with reference to Ps. cxii., <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Blessed is the man ... that delighteth greatly in his + commandments,”</span> Rabbi Eleazar remarks that the meaning is that + the man desires only to do His commandments, but he does not want the + rewards connected with them.<a id="noteref_191" name="noteref_191" + href="#note_191"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">191</span></span></a> This is + the more remarkable, as the whole contents of this psalm are nothing + else than a long series of promises of various rewards, so that the + explanation of Rabbi Eleazar is in almost direct contradiction to the + simple meaning of the words. On the other hand, also, every complaint + about suffering must cease. Not only is affliction no direct + chastisement by God in the way of revenge; but even when it would + seem to us that we suffer innocently, we have no right to murmur, as + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page230">[pg 230]</span><a name="Pg230" + id="Pg230" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> God himself is also suffering, + and, as the Talmud expresses it, <span class="tei tei-q">“It is + enough for the slave to be in the position of his + master.”</span><a id="noteref_192" name="noteref_192" href= + "#note_192"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">192</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This thought of + the compassion—in its strictest sense of fellow-suffering—of God with + His creatures becomes a new motive for avoiding sin. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Woe to the wicked,”</span> exclaims a Rabbi, + <span class="tei tei-q">“who by their bad actions turn the mercy of + God into strict justice.”</span><a id="noteref_193" name= + "noteref_193" href="#note_193"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">193</span></span></a> And the + later mystics explain distinctly that the great crime of sin consists + in causing pain, so to speak, to the Shechinah. One of them compared + it with the slave who abuses the goodness of his master so far as to + buy with his money arms to wound him. But, on the other hand, it + becomes, rather inconsistently, also a new source of comfort; for, in + the end, God will have to redeem Himself from this suffering, which + cannot be accomplished so long as Israel is still under + punishment.<a id="noteref_194" name="noteref_194" href= + "#note_194"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">194</span></span></a> Most + interesting is the noble prayer by a Rabbi of a very late mystical + school: <span class="tei tei-q">“O God, speedily bring about the + redemption. I am not in the least thinking of what I may gain by it. + I am willing to be condemned to all tortures in hell, if only the + Shechinah will cease to suffer.”</span><a id="noteref_195" name= + "noteref_195" href="#note_195"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">195</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">If we were now to + ask for the attitude of the Synagogue towards these two main views, + we should have to answer that—as already hinted at the opening of + this paper—it never decided for the one or the other. R. David Rocca + Martino dared even to write a whole book in Defence of Adam proving + that he committed no sin in eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge + against the literal sense of the Scriptures, which were also taken by + the Rabbis literally.<a id="noteref_196" name="noteref_196" href= + "#note_196"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">196</span></span></a> By this + he destroyed the prospects of many a theodicy, but it is not known to + me that he was severely <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page231">[pg + 231]</span><a name="Pg231" id="Pg231" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + rebuked for it. It has been said by a great writer that the best + theology is that which is not consistent, and this advantage the + theology of the Synagogue possesses to its utmost extent. It accepted + with R. Ammi the stern principle of divine retribution, in as far as + it makes man feel the responsibility of his actions, and makes + suffering a discipline. But it never allowed this principle to be + carried so far as to deny the sufferer our sympathy, and by a series + of conscious and unconscious modifications, he passed from the state + of a sinner into the zenith of the saint and the perfectly righteous + man. But, on the other hand, the Synagogue also gave entrance to the + very opposite view which, abandoning every attempt to account for + suffering, bids man do his duty without any hope of reward, even as + God also does His. Hence the remarkable phenomenon in the works of + later Jewish moralists, that, whilst they never weary of the most + detailed accounts of the punishments awaiting the sinner and the + rewards in store for the righteous, they warn us most emphatically + that our actions must not be guided by these unworthy considerations, + and that our only motive should be the love of God and submission to + His holy will.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nor must it be + thought that the views of the Rabbis are so widely divergent from + those enunciated in the Bible. The germ of almost all the later ideas + is already to be found in the Scriptures. It only needed the process + of time to bring into prominence those features which proved at a + later period most acceptable. Indeed, it would seem that there is + also a sort of domestication of religious ideas. On their first + association with man there is a certain rude violence about them + which, when left to the management of untutored minds, would + certainly <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page232">[pg + 232]</span><a name="Pg232" id="Pg232" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> do + great harm. But, let only this association last for centuries, during + which these ideas have to be subdued by practical use, and they will, + in due time, lose their former roughness, will become theologically + workable, and turn out the greatest blessing to inconsistent + humanity.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page233">[pg 233]</span><a name= + "Pg233" id="Pg233" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc21" id="toc21"></a> <a name="pdf22" id="pdf22"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">IX. The Law And Recent + Criticism</span><a id="noteref_197" name="noteref_197" href= + "#note_197"><span class="tei tei-noteref" style= + "text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">197</span></span></a></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Professor Toy's + work, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Judaism and Christianity</span></span>, gives an + admirable conspectus of the results of the modern critical school in + their bearing on the genesis of Christianity. The author takes + various important doctrines of Christianity, traces them back to + their origin in Israelitism, pursues their course through their + various phases in Judaism, until they reach their final development + in the teaching of Jesus and His disciples, which, in the author's + judgment, is the consummation of that which the prophets and their + successors had to give to the world. Laying so much stress as + Professor Toy does on the saying, <span class="tei tei-q">“By their + fruits shall ye know them,”</span> he ought also, perhaps, to have + told us what, in the course of time, has become of these several + doctrines. For when, for instance, with regard to the doctrine of + original sin, he remarks that <span class="tei tei-q">“in certain + systems of Christian theology the human race is involved in the + condemnation of the first man”</span> (p. 185, n. 1); or that, in the + New Testament, <span class="tei tei-q">“the demand for a mediating + power between God and humanity is pushed to the farthest point which + thought can occupy consistently with the maintenance of the + absoluteness of the one Supreme Deity”</span> (p. 121), he is rather + evading a difficulty than answering it. Such elaboration would, + however, have been outside <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page234">[pg + 234]</span><a name="Pg234" id="Pg234" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the + scope of Professor Toy's book, which claims only to be a sketch of + the progress of thought from the Old Testament to the New. For his + own solution of the indicated difficulty, Toy, to judge from his + liberal standpoint, would probably refer us to Dr. Hatch's Hibbert + lectures; the issue of such an appeal must, I imagine, remain for + long doubtful and disputed.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A delightful + characteristic of Toy's book is its transparent clearness and + sobriety, which will make it interesting reading, even to those who + are acquainted with the writer's authorities in their original + sources. Almost entirely new, as well as most suggestive, is the + justice which Toy does to the law in recognising it as a factor for + good in the history of religion. In this point Toy is not only up to + his date, but beyond it. It is true that even the Pharisees have made + some advance in the estimation of the liberal school. They are no + longer condemned <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">en masse</span></span> as so many hypocrites. It + is even admitted that there were a few honest men among them, such as + Rabban Gamaliel, the teacher of Paul, or R. Akiba, the patriot of + Bethar. We are now too polite to be personal. But with regard to the + law, on the other hand, there is at present a markedly opposite + tendency. The general idea seems to be that, as the doctrine of the + resurrection of Christ must be loosely interpreted in a spiritual + sense, it must logically have been preceded by a universal spiritual + death, and the germs of the disease which brought this death about + are to be sought for in the law. Hence the strained efforts to + discover in the law the source of all religious evil,—cant, + hypocrisy, formalism, externalism, transcendentalism, and as many + <span class="tei tei-q">“isms”</span> more, of bad + reputation.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page235">[pg + 235]</span><a name="Pg235" id="Pg235" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It was probably + with this current representation of the law in view that Toy, when + speaking of the Levitical legislation, and of its fixing <span class= + "tei tei-q">“men's minds on ceremonial details which, in some cases, + it put into the same category and on the same level with moral + duties,”</span> asks the question: <span class="tei tei-q">“Would + there not thence result a dimming of the moral sense and a confusion + of moral distinctions? The ethical attitude of a man who could regard + a failure in the routine of sacrifice as not less blameworthy than an + act of theft cannot be called a lofty one”</span> (p. 186). The + answer which he gives is more favourable than such a leading question + would induce us to expect. He tells us that, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“in point of fact, the result was different”</span> + (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ibid</span></span>). <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The Levitical law is not to be looked on as a mere + extension and organisation of the ritual.... Its ritual was, in great + part, the organised expression of the consciousness of sin”</span> + (p. 226). Of the law in general Toy says that it had <span class= + "tei tei-q">“larger consequences than its mere details would + suggest,”</span> for it <span class="tei tei-q">“cultivated the moral + sense of the people into results above its mechanical + prescriptions,”</span> and <span class="tei tei-q">“it developed the + sense of sin, as Paul points out”</span> (Gal. iii. 19), <span class= + "tei tei-q">“and therewith a freer feeling, which brought the soul + into more immediate contact with God”</span> (p. 227); whilst in + another place he reminds us <span class="tei tei-q">“that much of the + law is moral, and that no one could fail to see a spiritual + significance beneath its letter”</span> (p. 245), and he even admits + that <span class="tei tei-q">“the great legal schools which grew up + in the second century, if we may judge by the sayings of the teachers + which have come down to us, did not fail to discriminate between the + outward and the inward, the ceremonial and the moral”</span> (p. + 186).</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These and similar + passages will suffice to show that <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page236">[pg 236]</span><a name="Pg236" id="Pg236" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Toy's estimate of the law is a very different + one from that of Smend and his school. However, it must not be + supposed that he is not on the look-out for the germs of the disease. + He must find these germs somewhere, or else the progress, which his + book is intended to illustrate, would be difficult to detect. And + thus he repeats the old accusations, though not without + modification.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Professor Toy's + objections may, perhaps, be summed up in the passage in which he + represents the Jewish law as <span class="tei tei-q">“an attempt to + define all the beliefs and acts of life”</span> (p. 239), or as + <span class="tei tei-q">“the embodiment of devotion to a fixed rule + of belief and conduct”</span> (p. 237). Toy does not entirely condemn + this system, and even speaks of it as a <span class= + "tei tei-q">“lofty attempt”</span> (p. 239); but, on the whole, he + considers that it must have resulted in bad theology, as well as in + doubtful conduct. Without following Professor Toy over the whole area + of his investigations, which would require a volume for itself, I + will only take the opportunity of making a few general remarks upon + the nature and character of this legal system, which seems to hold + the key to the spiritual history of Judaism.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">First, as to its + theology, Toy's description of the law as an attempt to define all + the <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">beliefs</span></em> of life—an assertion which + is also made by Schürer—is not wholly accurate. For such an attempt + was never made by Judaism. The few dogmas which Judaism possesses, + such as the Existence of God, Providence, Reward, and + Punishment—without which no revealed religion is conceivable—can + hardly be called a creed in the modern sense of the term, which + implies something external and foreign to man's own knowledge, and + received only in deference to the weight of authority. To the Jew of + the Christian era, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page237">[pg + 237]</span><a name="Pg237" id="Pg237" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + these simpler dogmas were so self-evident that it would have cost him + the greatest effort <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">not</span></em> to believe them. Hence the fact + that, whilst there have come down to us so many controverted points + between the Sadducees and Pharisees with regard to certain juristic + and ritual questions, we know of only one of an essentially dogmatic + character, viz. the dispute concerning the Resurrection.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is thus + difficult to imagine to what Professor Toy can be alluding when he + speaks of the <span class="tei tei-q">“interest they (the Jews) threw + into the discussion and determination of minutiæ of faith”</span> (p. + 241). Discussions upon <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">minutiæ</span></em> of faith are only to be read + in the works of the later schoolmen (as Saadiah, Maimonides and their + followers), in which such subtle problems as <span lang="la" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creatio ex nihilo</span></span>, the origin of + evil, predestination, free will and similar subjects are examined; + but this period is very distant from that with which Toy is + concerned. The older schools and the so-called houses of Shammai and + Hillel, most of whose members were the contemporaries of the + Apostles, show very little predilection for such <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">minutiæ</span></em>. + Their discussions and differences of opinion about ritual matters are + very numerous, scattered as they are over the whole of the ancient + Rabbinic literature, but I can only remember two of a metaphysical + character, or touching upon the <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">minutiæ</span></em> of faith. The one, dealing + with the efficacy of certain sacrifices, discusses whether it only + extends to the remission of the pending punishment for sins, or also + includes their purification and washing away; the other considers the + question whether it would not have been better for man not to have + been created.<a id="noteref_198" name="noteref_198" href= + "#note_198"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">198</span></span></a> But + this latter controversy, which is said to have lasted for two years + and a half, by no means led to any big metaphysical or <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page238">[pg 238]</span><a name="Pg238" id="Pg238" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> theological system, but only to the + practical advice that, as we have been created, we ought to be + watchful over our conduct. It is, indeed, a noteworthy feature of + Judaism that theological speculations have never resulted in the + formulation of any imposing or universal doctrine, but usually in + divers ceremonial practices. To give one illustration: according to + Professor Toy (p. 210) the conclusion which the author of 1 Tim. ii. + 11-14 draws from the fact that woman was the immediate agent of the + introduction of sin was the subordination of her sex. The Rabbis also + noticed the same fact, and in their less abstract language speak of + woman as having brought death and grief into the world; but the + conclusion which they drew was that since woman had extinguished the + <span class="tei tei-q">“light of the world,”</span> she ought to + atone for it by lighting the candles for the Sabbath.<a id= + "noteref_199" name="noteref_199" href="#note_199"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">199</span></span></a> Nor is + Toy quite correct when he maintains that the conception of the Memra + as Creator and Lord, etc., and as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“representative of the immediate divine activity,”</span> + did not keep its hold on Jewish thought, having been discarded in the + later literature (p. 104). For the Shechinah of the Talmud, the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Metatron</span></span><a id="noteref_200" name= + "noteref_200" href="#note_200"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">200</span></span></a> of the + Gaonic-mystical literature, the Active Intelligence of the + philosophical schools, as well as the Ten Sephiroth<a id= + "noteref_201" name="noteref_201" href="#note_201"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">201</span></span></a> + (Emanations) of the Cabbalists, all owe their existence to the same + theosophic scruples and subtleties in which the Logos of Philo and + the Memra<a id="noteref_202" name="noteref_202" href= + "#note_202"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">202</span></span></a> of the + Targums originated. Thus, they always kept—though under various + forms—their hold on the Jewish mind. Judaism was always broad enough + to accommodate itself to these formulæ, which for the one may mean + the most holy mysteries, and for the other empty and meaningless + catchwords. The objection—in fact, the active opposition—of the + Synagogue began when <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page239">[pg + 239]</span><a name="Pg239" id="Pg239" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + these possible or impossible explanations of the universe tended to + transgress the bounds of abstract speculation, and, passing over into + real concrete beings, to be worshipped as such. An instance from + comparatively modern times might be found in one of the vagaries of + the followers of the Pseudo-Messiah, Shabbethai Tsebi. For many + generations the controversy had raged among the Cabbalists, whether + the first of the above-mentioned Ten Emanations (called by some + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Original + Adam</span></span>, by others, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Crown</span></span><a id="noteref_203" name= + "noteref_203" href="#note_203"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">203</span></span></a>) is to + be considered as a part of the Deity or as something separate, and so + to speak, having a reality in itself. The danger of establishing a + Being near the Deity, having an existence of its own and invested + with divine attributes, could not have escaped the thoughtful, and + there are indeed some indications to this effect. The Synagogue as + such, however, remained during the whole controversy strictly + neutral, and allowed these theosophists to fight in the air as much + as they liked. But the moment that the sect of Shabbethai Tsebi + identified the incarnate Original Adam with their leader, and + worshipped him as a sort of God-Messiah, the Synagogue at once took + up a hostile attitude against those who separated God from His world, + and, declaring Shabbethai Tsebi and his followers to be apostates, + excluded them from Judaism for ever.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nor can it be + proved that legalism or nomism has ever tended to suppress the + spiritual side of religion, either in respect of consciousness of + sin, or of individual love and devotion. With an equal logic quite + the opposite might be argued. Professor Toy tells us himself that it + is no <span class="tei tei-q">“accident that along with this more + definite expression of ethical-religious law we find the first traces + of a more <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page240">[pg + 240]</span><a name="Pg240" id="Pg240" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + spiritual conception of righteousness in the <span class= + "tei tei-q">‘new heart’</span> of Jeremiah and Ezekiel”</span> (p. + 235), whilst in another passage we read that <span class= + "tei tei-q">“a turning point is marked by the Deuteronomist Jeremiah + and Ezekiel, who announce the principles of individual responsibility + and inwardness of obedience”</span> (p. 184). Now, two things are + certain; first, that Ezekiel urges the necessity of the new heart as + well as of individual responsibility more keenly than any of his + predecessors; secondly, that in Ezekiel the legalistic tendency is + more evident than in Deuteronomy and Jeremiah. The logical conclusion + would thus be that the higher ideals of religion are not only not + inconsistent with legalism, but are the very outcome of it, and the + so-called Priestly Code, by the very fact of its markedly legalistic + tendency, should be considered as a step in the right direction. The + latter assertion sounds like a paradox, but it will seem less so when + the prevailing characteristic of this portion of the Pentateuch, as + given even by Kuenen, who is by no means a champion of the Law, is + borne in mind. <span class="tei tei-q">“The centre of + gravity,”</span> according to the great Dutch critic, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“lies for the priestly author elsewhere than for the + prophet; it lies in man's attitude, not towards his fellow-men, but + towards God; not in his social, but in his personal life”</span> + (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Hibbert + Lectures</span></span>, p. 161). It is here that we seem to strike + the keynote of the <span lang="de" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "de"><span style="font-style: italic">Weltanschauung</span></span> of + the Priestly Legislation. In it man is more than a social being. He + has also an individual life of his own, his joys and sorrows, his + historical claims, his traditions of the past, and his hopes for the + future—and all these have to be brought under the influence of + religion, and to become sanctified through their relation to God. + Hence, the work of the Priestly narrator and legislator opens with a + cosmogony of his <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page241">[pg + 241]</span><a name="Pg241" id="Pg241" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + own, in which we find the grand theological idea of man being created + in the Divine image; hence, too, his religious conception of the + history of the nation and the control claimed by him over all the + details of human life, which became with him so many opportunities + for the worship of God. To him, God is not a mere figurehead; He not + only reigns, but governs. Everywhere,—in the temple, in the judge's + seat, in the family, in the farm, and in the market-place,—His + presence is felt in enforcing the laws bearing His <span lang="la" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">imprimatur</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“I am the Lord thy God.”</span> By thus diffusing + religion over the whole domain of human life—not confining it to the + social institutions which are represented only by a few personages, + such as the king, the princes, the priests, the judges or elders—they + made it the common good of the whole people, and the feeling of + personal responsibility for this good became much deeper than before. + Thus it came to pass that whilst, during the first temple, the + apostasy of kings and aristocracy involved the entire people, so that + the words <span class="tei tei-q">“And he (the king) did evil in the + sight of the Lord,”</span> embrace the whole nation, during the + second temple it was no longer of much consequence which side the + political leaders took. Both during the Hellenistic persecutions, as + well as afterwards in the struggles of some Maccabean kings with the + Pharisees, the bulk of the people showed that they considered + religion as their own personal affair, not to be regulated by the + conscience of either priest or prince. It is true that this success + may be largely ascribed to such contemporary religious factors as the + Synagogue with its minimum of form, the Scribes with their activity + as teachers, and the Psalmists with their divine enthusiasm; but the + very circumstance that <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page242">[pg + 242]</span><a name="Pg242" id="Pg242" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + these factors arose and flourished under the influence of the + Priestly Code would suffice to prove that its tendency was not so + sacerdotal as some writers would have us believe. Jewish tradition + indeed attributes the composition of the daily public prayers, as + well as of others for private worship, to the very men whom modern + biblical criticism holds responsible for the introduction of the + Priestly Code. Now this fact may perhaps be disputed, but there is + little doubt that the age in which these prayers were composed was + one of flourishing legalism. Nor is there any proof that the + synagogues and their ritual were in opposition to the temple. From + the few documents belonging to this period, it is clear that there + was no opposition to the legalistic spirit by which the Priestly Code + was actuated. This would prove that legalism meant something more + than tithes and sacrifices for the benefit of the priests.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Nor is it true + that the legal tendency aimed at narrowing the mind of the nation, + turning all its thoughts into the one direction of the law. Apart + from the fact that the Torah contained other elements besides its + legalism, the prophets were not forgotten, but were read and + interpreted from a very early age. It was under the predominance of + the Law that the Wisdom literature was composed, which is by no means + narrow or one-sided, but is even supposed by some critics to contain + many foreign elements. In the book of Job, the great problems of + man's existence are treated with a depth and grandeur never equalled + before or since. This book alone ought partly to compensate the + modern school for the disappearance of prophecy, which is usually + brought as a charge against the Law. Then, too, the Psalms, placed by + the same school in the post-exilic <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page243">[pg 243]</span><a name="Pg243" id="Pg243" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> period, are nothing but another aspect of + prophecy, with this difference, perhaps, that in the Prophets God + speaks to man, while in the Psalms it is man who establishes the same + communion by speaking to God. There is no reason why the critical + school, with its broad conception of inspiration, and with its + insistence that prophecy does <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">not</span></em> mean prediction, should so + strongly emphasise this difference. If <span class="tei tei-q">“it is + no longer as in the days of Amos, when the Lord Yahveh did nothing + without revealing his counsel to his servants the prophets,”</span> + there is in the days of the Psalmists nothing in man's heart, no + element in his longings and meditations and aspirations, which was + not revealed to God. Nay, it would seem that at times the Psalmist + hardly ever desires the revelation of God's secrets. Let future + events be what they may, he is content, for he is with God. After all + his trials, he exclaims, <span class="tei tei-q">“And yet I am + continually with thee; thou hast taken hold of my right hand. + According to thy purpose wilt thou lead me, and afterwards receive me + with glory. Whom have I (to care for) in heaven? and possessing thee, + I have pleasure in nothing upon earth. Though my flesh and my heart + should have wasted away, God would for ever be the rock of my heart + and my portion”</span> (Ps. lxxiii. 23-26). How an age producing a + literature containing passages like these—of which Wellhausen in his + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abriss</span></span> (p. 95) justly remarks, + that we are not worthy even to repeat them—can be considered by the + modern school as wanting in intimate relation to God and inferior to + that of the prophets is indeed a puzzle.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now a few words as + to the actual life under the Law. Here, again, there is a fresh + puzzle. On the one side, we hear the opinions of so many learned + professors, proclaiming <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page244">[pg + 244]</span><a name="Pg244" id="Pg244" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ex cathedrâ</span></span>, that the Law was a + most terrible burden, and the life under it the most unbearable + slavery, deadening body and soul. On the other side we have the + testimony of a literature extending over about twenty-five centuries, + and including all sorts and conditions of men, scholars, poets, + mystics, lawyers, casuists, schoolmen, tradesmen, workmen, women, + simpletons, who all, from the author of the 119th Psalm to the last + pre-Mendelssohnian writer—with a small exception which does not even + deserve the name of a vanishing minority—give unanimous evidence in + favour of this Law, and of the bliss and happiness of living and + dying under it,—and this, the testimony of people who were actually + living under the Law, not merely theorising upon it, and who + experienced it in all its difficulties and inconveniences. The + Sabbath will give a fair example. The law of the Sabbath is one of + those institutions the strict observance of which was already the + object of attack in early New Testament times. Nevertheless, the + doctrine proclaimed in one of the Gospels—that the son of man is Lord + also of the Sabbath—was also current among the Rabbis. They, too, + taught that the Sabbath had been delivered into the hand of man (to + break, if necessary), and not man delivered over to the + Sabbath.<a id="noteref_204" name="noteref_204" href= + "#note_204"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">204</span></span></a> And + they even laid down the axiom that a scholar who lived in a town, + where among the Jewish population there could be the least + possibility of doubt as to whether the Sabbath might be broken for + the benefit of a dangerously sick person, was to be despised as a man + neglecting his duty; for, as Maimonides points out, the laws of the + Torah are not meant as an infliction upon mankind, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“but as mercy, loving-kindness, and peace.”</span><a id= + "noteref_205" name="noteref_205" href="#note_205"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">205</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The attacks upon + the Jewish Sabbath have not abated <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page245">[pg 245]</span><a name="Pg245" id="Pg245" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> with the lapse of time. The day is still + described by almost every Christian writer on the subject in the most + gloomy colours, and long lists are given of minute and easily + transgressed observances connected with it, which, instead of a day + of rest, would make it to be a day of sorrow and anxiety, almost + worse than the Scotch Sunday as depicted by continental writers. But + it so happens that we have the prayer of R. Zadok, a younger + contemporary of the Apostles, which runs thus: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Through the love with which Thou, O Lord our God, lovest + Thy people Israel, and the mercy which Thou hast shown to the + children of Thy covenant, Thou hast given unto us in love this great + and holy Seventh Day.”</span><a id="noteref_206" name="noteref_206" + href="#note_206"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">206</span></span></a> And + another Rabbi, who probably flourished in the first half of the + second century, expresses himself (with allusion to Exod. xxxi. 13: + Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep ... that ye may know that I am the + Lord that doth sanctify you)—<span class="tei tei-q">“The Holy One, + blessed be He, said unto Moses, I have a good gift in my treasures, + and Sabbath is its name, which I wish to present to Israel. Go and + bring to them the good tidings.”</span><a id="noteref_207" name= + "noteref_207" href="#note_207"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">207</span></span></a> The + form again of the Blessing over the Sanctification-cup<a id= + "noteref_208" name="noteref_208" href="#note_208"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">208</span></span></a>—a + ceremony known long before the destruction of the Second Temple—runs: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, who hast + sanctified us by Thy commandments, and hast taken pleasure in us, and + in love and grace hast given us Thy holy Sabbath as an + inheritance.”</span> All these Rabbis evidently regarded the Sabbath + as a gift from heaven, an expression of the infinite mercy and grace + of God which He manifested to His beloved children.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And the gift was, + as already said, a <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">good</span></em> gift. Thus the Rabbis + paraphrase the words in the Scripture <span class="tei tei-q">“See, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page246">[pg 246]</span><a name="Pg246" + id="Pg246" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> for that the Lord hath given + you the Sabbath”</span> (Exod. xvi. 29): God said unto Israel behold + the gem I gave you, My children I gave you the Sabbath for your good. + Sanctify or honour the Sabbath by choice meals, beautiful garments; + delight your soul with pleasure and I will reward you (for this very + pleasure); as it is said: <span class="tei tei-q">“And if thou wilt + call the Sabbath a delight and the holy of the Lord honourable (that + is honouring the Sabbath in this way) ... then shalt thou delight + thyself in the Lord”</span> (Is. lviii. 13, 14).<a id="noteref_209" + name="noteref_209" href="#note_209"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">209</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The delight of the + Sabbath was keenly felt. Israel fell in love with the Sabbath, and in + the hyperbolic language of the Agadah the Sabbath is personified as + the <span class="tei tei-q">“Bride of Israel,”</span> whilst others + called it <span class="tei tei-q">“Queen Sabbath,”</span><a id= + "noteref_210" name="noteref_210" href="#note_210"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">210</span></span></a> and + they are actually jealous of a certain class of semi-proselytes who, + as it seems, were willing to observe the Sabbath, but declined to + submit to the covenant of Abraham. The Gentile Sabbath-keepers—who, + like all the nations of the world, envy Israel their Sabbath—the + Rabbis considered as shameless intruders deserving punishment.<a id= + "noteref_211" name="noteref_211" href="#note_211"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">211</span></span></a> No, it + was Israel's own Queen or Bride Sabbath whose appearance in all her + heavenly glory they were impatiently awaiting. Thus we are told of R. + Judah b. Ilai that when the eve of the Sabbath came <span class= + "tei tei-q">“he made his ablutions, wrapped himself up in his white + linen with fringed borders looking like an angel of the Lord of + Hosts,”</span> thus prepared for the solemn reception of Queen + Sabbath. Another Rabbi used to put on his best clothes, and arise and + invite the Sabbath with the words: <span class="tei tei-q">“Come in + Bride, come in.”</span><a id="noteref_212" name="noteref_212" href= + "#note_212"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">212</span></span></a> What + the Bride brought was peace and bliss. Nay, man is provided with a + super soul for the Sabbath, enabling him to bear both the spiritual + and the material delights of the day with <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page247">[pg 247]</span><a name="Pg247" id="Pg247" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> dignity and solemnity.<a id="noteref_213" name= + "noteref_213" href="#note_213"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">213</span></span></a> The + very light (or expression) of man's face is different on Sabbath, + testifying to his inward peace and rest. And when man has recited his + prayers (on the eve of the Sabbath) and thus borne testimony to God's + creation of the world and to the glory of the Sabbath, there appear + the two angels who accompany him, lay their hands on his head and + impart to him their blessing with the words: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“And thine iniquity is taken away and thy sin + purged”</span> (Is. vi. 7).<a id="noteref_214" name="noteref_214" + href="#note_214"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">214</span></span></a> For + nothing is allowed to disturb the peace of the Sabbath; not even + <span class="tei tei-q">“the sorrows of sin,”</span> though the + Sabbath had such a solemn effect on people that even the worldly man + would not utter an untruth on the Day of the Lord. Hence it was not + only forbidden to pray on Sabbath for one's own (material) needs, but + everything in the liturgy of a mournful character (as for instance + the confession of sin, supplication for pardon) was carefully + avoided. It was with difficulty, as the Rabbis say, that they made an + exception in the case of condoling with people who had suffered loss + through the death of near relatives. There is no room for morbid + sentiment on Sabbath, for the blessing of the Lord maketh rich, and + He addeth no sorrow with it (Prov. x. 22).<a id="noteref_215" name= + "noteref_215" href="#note_215"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">215</span></span></a> The + burden of the Sabbath prayers is for peace, rest, sanctification, and + joy (through salvation) and praise of God for this ineffable bliss of + the Sabbath.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Such was the + Sabbath of the old Rabbis and the same spirit continued through all + ages. The Sabbath was and is still celebrated by the people who did + and do observe it, in hundreds of hymns, which would fill volumes, as + a day of rest and joy, of pleasure and delight, a day in which man + enjoys some foretaste of the pure <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page248">[pg 248]</span><a name="Pg248" id="Pg248" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> bliss and happiness which are stored up for the + righteous in the world to come. Somebody, either the learned + professors, or the millions of the Jewish people, must be under an + illusion. Which it is I leave to the reader to decide.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is also an + illusion to speak of the burden which a scrupulous care to observe + six hundred and thirteen commandments must have laid upon the Jew. + Even a superficial analysis will discover that in the time of Christ + many of these commandments were already obsolete (as for instance + those relating to the tabernacle and to the conquest of Palestine), + while others concerned only certain classes, as the priests, the + judges, the soldiers, the Nazirites, or the representatives of the + community, or even only one or two individuals among the whole + population, as the King and the High-Priest. Others, again, provided + for contingencies which could occur only to a few, as for instance + the laws concerning divorce or levirate marriages, whilst many—such + as those concerning idolatry, and incest, and the sacrifice of + children to Moloch—could scarcely have been considered as a practical + prohibition by the pre-Christian Jew; just as little as we can speak + of Englishmen as lying under the burden of a law preventing them from + burning widows or marrying their grandmothers, though such acts would + certainly be considered as crimes. Thus it will be found by a careful + enumeration that barely a hundred laws remain which really concerned + the life of the bulk of the people. If we remember that even these + include such laws as belief in the unity of God, the necessity of + loving and fearing Him, and of sanctifying His name, of loving one's + neighbour and the stranger, of providing <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page249">[pg 249]</span><a name="Pg249" id="Pg249" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> for the poor, exhorting the sinner, honouring + one's parents and many more of a similar character, it will hardly be + said that the ceremonial side of the people's religion was not well + balanced by a fair amount of spiritual and social elements. Besides, + it would seem that the line between the ceremonial and the spiritual + is too often only arbitrarily drawn. With many commandments it is + rather a matter of opinion whether they should be relegated to the + one category or the other.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus, the wearing + of Tephillin<a id="noteref_216" name="noteref_216" href= + "#note_216"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">216</span></span></a> or + phylacteries has, on the one hand, been continually condemned as a + meaningless superstition, and a pretext for formalism and hypocrisy. + But, on the other hand, Maimonides, who can in no way be suspected of + superstition or mysticism, described their importance in the + following words: <span class="tei tei-q">“Great is the holiness of + the Tephillin; for as long as they are on the arm and head of man he + is humble and God-fearing, and feels no attraction for frivolity or + idle things, nor has he any evil thoughts, but will turn his heart to + the words of truth and righteousness.”</span> The view which R. + Johanan, a Palestinian teacher of the third century, took of the + fulfilment of the Law, will probably be found more rational than that + of many a rationalist of to-day. Upon the basis of the last verse in + Hosea, <span class="tei tei-q">“The ways of the Lord are right, and + the just shall walk in them, but the transgressors shall fall + therein,”</span> he explains that while one man, for instance, eats + his paschal lamb with the purpose of doing the will of God who + commanded it, and thereby does an act of righteousness, another + thinks only of satisfying his appetite by the lamb, so that his + eating it (by the very fact that he professes at the same time to + perform a religious <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page250">[pg + 250]</span><a name="Pg250" id="Pg250" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + rite) becomes a stumbling-block for him.<a id="noteref_217" name= + "noteref_217" href="#note_217"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">217</span></span></a> Thus + all the laws by virtue of their divine authority—and in this there + was in the first century no difference of opinion between Jews and + Christians—have their spiritual side, and to neglect them implies, at + least from the individual's own point of view, a moral offence.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The legalistic + attitude may be summarily described as an attempt to live in + accordance with the will of God, caring less for what God is than for + what He wants us to be. But, nevertheless, on the whole this life + never degenerated into religious formalism. Apart from the fact that + during the second temple there grew up laws, and even beliefs, which + show a decided tendency towards progress and development, there were + also ceremonies which were popular with the masses, and others which + were neglected. Men were not, therefore, the mere soulless slaves of + the Law; personal sympathies and dislikes also played a part in their + religion. Nor were all the laws actually put upon the same level. + With a happy inconsistency men always spoke of heavier and slighter + sins, and by the latter—excepting, perhaps, the profanation of the + Sabbath—they mostly understood ceremonial transgressions. The + statement made by Professor Toy (p. 243), on the authority of James + (ii. 10), that <span class="tei tei-q">“the principle was established + that he who offended in one point was guilty of all,”</span> is + hardly correct; for the passage seems rather to be laying down a + principle, or arguing that logically the law ought to be looked upon + as a whole, than stating a fact. The fact was that people did not + consider the whole law as of equal importance, but made a difference + between laws and laws, and even spoke of certain commandments, such + as those of charity and kindness, as outweighing all the rest of the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page251">[pg 251]</span><a name="Pg251" + id="Pg251" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Torah. It was in conformity + with this spirit that in times of great persecution the leaders of + the people had no compunction in reducing the whole Law to the three + prohibitions of idolatry, of incest, and of bloodshed. Only these + three were considered of sufficient importance that men should rather + become martyrs than transgress them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These, then, are + some of the illusions and misrepresentations which exist with regard + to the Law. There are many others, of which the complete exposure + would require a book by itself. Meanwhile, in the absence of such a + book to balance and correct the innumerable volumes upon the other + side, Professor Toy has done the best he could with existing + materials, and produced a meritorious work deserving of wide + recognition and approval.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page252">[pg 252]</span><a name= + "Pg252" id="Pg252" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc23" id="toc23"></a> <a name="pdf24" id="pdf24"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">X. The Hebrew Collection of the British + Museum</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Hebrew + collection in the British Museum forms one of the greatest centres of + Jewish thought. It is only surpassed by the treasures which are + contained in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. The fame of these + magnificent collections has spread far and wide. It has penetrated + into the remotest countries, and even the Bachurim (<span lang="la" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">alumni</span></span>) of some obscure place in + Poland, who otherwise neither care nor know anything about British + civilisation, have a dim notion of the nature of these mines of + Jewish learning.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">All sorts of + legends circulate amongst them about the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“millions”</span> of books which belong to the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Queen of England.”</span> They speak + mysteriously of an autograph copy of the Book of Proverbs, presented + to the Queen of Sheba on the occasion of her visit to Jerusalem, and + brought by the English troops as a trophy from their visit to + Abyssinia, which is still ruled by the descendants of that famous + lady. They also talk of a copy of the Talmud of Jerusalem which once + belonged to Titus, afterwards to a Pope, was presented by the latter + to a Russian Czar, and taken away from him by the English in the + Crimean war; of a manuscript <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page253">[pg 253]</span><a name="Pg253" id="Pg253" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of the book <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Light is + Sown</span></span>,<a id="noteref_218" name="noteref_218" href= + "#note_218"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">218</span></span></a> which + is so large that no shelf can hold it, and which therefore hangs on + iron chains. How they long to have a glance at these precious things! + Would not a man get wiser only by looking at the autograph of the + wisest of men?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But even the + students of Germany and Austria, who are inaccessible to such fables, + and by the aid of Zedner's, Steinschneider's, and Neubauer's + catalogues have a fair notion of our libraries, cherish the belief + that they would gain in scholarship and wisdom by examining these + grand collections. How often have I been asked by Jewish students + abroad: <span class="tei tei-q">“Have you really been to the British + Museum? Have you really seen this or that rare book or manuscript? + Had you not great difficulties in seeing them? Is not the place where + these heaps of jewels are treasured up always crowded by students and + visitors?”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Yet how little + does our English public know of these wonderful things! We are fairly + interested in Græco-Roman art. We betray much curiosity about the + different Egyptian dynasties. We look with admiration at the + cuneiform inscriptions in the Nimrod room. We do not even grudge a + glance at the abominable idols of the savage tribes. But as to the + productions of Jewish genius,—well, it is best to quote here the + words of Heine, who ridiculed this indifference to everything that is + Jewish, in the following lines:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Alte Mumien, ausgestopfte,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Pharaonen von Ægypten,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Merowinger Schattenkön'ge,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Ungepuderte Perticken,</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Auch die Zopfmonarchen + China's</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Porzellanpagodenkaiser—</span> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page254">[pg + 254]</span><a name="Pg254" id="Pg254" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Alle lernen sie answendig,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Kluge Mädchen, aber, + Himmel!</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Fragt man sie nach grossen + Namen,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Aus dem grossen + Goldzeitalter</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Der arabisch-althispanisch</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Jüdischen Poetenschule,</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Fragt man nach dem + Dreigestirn</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Nach Jehuda ben Halevy,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Nach dem Salomon Gabirol</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Und dem Moses Iben Esra.</span> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Fragt man nach dergleichen + Namen,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Dann mit grossen Augen + schaun</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Uns die Kleinen an—alsdann</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Stehn am Berge die + Ochsinnen.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now Heine goes on + to advise his beloved one to study the Hebrew language. It would be + indeed the best remedy against this indifference. But this is so + radical a cure that one cannot hope that it will be made use of by + many. A few remarks in English, trying to give some notion of the + Hebrew collection in the British Museum, may, therefore, not be + considered altogether superfluous.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Hebrew + collection in the Museum may be divided into two sections: Printed + Books, and Manuscripts. The number of the printed books amounted in + the year 1867, in which Zedner concluded his catalogue, to 10,100 + volumes. Within the last twenty-eight years about 5000 more have been + added.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This enormous + collection has grown out of very small beginnings. The British Museum + was first opened to the public in the year 1759. Amongst the 500,000 + volumes which it possessed at that time only a single Jewish work, + the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">editio princeps</span></span> + of the Talmud (Bomberg, Venice, 1520-1523) <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page255">[pg 255]</span><a name="Pg255" id="Pg255" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> was to be found on its shelves. According to an + article by Zedner in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hebräische Bibliographie</span></span> (ii. p. + 88), this copy of the Talmud once belonged to Henry VIII. But very + soon the Museum was enriched by a small collection of Hebrew books, + presented to it by Mr. Solomon da Costa, surnamed Athias, who had + emigrated to England from Holland. The translation of the Hebrew + letter with which the donor accompanied his present to the Trustees + of the Museum was first published in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gentleman's + Magazine</span></span>, February 1760, and was afterwards republished + by the Rev. A. L. Green, in an article in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Jewish + Chronicle</span></span>, 1859. I shall only reproduce here the + passage relating to the history of this collection. After expressing + his gratitude to the <span class="tei tei-q">“crowning city, the city + of London, in which he dwelt for fifty-four years in ease and + quietness and safety,”</span> and telling us that he bequeaths these + books to the British nation as a token of his gratitude, Da Costa + proceeds to say that they are 180 books, which had been gathered and + bound for Charles II., with valuable bindings and marked with the + king's own cipher. These books were intended as a present from the + London Jewish community to Charles for certain privileges which he + had bestowed on them. The sudden death of the king seems to have + frustrated the intention of the first donors. The books were + scattered, and Da Costa had to collect them again.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Small as this + collection is, it is most valuable on account of its including many + early editions of Venice, Constantinople, Naples, etc. The original + letter of Da Costa, with a full list of the 180 books, is preserved + in a MS. in the British Museum (Additional, 4710-11).</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of still greater + importance is the Michaelis collection. <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page256">[pg 256]</span><a name="Pg256" id="Pg256" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> It consists of 4420 volumes, and was bought by + the Trustees of the Museum in 1848. Other successive acquisitions, + especially the purchase of a large number of printed books from the + Almanzi collection, brought the Museum into possession of one of the + most complete and one of the largest Hebrew libraries in the + world.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After the + foregoing remarks on the quantity of this collection, I shall now + attempt to give some idea of its quality. The following table, taken + from the Preface of Zedner's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Catalogue</span></span>, shows its manifold + contents:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">1. Bibles, 1260</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">2. Commentaries on the Bible, + 510</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">3. Talmud, 730</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">4. Commentaries on the Talmud, + 700</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">5. Codes of Law, 1260</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">6. Decisions, 520</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">7. Midrash, 160</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">8. Cabbalah, 460</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">9. Sermons, 400</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">10. Liturgies, 1200</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">11. Divine Philosophy, 690</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">12. Scientific works, 180</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">13. Grammars, Dictionaries, + 450</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">14. History, Geography, 320</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">15. Poetry, Criticism, 770</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reader can see + that almost every branch of human thought, religious and secular, is + amply represented in this collection. Looking at this table from a + geographical point of view, we may perhaps classify the authors in + the following way:—France and Germany in the Middle Ages, Poland and + the East in modern times, are represented by the fourth, fifth, and + sixth classes. The Rabbis of Spain and Italy would probably excel in + the last five classes. In the productions of classes eight and nine + all the before-mentioned countries would have an equal share. English + Judaism, by reason of its large number of occasional prayers and + wedding hymns (Zedner, pp. 472, 652), may perhaps be represented in + the last class (criticism <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page257">[pg + 257]</span><a name="Pg257" id="Pg257" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + excluded). We in England are a pious, devotional people, and leave + the thinking to others.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But what is still + more welcome to the student is the fact that all these branches of + Jewish learning are represented in the British Museum by the best + editions. It would be a rather tedious task to enumerate here all the + early editions of which this collection can boast. There is hardly + any Hebrew book of importance from the Bible down to the Code of R. + Joseph Caro of which the Museum does not possess the first printed + edition. There are also many books and editions in the Museum of + which no second copy is known to be in existence. An enumeration of + these rare books and editions would require long lists, the perusal + of which would be rather trying. But I shall say a few words to show + the importance of such early editions for the student. They possess, + first, the advantage of being free from the misprints which crept in + with every fresh republication. The art of editing books in a correct + and scientific way is of a very recent date. And even Hebrew + literature does not find that support from the public which would + enable scholars to edit Jewish books in such a way as Roman and Greek + classics are prepared by Oxford and Cambridge students. A new edition + of a Hebrew book meant therefore an addition of new mistakes and + misprints. And it is only by examining the <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style="font-style: italic">editiones + principes</span></span> that the scholar finds his way out of these + perplexities.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another advantage + is the fact that these early editions escaped the hand of the censor, + whose office was not introduced till a comparatively late date. The + same advantage is also possessed by the Hebrew books published at + Constantinople, Salonica, and other Mohammedan cities. Only + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page258">[pg 258]</span><a name="Pg258" + id="Pg258" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Christian countries indulged + in the barbarous pleasure of burning and disfiguring Jewish books. It + is one of the most touching points in the life of R. David Oppenheim, + of Prague, who spent all his life and fortune in collecting Hebrew + works, and whose collection now forms one of the greatest ornaments + of the Bodleian Library, that he was not allowed by the censor to + enjoy the use of his treasures. He had to put them under the + protection of Lipman Cohen, his father-in-law in Hanover, many + hundreds of miles from his own home. With the exception of the Bible + hardly any Jewish books escaped mutilation. In certain Christian + countries some books were not allowed to be published at all; of + others, again, whole chapters had to be omitted, while of others many + passages had to be expunged. The words Roman, Greek, Gentile, were + strictly forbidden, and had to be changed into Turks, Arabs, + Samaritans, or worshippers of the stars and planets. One can imagine + what confusion such stupid alterations caused. Fancy what blunders + would have been committed in history if the old chroniclers had been + compelled to change the Pope into the Grand Turk or the Shah of + Persia, the Christian rulers into as many califs and pashas, or Rome + and Athens into Pekin and Mecca!</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It may perhaps be + interesting to learn that Jews sometimes imitated their bitter + enemies in this work of mutilation. Thus in the later editions of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Book of + Genealogies</span></span> by Abraham Zacuto,<a id="noteref_219" name= + "noteref_219" href="#note_219"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">219</span></span></a> a + passage was left out reproducing the evidence given by the widow of + Moses de Leon to the effect that the cabbalistic work, the Zohar, was + a forgery manufactured by her poor dear husband. Another omission of + this kind is to be found in the Code of R. Joseph Caro, mentioned + above. Here the earliest editions declare, <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page259">[pg 259]</span><a name="Pg259" id="Pg259" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> in the heading of section 605, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“a certain religious usage”</span> to be <span class= + "tei tei-q">“a custom of folly.”</span> In the republications, the + last three words were left out. From such nonsensical omissions and + changes only the earliest editions, which are abundant in the Museum, + were exempt.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A remarkable + feature about the books of this Hebrew collection also is that many + of them are provided in the margin with manuscript notes by their + former possessors. These often happen to bear very great names in + literature. I shall only mention here R. Jacob Emden, Almanzi, + Michael, Gerundi, and Heidenheim. Of the works written by R. Jacob + Emden, the Museum possesses an almost complete author's copy with + abundant corrections, notes, and emendations by the author himself. + His works are still very popular among Polish and Russian Jews, + especially his Prayer-Book, and his Responses. It would be advisable + for publishers in these countries to avail themselves of this copy on + the occasion of a new edition. Of Christian scholars I should name + here Isaac Casaubon. A rather amusing mistake occurs in Ben-Jacob's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Treasure of + Books</span></span> in connection with this name. Among the many + valuable copies of Kimchi's grammatical work <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Perfection</span></span>,<a id="noteref_220" + name="noteref_220" href="#note_220"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">220</span></span></a> + possessed by the Museum, there is included one which belonged to + Casaubon, and is full of notes by him. The author of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Treasure</span></span> + speaks of a <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Perfection</span></span> with notes by Rabbi + Yitzchak Kasuban. I was at first at a loss to guess who that Rabbi + Casaubon might be. When examining Zedner I found it was no other than + the famous Christian scholar, Isaac Casaubon. It is not known that + Casaubon's ambition lay in this direction. But when Philo was + regarded as a Father of the Church, Ben Gabirol quoted for many + centuries as a Mohammedan philosopher, <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page260">[pg 260]</span><a name="Pg260" id="Pg260" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> why should not Casaubon obtain for once the + dignity of a Rabbi?</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">After having given + the reader some notion of the collection of printed works, I should + like now to invite him to accompany me through the Manuscript + Department of the Museum. But I am afraid that I shall make a bad + guide here; for the Museum is still without a descriptive catalogue + of the Hebrew manuscripts, which is the only means of enabling the + student to obtain a general view of the number and nature of these + works. The manuscript catalogue of Dukes goes only as far as 1856. It + was, as we shall soon see, just after this time that the Museum made + its largest and, to a certain degree also, its most valuable + acquisitions in Hebrew manuscripts. The following remarks must, + therefore, not be taken as the result of a systematic study of this + collection, which would be quite impossible without the aid of a + catalogue. They rest partly on the descriptions given of a certain + number of manuscripts in the catalogue by Dukes, but for the greater + part on occasional glances at this or that MS.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to the history + of the collection, it has grown out of small beginnings just as that + of printed books. The collection of Dr. Sloane, which laid the + foundation of the Museum Library, contained only nine Hebrew MSS. + Later acquisitions, as the Harleian collection, the Cottonian + collection, the Royal collection, and many other smaller collections + marked as Additional up to 1854, increased the number of the Hebrew + manuscripts to 232. Of much more importance was the Almanzi + collection, bought by the trustees of the Museum in 1865, and + consisting of 335 MSS. Of succeeding acquisitions I shall mention + here only the Yemen MSS., which were brought <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page261">[pg 261]</span><a name="Pg261" id="Pg261" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> to this country by the famous Shapira. The + number of Hebrew MSS. at the present day is said to exceed one + thousand. But we must not forget that many MSS. contain more than one + work; in some cases even three or four, so that the number of Hebrew + works is far greater still.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I shall now speak + of the nature and importance of these MSS. As to their contents they + may be easily grouped under the following headings: Biblical MSS., + Commentaries (to the Bible) and Super-Commentaries, parts of the + Talmud and their Commentaries, Theology, Philosophy and Ethics, + Massorah, Grammar and Lexicography, Cabbalah, Poetry, Mathematics, + Astronomy, Astrology and Magic, Historical and Polemical Literature, + etc. All these branches of theological and secular learning and even + of human folly are fairly represented in the collection of Hebrew + MSS. in the Museum, though often only by a part or a fragment of a + work.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus the + Babylonian Talmud is to be found only in two MSS. (Harl. 5508 and + Add. 25,717) both of them including 11 Tractates, hardly a third part + of the whole work. Indeed poor <span class="tei tei-q">“Rabbinus + Talmud”</span> had to go to the <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style="font-style: italic">auto de + fé</span></span> on so many occasions that one cannot wonder if only + disjointed limbs are to be found of him in libraries. The only + complete MS. copy which escaped this vandalism is that in the Royal + Library in Munich, from which Mr. Rabbinowicz has edited his + monumental work, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Variae Lectiones of the + Talmud</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">All other + libraries, Oxford included, have to be satisfied with fragments. + Still worse, as it is seen, fared the Jerusalem Talmud, and excepting + the well-known copy in Leyden from which the Venice edition was + prepared, not <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page262">[pg + 262]</span><a name="Pg262" id="Pg262" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + even fragments of this Talmud are to be found in the majority of + libraries. To my knowledge it is only the British Museum which can + boast of the Jerusalem Talmud in MS. extending over <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Order of + Seeds</span></span> and one tractate of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Order of + Festivals</span></span><a id="noteref_221" name="noteref_221" href= + "#note_221"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">221</span></span></a> (Or. + 2122-24) with commentaries of R. Solomon Syrillo, the first few pages + of which were edited by Dr. Lehmann of Mayence. The Museum also + possesses a great part of the Tosephta extending over 14 Tractates + (Add. 27,296). Of Midrashim we find in the Museum two excellent + manuscripts of the Genesis <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Rabbah</span></span>, one of the Leviticus + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Rabbah</span></span>, and one of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphra</span></span> and the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Siphré</span></span> + (Add. 27,169 and 16,406), besides two copies of the Midrash + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Haggadol</span></span> and other Aagadic + collections brought from Yemen. The <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Midrash</span></span> + by Machir b. Abba Mari to the minor prophets included in the Harleian + collection (5704) is unique. Of Liturgies, besides a great number of + MSS. representing the most peculiar rites, I shall mention the + Machzor<a id="noteref_222" name="noteref_222" href= + "#note_222"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">222</span></span></a> Vitri + (Add. 27,200-1) composed by the disciples of R. Solomon b. Isaac, and + forming in itself almost a small library. For, apart from the prayers + for festivals and week days which gave it its title, it includes, + besides the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span> with a + large commentary, three of the Minor Tractates of the Talmud, many + responses by German and French Rabbis, and a whole series of + religious hymns by German and Spanish authors, and many other + literary pieces. Cabbalah is represented by various valuable writings + of the pre-Zoharistic time (see for instance Add. 15,299) and the + works of R. Moses de Leon and R. Abraham Abulafia. Of Poetry, I shall + point here to the Tarshish of R. Moses Ibn Ezra, the Makames by Judah + Al Charisi (Add. 27,122), and the Divan of R. Abraham of Bedres (Add. + 27,188). Of works <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page263">[pg + 263]</span><a name="Pg263" id="Pg263" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + relating to grammar and lexicography, I may refer to a Codex (Add. + 27,214) which contains the lexicon of R. Menahem ben Saruk, which is + considered as the oldest Hebrew MS. in the Museum, dating from the + year 1091. Of historical works, I mention the chronicle of R. Joseph + the Priest (Add. 27,122) and the letter of R. Sherira Gaon (Arundel + 51), the oldest existing copy of this work (1189), which was edited + by Dr. Neubauer in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mediæval Jewish Chronicles</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These examples + will suffice to show the significance of the MSS. collection of this + Library. And the student may rest assured that in whatever branch of + Jewish thought he is interested, he will always find in the Museum + some Hebrew manuscript useful for his purpose.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I ought now to say + a few words as to the value of this collection of manuscripts. Now, + if the work contained in a MS. has never been edited, as for instance + the Machzor Vitri<a id="noteref_223" name="noteref_223" href= + "#note_223"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">223</span></span></a> and so + many others, its value is established by the mere fact of its + existence. For those who published MSS. were not always guided by the + best literary motives. And while they published and republished many + books of which one edition would have been more than enough, many + other works of the greatest importance for Jewish literature and + history remained in manuscript. As an instance, it will suffice to + mention here the Zohar, which has passed through twenty-four editions + since the sixteenth century, whilst the earliest Jewish Midrash, the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Pessikta de + Rab Kahana</span></span>, had to linger in the libraries till the + year 1868, when it was edited by Mr. S. Buber. Thus there are still + many pearls of Jewish literature which exist only in MS. Likewise + most publishers were careless in their choice of the manuscript from + which our editions <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page264">[pg + 264]</span><a name="Pg264" id="Pg264" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + have been prepared. Almost the whole of Jewish literature will have + to be re-edited before a scientific study of it will be possible. But + such critical editions can only be obtained by the aid of the MSS. + not yet made use of, in which better readings are to be found. From + this fact even those MSS. the contents of which have been several + times reprinted, as for instance the MSS. of the Midrash <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Rabbah</span></span>, + gain the greatest literary importance. And the more MSS. the editor + of a work has at his disposal, the more certain is he of being able + to furnish us with a good text.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But even when the + whole of Jewish literature lies before the student in the best of + texts, there will still remain a great charm about manuscripts. + Printed books, like the great mass of the modern society for which + they are prepared, are devoid of any originality. They interest us + only as classes, and it is very seldom that they have a story of + their own to tell. It is quite different with manuscripts, where the + fact of their having been produced by a living being invests them + with a certain kind of individuality. This is specially the case with + Hebrew MSS., which were not copied by men shut up in cloisters, but + by sociable people living in the world and sharing its joys and + sorrows. Even women were employed in this art, and I remember to have + read in some MS. or catalogue a postscript by the lady copyist, + which, if I remember rightly, ran as follows: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“I beseech the reader not to judge me very harshly when + he finds that mistakes have crept into this work; for when I was + engaged in copying it God blessed me with a son, and thus I could not + attend to my business properly.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">To be sure, some + of these copyists were curious folk. <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page265">[pg 265]</span><a name="Pg265" id="Pg265" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Their mind as well as that of the world around + them must have been of a peculiar constitution hardly conceivable to + us. Take, for example, Benjamin, the copyist of a certain Machzor in + the Museum (Add. 11,639). This Machzor was written in times of bitter + persecution. The copyist, who was himself a learned man, alludes in + one place to the sufferings which the Jews in a certain French town + had to undergo in the year 1276. On one of them, the martyr R. + Samson, Benjamin the copyist composed a lamentation written in a most + mournful strain. But this lamentation is followed by a wine-song, one + of the jolliest and wildest parodies for the feast of Purim.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Speaking of this + Machzor I should like to remark that it forms one of the greatest + ornaments of the Museum. Besides including the whole of the + Pentateuch, the above-mentioned Tarshish by R. Moses Ibn Ezra, and + many other smaller literary pieces which would require a small volume + to describe them properly, this MS. is most richly illuminated, and + contains very many illustrations. The subjects of these illustrations + are biblical, sometimes also apocryphal, such as—Adam and Eve in + Paradise, Noah in the Ark, Abraham meeting the angels, Sarah behind + the door listening to the conversation of her husband with his + guests, Moses with the rod in his hands dividing the Red Sea, Samson + riding on the back of a lion, Solomon on his throne, Daniel in the + lion's den, the king Ahasuerus holding out the golden sceptre to + Esther, Judith addressing Holofernes, the Leviathan, the mythical + bird Bar Yochni, and many other similar subjects. In passing I + recommend these illustrations and illuminations to the attention of + the artist as the most worthy examples of Jewish ecclesiastical + art,—if there is such a thing as a <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page266">[pg 266]</span><a name="Pg266" id="Pg266" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> special Jewish art. The artist will find the + Museum best suited for this purpose, its collection being considered + as the richest of the kind. Besides this Machzor I must also allude + to the illuminated Bible (Or. 2226-28) written in Lisbon for R. Judah + Alchakin—it is said to be one of the finest specimens of such + works—and the illuminated Mishneh Torah of Maimonides, executed for + R. Joseph of the famous Yachya family, also thought to be most + artistically done. The liturgies for the Passover Eve service will + also offer to the artist a rich harvest, especially Codex, Add. + 27,210, which the wealthy Lady Rosa Galico presented to her + son-in-law on his wedding-day, and Codex, Add. 14,762, even the + binding of which is considered as an artistic curiosity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Leaving now these + marvels to the appreciation of the artist, the greatest wonder which + suggests itself to us is how the Jews could maintain such a cultured + taste in such unhappy times, and get the means of satisfying it. + These reflections about the owners present themselves the more + strongly to our mind when we meet with one of those old Jewish + prayer-books, which in many cases formed the whole religious and + literary treasure of the family. In their fly-leaves, in which the + births and deaths of successive generations are very often + registered, the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">spiritus + familiaris</span></span> seems to be still haunting the pages. When + you turn them over and see the service for Passover Eve, are you not + bound to think of the anxiety with which these poor creatures engaged + in this ceremony lest they might be attacked suddenly by a fanatic + mob? must you not ask how they could bear life under such + circumstances? And when you turn a few more pages and arrive at the + prayers read for the dead, must you not ask how did they die? + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page267">[pg 267]</span><a name="Pg267" + id="Pg267" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> Were they perhaps burnt alive + <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="la"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ad majorem Dei gloriam</span></span>, or torn to + pieces by a <span class="tei tei-q">“saintly mob”</span>? Take again + the illuminated copies of the Bible and the Mishneh Torah, both of + which were finished only a few years before the great expulsion of + the Jews from Spain and Portugal, times when the earth already + <span class="tei tei-q">“burnt under their feet, and the heaven was + also very unkind to them.”</span> And nevertheless Jews were still, + as these MSS. show us, cultivating science and art. Another instance + of such a devotion to science in spite of the unfavourable times may + be seen from a colophon to Codex Or. 39. It contains the book + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nissim</span></span>, a philosophical treatise + on the fundamental teachings of Judaism, together with a + philosophical commentary on the Pentateuch by R. Nissim of + Marseilles, a contemporary of R. Solomon ben Adereth in the + thirteenth century. The Museum copy was written by R. Jacob, the son + of David, who also added some annotations to the book. At the end he + says: <span class="tei tei-q">“I have copied this book <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Nissim</span></span> + for my own use, that I may study in it, I and my children and my + grandchildren.... I have finished it to-day, Sunday, the 28th of Ab, + 5333 (1573), at Venice, in the year of the expulsion which befell us + on account of our sins.”</span> Now, only observe this poor R. Jacob, + who has to go through all these horrors, yet is still occupied in + copying MSS. for his own pleasure, and in meditating on the most + complicated problems of philosophy and religion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it is not + always stories of this heroic nature that the MSS. tell us. They + betray also very much of the instability of human affairs and their + weakness. You find in many copies the words that they must not + <span class="tei tei-q">“be sold or given in mortgage.”</span> But + scarcely a generation has passed away, and they are already in the + possession <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page268">[pg + 268]</span><a name="Pg268" id="Pg268" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of + a new owner, who writes the same injunction to be broken again by his + children in their turn. In Codex 27,122, we find commendatory letters + for a worthy poor man, who is so unhappy as to have two grown-up + daughters, and not to have the means of supplying them with marriage + portions. Indeed, he must have been very poor, not possessing even a + book in his house, or else his troubles could not have been so great. + For in Codex Harl. 5702, we find the owner saying: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“To eternal memory that I have acquired this <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Third Book of + Avicena</span></span> from the hands of my father-in-law, R. + Jekuthiel, as a part of my dowry.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As a sign of human + weakness I give the following two instances. There lies before me a + cabbalistic Codex (Add. 27,199), which acquired some notoriety from + the fact of its having been copied by the famous grammarian, R. + Elijah Levita, for his pupil Cardinal Aegidius. At the end of this + MS. we read: <span class="tei tei-q">“I (Levita) have finished (the + copying of) this book on Wednesday, the day of Hoshana Rabba,<a id= + "noteref_224" name="noteref_224" href="#note_224"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">224</span></span></a> 5277 + (1516), on which day I have seen my head in the shadow of the moon. + Praised be God (for it), for now I am sure not to die in the + following year.”</span> These words relate to a well-known + superstition, according to which, when a man is going to die in the + course of the next year his shadow disappears from him on the + preceding Hoshana Rabba. But is it not humiliating to see that the + great Levita, who was superior to many prejudices of his time, and + taught Christians Hebrew, and who denied the antiquity of the vowels + in the Bible, which was considered by the great majority of his + contemporaries as a mortal heresy—is it not humiliating to see this + enlightened man trembling for his life on this night, and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page269">[pg 269]</span><a name="Pg269" + id="Pg269" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> anxiously observing his + shadow? Another Codex lies before me (Add. 17,053), containing the + Novellæ to three tractates of the Talmud. Its owner must accordingly + have been a learned man. But in the fly-leaf of this MS. we read the + following words: <span class="tei tei-q">“Memorandum—Thursday, the + 25th of Sivan, 5295 (1535), I have taken an oath in the presence of + R. David Ibn Shushan and R. Moses de Castro, etc., not to play + (cards) any more.”</span> I might perhaps suggest on this occasion + that in our days when all sorts of Judaisms are circulating, a + cooking Judaism, a racing Judaism, a muscular Judaism, and so many + Judaisms more—it would be interesting to take up also the subject of + playing Judaism, and to write its history.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In conclusion I + shall mention the colophon to Codex Harl. 5713, which may have some + interest for the English reader. It runs: <span class="tei tei-q">“I + have written it in honour of the noble and pious, etc., Humphrey + Wanley, the noble Librarian of my Lord Treasurer. May his glory be + increased. In the year 5474 (1714) in the holy community of London, + under the reign of the noble and happy Queen Anne. May the Lord + increase her splendour and glory.”</span> The signature of the + copyist is <span class="tei tei-q">“Aaron the son of Moses, born in + the city of Navaschadok in Poland.”</span> By the way, we learn from + this signature that the immigration of Polish Jews into this country + had already begun in the time of Queen Anne, and perhaps still + earlier.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Thus everything in + a MS., the arrangement of the matter, the remarks of the owners, the + signature of the copyist, sets the reader thinking, and contributes + many a side-light to the history of the Jews.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page270">[pg 270]</span><a name= + "Pg270" id="Pg270" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc25" id="toc25"></a> <a name="pdf26" id="pdf26"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">XI. Titles of Jewish Books</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is now more + than half a century since Isaac Reggio in his edition of Elijah + Delmedigo's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Examination of Religion</span></span>, made the + remark that this book adds to its other merits that of bearing a + title corresponding to its contents,—a merit that is very rare in + Jewish books. Reggio proceeds to give a few specimens confirming his + assertion, and concludes his remarks with a eulogy on Delmedigo, who + in this respect also had the courage to differ from his + contemporaries. Zunz also once wrote an article on titles of books. + But this article unfortunately appeared in some German periodical + which the British Museum does not possess, and I could not even + succeed in ascertaining whether Zunz treats at all of titles of + Hebrew books, nor am I aware that the subject has been taken up by + any other scholar, Isaac D'Israeli's few notes on the subject in his + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Curiosities + of Literature</span></span> being scarcely worth mention. It seems to + me, however, interesting enough to deserve some illustration, though + I can by no means hope to be complete.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The titles of the + books contained in the Bible need not be discussed here; information + concerning them is to be found in every critical introduction to the + Old Testament. The Rabbinical works dating from antiquity also offer + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page271">[pg 271]</span><a name="Pg271" + id="Pg271" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> little opportunity for + reflection on their titles. The Talmud, as a work, has no title at + all; for Talmud simply means <span class= + "tei tei-q">“teaching”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“study.”</span> Sometimes it is termed ShaSS, an + abbreviation of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shisha Sedarim</span></span>,<a id="noteref_225" + name="noteref_225" href="#note_225"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">225</span></span></a> meaning + the Six Orders or divisions contained in the Mishnah. This last word + means, according to some authors, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Repetition.”</span> Other Tannaitic collections of laws + or expositions of the Scriptures are called <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Book”</span> (Siphra), <span class="tei tei-q">“the + Books”</span> (Siphré), or <span class="tei tei-q">“Additions”</span> + (Tosephta to the Mishnah). The word <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baraitha</span></span><a id="noteref_226" name= + "noteref_226" href="#note_226"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">226</span></span></a> means + the external Mishnah that enjoyed less authority than the Mishnah of + R. Judah the Patriarch. Some approach to titles we find in the names + given to the different tractates included in the Mishnah, as + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>, because it treats of + Benedictions, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Peah</span></span><a id="noteref_227" name= + "noteref_227" href="#note_227"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">227</span></span></a> + (Corner) which contains the particulars concerning the law in Lev. + xix. and so forth. Of the few works quoted in the Talmud it will + suffice to mention the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Seder Olam</span></span>, the Order of the + World, the name of which is very suitable to the chronological + contents of the book. In general, I may observe that as long as the + law which prohibited the writing down of the Oral teachings was in + force, there hardly existed Jewish books. But where there are no + books there is also no need for titles. The few titles, however, + which can be proved to be historical are simple and to the point. It + is not till about the beginning of the Middle Ages, when this + prohibitive law had, for reasons not to be explained here, been + abolished, that we can speak of Hebrew books. But here also the + Title-confusion begins.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In order that we + may have some general view of the thousands of titles that are + catalogued by the Jewish bibliographers, it will perhaps be well to + arrange them under the following six classes:—</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page272">[pg 272]</span><a name="Pg272" id="Pg272" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Simple + titles</span></span>, that have no other object than that of + indicating the subject matter of the book. These are, as we have just + seen, the only kind of titles known to antiquity. The few books which + the Gaonim left us bear such simple titles as could have served as + models to later generations. Among them may be mentioned the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Halachoth</span></span> or collection of Laws, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Creeds and + Opinions</span></span>, by R. Saadiah Gaon, the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Book on Buying and + Selling</span></span>, by R. Hai Gaon, containing the laws relating + to commercial transactions. It may be noticed that this last book is + one of the best arranged in Jewish literature, and displays more + systematising powers than even the Code of Maimonides. The greatest + part of the literary activity of the Gaonim consists in their + Responsa, in which they gave decisions on ritual questions, or + explanations of difficult passages in the Talmud. The titles borne by + the various collections of those Responsa belong to a period later + than the author's. The great majority of the books produced by the + Franco-German school may also be included in this class. They are + termed <span class="tei tei-q">“Commentaries,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Additions”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Glosses,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Novellæ,”</span> or <span class="tei tei-q">“Confirming + Proofs,”</span> and similar modest titles which show both their + relation to, and dependence on, another older authority. The largest + collection of Midrashim we possess bears the simple title + <span class="tei tei-q">“Bag.”</span><a id="noteref_228" name= + "noteref_228" href="#note_228"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">228</span></span></a> Many of + the Responsa satisfy themselves with the words <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Questions to, and Answers by.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">II. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Titles taken from the + first word with which the book begins</span></span>, or from the + first word of the Scriptural verse occurring first in the book. This + class is strongly represented by the Midrashim. Thus the Midrash to + the Song of Songs is also quoted as the Midrash <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chazitha</span></span>,<a id="noteref_229" name= + "noteref_229" href="#note_229"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">229</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Midrash, Seest thou”</span> (the first text + with which this Midrash deals <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page273">[pg 273]</span><a name="Pg273" id="Pg273" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> being Proverbs xxii. 28). The Midrash to the + Psalms is called Midrash <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shocher Tob</span></span>,<a id="noteref_230" + name="noteref_230" href="#note_230"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">230</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Midrash, He that diligently seeketh the + good”</span> (Prov. xi. 37). The Midrash containing the legendary + story of the wars of the sons of Jacob with the Canaanites is quoted + as Midrash <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">V'yisseu</span></span>,<a id="noteref_231" name= + "noteref_231" href="#note_231"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">231</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Midrash, And they journeyed,”</span> as the + story begins with the verse from Gen. xxxv. 5. And this is the case + with the titles of many other Midrashim. Whether the work cited under + the strange name of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Meat on Coals</span></span> did not begin with + those words, containing some law relating to the salting of meat, I + do not venture to decide. Under this class we may also arrange those + books that are called after a phrase which is often used in the book, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span>, the Midrash <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Yelamdenu</span></span> + (He may teach us), or the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Vehizhir</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“And He commanded us,”</span> almost every paragraph in + these books beginning with the phrases mentioned.<a id="noteref_232" + name="noteref_232" href="#note_232"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">232</span></span></a> + Probably all the books belonging to this class received from the + hands of their authors or compilers no titles at all. The student who + had to quote them gave them names after the phrase or word which + first caught his eye. In later centuries this class disappears almost + entirely (see, however, Ben-Jacob's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Treasure</span></span>, + p. 201, No. 827).</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">III. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Pompous + titles.</span></span> The largest contributions to this class were + made by the mystical writers. Books which profess to know what is + going on in the heavens above and the earth beneath cannot possibly + be satisfied with modest titles. Thus we have the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Book of Brightness”</span> (Zohar), <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the shining book”</span> (Bahir), <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the Confidential Shepherd”</span> (Moses).<a id= + "noteref_233" name="noteref_233" href="#note_233"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">233</span></span></a> The + books which the Zohar quotes bear such titles as the Book of Adam, + the Book of Enoch. The only excuse for the Zohar is that the + manufacturing of such books with pseudo-epigraphical titles + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page274">[pg 274]</span><a name="Pg274" + id="Pg274" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> had already begun in + antiquity. It is not, however, till the Gaonic period that a whole + apocryphal literature suddenly emerges which perplexes the Gaonim + themselves. No one is spared. Angels, patriarchs, and martyrs are + called upon to lend their names to these books. What one resents most + is that history came within the range of the forger's activity. There + is, for instance, the Josippon, which professes to be written by + Josephus, the well-known Jewish historian of the first century. But + in spite of all the care taken by the author to disguise himself in + the garb of antiquity, the Josippon is a forgery of the ninth or + tenth century. Of a similar kind is the Book of Jasher, containing + legendary stories relating to Biblical personages. It pretends to be + identical with the Book of Jasher quoted in Joshua x. 13 and 2 Sam. + i. 18. Some sixty years ago a certain Mr. Samuel of Liverpool had the + misfortune to make himself ridiculous by maintaining the pretensions + of this book; for, indeed, it does not require much knowledge of the + Agadic literature to see that the Book of Jasher is only a + compilation of comparatively late Midrashim.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">IV. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Titles suggested by + other Titles.</span></span> As an instance of this we may take + Maimonides' great Code of Law, which bears the title <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Mishneh + Torah</span></span>. The importance of the book made it the object of + study for hundreds of scholars, who wrote their commentaries and + glosses on it. Among the titles of the commentaries such + Title-genealogies may be discovered as Maggid <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Mishneh</span></span>, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mishneh</span></span> Lammelech; which last word + again suggested such titles as Emek ha-<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Melech</span></span>, + Shaar ha-<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Melech</span></span>, and so on.<a id= + "noteref_234" name="noteref_234" href="#note_234"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">234</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The same process + may be observed in other standard works, the importance of which made + them a subject of <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page275">[pg + 275]</span><a name="Pg275" id="Pg275" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + investigation and interpretation as the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Prepared Table,”</span> one of the glosses to which is + called <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mappah</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Tablecloth,”</span> whilst others provided it with the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shewbread</span></span> and with <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">New + Fruit</span></span>.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">V. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Euphemistic + Titles</span></span>, as <span class="tei tei-q">“The Tractate of + Joys,”</span> treating of funeral ceremonies and kindred subjects. It + does not seem that this title was known to antiquity, but it is + certain that already the earlier authorities quoted it by this name. + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Book of Life”</span> (the German Jewish + title of which is <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Alle Dinim, von Freuden</span></span>), is the + name of a very popular book containing the prayers to be read in the + house of mourning as well as in the cemetery, which is also called + the House of Life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">VI. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Titles taken from the + Bible</span></span>, or Fancy Titles. This is the largest class of + all, though it was utterly unknown in antiquity. It will be, perhaps, + convenient to arrange this class of titles under the following + sub-divisions. (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span>) Titles taken from the Bible, + but also fulfilling the purpose of indicating the name of the author. + For instance, <span class="tei tei-q">“Seed of Abraham”</span> (Ps. + cv. 6), is the title of nine different books, the name of whose + authors happened to be Abraham; <span class="tei tei-q">“And Isaac + entreated”</span> (Gen. xxv. 21), is by Isaac Satanow on the Prayers; + <span class="tei tei-q">“Then Isaac sowed”</span> (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span> + xxvi. 12), edited by R. Isaac Perles, contains an index to the Zohar. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Jacob shall take root”</span> (Is. xxvii. 6) + is the name of a book on Grammar and Massorah by R. Jacob Bassani. R. + Joseph of Posen left two collections of sermons and commentaries on + the Pentateuch, of which the one is called <span class= + "tei tei-q">“And Joseph nourished”</span> (Gen. xlvii. 12), the other + <span class="tei tei-q">“And Joseph gathered”</span> (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span> + 14). Authors with the name of Judah are represented among others by + such titles as <span class="tei tei-q">“And this of Judah”</span> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page276">[pg 276]</span><a name="Pg276" + id="Pg276" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> (Deut. xxxiii.7), a treatise + on the laws concerning the killing of animals; or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Judah shall go up”</span> (Judges i. 2), a pamphlet + containing a collection of prayers to be said on a journey. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Moses began”</span> (Deut. i. 5) forms the + title of three different books on various subjects, the authors of + which had the name Moses. <span class="tei tei-q">“Moses shall + rejoice,”</span> a phrase occurring in the morning prayer for + Sabbaths, is also the title of two books, the authors of which were + named Moses. The <span class="tei tei-q">“Rod of Aaron”</span> + enjoyed, as it seems, a goodly popularity; there are four bearing + this name, not to speak of a fifth, <span class="tei tei-q">“The Rod + of Aaron brought forth buds”</span> (Exod. xvii. 23), which is the + name of a collection of Responsa by R. Aaron ben Chayim. But other + Rods also were fashionable; there are, besides the five Rods of + Moses, also Rods of Ephraim, Dan, Judah, Joseph, Naphtali, and + Manasseh. By authors of the name of David we find books with the + title <span class="tei tei-q">“And David said,”</span> or a + <span class="tei tei-q">“Prayer of David,”</span> and other phrases + occurring in the Psalms relating to David; whilst the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Tower of David”</span> became the stronghold of other + writers, and the <span class="tei tei-q">“Shield of David”</span> + protected as many as nine more. The <span class="tei tei-q">“Chariot + of Solomon”</span> (Cant. iii. 9) adorns the title-pages of five + books by authors named Solomon. The Caraite Solomon Troki was so fond + of that title that he called his two polemical treatises <span class= + "tei tei-q">“He made himself a chariot,”</span> while R. Solomon of + Mir's collection of sermons has the title, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“This Bed which is Solomon's”</span> (Cant. iii. 7). As + to family names, there were not many authors in the enjoyment of that + luxury (especially among the German Jews), but we find them + indicating the fact of their being Priests or Levites. Among such + books are the collection of Responsa, by R. Raphael Cohen, which has + the title <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page277">[pg + 277]</span><a name="Pg277" id="Pg277" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“And the Priest shall come again”</span> + (Lev. xiv. 39), and the Cabbalistic treatise by R. Abraham Cohen, of + Lask, with the title <span class="tei tei-q">“And the Priest shall + reckon unto him”</span> (Lev. xxvii. 18). Probably the author deals + with numbers. R. Hirsch Horwitz, the Levite, called his Novellæ to + the Talmud <span class="tei tei-q">“The Camp of Levi.”</span> The + title <span class="tei tei-q">“The Service of the Levite”</span> + (with allusion to Exodus xxxviii. 21) is borne by five other books by + authors who were Levites. And there may be found hundreds of books + with titles suggesting the Priestly or Levitical descent of their + authors. Most anxious is Joseph Ibn Kaspi (Joseph the Silvern, so + called after his native place Argentière, in the south of France) to + provide most of his numerous books with some Biblical titles combined + with silver, as a <span class="tei tei-q">“Bowl of Silver”</span> + (Numb. vii. 13), or <span class="tei tei-q">“Points of Silver”</span> + (Song of Songs i. 11), or <span class="tei tei-q">“Figures of + Silver”</span> (Prov. xxv. 10), and other similar phrases. On the + other hand Azulai manages to indicate at least one of his three + Hebrew names, Chayim Joseph David, in most of his works, of which the + number exceeds seventy, as Chayim Shaal,<a id="noteref_235" name= + "noteref_235" href="#note_235"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">235</span></span></a> + <span class="tei tei-q">“He asked Life”</span> (Ps. xxi. 4), or + <span class="tei tei-q">“The knees of Joseph”</span> (alluding to + Gen. xlviii. 12), and <span class="tei tei-q">“Truth unto + David”</span> (Ps. cxxxii. 11).</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">(<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>) The + Tabernacle with its furniture was also a great favourite with many + authors. There are not only six tabernacles (two on Cabbalah, two on + grammar, and two on Talmudical subjects), but also three <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Arks of the Testimony,”</span> two <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Altars of gold,”</span> two <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Tables of Shewbread,”</span> four <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Candlesticks of the Light,”</span> two <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Sockets of Silver,”</span> and two <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Pillars of Silver.”</span> Others again preferred the + vestments of the priests as the <span class="tei tei-q">“Plate of + Judgment,”</span> the <span class="tei tei-q">“Robe of the + Ephod,”</span> the <span class="tei tei-q">“Mitre of Aaron,”</span> + the <span class="tei tei-q">“Plate <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page278">[pg 278]</span><a name="Pg278" id="Pg278" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> of Gold,”</span> the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Bell and Pomegranate,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Wreathen Chains,”</span> and the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Arches of Gold.”</span> Many of these books were written + by authors claiming to be priests. (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">c</span></span>) But + besides the canonical, other costumes were also fashionable. R. + Mordecai Yafeh composed ten books, every one of them bearing the name + of some garment or apparel, as <span class="tei tei-q">“Apparel of + Royalty,”</span> <span class="tei tei-q">“Apparel of Blue,”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“Apparel of White,”</span> and so the whole + suit with which Mordecai went out from the presence of the king + (Esther viii. 15). These ten works range from codifications of the + law and occasional sermons to philosophy, astronomy, and Cabbalah. By + other writers we have three <span class="tei tei-q">“Coats of many + colours”</span> (Gen. xxxvii. 4), one <span class="tei tei-q">“Bridal + Attire,”</span> and the <span class="tei tei-q">“Thread of + Scarlet”</span> is not missing. (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">d</span></span>) The + ingredients for incense as well as other articles used in the + Tabernacle or in the Temple were also fancied by some authors, and we + have two books with the title of <span class="tei tei-q">“Principal + Spices,”</span> two <span class="tei tei-q">“Pure Myrrh,”</span> + three <span class="tei tei-q">“Arts of the Apothecary,”</span> one + <span class="tei tei-q">“Oil of Holy Ointment,”</span> five + <span class="tei tei-q">“Meat Offerings mingled or dry,”</span> three + or four <span class="tei tei-q">“Flour of the Meat Offering,”</span> + and also one <span class="tei tei-q">“Two Young Pigeons”</span> (Bene + Yonah) by R. Jonah Zandsopher. But the appetite of the authors did + not stop at these holy things. It extended also to such lay articles + as <span class="tei tei-q">“Spiced Wine,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Juice of Pomegranate”</span> (Cant. viii. 2), + <span class="tei tei-q">“Forests of Honey,”</span> the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Book of the Apple,”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Seven Kinds of Drink.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">(<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">e</span></span>) Field + and flock also suggested to Hebrew writers as well as to Mr. Ruskin + such titles as <span class="tei tei-q">“The Fruit of the + Hand,”</span> the <span class="tei tei-q">“Rose of Sharon,”</span> + the <span class="tei tei-q">“Lily of the Valleys,”</span> or + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Shepherds' Tents,”</span> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“In the Green Pastures”</span> (Ps. xxiii. + 2).</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The specimens + given for every class may with very little trouble be doubled and + redoubled. But it is not my intention <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page279">[pg 279]</span><a name="Pg279" id="Pg279" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> to reproduce here whole catalogues. Reggio + thinks all such titles, which do not correspond with the context of + the book, absurd and confusing. He suggests that the Jews followed in + this respect the Arabic writers. There is no doubt that Reggio is not + altogether wrong in his complaint. Almost all the titles included in + class vi., as the reader might have observed, never indicate to the + student the subject of which the books treat. How can one guess that + the Responsa, the Dance of Mahanaim (two companies), is of a + polemical nature against the tendencies of reform? This list may be + lengthened by hundreds of titles. But even these incomprehensible + titles are better than the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chad Gadyah Lo Israel</span></span> (One Kid No + Israel),<a id="noteref_236" name="noteref_236" href= + "#note_236"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">236</span></span></a> the + un-Hebrew title of a pamphlet trying to prove the un-Jewish origin of + the well-known folk-song sung on Passover Eve. But, on the other + hand, it must not be overlooked that even this class has, though not + always, something suggestive and even practical about it. The + <span class="tei tei-q">“Choice of Pearls”</span> is undoubtedly more + attractive than the prosaic <span class="tei tei-q">“Collection of + Proverbs and Sayings,”</span> which is what the book contains. + <span class="tei tei-q">“Understanding of the Seasons”</span> (1 Chr. + xii. 32), sounds also better than the simple <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Collection of Sermons on different occasions.”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Lips of those who Sleep”</span> + recommends itself as a very suggestive title for a catalogue, + especially when one thinks of the Agadic explanation given to Cant. + vii. 10, according to which the study of the book of a departed + author makes the lips of the dead man to speak. Such titles as + <span class="tei tei-q">“Bunch of Lilies”</span> for a collection of + poems are still usual with us. Such a title as the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Jealousy Offering,”</span> or the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Law of Jealousies,”</span> in polemical literature is + very appropriate for its subject. R. Jacob Emden, who named one + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page280">[pg 280]</span><a name="Pg280" + id="Pg280" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of his pamphlets <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Rod for the fool's back”</span> (Prov. xxvi. 3), will be + envied for his choice by many a controversialist even to-day. Wittily + devised is the pun-title, <span class="tei tei-q">“City of + Sihon”</span> for a mathematical book by R. Joseph Tsarphathi, + alluding to Numb. xxi. 27, <span class="tei tei-q">“For Hesbon + (reckoning) is the City of Sihon.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Other titles were + probably intended more as mottoes than titles. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Go forth and behold, ye daughters of Zion”</span> (Cant. + iii. 11), is put in the title-page of R. Jacob's German-Jewish + paraphrase of the Pentateuch, which was written chiefly for the use + of ladies. <span class="tei tei-q">“Let another man praise thee and + not thine own mouth, a stranger and not thine own lips”</span> (Prov. + xxvii. 2), forms the title of a book extending over only one and a + half page in quarto. It contains letters by seven Rabbis (among them + R. Liva of Prague) recommending the Ascetic, R. Abraham Wangos, who + has a daughter to marry, and wants also to make a pilgrimage to the + Holy Land, as deserving the support of his brethren.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">There is also + another objection to these titles. It is that they seem sometimes not + quite consonant with our notions of modesty. Thus we have + <span class="tei tei-q">“Desirable and Sweet”</span> on astronomy, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Sweeter than Honey”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“He shall comfort us,”</span> and many others of this + kind. But it must not be thought that we have a right to infer from + the title to the author. There is, indeed, an anecdote that three + authors were rather too little careful about the choice of their + titles, namely Maimonides in calling his Code <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Mishneh + Torah</span></span> (which is the traditional title of the Book of + Deuteronomy), R. Moses Alshech in calling his homiletical + commentaries <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Torah</span></span> of Moses, and R. Isaiah + Horwitz in calling his book <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shene Luchoth ha-Berith</span></span> + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page281">[pg 281]</span><a name="Pg281" + id="Pg281" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> (The Two Tables of the + Covenant). These authors, as the story goes, had for their punishment + that their works are never quoted by the titles they gave to them, + the former two being usually cited as Rambam or Alshech, whilst the + last is more known by its abbreviated title of SHeLa<a id= + "noteref_237" name="noteref_237" href="#note_237"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">237</span></span></a> than by + its full name.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I do not remember + where I have read this story, but I am quite sure that its pious + author would have been more careful about repeating it had he known + that this accusation against Maimonides was a favourite topic with + apostates, who thought to hit Judaism in the person of its + representative Maimonides. But, as R. Solomon Duran in his polemical + work remarks, Maimonides was too much of a truly great man to find + any satisfaction in such petty vanity. Nor do I believe that even the + character of less-known authors can in any way be impugned by the + seemingly conceited titles of their books; just as on the other hand + the humility of the author is not proved by calling his book + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Offering of the Poor,”</span> or other + modest titles. The fancy title was in common use, and was therefore a + commonplace with no significance whatever. The real disadvantage of + such titles lies in the fact that, as already pointed out, they + conceal from the student the contents of the book which he might + otherwise consult in the course of his researches.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Did these authors + perhaps foresee that there would come a time in which index-knowledge + would pass for deep scholarship? and did they thus by using these + obscure titles try to put a check on the dabblers who speak the more + of a book the less they have read of its contents? If this be the + case we can only admire their foresight.</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page282">[pg 282]</span><a name= + "Pg282" id="Pg282" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc27" id="toc27"></a> <a name="pdf28" id="pdf28"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">XII. The Child in Jewish + Literature</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“I saw a Jewish lady only yesterday with a child at her + knee, and from whose face towards the child there shone a sweetness + so angelical that it seemed to form a sort of glory round both. I + protest I could have knelt before her, too, and adored in her the + divine beneficence in endowing us with the maternal <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">storgé</span></span> which began with our race + and sanctifies the history of mankind.”</span> These words, which are + taken from Thackeray's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pendennis</span></span>, may serve as a + starting-point for this paper. The fact that the great student of man + perceived this glory just round the head of a Jewish lady rouses in + me the hope that the small student of letters may, with a little + search, be able to discover in the remains of our past many similar + traces of this divine beneficence and sanctifying sentiment. + Certainly the glimpses which we shall catch from the faded leaves of + ancient volumes, dating from bygone times, will not be so bright as + those which the novelist was so fortunate as to catch from the face + of a lady whom he saw but the previous day. The mothers and fathers, + about whom I am going to write in this essay, have gone long ago, and + the objects of their anxiety and troubles have also long ago + vanished. But what the subject will lose in brightness, it may + perhaps gain in reality and intensity. A few moments <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page283">[pg 283]</span><a name="Pg283" id="Pg283" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of enraptured devotion do not make up the + saint. It is a whole series of feelings and sentiments betrayed on + different occasions, expressed in different ways, a whole life of + sore troubles, of bitter disappointments, but also moments of most + elevated joys and real happiness.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">And surely these + manifestations of the divine beneficence, which appear in their + brightest glory in the literature of every nation when dealing with + the child, shine strongest in the literature of the Jewish nation. In + it, to possess a child was always considered as the greatest blessing + God could bestow on man, and to miss it as the greatest curse. The + patriarch Abraham, with whom Israel enters into history, + complains—<span class="tei tei-q">“Oh Lord, what wilt Thou give me, + seeing I go childless!”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The Rabbis + regarded the childless man as dead, whilst the Cabbalist in the + Middle Ages thought of him who died without posterity as of one who + had failed in his mission in this world, so that he would have to + appear again on our planet to fulfil this duty. To trace out the + feelings which accompanied the object of their greatest anxiety, to + let them pass before the reader in some way approaching to a + chronological order, to draw attention to some points more worthy of + being emphasised than others, is the aim of this essay.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I said that I + propose to treat the subject in chronological order. I meant by this + that I shall follow the child in the different stages through which + it has to pass from its birth until it ceases to be a child and + attains its majority. This latter period is the beginning of the + thirteenth year in the case of a female, and the beginning of the + fourteenth year in the case of a male. I shall have occasion later on + to examine this point more closely.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page284">[pg 284]</span><a name="Pg284" id="Pg284" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But there is the + embryo-period which forms a kind of preliminary stage in the life of + the child, and plays a very important part in the region of Jewish + legends. Human imagination always occupies itself most with the + things of which we know least. And so it got hold of this + semi-existence of man, the least accessible to experience and + observation, and surrounded it by a whole cycle of legends and + stories. They are too numerous to be related here. But I shall hint + at a few points which I regard as the most conspicuous features of + these legends.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">These legends are + chiefly based on the notion of the pre-existence of the soul on the + one hand, but on the other hand they are a vivid illustration of the + saying of the Fathers, <span class="tei tei-q">“Thou art born against + thy will.”</span> Thus the soul, when it is brought before the throne + of God, and is commanded to enter into the body, pleads before Him: + <span class="tei tei-q">“O Lord, till now have I been holy and pure; + bring me not into contact with what is common and unclean.”</span> + Thereupon the soul is given to understand that it was for this + destiny alone that it was created. Another remarkable feature is the + warning given to man before his birth that he will be responsible for + his actions. He is regularly sworn in. The oath has the double + purpose of impressing upon him the consciousness of his duty to lead + a holy life, and of arming him against the danger of allowing a holy + life to make him vain. As if to render this oath more impressive, the + unborn hero is provided with two angels who, besides teaching him the + whole of the Torah, take him every morning through paradise and show + him the glory of the just ones who dwell there. In the evening he is + taken to hell to witness <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page285">[pg + 285]</span><a name="Pg285" id="Pg285" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the + sufferings of the reprobate. But such a lesson would make free will + impossible. His future conduct would only be dictated by the fear of + punishment and hope of reward. And the moral value of his actions + also depends, according to Jewish notions, upon the power to commit + sin. Thus another legend records: <span class="tei tei-q">“When God + created the world, He produced on the second day the angels with + their natural inclinations to do good, and the absolute inability to + commit sin. On the following days again He created the beasts with + their exclusively animal desires. But He was pleased with neither of + these extremes. If the angels follow my will, said God, it is only on + account of their impotence to act in the opposite direction. I shall + therefore create man, who will be a combination of both angel and + beast, so that he will be able to follow either the good or evil + inclination. His evil deeds will place him beneath the level of + animals, whilst his noble aspirations will enable him to obtain a + higher position than angels.”</span> Care is therefore taken to make + the child forget all it has seen and heard in these upper regions. + Before it enters the world an angel strikes it on the upper lip, and + all his knowledge and wisdom disappear at once. The pit in the upper + lip is a result of this stroke, which is also the cause why children + cry when they are born.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As to the origin + of these legends, the main features of which are already to be found + in the Talmud, I must refer the reader to the researches of Löw and + others.<a id="noteref_238" name="noteref_238" href= + "#note_238"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">238</span></span></a> Here we + have only to watch the effect which these legends had upon the minds + of Jewish parents. The newly born child was in consequence looked + upon by them as a higher being, which, but a few seconds before, had + been conversing <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page286">[pg + 286]</span><a name="Pg286" id="Pg286" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + with angels and saints, and had now condescended into our profane + world to make two ordinary mortals happy. The treatment which the + child experienced from its parents, as well as from the whole of the + community, was therefore a combination of love and veneration. One + may go even further and say that the belief in these legends + determines greatly the destination of the child. What other + destination could a being of such a glorious past have than to be + what an old German Jewish poem expressed in the following lines:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Geboren soll es wehren</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Zu Gottes Ehren.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em"><span class= + "tei tei-q">“The child should be born to the honour of God.”</span> + The mission of the child is to glorify the name of God on earth. And + the whole bringing up of the child in the old Jewish communities was + more or less calculated to this end. The words of the Bible, + <span class="tei tei-q">“And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of + priests,”</span> were taken literally. Every man felt it his duty to + bring up his children, or at least one member of his family, for this + calling. How they carried out this programme we shall see later + on.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now, regarding + almost every infant as a predestined priest, and thinking of it as + having received a certain preparation for this calling before it came + into this world, we cannot wonder that the child was supposed to show + signs of piety from the days of its earliest existence, and even + earlier. Thus we read that even the unborn children joined in with + the chorus on the Red Sea and sang the Song (of Moses). David, again, + composed Psalms before perceiving the face of this world. On the Day + of Atonement they used to communicate to the unborn child, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page287">[pg 287]</span><a name="Pg287" + id="Pg287" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> through the medium of its + mother, that on this great day it had to be satisfied with the good + it had received the day before. And when a certain child, afterwards + named Shabbethai, refused to listen to such a request, R. Johanan + applied to it the verse from the Psalm, <span class="tei tei-q">“The + wicked are estranged from the womb.”</span> Indeed, Shabbethai turned + out a great sinner. It will perhaps be interesting to hear what his + sin was. It consisted in forestalling the corn in the market and + afterwards selling it to the poor at a much higher price. Of a + certain child the legend tells that it was born with the word + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">emeth</span></span> (truth) engraved on its + fore-head. Its parents named it Amiti,<a id="noteref_239" name= + "noteref_239" href="#note_239"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">239</span></span></a> and the + child proved to be a great saint.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The priest, + however, could not enter into his office without some consecration. + As the first step in this consecration of the child we may consider + the Covenant of Abraham. But this was prefaced by a few other solemn + acts which I must mention. One of the oldest ceremonies connected + with the birth of a child was that of tree-planting. In the case of a + boy they planted a cedar, in that of a girl a pine; and on their + marriage they cut branches from these trees to form the + wedding-canopy. Other rites followed, but they were more of a medical + character, and would be better appreciated by the physician. In the + Middle Ages superstition played a great part. To be sure, I have + spoken of saints; but we ought not to forget that saints, too, have + their foolish moments, especially when they are fighting against + hosts of demons, the existence of which is only guaranteed by their + own over-excited brains. Jewish parents were for many centuries + troubled by the fear of Lilith,<a id="noteref_240" name="noteref_240" + href="#note_240"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">240</span></span></a> the + devil's mother, who was suspected of stealing children and killing + them. The precautions they <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page288">[pg + 288]</span><a name="Pg288" id="Pg288" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + took to prevent this atrocity were as foolish as the object of their + fear. I do not intend to enumerate here all these various + precautions. Every country almost has its own usages and charms, one + more absurd than the other. It will suffice to refer here to the most + popular of these charms, in which certain angels are invoked to + protect the child against its dangerous enemy Lilith. But of whatever + origin they may be, Judaism could do better without them. The only + excuse for their existence among us is to my mind that they provoked + the famous Dr. Erter to the composition of one of the finest satires + in the Hebrew language.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of a less + revolting character was the so-called ceremony of the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Reading of the Shema.”</span><a id="noteref_241" name= + "noteref_241" href="#note_241"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">241</span></span></a> It + consisted in taking all the little children of the community into the + house of the newly-born child, where the teacher made them read the + Shema, sometimes also the ninety-first Psalm. The fact that little + children were the chief actors in this ceremony reconciles one a + little to it despite its rather doubtful origin. In some communities + these readings took place every evening up to the day when the child + was brought into the covenant of Abraham. In other places they + performed the ceremony only on the eve of the day of the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Berith + Milah</span></span><a id="noteref_242" name="noteref_242" href= + "#note_242"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">242</span></span></a> + (Ceremony of the Circumcision). Indeed, this was the night during + which Lilith was supposed to play her worst tricks, and the watch + over the child was redoubled. Hence the name <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Wachnacht,”</span> or the <span class="tei tei-q">“Night + of Watching.”</span> They remained awake for the whole night, and + spent it in feasting and in studying certain portions of the Bible + and the Talmud, mostly relating to the event which was to take place + on the following day. This ceremony was already known to Jewish + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page289">[pg 289]</span><a name="Pg289" + id="Pg289" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> writers of the thirteenth + century. Nevertheless, it is considered by the best authorities on + the subject to be of foreign origin. Quite Jewish, as well as + entirely free from superstitious taint, was the visit which was paid + to the infant-boy on the first Sabbath of his existence. It was + called <span class="tei tei-q">“Shalom Zachar,”</span><a id= + "noteref_243" name="noteref_243" href="#note_243"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">243</span></span></a> + probably meaning <span class="tei tei-q">“Peace-boy,”</span> in + allusion to a well-known passage in the Talmud to the effect that the + advent of a boy in the family brings peace to the world.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At last the dawn + of the great day of the Berith came. I shall, however, only touch + here on the social aspects of this rite.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Its popularity + began, as it seems, in very early times. The persecutions which + Israel suffered for it in the times of Antiochus Epiphanes, + <span class="tei tei-q">“when the princes and elders mourned, the + virgins and the young men were made feeble, and the beauty of women + was changed, and when certain women were put to death for causing + their children to be circumcised,”</span> are the best proof of the + attachment of the people to it. The repeated attempts against this + law, both by heathen and by Christian hands, only served to increase + its popularity. Indeed R. Simeon ben Eleazar characterised it as the + law for which Israel brought the sacrifice of martyrdom, and + therefore held firmly by it. In other words they suffered for it, and + it became endeared to them. R. Simeon ben Gamaliel declares it to be + the only law which Israel fulfils with joy and exultation. As a sign + of this joy we may regard the eagerness and the lively interest which + raised this ceremony from a strictly family affair to a matter in + which the whole of the community participated. Thus we find that + already in the times of the Gaonim the ceremony was <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page290">[pg 290]</span><a name="Pg290" id="Pg290" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> transferred from the house of the parents + to the synagogue. Here it took place after the prayers, in the + presence of the whole congregation. The synagogue used to be + specially illuminated in honour of the event. Certain pieces of the + daily prayer, of a rather doleful nature, such as the confession of + sins, were omitted, lest the harmony of the festival should be + disturbed. As a substitute for these prayers, various hymns suitable + for the occasion were composed and inserted in the liturgy for the + day. As the most prominent members among those present figured the + happy father of the child and the medical man who performed the + ceremony, usually called the Mohel or Gozer,<a id="noteref_244" name= + "noteref_244" href="#note_244"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">244</span></span></a> both + wearing their festal garments and having certain privileges, such as + being called up to the Reading of the Law and chanting certain + portions of the prayers. It is not before the tenth century that a + third member suddenly emerges to become almost as important as the + father of the child. I refer to the <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sandek</span></span> or Godfather. In some + countries he was also called the Baal Berith (Master of the + Covenant). In Italy they seemed to have had two Sandeks. This word + was for a long time supposed to be the Greek word σύνδικος. But it is + now proved beyond doubt that it is a corruption of the word σύντεκνος + used in the Greek church for godfather. In the church he was the man + who lifted the neophyte from the baptismal waters. Among the Jews, + the office of the Sandek was to keep the child on his knees during + the performance of the rite. The Sandek's place was, or is still, + near the seat of honour, which is called the Throne of Elijah, who is + supposed to be the angel of the covenant. Other angels, too, were + believed to officiate at this rite. Thus the angel Gabriel is also + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page291">[pg 291]</span><a name="Pg291" + id="Pg291" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> said to have performed the + office of Sandek to a certain child. According to other sources the + archangel Metatron himself attended. Probably it was on this account + that later Rabbis admonished the parents to take only a pious and + good Jew as Sandek for their children. Christian theologians also + declared that no good Christian must render such a service to a Jew. + The famous Buxtorf had to pay a fine of 100 florins for having + attended the Berith of a child, whose father he had employed as + reader when editing the well-known Basel Bible. The poor reader + himself, who was the cause of Buxtorf's offence, was fined 400 + florins. Of an opposite case in which a Jew served as godfather to a + Christian child, we find a detailed account in Schudt's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Merkwürdigkeiten der + Juden</span></span>, a very learned and very foolish book. When the + father was summoned before the magistrate, and was asked how he dared + to charge a Jew with such a holy Christian ceremony, he coolly + answered, because he knew that the Jew would present him with a + silver cup. As to the present, I have to remark that with the Jews + also the godfather was expected to bestow a gift on the child. In + some communities he had to defray the expenses of the + festival-dinner, of which I shall speak presently. In others, again, + he had also to give a present to the mother of the child.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Much older than + the institution of the Sandek is the festival-dinner just alluded to, + which was held after the ceremony. Jewish legend supplies many + particulars of the dinner the patriarch Abraham gave at the Berith of + his son Isaac. This is a little too legendary, but there is ample + historical evidence that such meals were already customary in the + times of the Second Temple. The <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page292">[pg 292]</span><a name="Pg292" id="Pg292" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> Talmud of Jerusalem gives us a detailed account + of the proceedings which took place at the Berith dinner of Elisha + ben Abuyah, who afterwards obtained a sad celebrity as Acher. + Considering that Elisha's birth must have fallen within the first + decades after the destruction of the Temple, and that these sad times + were most unsuitable for introducing new festivals, we may safely + date the custom back to the times of the Temple. The way in which the + guests entertained themselves is also to be gathered from the passage + referred to. First came the dinner, in which all the guests + participated; afterwards the great men of Jerusalem occupied one + room, indulging there in singing, hand clapping, and dancing. The + scholars again, who apparently did not belong to the great men, were + confined to another room, where they employed themselves in + discussing biblical subjects. In later times special hymns, composed + for this festival, were inserted in the grace after dinner. After the + dinner, sermons or speeches used also to be given, the contents of + which were usually made up of reflections on biblical and Talmudical + passages relating to the event of the day. Sometimes they consisted + of a kind of learned puns on the name which the child received on + this occasion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">With this meal the + first consecration of the child-priest was concluded. In some places + they used to come to the father's house on the third day after the + circumcision with the purpose of making inquiries after the child's + health. In the case when the child was the first-born the ceremony of + <span class="tei tei-q">“redeeming the child”</span><a id= + "noteref_245" name="noteref_245" href="#note_245"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">245</span></span></a> in + accordance with Exodus xiii. used to take place. The details of this + ceremony are to be found in almost every prayer-book, and there is + nothing fresh to add. But perhaps I may be allowed to draw + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page293">[pg 293]</span><a name="Pg293" + id="Pg293" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> attention to another + distinction that the first-born received in the Middle Ages. I refer + to an account given by the author of the book, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Ordinance of the + Law</span></span>,<a id="noteref_246" name="noteref_246" href= + "#note_246"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">246</span></span></a> who + flourished in the thirteenth century. He says: Our predecessors made + the rule to destine every first-born to God, and before its birth the + father had to say, <span class="tei tei-q">“I take the vow that if my + wife presents me with a son, he shall be holy unto the Lord, and in + His Torah he shall meditate day and night.”</span> On the eighth day + after the Berith Milah they put the child on cushions, and a Bible on + its head, and the elders of the community, or the principal of the + college, imparted their blessings to it. These first-born sons + formed, when grown up, the chief contingent of the Yeshiboth + (Talmudical Colleges), where they devoted the greatest part of their + lives to the study of the Torah. In later centuries the vow was + dropped, but from the abundance of the Yeshiboth in Poland and + elsewhere it seems as if almost every child was considered as having + no other calling but the study of the Torah. Indeed, the growing + persecutions required a strengthening of the religious force.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">With these + ceremonies the first act of consecration ended in the case where the + new-born child was a boy. I will now refer to the ceremony of the + name-giving, which was common to males and females. In the case of + the former this ceremony was connected with the Berith Milah. The + oldest formula, which is already to be found in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ritual Rab Amram + Gaon</span></span>, is composed in Aramaic. It is, like many prayers + in that language, a most beautiful composition, and very suitable for + the occasion. Our present Hebrew prayer is far less beautiful, and + dates from a much later age. In some countries the ceremony + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page294">[pg 294]</span><a name="Pg294" + id="Pg294" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of naming was repeated in the + house of the parents. It took place on the Sabbath, when the mother + returned home from her first visit to the synagogue after her + recovery. Here the friends and relatives of the family assembled, and + after arranging themselves round the cradle of the child they lifted + it three times, shouting the new name at every lifting. This name was + the so-called <span class="tei tei-q">“profane”</span> name, whilst + the name it received in the synagogue was the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“sacred”</span> or Hebrew name. The ceremony concluded + with the usual festival-dinner. By the way, there was perhaps a + little too much feasting in those days. The contemporary Rabbis tried + indeed to suppress some of the banquets, and put all sorts of + restrictions on dinner-hunting people. But considering the fact that, + as Jews, they were excluded from every public amusement, we cannot + grudge them the pleasure they drew from these semi-religious + celebrations. For people of an ascetic disposition it was, perhaps, + the only opportunity of enjoying a proper meal. In the same way, in + our days, the most severe father would not deny his lively daughter + the pleasure of dancing or singing charitably for the benefit of + suffering humanity. The ceremony described was known to the authors + of the Middle Ages by the name of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Holle + Kreish</span></span>. These words are proved by Dr. Perles to be of + German origin, and based on some Teutonic superstition into the + explanation of which I cannot enter here.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of much more + importance was the ceremony of name-giving in the case of a girl, it + being the only attention the female child received from the + synagogue. The usages varied. In some countries the name was given on + the first Sabbath after the birth of the child. The father was + <span class="tei tei-q">“called up to the Reading of the Law,”</span> + on which <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page295">[pg + 295]</span><a name="Pg295" id="Pg295" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + followed the formula, <span class="tei tei-q">“He who blessed our + ancestors Abraham,”</span> etc., <span class="tei tei-q">“may He also + bless,”</span> etc., including the blessing and announcement of the + child's name. After the prayer the congregation assembled in the + house of the parents to congratulate them. In other countries the + ceremony took place on the Sabbath when the mother attended the + synagogue after the recovery. The ceremony of Holle Kreish seems to + have been especially observed in the case of a girl.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Though the + feasting was now over for the parents, the child still lived in a + holiday atmosphere for a long time. In the legend of the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Ages of Man”</span> the child is described in the first + year of its existence as a little prince, adored and petted by all. + The mother herself nourished and tended the child. Although the Bible + already speaks of nurses, many passages in the later Jewish + literature show a strong aversion to these substitutes for the + mother. In the event of the father of the child dying, the mother was + forbidden to marry before her suckling infant reached the age of two + years, lest a new courtship might lead to the neglect of the + child.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">More difficult is + it to say wherein the other signs of loyalty to the little prince + consisted; as, for instance, whether Jews possessed anything like + lullabies to soothe the little prince into happy and sweet slumber. + At least I am not aware of the existence of such songs in the ancient + Jewish literature, nor are they quoted by mediæval writers. The + <span class="tei tei-q">“Schlummerlied,”</span> by an unknown Jewish + bard, about which German scholars wrote so much, contains more + heathen than Jewish elements. From the protest in <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Book of the + Pious</span></span>, against using non-Jewish cradle-songs, it seems + that little Moshechen was <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page296">[pg + 296]</span><a name="Pg296" id="Pg296" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + lulled to sleep by the same tunes and words as little Johnny. The + only Jewish lullaby of which I know, is to be found in the work of a + modern writer who lived in Russia. How far its popularity goes in + that country I have no means of ascertaining. This jingle runs as + follows:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-top: 1.80em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-bottom: 1.80em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 0.90em; margin-bottom: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">O! hush thee, my darling, sleep + soundly my son,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Sleep soundly and sweetly till day + has begun;</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">For under the bed of good children + at night</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">There lies, till the morning, a + kid snowy white.</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">We'll send it to market to buy + Sechora,</span><a id="noteref_247" name="noteref_247" href= + "#note_247"><span class="tei tei-noteref" style= + "text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">247</span></span></a> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">While my little lad goes to study + Torah.</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Sleep soundly at night and learn + Torah by day,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Then thou'lt be a Rabbi when I + have grown gray.</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">But I'll give thee to-morrow ripe + nuts and a toy,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">If thou'lt sleep as I bid thee, my + own little boy.</span><a id="noteref_248" name="noteref_248" + href="#note_248"><span class="tei tei-noteref" style= + "text-align: left"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">248</span></span></a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But naturally the + holiday atmosphere I spoke of was very often darkened by clouds + resulting from the illness of the child. Excepting small-pox, the + child was subject to most of those diseases which so often prove + fatal to our children. These diseases were known under the collective + name of <span class="tei tei-q">“the difficulties (or the pain) of + bringing up children.”</span> These difficulties seem to have been + still greater in Palestine, where one of the old Rabbis exclaimed + that it was easier to see a whole forest of young olive trees grow up + than to rear one child.<a id="noteref_249" name="noteref_249" href= + "#note_249"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">249</span></span></a> To + avoid so mournful a subject, I refrain from repeating the touching + stories relating to the death of children. The pain was the more + keenly felt since there was no other way of explaining the misfortune + which befell the innocent creature than that it had suffered for the + sins of the parents; and the only comfort the latter had was that + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page297">[pg 297]</span><a name="Pg297" + id="Pg297" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the child could not have lost + much by its being removed from this vale of tears at such an early + period. A remarkable legend describes God Himself as giving lessons + so many hours a day to these prematurely deceased children.<a id= + "noteref_250" name="noteref_250" href="#note_250"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">250</span></span></a> Indeed, + to the mind of the old Rabbis, the only thing worth living for was + the study of the Law. Consequently the child that suffered innocently + could not have a better compensation than to learn Torah from the + mouth of the Master of masters.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But even when the + child was healthy, and food and climate proved congenial to its + constitution, there still remained the troubles of its spiritual + education. And to be sure it was not an easy matter to bring up a + <span class="tei tei-q">“priest.”</span> The first condition for this + calling was learning. But learning cannot be acquired without honest + and hard industry. It is true that R. Akiba numbers wisdom among the + virtues which are hereditary from father to son. Experience, however, + has shown that it is seldom the case, and the Rabbis were already + troubled with the question how it happens that children so little + resemble their fathers in respect of learning.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Certainly Jewish + legends can boast of a whole series of prodigies. Thus a certain + Rabbi is said to have been so sharp as to have had a clear + recollection of the mid-wife who made him a citizen of this world. + Ben Sira again, instantly after his birth, entertains his terrified + mother with many a wise and foolish saying, refuses the milk she + offers him, and asks for solid food. A certain Nachman was born with + a prophecy on his lips, predicting the fate of all nations on earth, + as well as fixing the date for the advent of the Messiah. The + youngest of seven sons of Hannah, who became martyrs under the reign + of Antiochus <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page298">[pg + 298]</span><a name="Pg298" id="Pg298" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Epiphanes, was according to one version aged two years, six months, + six hours, and thirty minutes. But the way in which he defied the + threats of the tyrant was really worthy of one of seventy. R. Judah + de Modena is said to have read the lesson from the prophets in the + synagogue at the age of two years and a half. A famous Cabbalist, + Nahum, at the age of three, gave a lecture on the decalogue that + lasted for three days. The Chassidim pretended of one of their + Zaddikim that he remembered all that he had been taught by the angels + before his birth, and thus excused their Zaddik's utter neglect of + studying anything. Perhaps I may mention in this place a sentence + from Schudt, which may reconcile one to the harmless exaggerations of + the Chassidim. It relates to a case where a Jewish girl of six was + taken away by a Christian with the intention of baptising her, for he + maintained that this was the wish and pleasure of the child. Probably + the little girl received her instruction from the Christian servant + of the house, as has happened many times. Schudt proves that this + wish ought to be granted in spite of the minority of the child. He + argues: As there is a maxim, <span class="tei tei-q">“What is wanting + in years may be supplied by wickedness,”</span> why could not also + the reverse be true that <span class="tei tei-q">“What is wanting in + years can be supplied by grace”</span>? Of a certain R. Meshullam, + again, we know that he preached in the synagogue at Brody, at the age + of nine, and perplexed the chief Rabbi of the place by his deep + Talmudical learning. As the Rabbi had a daughter of seven, the + cleverness exhibited by the boy Rabbi did not end without very + serious consequences for all his life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Happily all these + prodigies or children of grace are only exceptional. I say happily, + for the Rabbis themselves <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page299">[pg + 299]</span><a name="Pg299" id="Pg299" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + disliked such creatures. They were more satisfied with those signs of + intelligence that indicate future greatness. The following story may + serve as an instance:—R. Joshua ben Hananiah once made a journey to + Rome. Here he was told that amongst the captives from Jerusalem there + was a child with bright eyes, its hair in ringlets, and its features + strikingly beautiful. The Rabbi made up his mind to redeem the boy. + He went to the prison and addressed the child with a verse from + Isaiah, <span class="tei tei-q">“Who gave Jacob for a spoil and + Israel to the robbers?”</span> On this the child answered by + continuing the second half of the same verse, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Did not the Lord, He against whom we have sinned? For + they would not walk in His ways, neither were they obedient unto His + law”</span> (Isaiah xlii. 24). The Rabbi was so delighted with this + answer, that he said: <span class="tei tei-q">“I am sure he will grow + up to be a teacher in Israel. I take an oath to redeem him, cost what + it may.”</span> The child was afterwards known under the name of R. + Ishmael ben Elisha. Such children were ideals of the Rabbis, but they + hated the baby scholar, who very often grew impertinent and abused + his elders. The Rabbis much preferred the majority of those tiny + creatures, who are characterised by the already mentioned legends on + the <span class="tei tei-q">“Ages of Men”</span> as little animals + playing, laughing, crying, dancing, and committing all sorts of + mischief.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But these children + must be taught. Now, there is the well-known advice of Judah ben + Tema, who used to say that the child at five years was to be taught + Scripture, at ten years Mishnah, at thirteen to fulfil the Law, etc. + This saying, incorporated in most editions in the fifth Chapter of + the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Sayings + of the Fathers</span></span>, is usually considered <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page300">[pg 300]</span><a name="Pg300" id="Pg300" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> as the programme of Jewish education. + But, like so many programmes, this tells us rather how things ought + to have been than how they were. In the times of the Temple, the + participation of the youth in religious actions began at the + tenderest age. As soon as they were able to walk a certain distance + with the support of their parents, the children had to accompany them + on their pilgrimages to Jerusalem. In the Sabbatical year they were + brought to the Temple, to be present at the reading of Deuteronomy by + the king.<a id="noteref_251" name="noteref_251" href= + "#note_251"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">251</span></span></a> The + period at which the child's allegiance to the Synagogue began is + still more distinctly described. Of the many Talmudical passages + relating to this question, I shall select the following quotation + from a later Midrash, because it is the most concise. In allusion to + Leviticus xix. 23, 24, concerning the prohibition of eating the + fruits of a tree in the first three years, this Midrash goes on to + say: <span class="tei tei-q">“And this is also the case with the + Jewish child. In the first three years the child is unable to speak, + and therefore is exempted from every religious duty, but in the + fourth year all its fruits shall be holy to praise the Lord, and the + father is obliged to initiate the child in religious works.”</span> + Accordingly the religious life of the child began as soon as it was + able to speak distinctly, or with the fourth year of its life. As to + the character of this initiation we learn from the same Midrash and + also from other Talmudical passages, that it consisted in teaching + the child the verses, <span class="tei tei-q">“Hear, O Israel: the + Lord our God <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">is</span></em> One”</span> (Deut. vi. 4), and + <span class="tei tei-q">“Moses commanded us a Torah, the inheritance + of the congregation of Jacob”</span> (Deut. xxxiii. 4). It was also + in this year that the boys began to accompany their parents to the + synagogue, carrying <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page301">[pg + 301]</span><a name="Pg301" id="Pg301" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + their prayer-books. At what age the girls first came out—not for + their first party, but with the purpose of going to the synagogue—is + difficult to decide with any degree of certainty. But if we were to + trust a rather doubtful reading in Tractate <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sopherim</span></span>,<a id="noteref_252" name= + "noteref_252" href="#note_252"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">252</span></span></a> we + might maintain that their first appearance in the synagogue was also + at a very tender age. I hope that they behaved there more + respectfully than their brothers, who played and cried instead of + joining in the responses and singing with the congregation. In some + communities they proved so great a nuisance that a certain Rabbi + declared it would be better to leave them at home rather than to have + the devotion of the whole congregation disturbed by these urchins. + Another Rabbi recommended the praiseworthy custom of the + Sephardim,<a id="noteref_253" name="noteref_253" href= + "#note_253"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">253</span></span></a> who + confined all the boys in the synagogue to one place, and set a + special overseer by their side, with a whip in his hands, to compel + them to keep quiet and to worship with due devotion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">A strange custom + is known among the Arabian and Palestinian Jews under the name of + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chalaka</span></span>. It means the first + hair-cutting of the boy after his fourth birthday. As on this + occasion loyalty to the Scripture is shown by not touching the + <span class="tei tei-q">“corners”</span> (Lev. xix. 17), the whole + action is considered a religious ceremony of great importance. In + Palestine it usually takes place on the second day of the Feast of + the Passover when the counting of the seven weeks begins. On this day + friends and relatives assemble at the house of the parents. Thither + the boy is brought, dressed in his best garments, and every one of + the assembly is entrusted with the duty of cutting a few hairs, which + is considered a great privilege. The ceremony is as usual followed by + a dinner given to the guests. The Jews <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page302">[pg 302]</span><a name="Pg302" id="Pg302" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> in Safed and Tiberias perform the ceremony with + great pomp in the courtyard surrounding the (supposed) grave of R. + Simeon ben Yochai, in one of the neighbouring villages.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another custom + already mentioned in the Talmud, but which quite disappeared in later + times, is that of weighing the child. It would be worth reviving if + performed in the way in which the mother of Doeg ben Joseph did it. + This tender-hearted mother weighed her only son every day, and + distributed among the poor, in gold, the amount of the increased + weight of her child.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I pass now to the + second great consecration of the boy,—the rites performed on the day + when the boy went to school for the first time. This day was + celebrated by the Jews, especially in the Middle Ages, in such a way + as to justify the high esteem in which they held the school. The + school was looked upon as a second Mount Sinai, and the day on which + the child entered it as the Feast of Revelation. Of the many + different customs, I shall mention here that according to which this + day was fixed for the Feast of Weeks. Early in the morning, while it + was still dark, the child was washed and dressed carefully. In some + places they dressed it in a <span class="tei tei-q">“gown with + fringes.”</span> As soon as day dawned the boy was taken to the + synagogue, either by his father or by some worthy member of the + community. Arrived at their destination, the boy was put on the + Almemor, or reading-dais, before the Scroll of the Law, from which + the narrative of the Revelation (Exod. xx. 2-26) was read as the + portion of the day. From the synagogue the boy was taken to the house + of the teacher, who took him into his arms. Thereupon a slate was + brought, containing the alphabet in various combinations, + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page303">[pg 303]</span><a name="Pg303" + id="Pg303" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> the verse, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Moses has commanded,”</span> etc. in Deut. xxxiii. 4, + the first verse of the Book of Leviticus, and the words, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The Torah will be my calling.”</span> The teacher then + read the names of the letters, which the boy repeated. After the + reading, the slate was besmeared with honey, which the boy licked + off. This was done in allusion to Ezekiel iii. 3, where it is said: + <span class="tei tei-q">“And it (the roll) was in my mouth as honey + for sweetness.”</span> The boy was also made to eat a sweet cake, on + which were written passages from the Bible relating to the importance + of the study of the Torah. The ceremony was concluded by invoking the + names of certain angels, asking them to open the heart of the boy, + and to strengthen his memory. By the way, I am very much afraid that + this invocation was answerable for the abolition of this ceremony. + The year in which this ceremony took place is uncertain, probably not + before the fifth, nor later than the seventh, according to the good + or bad health of the child.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The reverence for + the child already hinted at was still further increased when the boy + entered the school. <span class="tei tei-q">“The children of the + house (school) of the master”</span> is a regular phrase in Jewish + literature. It is on their pure breath that the existence of the + world depends, and it is their merit that justifies us in appealing + to the mercy of God. Words of Scripture, uttered by them quite + innocently, were considered as oracles; and many a Rabbi gave up an + undertaking on account of a verse pronounced by a schoolboy, who + hardly understood its import. Take only one instance: R. Johanan was + longing to see his friend Mar Samuel in Babylon. After many + disturbances and delays, he at last undertook the journey. On the way + he passed a school where the boys were reciting the verse + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page304">[pg 304]</span><a name="Pg304" + id="Pg304" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> from 1 Samuel xxviii. 3, + <span class="tei tei-q">“And Samuel died.”</span> This was accepted + by him as a hint given by Providence that all was over with his + friend.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Especially famous + for their wisdom and sharpness were the children of Jerusalem. Of the + many illustrative stories given in the Midrash to Lamentations, let + the following suffice: R. Joshua was one day riding on his donkey + along the high road. As he passed a well, he saw a little girl there, + and asked her to give him some water. She accordingly gave water to + him and to his animal. The Rabbi thanked her with the words: + <span class="tei tei-q">“My daughter, you acted like Rebecca.”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“To be sure,”</span> she answered, + <span class="tei tei-q">“I acted like Rebecca; but you did not behave + like Eleazar.”</span> I must add that there are passages in Jewish + literature from which, with a little ingenuity, it might be deduced + that Jewish babies are the most beautiful of their kind. The + assertion made by a monk that Jewish children are inferior to + Christian children is a dreadful libel. The author of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Old + Victory</span></span>,<a id="noteref_254" name="noteref_254" href= + "#note_254"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">254</span></span></a> in + whose presence this assertion was made, was probably childless, or he + would have simply scratched out the eyes of this malicious monk, + instead of giving a mystical reason for the superior beauty of any + other children than his own.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Another point to + be emphasised is that the boys were not confined all day long to the + close air of the schoolroom. They had also their hours of recreation. + This recreation consisted chiefly, as one can imagine, in playing. + Their favourite game was the ball, boys as well as girls being fond + of this form of amusement. They did not deny themselves this pleasure + even on festivals. They were also fond of the kite and games with + nuts, in which their mothers also took part. Letter-games and + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page305">[pg 305]</span><a name="Pg305" + id="Pg305" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> riddles also occupied their + minds in the recreation hours. The angel Sandalphon,<a id= + "noteref_255" name="noteref_255" href="#note_255"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">255</span></span></a> who + also bears in the Cabbalah the name of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Boy,”</span> was considered by the children as their + special patron, and they invoked him in their plays, addressing to + him the words: <span class="tei tei-q">“Sandalphon, Lord of the + forest, protect us from pain.”</span> Speaking generally, there are + very few distinctively Jewish games. From the researches of Zunz, + Güdemann, and Löw on this subject, it is clear that the Jews always + adopted the pastimes of the peoples among whom they dwelt.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But it must not be + thought that there was too much playing. Altogether, Jewish education + was far from spoiling the children. And though it was recommended—if + such recommendation were necessary—to love children more than one's + own soul, the Rabbis strongly condemned that blind partiality towards + our own offspring, which ends in burdening our world with so many + good-for-nothings. The sad experience of certain biblical personages + served as a warning for posterity. Even from the quite natural + behaviour of Jacob towards his son Joseph, which had the best + possible results in the end, they drew the lesson that a man must + never show to one of his children marks of greater favour than to the + others. In later times they have been even anxious to conceal this + love altogether, and some Rabbis went so far as to refrain from + kissing their children. The severity of Akabya ben Mahalaleel is + worth mentioning, if not imitating. When this Rabbi, only a few + minutes before his death, was asked by his son to recommend him to + his friends and colleagues, the answer the poor boy received was: + <span class="tei tei-q">“Thy conduct will recommend thee to my + friends, or will estrange thee from them.”</span> Another Rabbi + declared (with reference to Prov. <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page306">[pg 306]</span><a name="Pg306" id="Pg306" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> xxviii. 27) that it is life-giving to a youth + to teach him temperance in his diet, and not to accustom him to meat + and wine. R. Judah, the Pious, in the Middle Ages, gives the advice + to rich parents to withdraw their resources from their sons if they + lead a disorderly life. The struggle for their existence, and the + hardship of life, would bring them back to God. When the old Rabbi + said that poverty is a most becoming ornament for Israel, his remark + was probably suggested by a similar thought. And many a passage in + the Rabbinic literature gives expression to the same idea as that in + Goethe's divine lines:—</p> + + <div class="block tei tei-quote" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.80em; margin-right: 3.60em; margin-left: 3.60em; margin-top: 1.80em"> + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 0.90em; margin-top: 0.90em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Wer nie sein Brot mit Thränen + ass,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Wer nie die kummervollen + Nächte</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Auf seinem Bette weinend + sass,</span> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 90%">Der kennt Euch nicht, Ihr + himmlischen Mächte.</span> + </div> + </div> + </div> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have spoken of a + kingdom of priests, but there is one great disadvantage of such a + polity. One or two priests in a community may be sustained by the + liberality of the congregation. But if a community consisted of only + priests, how could it then be maintained? Besides, the old Jewish + ideal expected the teacher to be possessed of a divine goodness, + imparting his benefits only as an act of grace. Salaries, therefore, + either for teaching or preaching, or for giving ritual decisions, + were strongly forbidden. The solution of the question put by the + Bible, <span class="tei tei-q">“And if ye shall say, What shall we + eat?”</span> is to be found in the law that every father was obliged + to teach his son a handicraft, enabling him to obtain a living.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I have now to + speak of the time when childhood is brought to a conclusion. It is, + as I stated above, in the case of a girl at the beginning of the + thirteenth year, and <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page307">[pg + 307]</span><a name="Pg307" id="Pg307" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> in + that of a boy at the beginning of the fourteenth year. As a reason + for this priority I will reproduce the words of R. Chisda, who said + that God has endowed woman with a greater portion of intelligence + than man, and therefore she obtains her maturity at an earlier period + than man does. A very nice compliment, indeed; but like all + compliments it is of no practical consequence whatever. It is not + always the wiser who get the best of it in life. Whilst the day on + which the girl obtained her majority passed unnoticed either by her + or by her family, it was marked in the case of the boy as the day on + which he became a Son of the Law,<a id="noteref_256" name= + "noteref_256" href="#note_256"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">256</span></span></a> and was + signalised by various rites and ceremonies, and by the bestowing on + him of beautiful presents. I miss only the wig, which used to form + the chief ornament of the boy on this happy day.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Less known, + however, is the origin of this ceremony, and the reason for fixing + its date. It cannot claim a very high antiquity. I may remark that in + many cases centuries elapse before an idea or a notion takes + practical shape and is crystallised into a custom or usage, and still + longer before this custom is fossilised into a law or fixed + institution. As far as the Bible goes, there is not the slightest + indication of the existence of such a ceremony. From Lev. xxvii. 5, + and Num. xiv. 29, it would rather seem that it was not before the + twentieth year that the man was considered to have obtained his + majority, and to be responsible for his actions. It was only in the + times of the Rabbis, when Roman influence became prevalent in + juristic matters at least, that the date of thirteen, or rather the + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">pubertas</span></span>, was fixed as giving the + boy his majority. But it would be a mistake to think that before + having obtained this majority the boy was considered as under age in + every <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page308">[pg 308]</span><a name= + "Pg308" id="Pg308" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> respect. Certainly the + law made every possible effort to connect him with the synagogue, and + to initiate him in his religious duties long before the age of + thirteen.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">We have seen that + the boy's first appearance in the synagogue was at the beginning of + the fourth year. We have noticed the complaints about his troublesome + behaviour. But how could we expect the poor child to be attentive to + things which quite surpassed the intellectual powers of his tender + age? There was no better reason for this attendance either in the + Temple or in the synagogue than that the parents might be rewarded by + God for the trouble of taking their children there. These cares, by + the way, fell most heavily upon the women. The mother of R. Joshua + enjoyed this burden so much that she carried her boy, when still in + the cradle, to the <span class="tei tei-q">“House of Study of the + Law,”</span> in order that his ears might be accustomed to the sound + of the Torah. In later times there was another excuse for taking the + little children to the synagogue. They were there allowed to sip the + wine of the Sanctification Cup,<a id="noteref_257" name="noteref_257" + href="#note_257"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">257</span></span></a> which + was the exclusive privilege of the children; an easy way of + worshipping, but, as you can observe, it is a method that they enjoy + and understand most excellently. They did not less enjoy and + understand the service with which they were charged on the day of + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Rejoicing of the Law.”</span><a id= + "noteref_258" name="noteref_258" href="#note_258"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">258</span></span></a> On this + feast they were provided with flags, which they carried before the + bearers of the Torah, who feasted them after the service with sweets. + Another treat was that of being called up on this day to the Torah, a + custom that is still extant. In the Middle Ages they went in some + countries so far as to allow these little fellows who did not wear + caps <span class="tei tei-q">“to be called up”</span> to say the + blessings over the Law bare-headed. A beautiful custom was that + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page309">[pg 309]</span><a name="Pg309" + id="Pg309" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> every Sabbath, after finishing + the weekly lesson and dressing the Scroll of the Law, the children + used to come up to the Almemor and kiss the Torah. Leaving the + synagogue they kissed the hands of the scholars. At home the + initiation began with the blessing the child received on every eve of + the Sabbath, and with its instruction in <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Hear O Israel”</span> and other verses as already + mentioned. Short prayers, consisting of a single sentence, were also + chosen for children of this age. The function of the child on the eve + of the first day of Passover is well known. Besides the putting of + the four questions for the meaning of the strange ceremony (Exod. + xiii. 14), the boy had also to recite, or rather to sing, the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Praise.”</span><a id="noteref_259" name= + "noteref_259" href="#note_259"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">259</span></span></a> But I + am afraid that they enjoyed better the song of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“One Kid,”</span> which was composed or rather adapted + for their special entertainment from an old German poem.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Within three or + four years after entering the synagogue, and with the growth of + intellect and strength, the religious duties of the boy increased, + and became of a more serious character. He had not only to attend the + school, which was troublesome enough, but he was also expected to + attend the services more regularly, and to gain something by it. Yet + the Rabbis were not so tyrannical as to put unjust demands on the + patience of the child. The voice of God on Mount Sinai, the Rabbis + said, was adapted to the intellect and powers of all who witnessed + the Revelation—adapted, as the Midrash says, to the powers of old and + young, children and women. It was in accordance with this sentiment + that the Rabbis suited their language to the needs of the less + educated classes. Thus we read in the Tractate <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Sopherim</span></span> + that according to the law the portion of the week, after having + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page310">[pg 310]</span><a name="Pg310" + id="Pg310" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> been recited in Hebrew, must + be translated into the language of the vernacular for the benefit of + the unlearned people, the women, and the children. Another + consideration children experienced from the Rabbis was that at the + age of nine or ten the boy was initiated into the observance of the + Day of Atonement by fasting a few hours. Lest, however, this good + work might be overdone, and thus endanger the child's health, the + sage R. Acha used to tell his congregation after the Addition-Prayer + <span class="tei tei-q">“My brethren, let every one of you who has a + child go home and make it eat.”</span> In later centuries, when the + disease of small-pox became so fatal, some Rabbis declared it to be + the duty of every father to leave the town with his children as soon + as the plague showed itself. The joy with which the Rabbis hailed Dr. + Jenner's discovery deserves our recognition. None of them perceived + in vaccination a defiance of Providence. R. Abraham Nansich, from + London, wrote a pamphlet to prove its lawfulness. The Cabbalist + Buzagli disputed Dr. Jenner's priority, but nevertheless approved of + vaccination. R. Israel Lipschütz declared that the Doctor acquired + salvation by his new remedy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">With his advancing + age, not only the boy's duties but also his rights were increased. An + enumeration of all these rights would lead me too far, but I shall + mention the custom which allowed the boy the recital of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Magnified”</span><a id="noteref_260" name="noteref_260" + href="#note_260"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">260</span></span></a> and + <span class="tei tei-q">“Bless ye”</span><a id="noteref_261" name= + "noteref_261" href="#note_261"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">261</span></span></a> in the + synagogue. Now this privilege is restricted to the orphan boy. It is + interesting to hear that girls were also admitted to recite the + Magnified in the synagogue, in cases where their parents left no male + issue. I have myself witnessed such a case. In some countries the boy + had the exclusive privilege of <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page311">[pg 311]</span><a name="Pg311" id="Pg311" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> reading the prayers on the evenings of the + festivals and Sabbaths. R. Samson ben Eleazar, in the fifteenth + century, received his family name Baruch Sheamar<a id="noteref_262" + name="noteref_262" href="#note_262"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">262</span></span></a> from + the skill with which he recited this prayer when a boy. He chanted it + so well that he was called by the members of the community Master + Baruch Sheamar. As to the question whether the boy, while under age, + might lawfully be considered as one of the Ten when such a quorum was + required, or one of the three in the case of grace after meals, I can + only say that the authorities never agreed in this respect. Whilst + the one insisted upon his having obtained his majority, the other was + satisfied with his showing such signs of intelligence as would enable + him to participate in the ceremony in question. Here is an instance + of such a sign. Abaye and Raba, the two celebrated heroes of the + Babylonian Talmud, were sitting at the table of Rabbah. Before saying + grace he asked them, <span class="tei tei-q">“Do you know to whom + these prayers are addressed?”</span> Thereupon one boy pointed to the + roof, whilst the other boy went out and pointed to the sky. The + examiner was satisfied with their answer.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The privilege of + putting on the phylacteries forms now in most countries the chief + distinction of <span class="tei tei-q">“The Son of the Law”</span>; + in olden times, however, every boy had claim to it as soon as he + showed himself capable of behaving respectfully when wearing the holy + symbol. It even happened that certain honours of the synagogue were + bestowed on boys, though under age. We possess a copy of a Jewish + epitaph dating from about the third century, which was written in + Rome for a boy of eight years, who is there designated as archon. The + fact is the more curious, as on the other hand the Palestinian R. + Abuha, who <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page312">[pg + 312]</span><a name="Pg312" id="Pg312" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + lived in the same century, maintained that no man must be elected as + Warden before he has achieved his fiftieth year. That boys were + admitted to preach in the synagogue I have already mentioned.<a id= + "noteref_263" name="noteref_263" href="#note_263"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">263</span></span></a></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">From all these + remarks it will easily be seen that in olden times the boy enjoyed + almost all the rights of majority long before the day of his being + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Son of the Law.”</span> The condition of + the novice is hardly distinguishable from that of the initiated + priest. The Talmud, the Gaonim, and even R. Isaac Alfasi and + Maimonides knew neither the term <span class="tei tei-q">“The Son of + the Law”</span> (in our sense of the word) nor any ceremony connected + with it. There is only one slight reference to such an institution, + recorded in the Tractate <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sopherim</span></span>, with the quotation of + which I shall conclude this paper. We read there: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“In Jerusalem there was the godly custom to initiate the + children at the <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">beginning</span></em> of the thirteenth year by + fasting the whole Day of Atonement. During this year they took the + boy to the priests and learned men that they might bless him, and + pray for him that God might think him worthy of a life devoted to the + study of the Torah and pious works.”</span> For, this author says, + <span class="tei tei-q">“they were beautiful, and their lives + harmonious and their hearts directed to God.”</span></p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page313">[pg 313]</span><a name= + "Pg313" id="Pg313" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc29" id="toc29"></a> <a name="pdf30" id="pdf30"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-top: 3.46em; margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">XIII. Woman in Temple and + Synagogue</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The learned Woman + has always been a favourite subject with Jewish students; and her + intellectual capabilities have been fully vindicated in many an essay + and even fair-sized book. Less attention, however, has been paid to + woman's claims as a devotional being whom the Temple, and afterwards + the Synagogue, more or less recognised. At least it is not known to + me that any attempt has been made to give, even in outline, the + history of woman's relation to public worship. It is needless to say + that the present sketch, which is meant to supply this want in some + measure, lays no claim to completeness; but I venture to hope that it + will help to direct the attention of the friends of research to the + matter, and that it may induce others to deal more fully with the + subject and do it the justice it deserves.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The earliest + allusion to women's participation in <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">public</span></em> + worship, is that in Exodus xxxviii. 8, to the women who assembled to + minister at the door of the <span class="tei tei-q">“tent of + meeting,”</span> of whose mirrors the lavers of brass were made (cf. + 1 Sam. ii. 22). Philo, who is not exactly enamoured of the + emancipation of women, and seeks to confine them to the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“small state,”</span> is here full of their praise. + <span class="tei tei-q">“For,”</span> he says, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“though no one enjoined them to do so, they of + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page314">[pg 314]</span><a name="Pg314" + id="Pg314" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> their own spontaneous zeal and + earnestness contributed the mirrors with which they had been + accustomed to deck and set off their beauty, as the most becoming + first-fruits of their modesty, and of the purity of their married + life, and, as one may say, of the beauty of their souls.”</span> In + another passage Philo describes the Jewish women as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“competing with the men themselves in piety, having + determined to enter upon a glorious contest, and to the utmost extent + of their power to exert themselves so as not to fall short of their + holiness.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is, however, + very difficult to ascertain in what this ministry of women consisted. + The Hebrew term <span class="tei tei-q">“Zobeoth”</span><a id= + "noteref_264" name="noteref_264" href="#note_264"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">264</span></span></a> would + suggest the thought of a species of religious Amazons, who formed a + guard of honour round the Sanctuary. Some commentators think that the + ministry consisted in performing religious dances accompanied by + various instruments. The Septuagint again speaks <span class= + "tei tei-q">“of the women who fasted by the doors of the + Tabernacle.”</span> But most of the old Jewish expositors, as well as + Onkelos, conceive that the women went to the tent of meeting to pray. + Ibn Ezra offers the interesting remark, <span class="tei tei-q">“And + behold, there were women in Israel serving the Lord, who left the + vanities of this world, and not being desirous of beautifying + themselves any longer, made of their mirrors a free offering, and + came to the tabernacle every day to pray and to listen there to the + words of the commandments.”</span> When we find that in 1 Sam. i. 12, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Hannah continued to pray before the + Lord,”</span> she was only doing there what many of her sisters did + before and after her. We may also judge that it was from the number + of these noble women, who made religion the aim of their lives, that + the <span class="tei tei-q">“twenty-two”</span> heroines <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page315">[pg 315]</span><a name="Pg315" id="Pg315" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and prophetesses sprang who form part of + the glory of Jewish history. Sometimes it even happened that their + husbands derived their religious inspiration from them. Thus the + husband of the prophetess Deborah is said to have been an unlettered + man. But his wife made him carry to the Sanctuary the candles which + she herself had prepared, this being the way in which she encouraged + him to seek communion with the righteous.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The language in + which the husband of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Great Woman”</span> + of Shunem addresses his wife: <span class="tei tei-q">“Wherefore wilt + thou go to him”</span> (the prophet)? <span class="tei tei-q">“it is + neither New Moon nor Sabbath”</span> (2 Kings iv. 23), proves that on + Festivals and Sabbaths the women used to attend some kind of worship, + performed by the prophet, though we cannot say in what this worship + consisted. The New Moon was especially a woman's holiday, and was so + observed even in the Middle Ages, for the women refrained from doing + work on that day. The explanation given by the Rabbis is that when + the men broke off their golden earrings to supply material for the + golden calf, the women refused to contribute their trinkets, for + which good behaviour a special day of repose was granted to them. + Some Cabbalists even maintain that the original worshippers of the + golden calf continue to exist on earth, their souls having + successively migrated into various bodies, while their punishment + consists in this, that they are ruled over by their wives. Rather + interesting as well as complimentary to women is the remark which the + Rabbis made with regard to the <span class="tei tei-q">“Great + Woman.”</span> As will be remembered, it is <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">she</span></em> who + says, <span class="tei tei-q">“I perceive that this (Elisha) is a + holy man of God”</span> (2 Kings iv. 19). In allusion to this verse + the Talmud says: <span class="tei tei-q">“From this fact we may infer + that <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page316">[pg 316]</span><a name= + "Pg316" id="Pg316" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> woman is quicker in + recognising the worth of a stranger than man.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The great woman, + or women, continued to pray and to join in the public worship also + after the destruction of the first Temple. Thus Esther is reported by + tradition to have addressed God in a long extempore prayer before she + presented herself before the throne of Ahasuerus to plead her + people's cause; and women were always enjoined to attend the reading + of the Book of Esther. When Ezra read the Law for the first time, he + did so in the presence of the men and the women (Neh. viii. 3). In + the Book of the Maccabees we read of <span class="tei tei-q">“The + women girt with sackcloth ... and the maidens that ran to the + gates.... And all holding their hands towards heaven made + supplication.”</span> In the Judith legend, mention is also made of + <span class="tei tei-q">“Every man and woman ... who fell before the + Temple, and spread out their sackcloth before the face of the Lord + ... and cried before the God of Israel.”</span> In the second Temple, + the women, as is well known, possessed a court reserved for their + exclusive use. There the great illuminations and rejoicings on the + evening of the Feast of Tabernacles used to be held. On this + occasion, however, the women were confined to galleries specially + erected for them. It was also in this Women's Hall that the great + public reading of certain portions of the Law by the king, once in + seven years, used to take place, and women had also to attend at the + function. On the other hand, it is hardly necessary to say that women + were excluded from performing any important service in the Temple. If + we were to trust a certain passage in the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chapters of R. Eliezer,”</span> we might perhaps + conclude that during the first Temple, the wives of the Levites + formed a part of the <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page317">[pg + 317]</span><a name="Pg317" id="Pg317" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + choir, but the meaning of the passage is too obscure and doubtful for + us to be justified in basing on it so important an inference. Nor can + the three hundred maidens who were employed for the weaving of the + curtains in the Temple, be looked upon as having stood in closer + connection with the Temple, or as having formed an order of + women-priests or girl-devotees (as one might wrongly be induced to + think by certain passages in Apocryphal writings of the New + Testament). But on the other hand, it is not improbable that their + frequent contact with the Sanctuary of the nation produced in them + that religious enthusiasm and zeal which may account for the heroic + death which—according to the legend—they sought and found after the + destruction of the Temple. It is to be remarked that, according to + the law, women were even exempted from putting their hands on the + head of the victim, which formed an important item in the sacrificial + worship. It is, however, stated by an eye-witness, that the + authorities permitted them to perform this ceremony if they desired + to do so, and that their reason for this concession was <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to give calmness of the spirit, or satisfaction, to + women.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Still greater, + perhaps, was <span class="tei tei-q">“the calmness of spirit”</span> + given to women in the synagogue. We find in ancient epitaphs that + such titles of honour were conferred upon them as <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Mistress of the Synagogue,”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Mother of the Synagogue,”</span> and, though they held + no actual office in the Synagogue, it is not improbable that they + acquired these titles by meritorious work connected with a religious + institution, viz.: Charity. There was, indeed, a tendency to exclude + women from the synagogue at certain seasons, but almost all the + authorities protest against it, many of them declaring such a notion + to be quite un-Jewish. Some <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page318">[pg + 318]</span><a name="Pg318" id="Pg318" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + Jewish scholars even think that the ancient synagogues knew of no + partition for women. I am rather inclined to think that the synagogue + took for its model the arrangements in the Temple, and thus confined + women to a place of their own. But, whether they sat side by side + with the men or occupied a special portion of the edifice, there can + be no doubt that the Jewish women were great synagogue-goers. To give + only one instance. One Rabbi asks another: Given the case that the + members of the synagogue are all descendants of Aaron, to whom then + would they impart their blessing? The answer is, to the women who are + there.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Of the sermon they + were even more fond than their husbands. Thus one woman was so much + interested in the lectures of R. Meir, which he was in the habit of + giving every Friday evening, that she used to remain there so long + that the candles in her house burnt themselves out. Her lazy husband, + who stopped at home, so strongly resented having to wait in the dark, + that he would not permit her to cross the threshold until she gave + some offence to the preacher, which would make him sure that she + would not venture to attend his sermons again.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The prayers they + said were the Eighteen Benedictions which were prescribed by the Law. + But it would seem that occasionally they offered short prayers + composed by themselves as suggested by their personal feelings and + needs. Thus, to give one instance, R. Johanan relates that one day he + observed a young girl fall on her face and pray: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Lord of the world, Thou hast created Paradise, Thou hast + created hell, Thou hast created the wicked, Thou hast created the + righteous; may it be Thy will that I may not serve as a + stumbling-block to them.”</span> <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page319">[pg 319]</span><a name="Pg319" id="Pg319" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> The fine Hebrew in which the prayer is + expressed, and the notion of the responsibility of Providence for our + actions, manifest a high degree of intelligence and reflection. It + would also seem that some women went so far in their religious + sensibility as to lead a regular ascetic life, and, according to the + suggestion of some scholars, even took the vow of celibacy. Of these + the Rabbis did not approve, and stigmatised them as the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“destroyers of the world.”</span> Perhaps it was just at + this period that Judaism could not afford to give free play to those + morbid feelings, degenerating into religious hysterics, which led + some to join rival sects, and others to abandon themselves to the + gross immorality we read of in the history of the Gnostics.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The same + circumstances may have been the cause of public opinion being led to + accept the view of R. Eliezer, who thought it inadvisable—it would + seem on moral grounds—to permit woman to study the Law. This opinion + was opposed to that of Ben Azzai, who considered it incumbent upon + every father to teach his daughter Torah. But justified as the advice + of R. Eliezer may have been in his own time, it was rather + unfortunate that later generations continued to take it as the + guiding principle for the education of their children. Many great + women in the course of history indeed became law-breakers and studied + Torah; but the majority were entirely dependent on men, and became in + religious matters a sort of appendix to their husbands, who by their + good actions insured salvation also for them, and sometimes the + reverse. Thus there is a story about a woman which, put into modern + language, would be to the effect that she married a minister and + copied his sermons for him; he <span class="tei tei-pb" id= + "page320">[pg 320]</span><a name="Pg320" id="Pg320" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> died, and she then married a cruel usurer, and + kept his accounts for him.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The fact that + women were exempted from certain affirmative laws, which become + operative only at special seasons—<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">e.g.</span></span>, the + taking of the palm branch on the Feast of Tabernacles—must also have + contributed to weaken their position as a religious factor in + Judaism. The idea that women should vie with men in the fulfilment of + every law, became even for the Rabbis a notion connected only with + the remotest past. This is the impression one gains when reading the + legend about Michal, the daughter of Saul, putting on phylacteries, + or the wife of the prophet Jonah making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem at + the three Festivals. It would indeed seem as if women were led to + strive for the satisfaction of their religious wants in another + direction. Yet it was said of Jewish women, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The daughters of Israel were stringent and laid certain + restrictions on themselves.”</span> They were also allowed to form a + quorum by themselves for the purpose of saying the Grace, but they + could not be counted along with males for this end. It was also + against the early notion of the dignity of the congregation that + women should perform any public service for men.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One privilege was + left to women—that of weeping. In Judges xi. 40, we read of the + daughters of Israel that went yearly to lament the daughter of + Jephthah; while in 2 Chronicles xxxv. 25, we are told how + <span class="tei tei-q">“all the singing men and the singing women + spake of Josiah in their lamentations.”</span> Of this privilege they + were not deprived, and if they were not allowed to sing any longer, + they at least retained the right to weep as much as they pleased. + Even in later times they held a public office as mourning + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page321">[pg 321]</span><a name="Pg321" + id="Pg321" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> women at funerals. In the + Talmud fragments of compositions by women for such occasions are to + be found. Indeed, woman became in these times the type of grief and + sorrow. She cannot reason, but she feels much more deeply than man. + Here is one instance from an old legend: Jeremiah said, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“When I went up to Jerusalem (after the destruction of + the Temple) I lifted my eyes and saw there a lonely woman sitting on + the top of the mountain, her dress black, her hair dishevelled, + crying, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Who will comfort me?’</span> I + approached her and spake to her, <span class="tei tei-q">‘If thou art + a woman, speak to me. If thou art a ghost, begone.’</span> She + answered, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Dost thou not know me?... I am the + Mother, Zion.’</span> ”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In general, + however, the principle applied to women was: The king's daughter + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">within the + palace</span></em> is all glorious (Psalm xlv. 14), but <em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">not</span></em> + outside of it. In the face of the <span class="tei tei-q">“Femina in + ecclesia taceat,”</span> which was the ruling maxim with other + religions, Jewish women could only feel flattered by this polite + treatment by the Rabbis, though it meant the same thing. We must not + think, however, that this prevented them from attending the service + of the synagogue. According to the Tractate <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Sopherim</span></span>, + even <span class="tei tei-q">“the little daughters of Israel were + accustomed to go to the synagogue.”</span> In the same tractate we + find it laid down as <span class="tei tei-q">“a duty to translate for + them the portion (of the Law) of the week, and the lesson from the + prophets”</span> into the language they understand. The <span class= + "tei tei-q">“King's daughter”</span> occasionally asserted her rights + without undue reliance on the opinion of the authorities. And thus + being ignorant of the Hebrew language women prayed in the vernacular, + though this was at least against the letter of the law. And many + famous Rabbis of the twelfth and thirteenth <span class="tei tei-pb" + id="page322">[pg 322]</span><a name="Pg322" id="Pg322" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> centuries express their wonder that the + <span class="tei tei-q">“custom of women praying in other + (non-Hebrew) languages extended over the whole world.”</span> It is + noteworthy that they did not suppress the practice, but on the + contrary, they endeavoured to give to the Law such an interpretation + as would bring it into accord with the general custom. Some even + recommended it, as, for example, the author of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Book of the + Pious</span></span>, who gives advice to women to learn the prayers + in the language familiar to them.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">At about the same + period a lengthy controversy was being waged by the commentators of + the Talmud and the codifiers, about woman's partaking in the + fulfilment of the laws for special seasons, from which, as already + remarked, they were exempted. To the action itself there could not be + much objection, but the difficulty arose when women also insisted on + uttering the blessing. Now the point at issue was whether they could + be permitted to say, for instance, <span class="tei tei-q">“Blessed + art Thou, O Lord our God, etc., who hast sanctified us by Thy + Commandments, and <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">hast commanded us</span></em>, concerning the + taking of the Palm branch,”</span> since in reality the women had + <em class="tei tei-emph"><span style= + "font-style: italic">not</span></em> been commanded to do it. To such + logical and systematic minds as Maimonides and R. Joseph Caro, the + difficulty was insurmountable, and they forbade women to use the + formula; but with the less consistent majority women carried their + point. Rather interesting is the answer received by R. Jacob, of + Corbeil, with regard to this question. This Rabbi is said to have + enjoyed the mysterious power which enabled him to appeal in cases of + doubt to the celestial authorities. Before them he put also this + women's case for decision. Judgment was communicated to him in the + verse from the Scriptures, <span class="tei tei-q">“In all that Sarah + saith unto Thee, hearken <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page323">[pg + 323]</span><a name="Pg323" id="Pg323" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + unto her voice”</span> (Gen. xxi. 12). Nor was it unknown for a pious + Jew to compose a special hymn for his wife's use in honour of the + Sabbath.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">How long this + custom of women praying in the vernacular lasted, we have no means of + ascertaining. Probably was already extinct about the end of the + fifteenth century. For R. Solomon Portaleone, who lived in the + sixteenth century, already regrets the abolition of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“this beautiful and worthy custom.”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“When they prayed in the vernacular,”</span> he says, + <span class="tei tei-q">“they understood what they were saying, + whilst now they only gabble off their prayers.”</span> As a sort of + compromise we may regard the various <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Supplications”</span>;<a id="noteref_265" name= + "noteref_265" href="#note_265"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">265</span></span></a> they + form a kind of additional prayers supplementary to the ordinary + liturgy, and are written in German. Chiefly composed by women, they + specially answer the needs of the sex on various occasions. These + prayers deserve a full description by themselves, into which I cannot + enter here; I should like only to mention that in one of these + collections in the British Museum, a special supplication is added + for servant-maids, and if I am not quite mistaken, also one for their + mistresses.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is also worth + noticing that the manuals on the <span class="tei tei-q">“Three + Women's Commandments”</span> (mostly composed in German, sometimes + also in rhymes), contained much more than their titles would suggest. + They rather served as headings to groups of laws, arranged under each + commandment. Thus the first (about certain laws in Lev. xii. and xv.) + becomes the motto for purity in body and soul; the second (the + consecration of the first cake of the dough) includes all matters + relating to charity, in which women were even reminded to encourage + their newly married husbands not to withhold from the poor the + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page324">[pg 324]</span><a name="Pg324" + id="Pg324" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> tithes of the bridal dowry, as + well as of their future yearly income; whilst the third (the lighting + of the Sabbath lamp) becomes the symbol for spiritual light and + sweetness in every relation of human life.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">As another + compromise may also be considered the institution of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Vorsugern”</span> (woman-reader) or the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Woilkennivdicke”</span> (the well-knowing one) who reads + the prayers and translates them into the vernacular for the benefit + of her less learned sisters. In Poland and in Russia, even at the + present time, such a woman-reader is to be found in every synagogue, + and from what I have heard the institution is by no means unknown in + London. The various prayer-books containing the Hebrew text as well + as the Jewish-German translation, which appear in such frequent + editions in Russia, are mostly intended for the use of these praying + women. Not uninteresting is the title-page of R. Aaron Ben Samuel's + Jewish-German translations and collections of prayers which appeared + in the beginning of the eighteenth century. He addressed the Jewish + public in the following terms: <span class="tei tei-q">“My dear + brethren, buy this lovely prayer-book or wholesome tonic for body and + soul, which has never appeared in such German print since the world + began; and make your wives and children read it often, thus they will + refresh their bodies and souls, for this light will shine forth into + your very hearts. As soon as the children read it they will + understand their prayers, by which they will enjoy both this world + and the world to come.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">An earlier + translator of the prayer-book addresses himself directly to the + <span class="tei tei-q">“pious women”</span> whom he invites to buy + his book, <span class="tei tei-q">“in which they will see very + beautiful things.”</span> Recent centuries seem, on the whole, to + have been distinguished <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page325">[pg + 325]</span><a name="Pg325" id="Pg325" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> for + the number of praying-women they produced. The virtues which + constituted the claim of women to religious distinction were modesty, + charity, and daily attendance at the synagogue morning and evening. + In the memorial books of the time hundreds of such women are noticed. + Some used also to spin the <span class="tei tei-q">“Fringes,”</span> + which they presented to their friends; others fasted frequently, + whilst <span class="tei tei-q">“Old Mrs. Hechele”</span> not only + attended the synagogue every day, and did charity to poor and rich, + but also understood the art of midwifery, which she practised in the + community without accepting payment for her services. According to R. + Ch. J. Bachrach women used also to say the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Magnified”</span> prayer in the synagogue when their + parents left no male posterity.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">In bringing to a + close this very incomplete sketch, perhaps I ought to notice the + confirmation of girls introduced during this century in some + communities in Germany, which the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Reformed”</span> Rabbis recommended, but of which the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Orthodox”</span> Rabbis disapproved. It + would be well if in the heat of such controversies both sides would + remember the words of R. Zedekiah b. Abraham, of Rome, who with + regard to a certain difference of opinion on some ritual question, + says: <span class="tei tei-q">“Every man receives reward from God for + what he is convinced is the right thing, if this conviction has no + other motive but the love of God.”</span></p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page326">[pg 326]</span><a name= + "Pg326" id="Pg326" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-top: 5.00em; margin-bottom: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc31" id="toc31"></a> <a name="pdf32" id="pdf32"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">XIV. The Earliest Jewish Community in + Europe</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Roman Judaism has + disappeared from our guide-books. Civilisation has levelled down the + walls of the Ghetto, and its former inhabitants are not any longer + <span class="tei tei-q">“a people that dwell alone.”</span> But with + this well-deserved destruction a good deal of the interest was also + destroyed which the traveller used to attach to <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the peculiar people”</span> enclosed in that terrible + slum of Rome.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Still, if there is + anything eternal in the <span class="tei tei-q">“eternal + city,”</span> which was neither reconstructed by the Cæsars, nor + improved upon by the Popes, it is the little Jewish community at + Rome. It has survived the former; it has suffered for many centuries + under the latter, and, partaking in the general revival which has + come upon the Italian nation, it may still be destined for a great + future. Indeed, the history of the relation of Israel to Rome is so + old that it is not lacking even in legendary elements. On the day on + which King Solomon married the daughter of Pharaoh, the Rabbis + narrate, there came down the angel Gabriel. He put a reed into the + sea, which, by means of the slime that adhered to it, formed itself, + in the course of time, into a large island, on which the city of Rome + was built—an event with which the troubles of Israel began. These + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page327">[pg 327]</span><a name="Pg327" + id="Pg327" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> were the evil consequences of + the first <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">mésalliance</span></span>. Even more unfortunate + for Israel (and it is not impossible that this is the meaning of the + legend) were the results of that spiritual mixed marriage between + Judaism and paganism which took place at a much later period, whereat + a blunt soldier, who sympathised with neither, and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“who dealt in salvation as he dealt in provinces,”</span> + acted as best man. As a fact, the parties concerned never understood + each other properly. The declaration of love, and the final proposal, + were made in an Alexandrine jargon, strange to both, the obscurities + of which only grew with the commentaries each successive generation + added to them. Under such circumstances, a happy union was not to be + expected, and the family quarrel which fills the annals of civilised + Europe soon broke out. Judaism, more particularly Roman Judaism, + witnessed this struggle from the beginning, and its fortunes were + greatly dependent on the chance which of these two elements, the + Jewish or the pagan, won the ascendency.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, I am + theologising too much, whilst I am deviating from the subject of + these lines. Nor could I think of giving here, even in outline, the + history of the oldest Jewish community in Europe. This has been + already admirably done by Dr. A. Berliner, who has made the history + of the Jews of Rome the subject of his studies for nearly a quarter + of a century. I intend only to reproduce here, in a stray fashion, + some of those impressions and reflections which, I am certain, must + occur to every Jewish traveller in Italy.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Now I do not think + for a moment that we Jews should have a point of view of our own for + looking at things and men in this paradise of Europe. It would be as + silly to <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page328">[pg + 328]</span><a name="Pg328" id="Pg328" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + have a Jewish Baedeker as to think of orthodox mathematics or an + ecclesiastical logic or a racial morality—though unfortunately there + exist such things. But on the other hand, if we have not, like the + fox in the fable, left our heart at home, let us not do violence to + our feelings by passing over everything Jewish, over sights which + might remind us of our history, with a certain indifference which + would be affected on our part. We are not all little Goethes, nor + even little Ruskins, and our artistic enjoyment is hardly so intense + as to shut our hearts against impressions which force themselves upon + us either by the way of remembrance of the past, or even as a living + contrast in the present.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It so happened + that my first visit to the Vatican was on a Friday. After doing my + work in the Vatican Library, which is open till noon, I went into the + adjoining Church of St. Peter.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">One should be, + like the angel of death in the legend, full of eyes, properly to see + all the wonders of art and marvels of architecture at which human + genius and piety laboured busily through centuries, in adorning the + grandest of sacred buildings in the world. But there is Baedeker or + Murray serving at least as a pair of good spectacles to the layman, + and it was by their aid that I made my round in St. Peter. But lo, + whilst you are observing the celebrated Pietà by Michael Angelo, and, + according to the instruction of your guides, admiring both the grief + of the Mother and the death of the Son, you notice in its vicinity a + little column, surrounded by rails to which the pilgrims approach + with a certain awe; for <span class="tei tei-q">“Tradition affirms it + to have been brought from Jerusalem.”</span> Naturally, one is + instantly reminded of the report, given by the <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page329">[pg 329]</span><a name="Pg329" id="Pg329" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> famous traveller of Tudela, of the + curiosities of Rome, which among other things records, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“That there are also to be seen in St. Giovanni in Porta + Latina (probably meant for Lateran) the two brazen pillars, + constructed by King Solomon of blessed memory, whose name, Solomon, + the son of David, is engraved upon each; of which he was also told + that every year about the 9th of Ab (the anniversary of the + destruction of Jerusalem), these pillars sweat so much that water + runs down from them.”</span> So far Benjamin of Tudela in the twelfth + century. In our days pillars weep no longer, and even of men it is + considered a special sign of good breeding to behave pillar-like; but + a sigh is still permissible at the sight of this temple-column, which + in its captivity symbolises, not less than the Pietà, the grief of a + whole people. Of course, not possessing on the spot either the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Itinerary</span></span> or even Urlick, one is + unable to establish the connection between these two traditions and + their claim to authenticity. Perhaps one may even comfort oneself on + the same ground on which the famous curé tried to appease his flock + who were sobbing bitterly at his telling them the Passion story. He + exclaimed: <span class="tei tei-q">“My children, do not weep so much; + it happened long ago, and even perhaps is not quite true.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, the + Vatican is the last place in the world to exercise your critical + faculties; you are so deeply absorbed in seeing, that you have no + time to think. So on I went, from aisle to aisle, from niche to + niche, from chapel to chapel, looking, staring, and admiring, till of + a sudden my eyes were struck by a large statue, on which the words, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Thou shalt have no other God before + me,”</span> are engraved. There I stood before a question of + exegesis, where one is <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page330">[pg + 330]</span><a name="Pg330" id="Pg330" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + permitted to use his right senses without any regard to the æsthetic + side. Yet not all the manifold expositions of the Decalogue, nor all + the talk about the subjective-objective, the absolute and the real, + with which metaphysicians have tried to confuse the notion of the + Unity of God, will reconcile one to the meaning which Mediæval Art + has impressed upon the Ten Commandments. The truth has to be sought + elsewhere, and thus my thoughts were turned to the synagogue, and + thither I went.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The day was + already drawing to its close, and, by a marvellous coincidence, I + arrived at the synagogue just as the congregation was intoning the + words: <span class="tei tei-q">“The Lord is one, and His name is one + to His renown and glory.”</span> Here was sound, simple exegesis, + though sadly lacking in the illustrative matter in which the Vatican + is so rich. But what need was there of any real or artificial + <span class="tei tei-q">“aid to the believer,”</span> in the presence + of such a living faith, as enabled this little community to maintain + its protesting position in the teeth of the mistress of the world! + And this even at a time, when it only required a hint from the + successors of the old Roman Emperors to make the whole world renounce + its right of thinking and judging, and, were we to believe Herr + Janssen, even to feel perfectly happy in this torpor.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">But, by the way, + are our own times much better? As I write these lines (October 1893) + I hear that a Bill has been brought into the German Diet, asking that + the Talmud should be submitted to a Commission (which <span class= + "tei tei-foreign"><span style="font-style: italic">en + passant</span></span>, has been sitting in unbroken session in that + country since the days of Pfefferkorn in the fifteenth century) with + the purpose of examining its contents, while in the Vatican the very + pupils of Loyola are offering every convenience <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page331">[pg 331]</span><a name="Pg331" id="Pg331" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> and comfort to the student who should + care to devote his time to Rabbinic literature. Does not the work of + a great number of our poets, historians, theologians, and so-called + seers in this blessed century of ours, in many respects prove but a + strained effort to destroy the few humanitarian principles which were + established a few generations ago, as well as to deify every brutal + warrior who was successful in his day? Again, is the national idea so + much sublimer, so much grander, than that of a universal religion, + that we would willingly permit the former to employ the means which + have been denied to the latter as inhuman and barbarous? Every age + has its own idolatry, and the eternal wandering Jew will always be + the chosen victim of the Moloch in fashion.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">Let us, however, + return to the synagogue, which withstood many a cruelty, both ancient + and modern. The place where the synagogue stands is near the Ghetto, + now called Piazza di Scuola. It is, besides a few other communal + houses, the only building left there,—all those narrow, dirty, and + typhoid-breeding streets which formed the old Ghetto having been + demolished by a sage and humane government, which by this action + wiped out the last stain from its history. There, on this vast blank + is the synagogue, a comparatively small, insignificant building, + laden with heavy age and looking down on her children whom she has + been nursing, consoling, and protecting for centuries, but who, now + grown old, have forsaken her and scattered to all the ends of the + city. Of all her former acquaintances there appears to be left only + father Tiber, who would seem to be murmuring to her many an old tale + of the times before she was called into existence. And if he listened + to the special prayers <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page332">[pg + 332]</span><a name="Pg332" id="Pg332" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + recited within her walls by the deputies of the Jewish communities, + when preparing themselves to go to the court of the Pope, the Tiber + heard many a sigh and cry, wrung out from the heart of a Jewish + captive who, preferring death to slavery even under the masters of + the world, found his last repose in its waters. But insignificant as + this synagogue appears, she proved the spiritual bulwark against all + the attacks of the time, and you admire her brave resistance all the + more when you look at that multitude of churches and cloisters in the + closest vicinity of the Ghetto, impressing you as so many + intrenchments, all directing their missiles and weapons against this + humble, defenceless building, threatening it with death and + destruction. One of these churches, probably founded by some Jewish + convert, who gained in it both salvation and a good living, bears on + its gates in Hebrew letters the inscription: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious + people, which walketh in the way that was not good, after their own + thoughts. A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my + face”</span> (Isaiah lxv. 2, 3). Menace is followed by persuasion, + the cited verses being accompanied by the Latin words: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Indulgentia plenaria quotodiana perpetua pro vivis et + defunctis.”</span> Theologians who like to quarrel most about things + they can know least, have for ages discussed the question, whether + prayers for the dead are of any use; here the matter is decided by a + simple advertisement. It is not to be denied that one would enjoy the + fortunes accumulated by one's late sinner of an uncle all the better + for being sure that a few pennyworths of prayer enable the legatee to + make one's benefactor in Hades comfortable and happy.</p><span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page333">[pg 333]</span><a name="Pg333" id="Pg333" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The thought is + very consoling indeed, and it is not to be wondered at that the Roman + synagogue could not entirely withstand its temptations, and + introduced into the offering-blessing after one is called up to the + Torah, the words: <span class="tei tei-q">“To the advancing of the + soul of the departed.”</span> Of course much of this tendency may be + attributed to the Ford Jabbok,<a id="noteref_266" name="noteref_266" + href="#note_266"><span class="tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">266</span></span></a> which + was and is still very popular in that country; but the fact that the + author of this Jewish <span class="tei tei-q">“Book of the + Dead”</span> was an Italian (from Modena), shows clearly that there + was some Catholic influence at work, from which even the + fellow-countrymen of Azariah de Rossi and Judah Messer Leon could not + entirely emancipate themselves.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">I ought to have + spoken of Roman synagogues, since the building in the Ghetto to which + I have been constantly alluding comprises four prayer-houses devoted + to Spanish and Italian rites. It says much for Roman Judaism, that + they did not consider ritual differences of such importance as to + prevent them from forming one community for all charitable and + congregational purposes. In Verona and in Modena some congregations + even retained the German rite, which their ancestors who immigrated + from the Rhine provinces brought with them, whilst they accepted the + Spanish pronunciation. I wish that the Anglo-Jewish community could + see their way to imitate their example. Not that I think for a moment + that the Spanish pronunciation is more correct than the German. Each + system has its own mistakes and corruptions; and it is more than + probable that the prophet Isaiah, or even the author of Ecclesiastes, + would be as little able to follow the prayers in Bevis Marks as in + Duke's Place. But since the non-Jewish scientific world has, though + only by pure <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page334">[pg + 334]</span><a name="Pg334" id="Pg334" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + accident, accepted the Spanish way of reading the Hebrew, I should + like to see this trifling difference of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ba</span></span>ruch + over <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bu</span></span>ruch at last disappear, by + pronouncing the camets-vowel <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span> instead of <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">o</span></span>, and + accepting similar little changes, which are of no real importance to + us.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The inside of + these synagogues is even more simple than their outside. I was told + that the synagogue which was burned down last winter, and which also + formed a part of this building, could boast of many fine decorations + and carvings, etc., but I could observe nothing of the kind in the + synagogues I had occasion to frequent. Nor is there much of natural + decorum in them, and they reconcile one perfectly to the worst of the + Small Synagogues elsewhere. I venture to think that in this respect, + too, we have to recognise Catholic influence. It was, I think, one of + the leaders in the Oxford Movement who expressed his delight at + seeing in Italy a woman poorly-dressed coming into the church, who, + after putting down the basket from her back, kneels before one of the + many altars and says her prayers. A good deal of this familiarity in + the place of worship may also be noticed in the Roman synagogues, + where I have seen a woman come into the partition for men, + notwithstanding their having a separate gallery, without bonnet or + hat on her head, and with an infant in her arms, and listen there to + the prayers, till she walked home with her husband. The other people + were also very restless, coming and going often, whilst, as soon as + the reading of the Law was over, the greater part of the worshippers + left the synagogue. It was not a very delightful sight. A minus of + decorum does not always mean a plus of devotion; just as little as a + maximum of respectability and stiffness are to be taken as signs of + true piety.</p><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page335">[pg + 335]</span><a name="Pg335" id="Pg335" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It is not + uninteresting to notice that the Roman synagogue, in spite of its old + traditions, did not entirely shut itself against modern reforms. + Among them there is that of <span class="tei tei-q">“calling up the + people to the Torah”</span> by the simple formula, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Let the Priest”</span> (or <span class="tei tei-q">“the + Levite”</span>) <span class="tei tei-q">“step forth,”</span><a id= + "noteref_267" name="noteref_267" href="#note_267"><span class= + "tei tei-noteref"><span style= + "font-size: 60%; vertical-align: super">267</span></span></a> and so + on, not mentioning either names or titles, which I should like to + recommend most strongly to our congregations. I hope that no man will + suspect me of such heresy as that of questioning the wisdom of the + Synagogue Regulations. But I am inclined to think that the business + of conferring the degrees of <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Rabbi</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Associate”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Master,”</span> does not exactly fall within the sphere + of activity of the Wardens. The matter could only be decided by a + proper Board of examination. As the Council is not provided with such + a Board, nor is every aspirant to this honour prepared to undergo the + examination required, the wisest course would be to give up titles + altogether, calling up all people alike in the way indicated.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The robes the + ministers wear (somewhat similar to those of the Greek clergy), are + probably also an innovation of modern date,—the old orthodox Rabbis + looking at any special vestment for the Preacher or Reader with the + same feeling of disgust which the old Puritans entertained for + surplice or mitre. But the principle of <span class="tei tei-q">“The + Beauty of Holiness”</span> proved too strong for resistance, and it + was only a pardonable vanity when the reformers applied it to their + own persons; <span class="tei tei-q">“Vanity of vanities,”</span> + saith the preacher, so often, that he gets rather to like it. This + vanity is greatly redeemed by the fact that the preacher does not + grudge his uniform to his humbler brother, the beadle, who is in most + cases to be distinguished from the officiating ministry only by the + brass-plate on his breast, <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page336">[pg + 336]</span><a name="Pg336" id="Pg336" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> on + which the word <span class="tei tei-q">“Servant”</span> is engraved. + Considering the great confusion arising from the meaningless + <span class="tei tei-q">“Reverend”</span> and the universal white + neck-tie, such a label, indicating the proper office of the bearer, + might, perhaps, prove as useful among the English Jews as it is among + the Jews of Rome.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">It was with a + pupil of the Rabbinical College, in company with his friends, that I + took my first walk through ancient Rome. I felt attracted to him by + his striking face of that peculiar fine Jewish type, which is more + common among the Jews in the East than among us. And when he was + reading the lesson from the Prophets in the synagogue, where I made + his acquaintance, he reminded me of that Jewish boy with bright eyes, + black curls, and features strikingly beautiful walking as a captive + from Jerusalem through the streets of Rome some seventeen centuries + ago, whose proficiency in the words of Isaiah caused his redemption. + It would be an exaggeration to say that my companion's remarks were + very instructive from an artistic point of view. Being born and bred + in Rome, he passed with utter indifference many objects which we are + bidden to admire, whilst at others he actually shouted out + <span class="tei tei-q">“Image,”</span> or made some other prosaic + remark. But in a country where one is determined to play the heathen + for so many weeks, to worship superannuated deities, to get into + raptures at every reminiscence of superseded and vanishing religions, + and to be delighted at the sights of <span class="tei tei-q">“greasy + saints and martyrs hairy,”</span> there can be no great harm in being + called back to one's true nature.</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">The feelings + crowding upon one, when entering that part of the ancient city which + probably was in the mind of the Rabbis when they spoke of + <span class="tei tei-q">“Guilty Rome,”</span> are <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page337">[pg 337]</span><a name="Pg337" id="Pg337" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> of a conflicting nature. Every stone and + every brick there saw the humiliation of Israel, in every theatre and + every circus the Jew served as a comic figure, and was held up to + ridicule, whilst there was, perhaps, hardly a single lane or gate + through which those who resented the yoke of the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“anti-Semites of Antiquity”</span> did not pass, in order + to <span class="tei tei-q">“be butchered to make a Roman + holiday.”</span> What concerns a Jew most in this perished world of + ruins, and at the same time causes him the deepest grief, is the + triumphal arch of Titus, <span class="tei tei-q">“commemorating the + defeat of the Jews, and dedicated to him by his successor, + Domitian.”</span> Enough has been said and written about it both by + antiquarians and theologians, the former admiring the workmanship of + the reliefs, the latter perceiving in it a proof of the fulfilment of + the well-known passages in the New Testament about the destruction of + the Temple, which came to pass in spite of the efforts made by Titus + to save it. Those who have read Bernay's essay on the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chronik des Sulpicius Severus”</span> know that the + behaviour of <span class="tei tei-q">“the delight of the human + species”</span> on that occasion is rather open to doubt, and it is + more probable that, instead of trying to rescue it, he commanded that + it should be set on fire. Josephus, who witnessed the shame of his + compatriots and co-religionists, has left us a full account of the + triumphal procession. Only a flunkey like Josephus could maintain + that calm indifference with which he describes the events of the + <span class="tei tei-q">“bitter day,”</span> the perusal of which + makes one's blood boil. His description fairly agrees with the famous + relief on the arch, showing that part of the procession in which the + table with the shewbread, the candlestick with the seven lamps, and + the golden trumpets figure as the chief objects. <span class= + "tei tei-pb" id="page338">[pg 338]</span><a name="Pg338" id="Pg338" + class="tei tei-anchor"></a> The only thing which we miss is the + <span class="tei tei-q">“Law of the Jews,”</span> which, according to + Josephus, was carried in the triumph as <span class="tei tei-q">“the + last of all the spoils.”</span> Was it only an oversight of the + artist, or had he no place for it, or is it Josephus who committed + the error, mistaking some other object for the Scroll of the Law? I + dearly hope that this last was the case, and that Heine was under the + impulse of a true and real and poetic inspiration when he wrote + (speaking of the Holy Scripture to which he owed his conversion): + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Jews, who appreciate the value of + precious things, knew right well what they did when, at the burning + of the second temple they left to their fate the golden and silver + implements of sacrifice, the candlesticks and lamps, even the + breastplate of the High Priest adorned with great jewels, but saved + the Bible. This was the real treasure of the temple, and, thanks be + to God! it was not left a prey to the flames, nor to the fury of + Titus Vespasian, the wretch, who, as the Rabbi tells us, met with so + dreadful a death.”</span></p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, there + were others who brought the glad tidings of the Old Testament to Rome + long before there existed a New one. And this is, on the other side, + what makes Rome a sort of Terra Sancta even to the Jew. It is true + that we have not to look for the footprints of the prophets, for whom + even tradition never claimed <span class="tei tei-q">“the gift of + missionary-travelling.”</span> But might not the ground there have + received a sort of consecration by the fact that it was traversed by + the ambassadors of Judas Maccabæus (about 161 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span>) <span class= + "tei tei-q">“to make a league of amity and confederacy”</span> with + the Roman Senate? Of the embassy of Simon the Maccabee (about 140 + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span>) there is actual + historical evidence that they began to propagate in Rome the Jewish + <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page339">[pg 339]</span><a name="Pg339" + id="Pg339" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> religion. Some seventy or + eighty years later the Jews had already their own quarter in Rome, + with their own synagogues, which they were in the habit of visiting, + <span class="tei tei-q">“most especially on the sacred Sabbath days, + when they publicly cultivate their national philosophy.”</span> That + many of the oldest teachers of Israel, the Tannaim, went to Rome as + deputies, and that one of them (R. Mathia ben Chares) founded a + school there early in the second century, is also an authenticated + fact. One would like to know what they taught, and in what way they + expounded their <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">national philosophy</span></span>. Most of all + one would like to know what were the spiritual means they employed in + their proselytising work, in which they were, according to the + testimony of history, so successful. Did they preach in the streets? + Or did they hold public controversies? Or did they even send out + Epistles which, in form at least, served as a model to apostles of + another creed? How many a problem would be solved; how many a miracle + would disappear; how many a book would become superfluous, if we + could obtain certainty about these points! The Talmud tells us + little, almost nothing, about these important things, whilst we get + from the Roman writers only sneers and raillery. To these respectable + Romans the Jews were only a mob of unlettered atheists. Indeed, to a + good orthodox heathen, a religion without images and statues, with a + God without a pedigree and without a theogony, was an impossible + thing. Those poor metaphysicians!</p> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">However, why dwell + so long on a past world? A famous Rabbi once exclaimed: <span class= + "tei tei-q">“If a man would ask thee, <span class="tei tei-q">‘Where + is thy God?’</span> answer him: <span class="tei tei-q">‘In the great + city of Rome.’</span> ”</span> The underlying idea was the mystical + notion <span class="tei tei-pb" id="page340">[pg 340]</span><a name= + "Pg340" id="Pg340" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> that wherever Israel + had to migrate, they were accompanied by the Divine presence. And + Rome was, in the times of the Rabbis, the point to which the streams + of Jewish migration from the Holy Land chiefly converged. But now, + instead of to Rome, might we not point to London and New York as + centres of Jewish migrations?</p> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page361">[pg 361]</span><a name= + "Pg361" id="Pg361" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + <hr class="page" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc33" id="toc33"></a> <a name="pdf34" id="pdf34"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Index</span></h1> + + <p class="tei tei-p" style="margin-bottom: 1.00em">This Index + contains the most important names of persons, titles of books, + technical terms and Hebrew words occurring in the text. In the notes + to the text, the Hebrew words are for the most part given also in + Hebrew characters.</p> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abarbanel, Isaac, <a href="#Pg173" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">173</a>, <a href="#Pg174" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">174</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abaye, <a href="#Pg311" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">311</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Ab Beth + Din</span></span>, <a href="#Pg084" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">84</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abba Mari b. Moses, <a href="#Pg165" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">165</a>, <a href="#Pg179" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">179</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abba Tachnah, the Chassid, <a href="#Pg221" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">221</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham, Baalshem's father-in-law, <a href="#Pg007" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">7</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham, son of Elijah Wilna, <a href="#Pg088" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">88</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham of Bedres, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham Abulaphia, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham Ibn Daud, <a href="#Pg162" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">162</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham Ibn Ezra, <a href="#Pg050" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">50</a>, <a href="#Pg052" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">52</a>, <a href="#Pg064" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg071" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">71</a>, <a href= + "#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">210</a>, + <a href="#Pg314" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">314</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abraham b. Shem—Tob Bibago, <a href="#Pg172" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">172</a>, <a href="#Pg173" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">173</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abtalyon, <a href="#Pg186" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">186</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Abuha, <a href="#Pg311" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">311</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Acha, <a href="#Pg310" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">310</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Acher</span></span>, <a href="#Pg292" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">292</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Adam, Primal</span></span>, <a href="#Pg239" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">239</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Agadah</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Agadoth</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg105" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">105</a>, <a href="#Pg183" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">183</a>, <a href="#Pg197" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">197</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Agadic</span></span>, <a href="#Pg110" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">110</a>, <a href= + "#Pg156" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">156</a>, + <a href="#Pg157" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">157</a>, <a href="#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">193</a>, <a href="#Pg262" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">262</a>, <a href="#Pg279" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">279</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ages of Man</span></span>, <a href="#Pg295" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">295</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Akabyah b. Mahalaleel, <a href="#Pg305" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">305</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Akiba, <a href="#Pg070" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">70</a>, <a href="#Pg084" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">84</a>, <a href="#Pg130" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">130</a>, <a href="#Pg188" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">188</a>, <a href= + "#Pg190" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">190</a>, + <a href="#Pg194" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">194</a>, <a href="#Pg220" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">220</a>, <a href="#Pg227" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">227</a>, <a href="#Pg228" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">228</a>, <a href= + "#Pg234" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">234</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Almemor</span></span>, <a href="#Pg302" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">302</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ammi, <a href="#Pg214" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">214</a>, <a href="#Pg217" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">217</a>, <a href="#Pg226" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">226</a>, <a href="#Pg231" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">231</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Amora</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Amoraim</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg017" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">17</a>, <a href="#Pg084" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">84</a>, <a href="#Pg195" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">195</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Amram Gaon, <a href="#Pg293" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">293</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Anna of Kaidon, wife of Elijah Wilna, <a href="#Pg082" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">82</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Anselm, St., of Canterbury, <a href="#Pg079" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">79</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Antigonos of Socho, <a href="#Pg229" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">229</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Anti-Maimonists, <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Aristotle, <a href="#Pg079" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">79</a>, <a href="#Pg167" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">167</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Aryeh Leb, son of Elijah Wilna, <a href="#Pg088" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">88</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ascension of Elijah</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg075" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">75</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Asher b. Jechiel, <a href="#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Assideans, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Ayil + Meshulash</span></span>, <a href="#Pg081" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">81</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Azariah de Rossi, <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a>, <a href="#Pg071" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">71</a>, <a href="#Pg105" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">105</a>, <a href="#Pg333" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">333</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Aziluth</span></span>, <a href="#Pg117" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">117</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Azulai, <a href="#Pg277" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">277</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <a name="Index-Baalshem" id="Index-Baalshem" class= + "tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baalshem</span></span>, Israel, <a href= + "#Pg003" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">3-12</a>, + <a href="#Pg014" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">14-35</a>, <a href="#Pg073" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">73</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Bachrach, Ch. J., <a href="#Pg325" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">325</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bachur</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Bachurim</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg095" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">95</a>, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">97</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Bachya, <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">131</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baraitha</span></span>, <a href="#Pg271" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">271</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Baruch + Sheamar</span></span>, <a href="#Pg311" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">311</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Bashazi, <a href="#Pg161" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">161</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bath-Kol</span></span>, <a href="#Pg190" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">190</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Beer of Mizriez, <a href="#Pg011" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">11</a>, <a href="#Pg037" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">37</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Beer, Peter, <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ben Azzai, <a href="#Pg130" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">130</a>, <a href="#Pg216" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">216</a>, <a href="#Pg319" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">319</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Benjamin of Tudela, <a href="#Pg329" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">329</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ben-Jacob, <a href="#Pg259" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">259</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ben Sira, <a href="#Pg297" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">297</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ben Zoma, <a href="#Pg130" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">130</a> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page362">[pg 362]</span><a name= + "Pg362" id="Pg362" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bereshith</span></span>, <a href="#Pg127" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">127</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berith Milah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg288" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">288</a>, <a href= + "#Pg292" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">292</a>, + <a href="#Pg293" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">293</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Berliner, A., <a href="#Pg327" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">327</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Bernays, Isaak, <a href="#Pg337" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">337</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Din</span></span>, <a href="#Pg191" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">191-193</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Hammidrash</span></span>, <a href="#Pg007" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">7</a>, <a href="#Pg016" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">16</a>, <a href="#Pg084" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">84</a>, <a href= + "#Pg139" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">139</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Talmud</span></span>, <a href="#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Biccurim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg058" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Bloch, Samson, <a href="#Pg051" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">51</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Bodek, A., <a href="#Pg051" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">51</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Book of Brightness</span></span> + (<span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">see</span></span> <a href="#Index-Zohar" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">Zohar</a>) + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Book of the Pious</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg295" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">295</a>, + <a href="#Pg322" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">322</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Book of Victory</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg167" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">167</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Book of Weight</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Boswell, <a href="#Pg142" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">142</a>, <a href="#Pg197" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">197</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Buckle, <a href="#Pg096" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">96</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Burbot</span></span>, <a href="#Pg138" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">138</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Buzagli, the Cabbalist, <a href="#Pg310" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">310</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Cabbalah, Cabbalists, <a href="#Pg099" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">99</a>, <a href="#Pg128" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">128</a>, <a href="#Pg129" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">129</a>, <a href="#Pg133" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">133</a>, <a href= + "#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">210</a>, + <a href="#Pg283" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">283</a>, <a href="#Pg315" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">315</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Cabod</span></span>, <a href="#Pg120" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">120</a>, <a href="#Pg121" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">121</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Caraites, <a href="#Pg048" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">48</a>, <a href="#Pg160" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">160</a>, <a href="#Pg161" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">161</a>, <a href="#Pg207" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">207</a>, <a href= + "#Pg208" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">208</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Casaubon, Isaac, <a href="#Pg259" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">259</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chagigah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg077" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">77</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chakhamim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg057" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">57</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chambers</span></span>, the, <a href= + "#Pg208" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">208</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Chanina b. Dossa, <a href="#Pg217" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">217</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chanukah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg138" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">138</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chapters of R. Eliezer the + Great</span></span>, <a href="#Pg068" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">68</a>, <a href="#Pg069" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">69</a>, <a href="#Pg316" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">316</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Chasdai Ibn Crescas, <a href="#Pg167" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">167-173</a>, <a href="#Pg180" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">180</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chassidim</span></span>, Chassid, Chassidic, + Chassidism, <a href="#Pg001" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">1-4</a>, <a href="#Pg011" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">11</a>, <a href="#Pg012" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">12</a>, <a href="#Pg014" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">14-16</a>, <a href= + "#Pg021" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">21</a>, + <a href="#Pg022" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">22</a>, <a href="#Pg025" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">25-27</a>, <a href="#Pg030" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">30</a>, <a href="#Pg033" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">33</a>, <a href= + "#Pg035" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">35-41</a>, + <a href="#Pg043" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">43-45</a>, <a href="#Pg053" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">53</a>, <a href="#Pg073" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">73</a>, <a href= + "#Pg090" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">90</a>, + <a href="#Pg298" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">298</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Chayim Vital, <a href="#Pg099" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">99</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Chayim Walosin, <a href="#Pg085" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">85</a>, <a href="#Pg087" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">87</a>, <a href="#Pg094" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">94</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Chisda, <a href="#Pg307" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">307</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chukkim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg124" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">124</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Code of the Law</span></span>, by Caro, + <a href="#Pg075" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">75</a>, <a href="#Pg092" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">92</a>, <a href="#Pg206" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">206</a>, <a href="#Pg211" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">211</a>, <a href= + "#Pg257" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">257</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Collectanea</span></span>, <a href="#Pg144" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">144</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Commentary on the Pentateuch</span></span>, + by Nachmanides, <a href="#Pg107" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">107</a>, <a href="#Pg108" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">108</a>, <a href="#Pg123" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">123</a>, <a href="#Pg135" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">135</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Creeds and Opinions</span></span>, by + Saadiah Gaon, <a href="#Pg162" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">162</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Crown</span></span>, <a href="#Pg239" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">239</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Cusari</span></span>, <a href="#Pg162" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">162</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Date of the Redemption</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg105" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">105</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + David Rocca Martino, <a href="#Pg230" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">230</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + David Messer Leon, <a href="#Pg174" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">174</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + David b. Samuel d'Estella, <a href="#Pg165" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">165</a>, <a href="#Pg166" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">166</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + David b. Yom-Tob Bilia, <a href="#Pg166" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">166</a>. + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Defence of Adam</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg230" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">230</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Delmedigo, <a href="#Pg071" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">71</a>, <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">131</a>, <a href="#Pg175" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">175</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Disputation</span></span>, by Nachmanides, + <a href="#Pg103" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">103</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Dukes, L., <a href="#Pg260" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">260</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eighteen Benedictions</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg083" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">83</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eleazar, <a href="#Pg229" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">229</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eleazar b. Jacob, <a href="#Pg225" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">225</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eliezer, father of Baalshem, <a href="#Pg005" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">5</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eliezer b. Hyrkanos, <a href="#Pg189" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">189</a>, <a href="#Pg319" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">319</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eliezer b. Samuel Hallevi, <a href="#Pg145" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">145</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eliezer b. Simeon, <a href="#Pg223" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">223</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Elijah Levita, <a href="#Pg268" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">268</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Elijah Wilna, <a href="#Pg057" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">57</a>, <a href="#Pg073" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">73-77</a>, <a href="#Pg081" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81-92</a>, <a href= + "#Pg096" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">96</a>, + <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">97</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Elisha b. Abuyah, <a href="#Pg033" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">33</a>, <a href="#Pg130" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">130</a>, <a href="#Pg292" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">292</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Emden, Jacob, <a href="#Pg010" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">10</a>, <a href="#Pg259" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">259</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Epikurus</span></span>, <a href="#Pg157" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">157</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Erech + Millin</span></span>, <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Erter, Isaac, <a href="#Pg051" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">51</a>, <a href="#Pg059" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">59</a>, <a href="#Pg288" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">288</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Essenes, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">185</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Examination of the World</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">97</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Eybeschütz, J., <a href="#Pg010" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">10</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ezra, or Azriel, the mystic, <a href="#Pg100" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">100</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Faithful City</span></span>, the, <a href= + "#Pg075" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">75</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Fichte, <a href="#Pg051" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">51</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Finn, <a href="#Pg075" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">75</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ford Jabbok</span></span>, <a href="#Pg333" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">333</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Frankists, <a href="#Pg010" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">10</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Frankl, Z., <a href="#Pg065" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">65</a>, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">97</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Fürst, J., <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Gamaliel I., <a href="#Pg234" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">234</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Gamaliel II., <a href="#Pg194" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">194</a>, <a href="#Pg212" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">212</a> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page363">[pg 363]</span><a name= + "Pg363" id="Pg363" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-foreign" style= + "text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gaon</span></span>, pl. <span class= + "tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gaonim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg073" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">73</a>, <a href= + "#Pg076" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">76-78</a>, + <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg098" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">98</a>, <a href="#Pg206" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">206</a>, <a href="#Pg208" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">208</a>, <a href= + "#Pg209" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">209</a>, + <a href="#Pg289" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">289</a>, <a href="#Pg312" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">312</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Garden of Mystical + Contemplation</span></span>, <a href="#Pg129" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">129</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gate of Reward</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg115" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">115</a>, + <a href="#Pg213" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">213</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Geiger, A., <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gemara</span></span>, <a href="#Pg078" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">78</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Gershon, brother-in-law of Baalshem, <a href="#Pg008" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">8</a>, <a href="#Pg009" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">9</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ghetto, <a href="#Pg326" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">326</a>, <a href="#Pg331" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">331-333</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Gnostics, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Goethe, <a href="#Pg057" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">57</a>, <a href="#Pg073" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">73</a>, <a href="#Pg306" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">306</a>, <a href="#Pg328" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">328</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gozer</span></span>, <a href="#Pg290" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">290</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Graetz, <a href="#Pg065" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">65</a>, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg099" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">99</a>, <a href="#Pg183" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">183</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Great Interpreters</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg186" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">186</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Green, A. L., <a href="#Pg255" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">255</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide of the Perplexed</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg049" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">49</a>, <a href="#Pg068" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">68</a>, <a href="#Pg097" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg102" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">102</a>, <a href= + "#Pg130" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">130</a>, + <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">131</a>, <a href="#Pg179" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">179</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide of the Perplexed of the + Time</span></span>, <a href="#Pg060" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">60</a>, <a href="#Pg067" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">67</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Hadasi, Judah, <a href="#Pg160" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">160</a>, <a href="#Pg161" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">161</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Hai Gaon, <a href="#Pg077" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">77</a>, <a href="#Pg208" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">208</a>, <a href="#Pg209" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">209</a>, <a href="#Pg272" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">272</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Halachah</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Halachoth</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">66</a>, <a href="#Pg183" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">183</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Halachic</span></span>, <a href="#Pg057" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">57</a>, <a href= + "#Pg092" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">92</a>, + <a href="#Pg110" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">110</a>, <a href="#Pg157" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">157</a>, <a href="#Pg193" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">193</a>, <a href="#Pg207" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">207</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Halachoth + Gedoloth</span></span>, <a href="#Pg111" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">111</a>, <a href="#Pg112" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">112</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Hannaneel of Kairwan, <a href="#Pg162" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">162</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Hegel, <a href="#Pg051" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">51</a>, <a href="#Pg054" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">54</a>, <a href="#Pg064" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg065" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">65</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Heine, <a href="#Pg059" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">59</a>, <a href="#Pg124" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">124</a>, <a href="#Pg254" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">254</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">High Belief</span></span>, <a href="#Pg162" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">162</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Hillel the Great, <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">185</a>, <a href="#Pg186" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">186</a>, <a href="#Pg188" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">188</a>, <a href="#Pg193" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">193</a>, <a href= + "#Pg237" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">237</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Hillel, R., <a href="#Pg177" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">177</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">History of Jewish Tradition</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg065" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">65</a>, <a href="#Pg182" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">182</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hithlahabuth</span></span>, <a href="#Pg032" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">32</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Holle Kreisch</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg294" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">294</a>, + <a href="#Pg295" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">295</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Huna, <a href="#Pg221" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">221</a>, <a href="#Pg225" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">225</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Isaac Alfasi, <a href="#Pg013" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">13</a>, <a href="#Pg100" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">100</a>, <a href="#Pg101" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">101</a>, <a href="#Pg111" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">111</a>, <a href= + "#Pg312" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">312</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Isaac Aramah, <a href="#Pg173" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">173</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Isaac Loria, <a href="#Pg076" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">76</a>, <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Isaac b. Ruben, <a href="#Pg100" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">100</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ishmael, <a href="#Pg188" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">188</a>, <a href="#Pg190" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">190</a>, <a href="#Pg224" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">224</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ishmael b. Elishah, <a href="#Pg222" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">222</a>, <a href="#Pg299" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">299</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Israel Baalshem (<span class="tei tei-hi" style= + "text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">see</span></span> <a href="#Index-Baalshem" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">Baalshem, + Israel</a>) + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jacob of Corbeil, <a href="#Pg322" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">322</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jacob Dubna, <a href="#Pg091" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">91</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jacob the Levite, or Maharil, <a href="#Pg143" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">143</a>, <a href="#Pg144" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">144</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jacob Sasportas, <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">101</a>, <a href="#Pg102" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">102</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jacob Tam, <a href="#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jannai, <a href="#Pg226" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">226</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jedaiah of Bedres, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">131</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jerusalem</span></span>, by Mendelssohn, + <a href="#Pg147" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">147</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Johanan, <a href="#Pg249" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">249</a>, <a href="#Pg287" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">287</a>, <a href="#Pg303" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">303</a>, <a href="#Pg318" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">318</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Johanan b. Zaccai, <a href="#Pg048" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">48</a>, <a href="#Pg188" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">188</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jonah Gerundi, <a href="#Pg100" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">100</a>, <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">101</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jonah, son of Nachmanides, <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">101</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + José, <a href="#Pg218" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">218</a>, <a href="#Pg219" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">219</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Joseph Albashir, <a href="#Pg160" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">160</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Joseph Albo, <a href="#Pg171" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">171</a>, <a href="#Pg172" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">172</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Joseph Caro, <a href="#Pg075" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">75</a>, <a href="#Pg092" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">92</a>, <a href="#Pg206" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">206</a>, <a href="#Pg211" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">211</a>, <a href= + "#Pg322" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">322</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Joseph Jabez, <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">131</a>, <a href="#Pg173" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">173</a>, <a href="#Pg179" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">179</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Joshua b. Hananiah, <a href="#Pg194" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">194</a>, <a href="#Pg299" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">299</a>, <a href="#Pg304" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">304</a>, <a href="#Pg308" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">308</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Jost, M., <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah Alcharisi, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah Hallevi, <a href="#Pg013" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">13</a>, <a href="#Pg034" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">34</a>, <a href="#Pg152" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">152</a>, <a href="#Pg162" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">162</a>, <a href= + "#Pg208" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">208</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah b. Ilai, <a href="#Pg246" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">246</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah Messer Leon, <a href="#Pg333" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">333</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah de Modena, <a href="#Pg298" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">298</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah the Patriarch, <a href="#Pg063" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">63</a>, <a href="#Pg195" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">195</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah the Pious, <a href="#Pg306" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">306</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah b. Tema, <a href="#Pg299" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">299</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Judah b. Yakar, <a href="#Pg100" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">100</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Karab</span></span>, <a href="#Pg124" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">124</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Kilayim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg087" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">87</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Kimchi, D., <a href="#Pg145" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">145</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Korban</span></span>, <a href="#Pg124" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">124</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Krochmal, Nachman, <a href="#Pg044" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">44</a>, <a href="#Pg046" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">46</a>, <a href="#Pg048" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">48-68</a>, <a href= + "#Pg071" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">71</a>, + <a href="#Pg072" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">72</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Kuenen, <a href="#Pg240" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">240</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Law of Man</span></span>, <a href="#Pg113" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">113-115</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Laws unto Moses on Mount + Sinai</span></span>, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page364">[pg 364]</span><a name= + "Pg364" id="Pg364" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Lessing, <a href="#Pg073" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">73</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Letteris, M., <a href="#Pg056" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">56</a>, <a href="#Pg057" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">57</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Levi b. Gershom, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">101</a>, <a href="#Pg171" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">171</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Light of God</span></span>, <a href="#Pg167" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">167</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Lilac of Mysteries</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Lilith</span></span>, <a href="#Pg287" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">287</a>, <a href= + "#Pg288" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">288</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Lipman of Mühlhausen, <a href="#Pg167" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">167</a>, <a href="#Pg179" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">179</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Liva of Prague, <a href="#Pg078" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">78</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Lowell, R., <a href="#Pg116" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">116</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Löw, L., <a href="#Pg171" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">171</a>, <a href="#Pg285" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">285</a>, <a href="#Pg305" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">305</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Lucas, Mrs. Henry, <a href="#Pg135" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">135</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Macaulay, <a href="#Pg089" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">89</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Maggid</span></span>, <a href="#Pg019" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">19</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Magnified</span></span>, <a href="#Pg310" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">310</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Maimonides, or Moses b. Maimon, <a href="#Pg013" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">13</a>, <a href="#Pg048" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">48</a>, <a href= + "#Pg049" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">49</a>, + <a href="#Pg068" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">68</a>, <a href="#Pg070" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">70</a>, <a href="#Pg078" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">78</a>, <a href="#Pg097" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">97</a>, <a href= + "#Pg100" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">100</a>, + <a href="#Pg102" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">102</a>, <a href="#Pg103" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">103</a>, <a href="#Pg111" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">111</a>, <a href="#Pg126" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">126</a>, <a href= + "#Pg130" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">130</a>, + <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">133</a>, <a href="#Pg140" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">140</a>, <a href="#Pg161" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">161-168</a>, <a href= + "#Pg170" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">170-181</a>, <a href="#Pg210" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">210</a>, <a href="#Pg211" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">211</a>, <a href= + "#Pg249" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">249</a>, + <a href="#Pg274" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">274</a>, <a href="#Pg280" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">280</a>, <a href="#Pg281" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">281</a>, <a href="#Pg312" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">312</a>, <a href= + "#Pg322" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">322</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Maimonists, Anti-Maimonists, <a href="#Pg163" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">163-165</a>, <a href="#Pg173" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">173</a>, <a href="#Pg210" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Mar Samuel, <a href="#Pg084" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">84</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Mathia b. Chares, <a href="#Pg339" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">339</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Measure of the Stature</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg208" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">208</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, <a href="#Pg058" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a>, <a href= + "#Pg081" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, + <a href="#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">193</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Meheram Schiff, <a href="#Pg016" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">16</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Meir, <a href="#Pg130" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">130</a>, <a href="#Pg194" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">194</a>, <a href="#Pg226" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">226</a>, <a href="#Pg318" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">318</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Meir b. Nathan of Trinquintaines, <a href="#Pg100" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">100</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Meir of Rothenburg, <a href="#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Memra</span></span>, <a href="#Pg238" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">238</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Men of the Great Synagogue</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">185</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Menachoth</span></span>, <a href="#Pg086" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">86</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Mendelssohn, Moses, <a href="#Pg048" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">48</a>, <a href="#Pg058" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">58</a>, <a href="#Pg073" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">73</a>, <a href="#Pg147" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">147</a>, <a href= + "#Pg151" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">151</a>, + <a href="#Pg176" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">176</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Metatron</span></span>, <a href="#Pg238" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">238</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Midrash</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Midrashim</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg061" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">61</a>, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg071" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">71</a>, <a href="#Pg081" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, <a href= + "#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">193</a>, + <a href="#Pg195" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">195</a>, <a href="#Pg222" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">222</a>, <a href="#Pg262" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">262</a>, <a href="#Pg272" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">272</a>, <a href= + "#Pg273" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">273</a>, + <a href="#Pg304" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">304</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Milton, <a href="#Pg114" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">114</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Minhag</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Minhagim</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg143" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">143</a>, <a href="#Pg192" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">192</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Minim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg064" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">64</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Minor Tractates, <a href="#Pg081" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">81</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mishnah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg057" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">57</a>, <a href= + "#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">64</a>, + <a href="#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">66</a>, <a href="#Pg076" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">76</a>, <a href="#Pg078" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">78</a>, <a href="#Pg082" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">82</a>, <a href= + "#Pg085" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">85</a>, + <a href="#Pg087" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">87</a>, <a href="#Pg091" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">91</a>, <a href="#Pg157" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">157</a>, <a href="#Pg190" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">190</a>, <a href= + "#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">193</a>, + <a href="#Pg195" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">195</a>, <a href="#Pg271" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">271</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Mistress of the Synagogue, <a href="#Pg317" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">317</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Moses Cordevora, <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Moses Ibn Ezra, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Moses de Leon, <a href="#Pg018" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">18</a>, <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">133</a>, <a href="#Pg258" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">258</a>, <a href="#Pg262" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Moses of Tachau, <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">131</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mother Zion</span></span>, <a href="#Pg321" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">321</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Nachman, son of Nachmanides, <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">101</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Nachmanides, or Moses b. Nachman, <a href="#Pg099" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">99-141</a>, <a href= + "#Pg213" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">213</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Nahum of Gemzo, <a href="#Pg215" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">215</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nasi</span></span>, <a href="#Pg084" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">84</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Nathan, <a href="#Pg194" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">194</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Nephesh + Chayah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg117" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">117</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Neubauer, Dr. A., <a href="#Pg263" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">263</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Night of Watching</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg288" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">288</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Nissim of Gerona, <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Nissim of Marseilles, <a href="#Pg267" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">267</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Olam + Habba</span></span>, <a href="#Pg115" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">115</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Old Victory</span></span>, <a href="#Pg304" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">304</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Oral Law, <a href="#Pg010" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">10</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Orchard</span></span>, the, <a href="#Pg133" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ordinance of the Law</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg293" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">293</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Pablo Christiano, <a href="#Pg103" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">103</a>, <a href="#Pg105" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">105</a>, <a href="#Pg106" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">106</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pairs</span></span>, the, <a href="#Pg185" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">185</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Paradise Lost</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg114" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">114</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pardes</span></span>, <a href="#Pg129" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">129</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pashut</span></span>, <a href="#Pg138" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">138</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Path of Belief</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg172" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">172</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Perles, J., <a href="#Pg099" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">99</a>, <a href="#Pg123" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">123</a>, <a href="#Pg294" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">294</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Pharisees, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">185</a>, <a href="#Pg237" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">237</a>, <a href="#Pg241" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">241</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Philo, <a href="#Pg052" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">52</a>, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg154" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">154</a>, <a href="#Pg238" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">238</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Pilpul + Pilpulist</span></span>, <a href="#Pg013" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">13</a>, <a href="#Pg078" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">78</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Plato, <a href="#Pg078" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">78</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pugio Fidei</span></span>, <a href="#Pg107" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">107</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Raba, <a href="#Pg311" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">311</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Rabbanan Saburai</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg206" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">206</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Rabbah, <a href="#Pg311" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">311</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Rabbenu, <a href="#Pg013" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">13</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Rabbenu Mosheh</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg103" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">103</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Rabbinowicz, R. N. N., <a href="#Pg261" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">261</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Raimund Martini, <a href="#Pg107" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">107</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Rapoport, Solomon Leb, <a href="#Pg050" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">50</a>, <a href="#Pg053" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">53</a>, <a href="#Pg056" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">56</a>, <a href= + "#Pg066" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">66</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Reggio, Isaac, <a href="#Pg270" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">270</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Roots</span></span>, the, <a href="#Pg171" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">171</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Ruskin, <a href="#Pg328" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">328</a> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page365">[pg 365]</span><a name= + "Pg365" id="Pg365" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Saadiah Gaon, <a href="#Pg048" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">48</a>, <a href="#Pg162" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">162</a>, <a href="#Pg108" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">108</a>, <a href="#Pg272" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">272</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sacred Letter</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg113" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">113</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Sadducees, <a href="#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">64</a>, <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">185</a>, <a href="#Pg237" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">237</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Salman the Good, <a href="#Pg145" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">145</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sambatyon</span></span>, <a href="#Pg095" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">95</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sanctification-cup</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg245" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">245</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Sandalphon, <a href="#Pg305" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">305</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sandek</span></span>, <a href="#Pg290" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">290</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Sanhedrin, the, <a href="#Pg188" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">188</a>, <a href="#Pg190" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">190</a>, <a href="#Pg191" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">191</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Saul Berlin, <a href="#Pg176" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">176</a>, <a href="#Pg180" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">180</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span>, + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Aboth</span></span>, <a href="#Pg262" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">262</a>, <a href="#Pg299" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">299</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Schelling, <a href="#Pg051" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">51</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Schiller, <a href="#Pg073" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">73</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Schlummerlied</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg295" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">295</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Schorr, O., <a href="#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">193</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Schudt, <a href="#Pg291" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">291</a>, <a href="#Pg298" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">298</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sechorah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg296" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">296</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Seder Nezikin</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg058" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Seder Olam</span></span>, <a href="#Pg081" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, <a href= + "#Pg092" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">92</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Seder Taharoth</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg058" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Segulah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg122" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">122</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sephardim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg301" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">301</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sepher</span></span>, <a href="#Pg013" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">13</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sephiroth</span></span>, Ten, <a href= + "#Pg238" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">238</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sermon in the Presence of the + King</span></span>, by Nachmanides, <a href="#Pg165" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">165</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Shabbethai Tsebi, <a href="#Pg134" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">134</a>, <a href="#Pg239" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">239</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style="font-style: italic">Shalom + Zachar</span></span>, <a href="#Pg289" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">289</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Shammai, <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">185</a>, <a href="#Pg188" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">188</a>, <a href="#Pg237" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">237</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shechinah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg120" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">120</a>, <a href= + "#Pg121" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">121</a>, + <a href="#Pg228" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">228-230</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shema</span></span>, reading of the, + <a href="#Pg141" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">141</a>, <a href="#Pg288" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">288</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Shemaiah, <a href="#Pg186" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">186</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Shemariah of Crete, <a href="#Pg166" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">166</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Sherira Gaon, <a href="#Pg263" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">263</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Shiphluth, <a href="#Pg030" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">30</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Simchah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg031" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">31</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Simeon Duran, <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">101</a>, <a href="#Pg170" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">170</a>, <a href="#Pg171" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">171</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Simeon b. Eleazar, <a href="#Pg289" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">289</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Simeon b. Gamaliel, <a href="#Pg222" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">222</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Simeon b. Gamaliel II., <a href="#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">193</a>, <a href="#Pg194" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">194</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Simeon b. Yochai, <a href="#Pg018" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">18</a>, <a href="#Pg223" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">223</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Simlai, <a href="#Pg112" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">112</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphra</span></span>, <a href="#Pg058" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a>, <a href= + "#Pg081" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, + <a href="#Pg091" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">91</a>, <a href="#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">193</a>, <a href="#Pg262" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphré</span></span>, <a href="#Pg058" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a>, <a href= + "#Pg081" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, + <a href="#Pg091" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">91</a>, <a href="#Pg193" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">193</a>, <a href="#Pg262" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon b. Adereth, <a href="#Pg070" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">70</a>, <a href="#Pg267" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">267</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon b. Gabirol, <a href="#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon of St. Goar, <a href="#Pg143" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">143-145</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon b. Isaac, Rashi, <a href="#Pg013" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">13</a>, <a href="#Pg210" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">210</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon b. Isaac b. Zadok, <a href="#Pg137" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">137</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon Ladier, <a href="#Pg043" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">43</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon Portaleone, <a href="#Pg323" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">323</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon, son of Nachmanides, <a href="#Pg110" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">110</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon Syrillo, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">262</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Solomon Wilna, <a href="#Pg075" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">75</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Son of the Law</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg307" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">307</a>, + <a href="#Pg312" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">312</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sopherim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg064" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">64</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Spencer, Herbert, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">97</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Steinschneider, M., <a href="#Pg099" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">99</a>, <a href="#Pg172" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">172</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Taanith</span></span>, <a href="#Pg058" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">58</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Talmid Chaber</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg052" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">52</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Talmid Chakam</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg007" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">7</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Talmud (of Jerusalem or Babylon), <a href="#Pg016" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">16</a>, <a href="#Pg019" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">19</a>, <a href= + "#Pg033" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">33</a>, + <a href="#Pg049" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">49</a>, <a href="#Pg052" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">52</a>, <a href="#Pg057" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">57-59</a>, <a href= + "#Pg064" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">64</a>, + <a href="#Pg076" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">76</a>, <a href="#Pg078" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">78</a>, <a href="#Pg081" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, <a href="#Pg082" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">82</a>, <a href= + "#Pg086" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">86</a>, + <a href="#Pg087" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">87</a>, <a href="#Pg089" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">89</a>, <a href="#Pg091" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">91</a>, <a href="#Pg092" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">92</a>, <a href= + "#Pg096" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">96</a>, + <a href="#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">101</a>, <a href="#Pg104" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">104</a>, <a href="#Pg105" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">105</a>, <a href="#Pg111" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">111</a>, <a href= + "#Pg129" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">129</a>, + <a href="#Pg131" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">131</a>, <a href="#Pg140" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">140</a>, <a href="#Pg151" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">151</a>, <a href="#Pg155" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">155</a>, <a href= + "#Pg158" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">158</a>, + <a href="#Pg195" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">195</a>, <a href="#Pg196" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">196</a>, <a href="#Pg206" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">206</a>, <a href="#Pg207" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">207</a>, <a href= + "#Pg209" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">209</a>, + <a href="#Pg210" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">210</a>, <a href="#Pg238" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">238</a>, <a href="#Pg252" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">252</a>, <a href="#Pg254" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">254-256</a>, + <a href="#Pg261" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">261</a>, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">262</a>, <a href="#Pg271" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">271</a>, <a href="#Pg272" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">272</a>, <a href= + "#Pg277" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">277</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tanna</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Tannaim</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg017" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">17</a>, <a href="#Pg084" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">84</a>, <a href="#Pg187" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">187</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tephillin</span></span>, <a href="#Pg249" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">249</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Thackeray, <a href="#Pg282" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">282</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Thirteen Articles of the Creed, <a href="#Pg148" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">148</a>, <a href="#Pg163" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">163</a>, <a href= + "#Pg164" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">164</a>, + <a href="#Pg170" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">170</a>, <a href="#Pg176" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">176</a>, <a href="#Pg179" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">179</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Thirteen Rules</span></span> (of + Interpretation), <a href="#Pg195" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">195</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Tobijah, the Priest, <a href="#Pg175" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">175</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tosephta</span></span>, <a href="#Pg081" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">81</a>, <a href= + "#Pg082" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">82</a>, + <a href="#Pg092" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">92</a>, <a href="#Pg262" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">262</a>, <a href="#Pg271" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">271</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Toy, Prof., <a href="#Pg233" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">233-239</a>, <a href="#Pg251" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">251</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tractate Berachoth</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg221" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">221</a>, + <a href="#Pg271" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">271</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tractate Evidences</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg192" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">192</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tractate Joys</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg194" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">194</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tractate Sanhedrin</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg156" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">156</a>, + <a href="#Pg157" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">157</a>, <a href="#Pg159" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">159</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tractate Sopherim</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg301" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">301</a>, + <a href="#Pg312" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">312</a>, <a href="#Pg321" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">321</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tree of Life</span></span>, the, <a href= + "#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">133</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Troki, Solomon, <a href="#Pg161" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">161</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Variae Lectiones</span></span> (of the + Talmud), <a href="#Pg261" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">261</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Viterbo, Abraham Chayim, <a href="#Pg175" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">175</a>, <a href="#Pg176" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">176</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Vorsugerin</span></span>, <a href="#Pg324" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">324</a> + </div> + </div><span class="tei tei-pb" id="page366">[pg 366]</span><a name= + "Pg366" id="Pg366" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Wars of the Lord</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg101" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">101</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Watchman</span></span>, the, <a href= + "#Pg059" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">59</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Weiss, T. H., <a href="#Pg065" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">65</a>, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg099" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">99</a>, <a href="#Pg182" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">182</a>, <a href= + "#Pg183" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">183</a>, + <a href="#Pg185" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">185-187</a>, <a href="#Pg191" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">191-197</a>, <a href= + "#Pg206" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">206</a>, + <a href="#Pg207" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">207</a>, <a href="#Pg209" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">209-212</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Wellhausen, <a href="#Pg243" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">243</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Wisdom of Solomon</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg127" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">127</a>, + <a href="#Pg154" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">154</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Woilkennivdicke</span></span>, <a href= + "#Pg324" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">324</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Yediah</span></span>, <a href="#Pg119" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">119</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Yeshibah</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Yeshiboth</span></span>, + <a href="#Pg094" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">94-96</a>, <a href="#Pg293" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">293</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Yom-Tob Heller, <a href="#Pg196" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">196</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zaddik</span></span>, pl. <span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Zaddikim</span></span> + (Zaddikism), <a href="#Pg036" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">36-44</a>, <a href="#Pg053" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">53</a>, <a href="#Pg298" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">298</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Zadoc, <a href="#Pg245" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">245</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zebachim</span></span>, <a href="#Pg086" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">86</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Zedner, <a href="#Pg254" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">254-256</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zehub</span></span>, <a href="#Pg137" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">137-139</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Zerahiah Hallevi of Gerona (or Gerondi), <a href="#Pg100" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">100</a>, <a href="#Pg101" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">101</a>, <a href= + "#Pg111" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">111</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zion-Elegy</span></span>, <a href="#Pg208" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">208</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" style="text-align: left" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zobeoth</span></span>, <a href="#Pg314" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">314</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <a name="Index-Zohar" id="Index-Zohar" class="tei tei-anchor"></a> + + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + <span class="tei tei-hi" style="text-align: left"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zohar</span></span>, <a href="#Pg018" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">18</a>, <a href="#Pg019" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">19</a>, <a href= + "#Pg071" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">71</a>, + <a href="#Pg091" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">91</a>, <a href="#Pg133" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">133</a>, <a href="#Pg258" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">258</a> + </div> + </div> + + <div class="tei tei-lg" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <div class="tei tei-l" style="text-align: left"> + Zunz, Leopold, <a href="#Pg044" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">44</a>, <a href="#Pg052" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">52</a>, <a href="#Pg056" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">56</a>, <a href="#Pg060" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">60</a>, <a href= + "#Pg065" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">65</a>, + <a href="#Pg073" class="tei tei-ref" style= + "text-align: left">73</a>, <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref" + style="text-align: left">97</a>, <a href="#Pg183" class= + "tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">183</a>, <a href="#Pg279" + class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">279</a>, <a href= + "#Pg305" class="tei tei-ref" style="text-align: left">305</a> + </div> + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-back" style= + "margin-bottom: 2.00em; margin-top: 6.00em"> + <div id="footnotes" class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <a name="toc35" id="toc35"></a> <a name="pdf36" id="pdf36"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.46em; text-align: left; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Footnotes</span></h1> + + <dl class="tei tei-list-footnotes"> + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_1" name="note_1" href= + "#noteref_1">1.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">Subjoined is a List of selected + Authorities on the Subject of the + Chassidim.</span></span>—<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Historical and Bibliographical + Works</span></span>: Graetz (xi. including the polemical literature + quoted in the Appendix), Jost, Peter Beer, M. Bodek (סדר הרורות + הנרש, Lemberg, 1865), A. Walden (שמ תגרוליב הנדש, Warschau, 1864), + Finn (קרוה נאמנה, Wilna, 1860), D. Kahana (אצן אוסל in the + periodical השחר, iv.), Zederbaum (כחר כדונה, Odessa, 1868). + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Essays + and Satires</span></span>: T. Erter (הצפה, Wien, 1858), S. Szantó + (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Jahrbuch + für Israeliten</span></span>, p. 108-178, 1867), A. Gottlober (in + his periodical הברקר אור, iii.), L. Löw (Ben Chananjah, ii.), + Rudermann (השחר, vi.), Rapoport (נחלת יחודה, Lemberg, 1873, p. 10), + Fröhlich (המדרין, Warschau, 1876, p. 63 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>), + S. Maimon (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Autobiographie</span></span>, Berlin, 1792). + Compare also the Hebrew novels by P. Smolensky, L. Gordon, M. + Brandstätter, A. Gottlober and B. Horowitz (German). <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Occasional + references</span></span> to the liturgy or the system of the + Chassidim in the <span class="tei tei-q">“Responses”</span> of R. + Ezechiel Landau, Moses Sopher, E. Flekeles and T. Steinhart, and in + the works of Israel Samostsch, Salomon Chelma and Chayim Walosin. + Compare also Zunz (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gottesdienstliche Vorträge</span></span>, p. + 477) and L. Löw (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mannheimer Album</span></span>, Wien, 1874), + Senior Sachs (התחיה, i. 61) and B. L. Zeitlin (הות קשה, Paris, + 1846). The best book on the whole subject is E. Zweifel's work שלום + צל ישראל (Zitomyr 1868, three parts), which I strongly recommend to + students. The books written by the Chassidim would amount to more + than 200. They are catalogued by Bodek and Walden. I shall only + draw the attention of the student to the works of Beer, Salomon + Ladier, and Mendel Witipsker on one side, who developed the theory + of the Immanence, and those of Nachman Braslaw and Melech + Liezensker, who, on the other hand, carried the theory of Zaddikism + to its utmost consequences. The student will find a fair collection + of sayings and sentences arranged according to theological subjects + in the books ררך המידים and לשן חכמים (Anon., Lemberg, 1876).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_2" name="note_2" href= + "#noteref_2">2.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">חסידים, <span class="tei tei-q">“pious + ones”</span> (Ps. xxxvii. 28, lxx. 2, etc.). The reader is probably + acquainted with the term from the Maccabean history (1 Macc. ii. + 42, vii. 13), in which the strict party, opposed to all Hellenistic + influence, are called <span class="tei tei-q">“Assideans”</span> + [R.V. <span class="tei tei-q">“Hasidaeans”</span>], Gr. + Ἁσιδαῖοι.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_3" name="note_3" href= + "#noteref_3">3.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בעל שם, <span class="tei tei-q">“The + Master of the Name,”</span> a term usually applied to exorcists, + who cast out devils and performed other miracles through adjuration + by the name of God (or angels). The unbelieving Rabbis maintained + indeed that in his exorcisms Baalshem employed <span class= + "tei tei-q">“impure names”</span> (of devils), whilst the + Chassidim, on the other hand, declared that their Master never used + <span class="tei tei-q">“names”</span> at all, his miracles being + performed by the divine in Baalshem to which all nature owes + obedience. Occasionally the Chassidim call him בעל שם תוב (The Man + of Good Name), in allusion to Eccles. vii. 1, shortened by some + into <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Besht</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_4" name="note_4" href= + "#noteref_4">4.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בית המדרש—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“House of Research”</span> or of <span class= + "tei tei-q">“study”</span> (of the Law), but in which also divine + service is held thrice a day.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_5" name="note_5" href= + "#noteref_5">5.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">תלמיד הכם—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“Disciple of the Wise,”</span> the usual title of a + scholar or student.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_6" name="note_6" href= + "#noteref_6">6.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">A Jewish sect, so called after their + founder Jacob Leibovicz Frank, who was himself one of the apostles + of the pseudo-Messiah Shabbethai Tsebi of Smyrna in Turkey. Among + his other doctrines he taught also a sort of Trinity, consisting of + the Holy Ancient One, the Holy King or the Messiah, and a feminine + person in the Godhead, in which he, like his master, represented + the Second Person. The sect ultimately abolished the Law, and, + after many controversies with the Rabbinic Jews, went over to + Catholicism, the dominant religion in Poland, by which they were + soon absorbed. Eybeschütz, chief Rabbi of Prague and Hamburg, was + suspected by Emden to be a secret adherent of Shabbethai Tsebi, + which was tantamount to apostasy from Judaism. Eybeschütz + protested. The litigants excommunicated each other, and the Rabbis + divided into two camps, taking sides either with Emden or with his + antagonist.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_7" name="note_7" href= + "#noteref_7">7.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The works of Maimonides or Moses b. + Maimon (1135-1204) are too many to be enumerated here. The most + important are the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide of the Perplexed</span></span> (מורה + נבוכום) and his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Compendium of the Law</span></span> (משנה + הורה). Judah Hallevi or Abul Hassan flourished in the first half of + the twelfth century. He is well known as a poet by his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Divan</span></span> + and as a deep religious thinker by his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Cusari</span></span>. + The former contains also many songs of a secular nature. Isaac + Alfasi (died 1103) is best known by his Compendium of the Talmud, + which was so greatly admired by his contemporaries that they + declared it could never have been composed <span class= + "tei tei-q">“without the aid of the Holy Spirit.”</span> R. Solomon + b. Isaac, also called by his initials Rashi (1040-1105), is well + known by his commentaries on the Bible and the Talmud.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_8" name="note_8" href= + "#noteref_8">8.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">רבי רבינו.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_9" name="note_9" href= + "#noteref_9">9.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ספר, <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sepher</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_10" name="note_10" href= + "#noteref_10">10.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The Hebrew word is פלפול, meaning + subtle discussion and sharp distinction. The word is closely + related to פלפל or פלפלא, which means <span class= + "tei tei-q">“pepper”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“seasoning.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_11" name="note_11" href= + "#noteref_11">11.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מחרם שיף = R. Meir Shiff, whose + <span class="tei tei-foreign"><span style= + "font-style: italic">novellæ</span></span> on the Talmud are of a + very subtle kind, and were very popular with the students of this + work.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_12" name="note_12" href= + "#noteref_12">12.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">המוראים—תנאים, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The Repeaters,”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The Interpreters.”</span> The sayings and statements + of the former are embodied in the Mishnah, a work compiled by R. + Judah the Saint about 220 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>, and covering a + period of about 250 years (30 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span>-220 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>). The latter occupied + themselves mainly with the interpretation of the Mishnah, and their + discussions and controversies are incorporated in the Talmud of + Jerusalem and that of Babylon, and extend over the period from + 220-500 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span> The Talmud of + Jerusalem is mostly the product of the schools of Palestine. The + Talmud of Babylon is a growth of that country. The authorities of + this latter Talmud being far away from the place where the first + great Rabbis lived and laboured, their traditions are naturally not + so historically reliable as those of the Talmud of Jerusalem. The + authorities of Palestine were also simpler in their method of + interpretation. These again are followed by the Babylonian schools + of new interpreters (of the Talmud).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_13" name="note_13" href= + "#noteref_13">13.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שדין יהודאין, an expression that goes + back as far as to the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Zohar</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_14" name="note_14" href= + "#noteref_14">14.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">זוהר, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Brightness.”</span> Cf. Dan. xii. 3,—the authors of + <span class="tei tei-q">“The Brightness”</span> pretending to be + the <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Maskilim</span></span> or + <span class="tei tei-q">“Wise Ones”</span> mentioned in this + verse.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_15" name="note_15" href= + "#noteref_15">15.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שפלות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_16" name="note_16" href= + "#noteref_16">16.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שמחה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_17" name="note_17" href= + "#noteref_17">17.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">התלהבות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_18" name="note_18" href= + "#noteref_18">18.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">צדיק, pl. צדיקים.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_19" name="note_19" href= + "#noteref_19">19.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R. Johanan b. Zaccai was a + contemporary of the Apostles, and died about 110 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.d.</span></span> He belonged to the + peace party in opposition to the Zealots, and obtained permission + from the Roman government to establish the school of Jamnia, which, + after the destruction of the Temple, became the centre of Jewish + religious life. See also p. 188.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_20" name="note_20" href= + "#noteref_20">20.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R. Saadiah Gaon was born in Egypt in + 892, and died as the head of the school of Sura in Babylon in 942. + He is known by his translations of and commentaries on the Bible, + and many other works, especially his philosophical treatise + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Creeds + and Opinions</span></span>. He was also a great controversialist. + Most of his polemical writings are directed against the Caraites + (קראים) or <span class="tei tei-q">“Scripturalists,”</span> a + Jewish sect founded by Anan in the eighth century. They protested + against the Oral Law, and denied Tradition. On the title + <span class="tei tei-q">“Gaon,”</span> see note 1 to Elijah + Wilna.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_21" name="note_21" href= + "#noteref_21">21.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מורה נבוכים, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Moreh + Nebuchim</span></span>, generally considered to be the greatest + philosophical work by any Jewish thinker.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_22" name="note_22" href= + "#noteref_22">22.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R. Abraham Ibn Ezra, who spent some + time in London, died about 1161. He is best known by his + commentaries on the Bible. He was the first writer who doubted the + unity of the book of Isaiah.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_23" name="note_23" href= + "#noteref_23">23.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">תלמיד חבר.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_24" name="note_24" href= + "#noteref_24">24.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">עיר מלאת הכמים וסופרים, meaning + <span class="tei tei-q">“sages”</span> and <span class= + "tei tei-q">“scribes,”</span> but used by later writers in the + sense given in the text.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_25" name="note_25" href= + "#noteref_25">25.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בכורים, dealing with the laws relating + to the firstfruits which were brought to the temple (Ex. xxiii. + 19). The processions formed by the pilgrims are very vividly + described after the said tractate by Delitzsch in his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Iris</span></span>, + p. 190 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">sq.</span></span> (English ed.). See also by + the same author, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jüdisches Handwerkerleben zur Zeit + Jesu</span></span>, p. 66 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_26" name="note_26" href= + "#noteref_26">26.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">תענית, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Fast,”</span> or תעניות, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Fasts.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_27" name="note_27" href= + "#noteref_27">27.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סדר נזיקין, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Order of Damages,”</span> treating of the civil law of + the Jews, the procedure of courts of justice, and kindred subjects. + This Order also includes the tractate אבות, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Aboth</span></span> + or <span class="tei tei-q">“Sayings of the Fathers,”</span> which + is very important for the study of Rabbinic doctrine and + ethics.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_28" name="note_28" href= + "#noteref_28">28.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סדר תהרות, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Order of Purities,”</span> dealing with the laws + regarding Levitical purity.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_29" name="note_29" href= + "#noteref_29">29.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ספרא (or הורת כהנים), ספרי, מכילתא. + These three works form the oldest Rabbinic commentary on Exodus, + Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The authorities cited in these + commentaries all belong to the period of the Tannaim. See above, + note 12 to the Chassidim. Constituting as they do, to a certain + extent, one of the sources used by the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gemara</span></span>, + they are naturally indispensable for a scientific study of the + Talmud.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_30" name="note_30" href= + "#noteref_30">30.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הצפה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hatsophe</span></span>,”</span> a spirited + satire against the orthodox and especially against the then + prevailing belief in the transmigration of souls taught by the + mystical schools. The book is written in the purest biblical + Hebrew.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_31" name="note_31" href= + "#noteref_31">31.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מורה נבוכי הזמן.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_32" name="note_32" href= + "#noteref_32">32.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מדרש, pl. מדרשים (<span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Midrashim</span></span>), <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Research,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Researches,”</span> a name usually applied to the + homiletical part of the Rabbinic literature. The most important + collection of this kind is the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Midrash + Rabbah</span></span> to the Pentateuch. The usual way of quoting it + is <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Genesis Rabbah</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Exodus + Rabbah</span></span>, and so on.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_33" name="note_33" href= + "#noteref_33">33.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <a href="#Pg017" class= + "tei tei-ref">above</a>, note 12 to the Chassidim. [Transcriber's + Note: Footnote on the Tannaim and Amoraim.]</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_34" name="note_34" href= + "#noteref_34">34.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מינים, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Heretics,”</span> applied to the first Christians, and + more so to certain Gnostic sects.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_35" name="note_35" href= + "#noteref_35">35.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הלכה למשה מפיני, see below, p. + <a href="#Pg186" class="tei tei-ref">186</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>. + [Transcriber's Note: The footnote on <span class="tei tei-q">“laws + given to Moses on Sinai.”</span>]</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_36" name="note_36" href= + "#noteref_36">36.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הגדה or אגדה—הלכה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“rule,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“method,”</span>—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“narrative.”</span> The former deals with the legal + side of the Scriptures, and is thus more of a juristic nature; the + latter represents a collection of homilies having mostly as their + text the historical and exhortatory parts of the Bible, and is thus + more of an edifying character. The theological side of Judaism, as + well as its ideal aspirations and Messianic hopes, find their + expression in the Agadah. The two words are also used as + adjectives, as <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "he"><span style="font-style: italic">Halachic</span></span> + (legalistic, juristic, and obligatory) and <span lang="he" class= + "tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Agadic</span></span> (poetic, edifying, and + hyperbolic).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_37" name="note_37" href= + "#noteref_37">37.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ערך מלין, a sort of encyclopædia to + the Talmud, of which only the first letter appeared.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_38" name="note_38" href= + "#noteref_38">38.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Menahem Azariah de Rossi, an Italian + Jew who flourished in the first half of the sixteenth century. His + great work, מאור עינים, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Meor Enayim</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Light of the Eyes,”</span> is the first attempt made + by a Jew to submit the statements of the Talmud to a critical + examination, and to question the value of tradition in its + historical records.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_39" name="note_39" href= + "#noteref_39">39.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">פרקי דריי אליעזר.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_40" name="note_40" href= + "#noteref_40">40.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Italian Jews of the fifteenth and + seventeenth centuries. The one, Elijah Delmedigo, wrote an + Examination of Religion, whilst his grandson, Joseph Solomon + Delmedigo, wrote various pamphlets of a deeply sceptical character. + See Geiger's Introduction to his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Melo + Chofnayim</span></span> (Berlin, 1840).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_41" name="note_41" href= + "#noteref_41">41.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">גאון, <span class="tei tei-q">“The + Great One.”</span> The authorities of the Babylonian schools after + the sixth century were also called the Gaonim (גאונים), + <span class="tei tei-q">“[their] Eminences.”</span> The title was + also given afterwards to great Rabbis distinguished for their + learning.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_42" name="note_42" href= + "#noteref_42">42.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R. Joseph Caro (1488-1575) lived in + Safed. The title of his code is שלחן ערוך, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Prepared + Table</span></span>. This is a code of the Oral Law compiled from + the Rabbinic literature.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_43" name="note_43" href= + "#noteref_43">43.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">קדיה נאמנה, containing an account of + the Jewish worthies of that city.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_44" name="note_44" href= + "#noteref_44">44.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">עלית אלירו.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_45" name="note_45" href= + "#noteref_45">45.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">A famous mystic of the sixteenth + century, from Safed, who was the more admired the less his pupils + understood him.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_46" name="note_46" href= + "#noteref_46">46.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Hai was the last of the authorities + called Gaon. With his death (1038) the schools of Babylon fell into + decay and soon disappeared.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_47" name="note_47" href= + "#noteref_47">47.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">חגיגה, treating of the voluntary + offerings brought by the pilgrims to Jerusalem.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_48" name="note_48" href= + "#noteref_48">48.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">גמרה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Perfection or Supplementary Explanations.”</span> By + this is understood the interpretation given to the Mishnah by the + schools in Palestine and Babylon. See <a href="#Pg017" class= + "tei tei-ref">above</a>, note 12 to the Chassidim. [Transcriber's + Note: Footnote on the Tannaim and Amoraim.]</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_49" name="note_49" href= + "#noteref_49">49.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See Dean Church's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">St. + Anselm</span></span>, from which this story is taken.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_50" name="note_50" href= + "#noteref_50">50.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">תוספתה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Addition”</span> (to the Mishnah), but also containing + only the sayings and discussions of the period of the Tannaim.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_51" name="note_51" href= + "#noteref_51">51.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סדר עולם, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Order of the World,”</span> dealing with the + Chronology of the Bible, and dating from about the end of the + second century.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_52" name="note_52" href= + "#noteref_52">52.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">These <span class="tei tei-q">“Minor + Tractates”</span> include, among others, treatises on proselytes, + on the laws concerning funerals, the writing of the Law, and the + like. Others are more of an edifying nature, treating of good + manners, conduct, etc.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_53" name="note_53" href= + "#noteref_53">53.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">פבלת נלות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_54" name="note_54" href= + "#noteref_54">54.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שמונה עשרה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Eighteen.”</span> They are recited thrice a day, and + form the original germ of the prayers, from which a very rich + liturgy developed in the course of time.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_55" name="note_55" href= + "#noteref_55">55.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The titles of the old authorities from + 70 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> to 500 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span> See <a href="#Pg017" + class="tei tei-ref">above</a>, note 12 to the Chassidim. + [Transcriber's Note: Footnote on the Tannaim and Amoraim.]</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_56" name="note_56" href= + "#noteref_56">56.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אב בית דין, נשיא, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Prince,”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Patriarch,”</span> religious head, of the Jews (not + political), and <span class="tei tei-q">“Father (or president) of + the Court of Justice.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_57" name="note_57" href= + "#noteref_57">57.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מנחות, זבחים, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Sacrifices,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Offerings.”</span> They treat of the laws relating to + sacrifices and meal-offerings.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_58" name="note_58" href= + "#noteref_58">58.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בלאים, the laws relating to diverse + seeds and garments of diverse sorts. Cf. Deut. xxii. 9-11.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_59" name="note_59" href= + "#noteref_59">59.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מגיד, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Teller,”</span> a sort of travelling preacher.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_60" name="note_60" href= + "#noteref_60">60.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">לולב, <span class="tei tei-q">“palm + branch.”</span> Cf. Lev. xxiii. 40.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_61" name="note_61" href= + "#noteref_61">61.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ישיבה, <span class="tei tei-q">“High + School,”</span> or <span class="tei tei-q">“Academy,”</span> in + which the Rabbinic literature is studied.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_62" name="note_62" href= + "#noteref_62">62.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ישיבה עץ חיים.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_63" name="note_63" href= + "#noteref_63">63.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סמבטיון, a mythical river which is + supposed to stop its course on Sabbath.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_64" name="note_64" href= + "#noteref_64">64.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בחורים, sing. בחור, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Young man,”</span> by which term the Jews usually + understand the <span lang="la" class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang= + "la"><span style="font-style: italic">alumni</span></span> of their + Talmudical schools.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_65" name="note_65" href= + "#noteref_65">65.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Levi b. Gershom (1286-1344) is + generally regarded as the greatest successor of Maimonides. Besides + his rationalistic commentaries on the Bible, he wrote various + treatises on metaphysics, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, + etc.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_66" name="note_66" href= + "#noteref_66">66.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בחינת עולם.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_67" name="note_67" href= + "#noteref_67">67.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">In Steinschneider's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Catalogue of the + Bodleian Library</span></span>, under the name of Moses + Nachmanides, pp. 1947-1965, all the works which are ascribed to + this author are put together, and also discussed as to their + authenticity. There are only to be added the new edition of the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Derasha</span></span> by Jellinek (Vienna, + 1872), in which the variants from Schorr's MS. (החלוץ, viii. 162) + are already incorporated; a new edition of the זיכות, and the + commentary to Is. lii.-liii. by Steinschneider (Berlin, 1860); a + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sermon</span></span> for the New Year, ed. by + H. Berliner (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Libanon</span></span>, v. 564); and another + Sermon at a wedding (?), ed. by Schorr (<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hechalus</span></span>, xii. 3). For the + literature on Nachmanides, besides the references given by + Steinschneider, in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Catalogue</span></span>, and the Addenda, p. + cxviii. (cf. also the pedigree in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Catalogue</span></span> 2305), see also + Graetz, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Geschichte</span></span>, vii., pp. 112-143, + and p. 147 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>; Michael, אור החיים, No. + 1125, and Weiss, דור דור ודערקיו, v. 4 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>; + Perles' <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span>, 1860, p. 175; + Zomber, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span> 421; and Z. Frankel, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span> 1868, p. 449, and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The + Jewish Quarterly Review</span></span>, iv. 245 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span> + For Nachmanides' disputation we have to add M. Loeb in the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Révue des + Études Juives</span></span>, xv. 1 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>, + and xviii. 52 (about Abner), and Dr. Neubauer's Essay on Jewish + Controversy in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Expositor</span></span>, vol. vii. (third + series), p. 98 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>, with the references given + there. See also his article on the Bahir and the Zohar in + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The + Jewish Quarterly Review</span></span>, iv. 357. With regard to + Nachmanides' mystical system see the references to S. Sachs (whose + remarks are most suggestive), Krochmal, and Jellinek in + Steinschneider, col. 1949 and 1964, Perles' <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span>, 1858, p. 83 + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>, and Steinschneider in the + Heb. <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bibliographie</span></span>, i. 34. See also + Professor Kaufmann's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Die Geschichte der + Attributenlehre</span></span>, and the references given in the + index under this name. The <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Novellæ</span></span> by his son R. Nachman, + alluded to in the text, are in the University Library, Cambridge + (Add. 1187, 2). The פץ הנאולה is extant in the British Museum, MS. + Add. 26,894, and the passage quoted by De Rossi is to be found on + p. 163<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>, but a few words are erased by + the censor. As to the poem given at the end of this paper, see + Zunz, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Synagogale Poesie</span></span>, p. 478; + Landshut, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Amude ha-Abodah</span></span> <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">s.v.</span></span>, + the references in Sachs' <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Religiöse Poesie der Juden</span></span>, and + Luzzatto in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ozar Nechmad</span></span>, ii. 27. Compare + also Professor Cheyne's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">The Origin of the Psalter</span></span>, p. + 421.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_68" name="note_68" href= + "#noteref_68">68.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">New Year's Day, on the first of + Tishri. It is in autumn.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_69" name="note_69" href= + "#noteref_69">69.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">A famous Rabbi of the fifteenth + century, known by his various casuistical and philosophical + works.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_70" name="note_70" href= + "#noteref_70">70.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Chiefly known through his + controversial writings against the adherents of the pseudo-Messiah + Shabbethai Tsebi. He was for some time the Rabbi of the Portuguese + congregation in London.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_71" name="note_71" href= + "#noteref_71">71.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The main objections of the opponents + of Maimonides were directed against his rationalistic notions of + Revelation, and his allegorising interpretation of the Scriptures, + which amounted in some places to a denial of miracles. He was also + suspected of having denied bodily resurrection. A history of Jewish + rationalism is still a desideratum. I am certain that it would + prove at least as interesting as Reuter's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Geschichte der + religiösen Aufklärung im Mittelalter</span></span> (Berlin, + 1845-60).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_72" name="note_72" href= + "#noteref_72">72.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">רבינו משה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_73" name="note_73" href= + "#noteref_73">73.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אגדות, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Homilies.”</span> See above, p. <a href="#Pg064" + class="tei tei-ref">64</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_74" name="note_74" href= + "#noteref_74">74.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">קץ הנאולה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“The end of the Redemption,”</span> that is the time + when the advent of the Messiah is to be expected.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_75" name="note_75" href= + "#noteref_75">75.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This patriarch is famous in Jewish + legend for his hospitality. See Beer's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Leben + Abrahams</span></span>, pp. 37 and 56.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_76" name="note_76" href= + "#noteref_76">76.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This is the quorum necessary to form a + congregation (עדת) for the purpose of holding divine service.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_77" name="note_77" href= + "#noteref_77">77.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">By <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Zobah</span></span>, + or <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Aram + Zobah</span></span>, the Jews of the Middle Ages usually understood + Aleppo. See Benjamin of Tudela's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Itinerary</span></span>, i. 88, ii. 124 + (London and Berlin, 1840-41).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_78" name="note_78" href= + "#noteref_78">78.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See below, p. <a href="#Pg141" class= + "tei tei-ref">141</a>, where a full translation of the letter is + given.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_79" name="note_79" href= + "#noteref_79">79.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הלכות גדולות, a compendium of the Law, + dating from the ninth century, by R. Simon Caro.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_80" name="note_80" href= + "#noteref_80">80.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">R. Simlai flourished in Palestine in + the third century. He is best known as an Agadic teacher and a + great controversialist. According to him, 613 commandments were + given to Moses on Mount Sinai, of which 365 are prohibitive laws, + whilst the remaining 248 are positive injunctions.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_81" name="note_81" href= + "#noteref_81">81.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שער הנמול, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Treatise on Reward (and Punishment).”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_82" name="note_82" href= + "#noteref_82">82.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">עלם הבא.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_83" name="note_83" href= + "#noteref_83">83.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Ps. cix. 4; ואנ תפלה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_84" name="note_84" href= + "#noteref_84">84.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אצילות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_85" name="note_85" href= + "#noteref_85">85.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">נפש חיח.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_86" name="note_86" href= + "#noteref_86">86.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ידיעה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Knowledge,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Foreknowledge,”</span> <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Omniscience.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_87" name="note_87" href= + "#noteref_87">87.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בכוד, שבינה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_88" name="note_88" href= + "#noteref_88">88.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סגולה. See Exod. xix. 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_89" name="note_89" href= + "#noteref_89">89.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">חקים.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_90" name="note_90" href= + "#noteref_90">90.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">קרב, קרבן.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_91" name="note_91" href= + "#noteref_91">91.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">According to a Jewish tradition (the + date of which is uncertain) the advent of the Messiah, the Son of + David, will be preceded by that of the Messiah, the Son of Joseph. + The latter will perish in the battle against Gog and Magog (the + Antichrist of Jewish literature), but will soon be brought back to + life on the appearance of the former. Cf. G. H. Dalman's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Der + leidende und der sterbende Messias der Synagoge</span></span> + (Berlin, 1881).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_92" name="note_92" href= + "#noteref_92">92.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בראשית, <span class="tei tei-q">“In + the beginning,”</span> Gen. i. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_93" name="note_93" href= + "#noteref_93">93.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מאין; Job xxvii. 12.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_94" name="note_94" href= + "#noteref_94">94.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chagigah</span></span> 14<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>. The + activity of these four Rabbis falls chiefly in the second century. + R. Akiba died as a martyr in the Hadrianic persecution (about 130). + Elisha b. Abuyah, the apostate, was usually called אחר, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Acher</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“the other one.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_95" name="note_95" href= + "#noteref_95">95.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The former lived in the twelfth, the + latter in the sixteenth, century. They are both known for their + hostility to philosophy.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_96" name="note_96" href= + "#noteref_96">96.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Bachya wrote in the eleventh century a + famous book called חובות חלבבות, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The Duties of the + Heart</span></span>. For the others see above, p. <a href="#Pg013" + class="tei tei-ref">13</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>, + p. <a href="#Pg049" class="tei tei-ref">49</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>, + p. <a href="#Pg102" class="tei tei-ref">102</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>, + p. <a href="#Pg097" class="tei tei-ref">97</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>, + p. <a href="#Pg071" class="tei tei-ref">71</a> and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">note</span></span>. + They all belong to the rationalistic school.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_97" name="note_97" href= + "#noteref_97">97.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">A younger contemporary of Maimonides, + who translated the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Guide</span></span> from Arabic into + Hebrew.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_98" name="note_98" href= + "#noteref_98">98.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ספר המשקל. See above, p. <a href= + "#Pg018" class="tei tei-ref">18</a>. R. Moses Cordovora, the author + of the סררם, lived in Safed in the sixteenth century. For R. Isaac + Loria, the author of the עץ החיים, see <a href="#Pg076" class= + "tei tei-ref">above</a>, note 5 to Elijah Wilna.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_99" name="note_99" href= + "#noteref_99">99.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שושן סודות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_100" name="note_100" + href="#noteref_100">100.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סשר הבהיר, a forgery by a Provençal + Jew of the thirteenth century, who attributed it to a Rabbi of the + first century.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_101" name="note_101" + href="#noteref_101">101.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This hymn is now incorporated in her + excellent little book, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Songs of Zion</span></span>, pp. 13-15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_102" name="note_102" + href="#noteref_102">102.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">זהוב, a gold piece. The country and + the date of the writer not being certain, it is impossible to + determine the value of this coin.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_103" name="note_103" + href="#noteref_103">103.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The lawfulness of eating this fish (= + sturgeon?) was contested for many centuries, and the controversy + still continues.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_104" name="note_104" + href="#noteref_104">104.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">פשוט, a smaller coin than the + Zehub.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_105" name="note_105" + href="#noteref_105">105.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שמע, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Hear,”</span> the verses from Deut. vi. 4-9, xi. + 13-21, and Num. xv. 37-41, recited twice a day by the Jews.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_106" name="note_106" + href="#noteref_106">106.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 30<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_107" name="note_107" + href="#noteref_107">107.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מנהג, pl. מנהגים (<span lang="he" + class="tei tei-foreign" xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Minhagim</span></span>), applied usually to + those ritual customs and ceremonies for which there is no distinct + authority in the Scriptures or even in the Talmud.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_108" name="note_108" + href="#noteref_108">108.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jerusalem</span></span>, in Mendelssohn's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sämmtliche Werke</span></span> (Vienna, 1838), + especially from p. 264 onwards, and a letter by him published in + Frankel-Graetz's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span>, 1859, p. 173. For + Mendelssohn's position, see Graetz's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Geschichte</span></span>, xi. 86 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>, + especially p. 88 and note 1; Kayserling, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Leben und + Werke</span></span> of M., 2d ed., p. 394; Steinheim, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Moses + Mendelssohn</span></span> (Hamburg, 1840), p. 30 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>; + Holdheim, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Moses Mendelssohn</span></span> (Berlin, + 1859), p. 18 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>; Leopold Löw's pamphlet, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Jüdische + Dogmen</span></span> (Pesth, 1871).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_109" name="note_109" + href="#noteref_109">109.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See the Commentaries on Maimonides' + סשר המצות, especially R. Simeon Duran's זוהר הרקיע; cf. also + ancient and modern commentaries on Exod. xx. 2.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_110" name="note_110" + href="#noteref_110">110.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Siphra</span></span> + (ed. Weiss), pp. 86<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>, 93<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_111" name="note_111" + href="#noteref_111">111.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baba Bathra</span></span>, 14<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>; cf. + Fürst's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Kanon</span></span>, p. 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_112" name="note_112" + href="#noteref_112">112.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sanhedrin</span></span>, 38<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pseudo-Jonathan</span></span> to Gen. iv. + 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_113" name="note_113" + href="#noteref_113">113.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 33<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_114" name="note_114" + href="#noteref_114">114.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אפיקורוס, Lat. Epicurus.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_115" name="note_115" + href="#noteref_115">115.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mishnah</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sanhedrin</span></span>, x. e, § 1, and + Talmud, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span> 90<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span> and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and Rabbinowicz's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Variae + Lectiones</span></span>, ix. p. 247 notes. Besides the ordinary + commentaries on the Talmud, account must also be taken of the + remarks of Crescas, Duran, Albo, and Abarbanel on the subject. Cf. + also Kämpf in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span> (1863), p. 144 + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>; Oppenheim, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span> + (1864), p. 144; Friedmann in the <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Talmud</span></span>, i. p. 210 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span> + See also Talmudical Dictionaries, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">s.v.</span></span> + אפיקורום. The explanation I have adopted agrees partly with + Friedmann's and partly with Oppenheim's views.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_116" name="note_116" + href="#noteref_116">116.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span>, iii. § + 9, and iv. § 22.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_117" name="note_117" + href="#noteref_117">117.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See אדרת אליהו (Jovslow, 1835), p. 48. + In my exposition of the dogmas of the Caraites I have mainly + followed the late Dr. Frankl's article <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Karaiten”</span> in Ersch u. Gruber's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Encyclopädie</span></span> (sec. ii. vol. + xxxvi. pp. 12-18). See also his <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ein mutazilitischer + Kalam</span></span> and his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Beiträge zur Literaturgeschichte der + Karäer</span></span> (Berlin, 1887) on Bashazi. Cf. also Jost's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Geschichte</span></span>, ii. c. 13.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_118" name="note_118" + href="#noteref_118">118.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Kairowan was one of the greatest + centres of Jewish learning in North Africa during that period.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_119" name="note_119" + href="#noteref_119">119.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See, however, Professor D. Kaufmann's + note in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jewish Quarterly Review</span></span>, i. p. + 441. From this it would seem that the creed of R. Judah Hallevi may + be formulated in the following articles:—The conviction of the + existence of God, of His eternity, of His guidance of our fathers, + of the Divine Origin of the Law, and of the proof of all this, the + pledge or token of its truth, the exodus from Egypt.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_120" name="note_120" + href="#noteref_120">120.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אמונה רמה, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Emunah + Ramah</span></span>, pp. 44 and 69; cf. Gulmann, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span>, 1878, p. + 304.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_121" name="note_121" + href="#noteref_121">121.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">For the various translations of the + Thirteen Articles which were originally composed in Arabic, see + Steinschneider, Cat. Bodl. col. 1887. Cf. Rosin, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ethik des + Maimonides</span></span>, p. 30; Weiss, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Talmud</span></span>, i. p. 330, and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Ben + Chananjah</span></span>, 1863, p. 942, and 1864, pp. 648 and 697, + and Landshut, עמודי העבודה, p. 231.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_122" name="note_122" + href="#noteref_122">122.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מנחת קנאות. See pp. 1-16.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_123" name="note_123" + href="#noteref_123">123.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hammaskir</span></span>, viii. pp. 63 and + 103.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_124" name="note_124" + href="#noteref_124">124.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See Steinschneider, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Cat. + München</span></span>, No. 210.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_125" name="note_125" + href="#noteref_125">125.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See the Collection דברי הבמימ, by + Ashkenazi, pp. 56<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span> <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_126" name="note_126" + href="#noteref_126">126.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See Albo, c. iii. Probably identical + with the author mentioned by Duran, 13<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_127" name="note_127" + href="#noteref_127">127.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ספר נצחון, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Sepher Nizzachon.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_128" name="note_128" + href="#noteref_128">128.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See אור ה (ed. Johannisburg), preface, + and pp. 20<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span>, 44<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, + 59<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and elsewhere. The style of + this author is very obscure. Cf. Joel's pamphlet on this author + (Breslau, 1874).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_129" name="note_129" + href="#noteref_129">129.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See the first pages of the מגן + (Leghorn, 1758), and his משסם, pp. 13 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_130" name="note_130" + href="#noteref_130">130.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">עקרים, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ikkarim</span></span>, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Fundamentals.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_131" name="note_131" + href="#noteref_131">131.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ikkarim</span></span>, i. c. 23, and + Maimonides' <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Commentary on the Mishnah</span></span> (end + of tractate Maccoth). On Albo compare Schlesinger's Introduction + and notes to the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Ikkarim</span></span>, Joel's pamphlet, p. 82; + Paulus, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span>, 1874, p. 463, and + Brüll's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jahrb.</span></span> iv. p. 52.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_132" name="note_132" + href="#noteref_132">132.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">I know his work from a MS. in the + British Museum, Orient. 39.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_133" name="note_133" + href="#noteref_133">133.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">דרך אמונה, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Derech + Emunah</span></span>. Cf. Steinschneider, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Monatsschrift</span></span>, 1883, p. 79 + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_134" name="note_134" + href="#noteref_134">134.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See עקידת יצחק, gate 55.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_135" name="note_135" + href="#noteref_135">135.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See his ימוד האמונה and מאמר + האחרות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_136" name="note_136" + href="#noteref_136">136.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ראש אמנה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_137" name="note_137" + href="#noteref_137">137.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See בהיגת הדת, ed. Reggio, p. 28.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_138" name="note_138" + href="#noteref_138">138.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See מעשה מבית (Venice, 1707), + 16<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span> and 23<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>. His + language is very vague.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_139" name="note_139" + href="#noteref_139">139.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See the Collection by Ashkenazi (as + above, note 18), p. 29<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_140" name="note_140" + href="#noteref_140">140.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See his בשמים ראש, p. 331.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_141" name="note_141" + href="#noteref_141">141.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See Weiss's admirable monograph on + Maimonides, published in the <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Beth Talmud</span></span>, i.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_142" name="note_142" + href="#noteref_142">142.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The Hebrew title of the work is דור + דור ורורשיו.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_143" name="note_143" + href="#noteref_143">143.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">That is, vows of an ascetic nature + (not vows or oaths enforced by a court of justice), which the + tribunal could annul when there was sufficient reason for it.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_144" name="note_144" + href="#noteref_144">144.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The ten Rabbis who are named as the + bearers of tradition during the period between 170 and 30 + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span> The <span class= + "tei tei-q">“pair”</span> in each case is supposed to have + consisted of the president and the vice-president of the Sanhedrin + for the time being. See, however, Kuenen, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gesammelte + Schriften</span></span>, p. 49 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_145" name="note_145" + href="#noteref_145">145.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">דרשנים גדולים.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_146" name="note_146" + href="#noteref_146">146.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הלכות למשה מסיני. They amount, in the + whole of Rabbinic literature, to about forty, of which more than + ten concern the preparation of the phylacteries, whilst others + relate to the libations of water at the Feast of Tabernacles and + similar subjects.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_147" name="note_147" + href="#noteref_147">147.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This is the time when the school of R. + Johanan b. Zaccai began its activity. Others place the Tannaitic + age in Hillel's time (30 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">b.c.</span></span>).</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_148" name="note_148" + href="#noteref_148">148.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בת קרל.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_149" name="note_149" + href="#noteref_149">149.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בית דין, lit. <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Court of Justice,”</span> as above, note 16 to Elijah + Wilna, but it means also a sort of permanent Synod, in which of + course justice was also administered as a part of religion.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_150" name="note_150" + href="#noteref_150">150.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">עדיות, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Evidences given by Witnesses.”</span> The tractate + consists mostly of a number of laws attested by various Rabbis as + having come down to them as old traditions.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_151" name="note_151" + href="#noteref_151">151.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The family of Hillel, which was + supposed to be descended from the house of David, supplied the Jews + with patriarchs for many generations. Gamaliel II. flourished about + 120 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>, whilst Simon b. + Gamaliel's activity as Patriarch falls about 160 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_152" name="note_152" + href="#noteref_152">152.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שמכות, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Semachoth</span></span>. It is a euphemistic + title, the tractate dealing with the laws relating to funeral + ceremonies and mourning.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_153" name="note_153" + href="#noteref_153">153.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מבוראי, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Elucidators”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Explainers.”</span> The heads of the schools in + Babylon during the fifth and sixth centuries were so + designated.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_154" name="note_154" + href="#noteref_154">154.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The Rabbinic Jews of the dispersion + add one day to each festival, and thus celebrate the Passover eight + days, the Feast of Weeks two days, etc. The custom arose out of the + uncertainty about the first day of the month, the prerogative of + fixing the New Moon resting with the great <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Beth + Din</span></span> in Palestine, which had not always the means of + communicating in time the evidence given before them that the New + Moon had been seen by qualified witnesses. The prerogative was + abolished in the fourth century, and the calendar fixed for all + future time, but the additional day is still kept by the Rabbinic + Jews as the <span class="tei tei-q">“Custom of their + Fathers.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_155" name="note_155" + href="#noteref_155">155.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שיעור קומה, היכלות, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Chambers (of Heaven)”</span> and the <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Measure of the Stature,”</span> mystical works in + which occasionally gross anthropomorphisms are to be found. Their + authorship is unknown.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_156" name="note_156" + href="#noteref_156">156.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 55<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_157" name="note_157" + href="#noteref_157">157.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span> (ed. C. + Taylor), v. 12-15. See also <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 32 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>, + and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span> (ed. Friedman), + 95<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Arachin</span></span>, 16<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_158" name="note_158" + href="#noteref_158">158.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 25<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>, + 32<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gen. + Rabbah</span></span>, ch. 48, and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Tossephta + Sotah</span></span>, iv. 7, and parallels.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_159" name="note_159" + href="#noteref_159">159.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Taanith</span></span>, 21<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_160" name="note_160" + href="#noteref_160">160.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span>, iv. + 5.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_161" name="note_161" + href="#noteref_161">161.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baba Bathra</span></span>, 9<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_162" name="note_162" + href="#noteref_162">162.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Yoma</span></span>, 39<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_163" name="note_163" + href="#noteref_163">163.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>, 33<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_164" name="note_164" + href="#noteref_164">164.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 13<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_165" name="note_165" + href="#noteref_165">165.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>, 7<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_166" name="note_166" + href="#noteref_166">166.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 68<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + parallels. <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphra</span></span>, 112<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>. + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pessikta</span></span> of R. Kahana, + 167<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>. Cp. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sanhedrin</span></span>, 44<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_167" name="note_167" + href="#noteref_167">167.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Aboth</span></span> de R. Nathan, + 40<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span>, 59<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + 62<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_168" name="note_168" + href="#noteref_168">168.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Baba Bathra</span></span>, 10<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_169" name="note_169" + href="#noteref_169">169.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Eccles. Rabbah</span></span>, ix. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_170" name="note_170" + href="#noteref_170">170.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">5<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_171" name="note_171" + href="#noteref_171">171.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">7<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_172" name="note_172" + href="#noteref_172">172.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 95<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + parallels.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_173" name="note_173" + href="#noteref_173">173.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Kiddushin</span></span>, 40<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>. + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 63<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>. + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Lev. + Rabbah</span></span>, iv.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_174" name="note_174" + href="#noteref_174">174.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 54<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_175" name="note_175" + href="#noteref_175">175.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Exodus Rabbah</span></span>, c. 35, and + parallels.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_176" name="note_176" + href="#noteref_176">176.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Negaim</span></span>, + ii. 1.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_177" name="note_177" + href="#noteref_177">177.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Exod. Rabbah</span></span>, c. 46.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_178" name="note_178" + href="#noteref_178">178.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Taanith</span></span>, 11<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_179" name="note_179" + href="#noteref_179">179.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>, 5<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_180" name="note_180" + href="#noteref_180">180.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tanchuma</span></span>, כי תצא, § 2. Cp. + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 72<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_181" name="note_181" + href="#noteref_181">181.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphré</span></span>, 73<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + parallels.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_182" name="note_182" + href="#noteref_182">182.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Taanith</span></span>, 8<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_183" name="note_183" + href="#noteref_183">183.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Arachin</span></span>, 16<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_184" name="note_184" + href="#noteref_184">184.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span>, iv. + 15.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_185" name="note_185" + href="#noteref_185">185.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chagigah</span></span>, 5<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_186" name="note_186" + href="#noteref_186">186.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 55<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_187" name="note_187" + href="#noteref_187">187.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Menachoth</span></span>, 29<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_188" name="note_188" + href="#noteref_188">188.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Taanith</span></span>, 25<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_189" name="note_189" + href="#noteref_189">189.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Gen. Rabbah</span></span>, xxvii.; + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pessikta</span></span>, 136<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>; + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sanhedrin</span></span>, vi. 5; <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>, 7<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_190" name="note_190" + href="#noteref_190">190.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sayings of the Fathers</span></span>, i. 3, p. + 27, ed. Taylor. See also note 8.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_191" name="note_191" + href="#noteref_191">191.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abodah Zarah</span></span>, 19<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>; + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphré</span></span>, 79<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_192" name="note_192" + href="#noteref_192">192.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Berachoth</span></span>, 58<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_193" name="note_193" + href="#noteref_193">193.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Exod. + R.</span></span>, 30, and parallels.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_194" name="note_194" + href="#noteref_194">194.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See ראשית חבמה, i. 9.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_195" name="note_195" + href="#noteref_195">195.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See רמתים נמים, 33<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_196" name="note_196" + href="#noteref_196">196.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 55<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Siphra</span></span>, 27<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_197" name="note_197" + href="#noteref_197">197.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Judaism and Christianity, a Sketch of the + Progress of Thought from Old Testament to New + Testament</span></span>, by C. H. Toy, Professor in Harvard + University. London, 1890.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_198" name="note_198" + href="#noteref_198">198.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Pessikta</span></span> of R. Kahana, + 61<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and parallels, and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Erubin</span></span>, 13<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_199" name="note_199" + href="#noteref_199">199.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Tal. Jer., <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 5<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_200" name="note_200" + href="#noteref_200">200.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מטטרון, the name of an angel, already + found in the Talmud, but playing a more important part in the + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Book of + Chambers</span></span>, where he is identified with Enoch. The + etymology of the word is doubtful, some authors considering it to + be of Persian origin (<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mithra</span></span>); others again deriving + it from the Greek μετὰ τύραννον, or μετὰ θρόνον.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_201" name="note_201" + href="#noteref_201">201.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ספירות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_202" name="note_202" + href="#noteref_202">202.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מימרא, <span class="tei tei-q">“The + Word,”</span> sometimes substituted for God. See J. Levy's + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Chaldäisches Wörterbuch</span></span>, + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">s.v.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_203" name="note_203" + href="#noteref_203">203.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בחר, אדם קדמון.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_204" name="note_204" + href="#noteref_204">204.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Mechilta</span></span>, 104<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_205" name="note_205" + href="#noteref_205">205.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See Tal. Jer., <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Yoma</span></span>, + 45<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>. Cf. Maimonides, <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Mishneh + Torah</span></span>, הלבות שבת פב הג.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_206" name="note_206" + href="#noteref_206">206.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Tosephta Berackoth</span></span>, iii. 7.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_207" name="note_207" + href="#noteref_207">207.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 10<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>. The + name of the Rabbi is not given, but the fact that R. Simeon b. + Gamaliel (160 <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-variant: small-caps">a.c.</span></span>) already refers to + this interpretation makes it clear that its anonymous author must + have lived at least a generation before.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_208" name="note_208" + href="#noteref_208">208.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">כום של קדוש.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_209" name="note_209" + href="#noteref_209">209.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Midrash</span></span> + to the Psalms xcii. and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Deut. Rabbah</span></span> iii. The Rabbis + perceived in the words וקראת לשבת עננ (Isa. lviii. 13), a command + to make the Sabbath a day of pleasure, whilst the word הסצף was + understood by them to mean <span class="tei tei-q">“needs,”</span> + <span class="tei tei-q">“wants,”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“business”</span> (<em class= + "tei tei-emph"><span style="font-style: italic">not</span></em> + <span class="tei tei-q">“pleasure”</span>). Cf. <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 113<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span> and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_210" name="note_210" + href="#noteref_210">210.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gen. + Rabbah</span></span>, xi. (and parallels), and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 119<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_211" name="note_211" + href="#noteref_211">211.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Maaseh + Torah</span></span> (ed. Schönblum) and <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Deut. + Rabbah</span></span>, i.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_212" name="note_212" + href="#noteref_212">212.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 25<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span> and + 119<span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">a</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_213" name="note_213" + href="#noteref_213">213.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Betsah</span></span>, 16<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">a</span></span>. Cf. + Baer's notes in his <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Prayer-Book</span></span>, p. 203 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">seq.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_214" name="note_214" + href="#noteref_214">214.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 119<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gen. + Rabbah</span></span>, xi.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_215" name="note_215" + href="#noteref_215">215.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Sabbath</span></span>, 10<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>, and + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Gen. + Rabbah</span></span>, <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">ibid.</span></span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_216" name="note_216" + href="#noteref_216">216.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">תפלין.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_217" name="note_217" + href="#noteref_217">217.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Nazir</span></span>, 23<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_218" name="note_218" + href="#noteref_218">218.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אור זרוה by R. Isaac b. Moses of + Vienna (thirteenth century), mostly on legal subjects.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_219" name="note_219" + href="#noteref_219">219.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">יוחסין, Yuchasin.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_220" name="note_220" + href="#noteref_220">220.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מכלל, Miklal.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_221" name="note_221" + href="#noteref_221">221.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">זרעים, מועד, the former treating of + the agricultural laws of the Bible, the latter of those relating to + the Sabbath, Passover, and other festivals.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_222" name="note_222" + href="#noteref_222">222.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מחזר, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Cycle,”</span> containing the liturgy for the + festivals.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_223" name="note_223" + href="#noteref_223">223.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Since then edited by the Mekize + Nirdamim.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_224" name="note_224" + href="#noteref_224">224.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Eve of the last day of the Feast of + Tabernacles.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_225" name="note_225" + href="#noteref_225">225.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ששח סדרים. ש֜֜ם.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_226" name="note_226" + href="#noteref_226">226.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ברייתה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_227" name="note_227" + href="#noteref_227">227.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">פאה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_228" name="note_228" + href="#noteref_228">228.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ילקות, Yalkut.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_229" name="note_229" + href="#noteref_229">229.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">חזית.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_230" name="note_230" + href="#noteref_230">230.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ישוהר נשב.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_231" name="note_231" + href="#noteref_231">231.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ויסען.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_232" name="note_232" + href="#noteref_232">232.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ילמרנו והזחיר.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_233" name="note_233" + href="#noteref_233">233.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">רעיא מחימנא.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_234" name="note_234" + href="#noteref_234">234.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">עמק המלך, משנה למלך, מגיד משנה, משנה + תורה, ששר המלך.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_235" name="note_235" + href="#noteref_235">235.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ח֜֜ם שאל.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_236" name="note_236" + href="#noteref_236">236.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">חד גדיא לא ישראל.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_237" name="note_237" + href="#noteref_237">237.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שני לוחות הכרית. ש֜֜לה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_238" name="note_238" + href="#noteref_238">238.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">The main authorities on the subjects + of this essay are <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Die Lebensalter</span></span>, by Dr. Leopold + Löw; <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">The + Jewish Rite of Circumcision</span></span>, by Dr. Asher; an article + by Dr. Perles in the Graetz <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Jubelschrift</span></span>, p. 23 <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">seq.</span></span>; + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Merkwürdigkeiten der Juden</span></span>, by + Schudt; the מקורי המנהגים and other works on ritual customs; + Güdemann's <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Geschichte des Erziehungswesens und der Cultur + der Juden</span></span>; and <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Das Kind in Brauch und Sitte der + Völker</span></span>, by Dr. Ploss.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_239" name="note_239" + href="#noteref_239">239.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">אמתי, אמת.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_240" name="note_240" + href="#noteref_240">240.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">לילית, Is. xxxiv. 14.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_241" name="note_241" + href="#noteref_241">241.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See <a href="#Pg141" class= + "tei tei-ref">above</a>, note 39 to Nachmanides. [Transcriber's + Note: The footnote on <span lang="he" class="tei tei-foreign" + xml:lang="he"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Shema</span></span>.]</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_242" name="note_242" + href="#noteref_242">242.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ברית מילה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Covenant of Circumcision.”</span> This is the usual + expression in Hebrew literature for the rite of circumcision.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_243" name="note_243" + href="#noteref_243">243.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שלום זכר.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_244" name="note_244" + href="#noteref_244">244.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">גוזר, מוהל.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_245" name="note_245" + href="#noteref_245">245.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">פדיון הבן.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_246" name="note_246" + href="#noteref_246">246.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הקת תהורה, on educational + matters.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_247" name="note_247" + href="#noteref_247">247.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סחורה, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“business,”</span> or <span class= + "tei tei-q">“wares.”</span></dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_248" name="note_248" + href="#noteref_248">248.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">I am indebted for the English + adaptation to Mrs. Henry Lucas.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_249" name="note_249" + href="#noteref_249">249.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Bereshith Rabbah</span></span>, chapter xx. + For another reading see ראשית הכמה (ed. Cracow), p. 374.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_250" name="note_250" + href="#noteref_250">250.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext"><span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Abodah Zarah</span></span>, 3<span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">b</span></span>.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_251" name="note_251" + href="#noteref_251">251.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">This is the way in which Deut. xxxi. + 10-12 was explained.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_252" name="note_252" + href="#noteref_252">252.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סופרים, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Scribes”</span>; treating of the regulations + concerning the writing of the Law, but containing also much + liturgical matter.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_253" name="note_253" + href="#noteref_253">253.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סשרדים, by which name the Jews of the + Spanish rite are designated.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_254" name="note_254" + href="#noteref_254">254.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">נצראן ישן, a controversial work + published by Wagenseil. See above, p. <a href="#Pg203" class= + "tei tei-ref">203</a>, for another victory.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_255" name="note_255" + href="#noteref_255">255.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">סנדלפון, who is probably known to the + English reader from Longfellow's poem.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_256" name="note_256" + href="#noteref_256">256.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">בר מצוה.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_257" name="note_257" + href="#noteref_257">257.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">קידוש, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Sanctification”</span>—<span class= + "tei tei-q">“benediction”</span>—on the eve of Sabbath, which is + pronounced over a cup of wine.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_258" name="note_258" + href="#noteref_258">258.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">שמכת תורה, or on the 23rd of Tishri, + when the last portion from the Pentateuch is read.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_259" name="note_259" + href="#noteref_259">259.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">הלל, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Praise,”</span> <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">i.e.</span></span> Ps. cxiii.-cxviii.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_260" name="note_260" + href="#noteref_260">260.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">קדִש, the name of a prayer commencing + יתגדל ויתקדש, <span class="tei tei-q">“Magnified and sanctified + be,”</span> etc.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_261" name="note_261" + href="#noteref_261">261.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">Prayer beginning ברכו, <span class= + "tei tei-q">“Bless ye,”</span> etc.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_262" name="note_262" + href="#noteref_262">262.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">ברוך שאמר, beginning of a prayer, + <span class="tei tei-q">“Blessed be He,”</span> etc.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_263" name="note_263" + href="#noteref_263">263.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">See Schürer's <span class= + "tei tei-hi"><span style="font-style: italic">Die + Gemeindeverfassung der Juden in Rom</span></span>, p. 24. Cf. + <span class="tei tei-hi"><span style= + "font-style: italic">Hebräische Bibliographie</span></span>, xix. + p. 79.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_264" name="note_264" + href="#noteref_264">264.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">זבאת.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_265" name="note_265" + href="#noteref_265">265.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">תהנות.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_266" name="note_266" + href="#noteref_266">266.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">מעבר יכק.</dd> + + <dt class="tei tei-notelabel"><a id="note_267" name="note_267" + href="#noteref_267">267.</a></dt> + + <dd class="tei tei-notetext">יעמוד. In olden times the weekly + lesson from the Law used to be read by seven members of the + congregation who were <span class="tei tei-q">“called up”</span> + for this purpose; the Priest and the Levite took precedence of + laymen for this honour. At the present day, the members of the + congregation are still called up, but the actual reading is + performed by an official.</dd> + </dl> + </div> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 5.00em; margin-top: 5.00em"> + <div id="pgfooter" class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 4.00em; margin-top: 4.00em"> + <pre class="pre tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STUDIES IN JUDAISM, FIRST SERIES*** +</pre> + <hr class="doublepage" /> + + <div class="tei tei-div" style= + "margin-bottom: 3.00em; margin-top: 3.00em"> + <a name="rightpageheader37" id="rightpageheader37"></a><a name= + "pgtoc38" id="pgtoc38"></a><a name="pdf39" id="pdf39"></a> + + <h1 class="tei tei-head" style= + "text-align: left; margin-bottom: 3.46em; margin-top: 3.46em"> + <span style="font-size: 173%">Credits</span></h1> + + <table summary="This is a list." class="tei tei-list" style= + "margin-top: 1.00em; margin-bottom: 1.00em"> + <tbody> + <tr> + <th class="tei tei-label tei-label-gloss">May + 2015 </th> + </tr> + + <tr> + <td class="tei tei-item tei-item-gloss"> + <table summary="This is a list." class="tei tei-list" + style="margin-bottom: 1.00em; margin-top: 1.00em"> + <tbody> + <tr class="tei tei-labelitem"> + <th class="tei tei-label"></th> + + <td class="tei tei-item">Project Gutenberg TEI + edition 1</td> + </tr> + + <tr class="tei tei-labelitem"> + <th class="tei tei-label"></th> + + <td class="tei tei-item"><span class= + "tei tei-respStmt"><span class= + "tei tei-name">Produced by Chuck Greif, David King, + and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at + <http://www.pgdp.net/>. 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