sign in sign up
<<
Home , Matthew Tindal, Thomas Chubb

The Impactof on theHebrew Literature ofthe Enlightenment in Germany

MOSHE PELLI

THE EUROPEAN ENLIGHTENMENT was not in essence atheistic,' nor was it irreligious,2though manifestationsof free thought, ,and materialismwere an integralpart of it. Its mostcharac- teristicreligious expression is deism,considered by some scholars to be "thereligion of theEnlightenment."3 It was deismthat devel- oped and crystallizedthe idea of naturalreligion, whose architects had been JohnSelden (1584-1654) and Hugo Grotius (1583- 1645). Deism attacheda new, universaldimension to ,and was one ofthe decisive factors in theweakening of orthodox religious valuesin Europe as wellas in theweakening of the Christian church. A studyof thedeistic movement in ,France, and Germany revealsthat it is notto be regardedas havingone, unified, homogene- ous Weltanschauung.Nevertheless, one has to resortto generalizing in orderto presentthe attitudeof the European Enlightenmentto- ward religion-religionin general,and the Christianreligion in particular-as expressedin one of the most influentialand most notablemovements in European thoughtduring the latterpart of the seventeenthcentury and the eighteenthcentury; the impactof thismovement on theHebrew Enlightenment in Germanyis noticed onlyin thelate eighteenthand the earliernineteenth centuries. Unlikethe Renaissance, which attempted to understandreligious dogma,and to interpretit in a humanisticfashion, European En-

1 Paul Hazard, European Thought in the EighteenthCentury (New York, 1963), p. 129. 2 , The Philosophy of the Enlightenntent(Boston, 1965), pp. 135- 36. Of the same opinionis HerbertDieckmann in "Themesand Structureof the Enlightenment,"Essays in Comparative Literature (St. Louis, 1961), pp. 67 ff. 3 John Hibben, The Philosophy of the Enlightenment(New York, 1910), p.272. See also Arthur0. Lovejoy,"The Parallelof Deism and Classicism,"Essays in the History of Ideas (Baltimore, 1948), p. 79. 35

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 36 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES lightenmenttreated religion in generalskeptically and critically.4 The methodsof objectivecriticism were transferred from the realms of philosophyand the sciencesto theologicalthought as well as to the studyof historyand the examinationof the sourcesof religion, i.e., thesacred scriptures. Comparative study of the oriental and thethree major Western ones developed;and withthe discover- ies ofparallel aspects in theirbasic beliefsand worships,Christianity appearedless originalthan previously thought. Theological reason- ing changed:a criticalapproach to all religiousmatters-the scrip- turesand theirauthenticity, dogmas and theirtruth, ways of worship- ing and their origins. Thus European Enlightenmentin the seventeenthand eighteenthcenturies made critical-skepticalreason the criterionfor the phenomenaof life.The properstudy of man- kind,as AlexanderPope remarked,was man'-in his attitudeto- ward reality,past and present,and his attitudetoward society and . Generallyspeaking, the Enlightenmentdid believe in the exis- tence of a transcendentalbeing, supreme in his power,goodness, and wisdom,who had setup worldorder, but who in no wayhas the capacityto changeit, nor to exerciseany providenceover any per- son;6 his existencecan be proved by human reason7 (the watch testifiesto the existenceof its maker),which is also the discoverer of naturalreligion and naturallaw. This worldis thebest possible, a factwhich, however, does notpreclude an after-life.The Enlighten- mentfurther maintained that every individual may thinkfreely in mattersof religion,independent of any scripturalor ecclesiastical authority;the onlybasis forhuman thought must be naturalphe- nomenaexplained in a natural,scientific way. By the same token, religioustruths, too, are arrivedat throughman's own experience withoutany divineor authoritativeinterference.

4 Cf. Cassirer,pp. 137-38. 5 An Essay on Man, II, 1-2. 6 S. G. Hefelboweris of theopinion that most deists did believein divineprovi- dence. See The Relation of to English Deism (Chicago, 1918), p. 92. Thisview is surelyright with regard to thefirst deists. 7 Samuel Hugo Bergman,in his Hogim Uma'aminim[Thinkers and Believers] (Tel Aviv, 1959), p. 10, explainswhy deism ignoredone of the most important aspectsof religiouslife-the religiousexperience. In its desireto forma natural religion,a religionof reason,deism intentionally gave up anyencounter, or meeting, withthe divine (which they called ).Roland N. Stromberg,too, criticizes Jeismfor its lack of understandingof theneed of the (religious)man for emotional

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 37

The theologyof theEnlightenment is thena naturaltheology, as opposedto the theologyof revelation.Doing away withthe latter, whichis based on scripturalaccounts of miraclesand prophecies, and of specificevents that happened to historicalfigures, the En- lightenmentleft only general revelation, that universal sense of God whichis independentof historicalevents or people. In addition,the Enlightenmentand deismdeprived Christianity of itsclaim to be thesource of moralityand made it theirown after wagingan aggressiveattack on both Christianityand Judaism.In thisattack deists expressed their strong that morality has not alwaysbeen practicedby theChristian church, that Jewish morality is ratherdubious, and, mostimportantly, that true morality is not necessarilydependent on anyreligion at all. Fromthe contention that Christianity has no exclusiverights over truereligion, deists moved on to demandreligious tolerance;8 they lookedfor new religiousvalues and some even envisionedthe com- ingof a newreligion altogether.9 In orderto provethat natural religion preceded all otherpositive religions,and thatit was and is thetrue, original form of worshiping God, thedeists waged an all-outcampaign against the revealedre- ligion.They startedwith Judaism and anticipatedas a resultthe automaticdownfall of Christianity,which is dependenton Judaism. Hobbes,in hisLeviathan, is alreadyskeptical about the divine reve- lation,the scripturalmiracles, and the authorshipand unityof the

satisfaction,or an "inwardspiritual experience," in his ReligiousLiberalism in Eighteenth-CenturyEngland (, 1954), p. 64. 8 Bergman(Hogim, pp. 23-24) is rightin attributingthe inclinationtoward religioustolerance to theestrangement from religion that took place in theEnlighten- mentperiod. There were instances among some of thelatter deists such as Rousseau and Lessing,however, of arrivingat religioustolerance as a resultof its adherence to theprinciples of justiceand brotherhoodbelieved to be thetenets of religion. 9 GottholdEphraim Lessing is believedto have envisionedthe comingof a new religion in his Die Erziehung des Menschengeschlechts (Berlin, 1785 [facsimile, Jerusalem,1967]), pp. 80-81, no. 86: "Sie wird gewisskommen, die Zeit eines neuen ewigenEvangeliums, die uns selbstin den Elementarbuicherndes Neuen Bundesversprochen wird." Gottfried Fittbogen discusses this view in his book Die ReligionLessings (Leipzig, 1923), p. 79, whileFlajola holds theopposite view; see Edward S. Flajola, "Lessing'sAttitude in the Lavater-MendelssohnControversy," PMLA, 63, No. 3 (1958), 208-9. Lessing'sletter to Mendelssohnof 9 January1771, in whichthe former encouraged the Jewish philosopher to replyopenly to Lavater, seemsto supportthe view that Lessing indeed wished to bringabout the downfall of Christianity.See Lessing,Samtliche Schriften (Leipzig, 1904), XVII, 364 ff.,and Moses Mendelssohn,Gesammelte Schriften (Leipzig, 1844), V, 189.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 38 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES fivebooks of Moses.'" He thus preceded Spinoza in his biblical criticismand probablyalso influencedhim.1' Amongthe first to examineJewish customs and ceremoniesand comparethem with Egyptian laws was JohnSpencer. His objective was to provethe pagan natureof Judaismand henceits falsehood."2 Many deists,such as Blount,Tindal, and Shaftesbury,elaborated on thistheme.13 Blount and later Collins attemptedto take away fromJudaism its claim of originalauthorship of the monotheistic idea, in orderto demonstratethe truth and the antiquityof natural religion.14 Towardthe end ofthe seventeenth century published hisChristianity Not Mysterious,in whichhe openlystated that those Christiandoctrines which appear to be mysterious,that is to say contraryto reason,are nottrue. 15 Miraclesin theOld and New Testa- mentscan be explainedaccording to thelaws of nature;16those that contradictnature are false and the resultof superstition.Thus he concludesthat the Virgin Birth is fictitious.'7He furthershows that Catholicismcannot prove itself the truereligion, since all its claims -such as its antiquity,its continuity,its and prophecies-

10 ThomasHobbes, Leviathan (Oxford, 1964), pp. 244, 247 ff.,285-86. 11 See Joseph Klausner, Philosophim Vehogei De'ot [Philosophers and Thinkers] (Jerusalem,1965), pp. 75-76, and John Orr, English Deism: Its Roots and Its Fruits (GrandRapids, Michigan, 1934), p. 79. 12 Paul Hazard, in The European Mind (1680-1715) (New York, 1964), p. 45, putsJohn Marsham (1602-1685) ahead of Spenceras the writerwho startedthis trend,but he acknowledgesSpencer's more scientific form. Samuel Ettinger, too, puts Marshamfirst in chronologicalorder, but emphasizeshis traditionaltendencies; see his article"Jews and Judaismin the Eyes of the EnglishDeists in the Eighteenth Century,"Zion, 29, Nos. 3-4 (1964), 185-86 [Hebrew].It is worthmentioning thatchronologically Herbert of Cherburypreceded both Marshamand Spencerin discussingthe influence of theEgyptian religion on theJewish religion; his treatment of thesubject was not as comprehensiveas thatof the othertwo writers.Herbert's De ReligioneGentilium was firstpublished in Amsterdamin 1663;see Edward,Lord Herbert of Cherbury,The AntientReligion of the Gentiles (London, 1705), p. 23. 13 See CharlesBlount, The Oracles of Reason (London, 1693), p. 134; Blount, ReligioLaici (London,1683), p. 54. Severalpassages in thelatter source were taken verbatimfrom Herbert of Cherbury's A Dialogue BetitveenA Tutor and His Pupil (London, 1768), p. 68-a practicewhich was quitecommon with Blount. See also , Christianityas Old as the Creation (London, 1730), I, 90 (there are two 1730 editionswith different pagination; for this paper I have used theedi- tion whichcontains 432 pages); Anthony,Earl of Shaftesbury,Cliaracteristics of Men, Manners, Opinions, Tines (Indianapolis & New York, 1964), II, 189-90. 14 Blount,The Oracles of Reason, p. 135; AnthonyCollins, A Discourse of thle Grounds and Reasons of the Christian Religion (London, 1737), pp. 124-25. 15 JohnToland, Christianity Not Mysterious (London, 1696); see the titlepage. 16 Toland, Tetradynius (London, 1720), pp. 1-60. 17 Toland, ChristianityNot Mysterious,p. 152.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 39 are made by otherreligions as well,and each one maintainsthat it alone is thetrue religion and thatall theothers are false.18Later, in the eighteenthcentury, Rousseau was to expressthe same idea;"9 Lessing,too, has it as themain theme of his Nathanthe Wise. AnthonyCollins is moreblatant, attacking the church by noting theexistence of controversies within it concerning doctrines and cus- toms.Evidently these doctrinesand customscannot all be true.20 MatthewTindal, in Christianityas Old as the Creation,abolished completelythe positive law of all positivereligions,2" and startedthe trend,of whichVoltaire is theoutstanding representative, of attack- ing the clerics,both Jewishand Christian,for corrupting their re- spectivereligions.22 He cites a song,widespread in his day, which sumsup brieflyand clearlythe deistic view:

NaturalReligion was easy first, and plain; Talesmade it Mystery,Offerings made it Gain; Sacrificesand Shews were at lengthprepar'd, ThePriest eat roast Meat, and the People star'd.23

He furtheraccused the Jews of offeringhuman sacrifices, an accusa- tionwhich was laterto develop.24 arguesthat the doctrineof the Trinityreduces Christianityto a statuslower than that of paganism. Chubb is among the deistswho stressthat the truereligion is the moral religion.25 developedthe balanced, historicalstudy of reli- gions,26while ConyersMiddleton gave a pungentcomparative ex-

18Toland, "The PrimitiveConstitution of theChristian Church," A Collectionof SeveralPieces (London, 1726), II, 171, 172, 174. 19 J.-J. Rousseau, The Creed of A Priest of Savoy (New York, 1957), pp. 54-55. 20 AnthonyCollins, A Discourseof Free-Thinking(London, 1713), pp. 61-76. 21 Tindal, Christianityas Old as the Creation, pp. 13, 64. 22 Tindal, The Rights of the Christian Church Asserted (London, 1707), pp. 141-42, 144. ConyersMiddleton, himself a criticof theCatholic Church, feels that Tindal aims to show that "Christianityought to be abolished" ("A Letter to Dr. Waterland," The Miscellaneous Works of [London, 1755], III, 49). 23 Tindal, Christianityas Old as the Creation, p. 92. It had been published pre- viouslyin JohnToland's Letters to Serena (London, 1704), p. 130,with slight spell- ingvariations. 24 Ibid., pp. 95-97. Cf. Voltaire,"A PhilosophicalDictionary," The Worksof Voltaire(New York, 1901-1903), V, 2, pp. 285-86. 25 Thomas Chubb,"The Author'sFarewell," The Posthumous Works (London, 1748), I, 178-79; Chlubb,The Previous Question with Regard to Religion (London, 1725), pp. 6-7. 26 Cf. ,History of English Thought in the EighteenthCentury (New York, 1962), I, 141-42.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 40 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES positionof Roman Catholicism,showing its directborrowing from pre-ChristianRoman paganism.27Similarly effective techniques are to be foundin thewritings of theFrench Bayle and Voltaire. The deisticmovement in France was, generallyspeaking, more aggressiveand more destructivethan its counterpartin England. Differencesbetween the relativelymoderate Anglican Church and strict,ossified French Catholicism may accountfor thisphenome- non. It shouldbe notedthat in England the best intellectswere on theside of theorthodoxy, whereas in France atheismwas dominant amongthe Enlighteners, and no doubtinfluenced deistic thought.28 For some,such as Diderot,deism was buta stageof his development and progresstoward ultimate atheism. The strongsocial emphasis in Frenchcriticism of religionis anotherfactor in theaggressiveness of Frenchdeism.Y9 RichardSimon and hiscriticism of the biblical texts and ofvarious religiouscustoms and laws witha pagan origin,paved the way to- warddeism in France.30The skepticPierre Bayle in his monumental DictionnaireHistorique et Critiqueexerted great influence over the Frenchcritics of religion,the Encyclopedists,as well as over the Germandeists.Y' There was hardlya subjectraised by later deists thatBayle had not treated,and treatedvery effectively. He dealt withmiracles,32 and the pagan originsof Christiancustoms;33 he maintainedthat religions are the cause of terriblewars;34 he criti- cized biblicalfigures,"5 and assertedthat the scripturesand biblical

27 Conyers Middleton, Dr. Middleton's Letter from Rome showing an exact conformitybetween Popery & Paganism; or: The Religion of the Present Romans derived from thlatof theirHeathlen ancestors (New York, 1847); Middleton, Exact Conformityof Popery & Paganism (New York, 1836). 28 Cf. Stephen, History of English Thought, I, 74-75. 29 Cf. Clifford Mortimer Crist, The Dictionnaire Philosophique . . . and the EarlyFrenclh Deists (Brooklyn,N.Y., 1934), p. 21. 30 Richard Simon, A Critical History of the Text of the New Testament (London, 1689); Simon,A Critical History of the Old Testament (London, 1682); Simon, The Ceremonies and ReligiouisCustoms of the Various Nations of thleKnown World (London, 1733-1739). See also Paul Hazard, The European Mind (1680-1715), pp. 180-97. 31 Cf. PierreCourtines, "Notes et Documents,Some Notes on the Dissemination of Bayle's Thoughtin Europe," Revue Litte'ratureCompare'e, 17 (Paris, 1937), 700-702. 32 Pierre Bayle, The Dictionary Historical and Critical (London, 1734-38), I, 87, noteH. Cf. Leo PierreCourtines, Bayle's Relations with England and the Eng- lish (New York, 1938), p. 5. 33 Bayle,The Dictionary,III, 744; ibid.,I, 87. 34 Ibid.,1, 18. 35 Ibid.,pp. 6-8, noteH, 23, 44-46.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 41

laws are false;36all religiousdogmas are fictitiousthat contradict eitherreason or moralprinciples.37 He furtherbelieved that divine revelationcannot be proven,38that religious coercion is contraryto religiousprinciples, and that religioustolerance should be prac- ticed.39It is onlynatural that the FrenchEncyclopedists borrowed unhesitatinglyfrom Bayle's dictionary,which has been ironically dubbed"the Bible of theeighteenth century."40 Similarin itsscope, but morebitter in itstone, is Voltaire'swork. His whip mercilesslylashed Judaismand Christianity,priests and rabbisalike. Religious tolerance is advocated,41while those who are to blame forthe lack of it-the priests-are condemned.Religious superstitionsare mocked: forinstance, the foreskinof Jesuswhich is keptat thePuy-en-Velay church and themiraculous letter which was writtenin thefirst person by Jesus and leftby himin 1771 in the churchof Paimpole.42Superstition, which according to Voltairewas fatheredby paganism and adopted by Judaism,distorted and changedthe churchin ancienttimes.43 Voltaire is highlycritical of Jewishtradition, maintaining that its laws are cannibalistic,44that ancientJews offeredhuman sacrifices,and that theyworshipped thedonkey; he also accusedtheir women of bestiality.45 Jean-JacquesRousseau distinguished,like Lessing and Herder, betweenthe true worship of God, whichis the same in all religions in all places at all times,and the ceremonial,external part of each individualreligion, which varies with its followers."It is a stupid

36 Ibid.,II, 156,829. 37 Bayle, "CommentairePhilosophique," EEuvres Diverses (The Hague, 1737), II, 367-70. 38 See Hazard, The European Mind, p. 110. 39 Bayle, "CommentairePhilosophique sur ces Parolesde Jesus-Christ,"cEuvres Diverses,II, 354 ff.The controversyis over theinterpretation of the versein Luke 14:23 "And theLord said to theservant, Go out intothe highways and hedges,and compelthem to come in, thatmy house may be filled."See also "Reflexionssur la Tolerance des Livres Heretiques," Nouvelles de la Republique des Lettres, (Euvres Diverses(1727 ed), I, Juillet,1685, article ix, pp. 335-36. 4( HowardRobinson, "Bayle's Profanation of SacredHistory," Essays in Intellec- tualHistory (New York, 1929), p. 147, citingEmile Faguet. 41 Voltaire,"Dictionnaire Philosophique," (Euvres Completesde Voltaire(Paris, 1878-79), ed. Garnier,IV (XX), 523-24; "A PhilosophicalDictionary," The Worksof Voltaire(New York, 1901-1903), VII, 2, pp. 108-9, articleon Tolera- tion. 42 A Philosophical Dictionary, VII, 2, pp. 17-24. 43 Ibid., pp. 30-31. 44 Ibid.,VI, 1, p. 86, articleon Laws. 45 Ibid.,V, 2, pp. 284-86.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 42 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES

nonsenseto imagine,"he says, "that God takes special interestin theform of thepriest's clothes, in the orderof the wordswhich he praysor thegestures which he does by the altar."46Of course,such doctrinesas thefall of man cannotbe acceptedby Rousseau.47 The extremedeistic stand, wliich brings deism closer to atheism, is representedby Diderot.48The Encyclopedie,of whichhe was one of the editors,played an importantrole in spreadingthe seeds of skepticismin Europe and in weakeningthe exclusiveauthority of the church.49

In Germany,birthplace of theHebrew Haskalah-Enlightenment -deism receivedits inspirationmainly from English deism and less fromits French counterpart. Influenced by pietismat home,and nothaving to fightan orthodoxysuch as FrenchRoman Catholicism, German deism is lacking that sarcasm and aggressivenesswhich typifythe writingsof Voltaireand Diderot. In addition,the prin- ciples of Leibniz-the doctrineof harmony-and of Christian Wolff-thatthere is some similaritybetween revelation and reason -are dominantin Germandeism.50 It mightappear as thoughdeism in Germanyintended to preservethe Christian religion and revivify it, to make peace withit ratherthan to destroyit.5' GermanEn-

46 Rousseau, The Creed of a Priest of Savoy, p. 53. 47 Cf. Cassirer,The Philosophyof theEnlightenment, p. 156. 48 Diderot'sDe l'Interpretationde la Nature,published in 1754, signaledthe changein the author'sWeltanschauung; he becamean atheist. 49 Cf. Hazard, European Thought in the EighlteenthCentury, pp. 212-14. 50 See Cassirer, The Philosophy of the Enlightenment,pp. 175-76; Otto Pfleiderer, The Philosophyof Religion(London, 1886-1888), I, 103. Karl Hillebrandexplains the basic differencebetween German theological thought and that of the English and the Frenchas resultingfrom different philosophies dominant in the respective countries.The Frenchand the English"arrived by the applicationof the law of causalityin theouter world (i.e., by reasoningand mechanicalexplanation) at the FirstCause or Deity.The GermanTheists started from conscience and triedto prove the Deity by the inwardrevelation of the morallaw as it speaks in the bosom of men;and theyinvoked the authorityof Cartesianismas developedby Leibniz,and set forthand commentedupon by Wolff,which appealed to the innateidea of a Deity as the strongestproof of its existence . . ." (German Thlouighltfrom thle Seven Years' War to Goethe's Death [New York, 1880], pp. 62-63). 51 HeinrichHeine summarizesthese tendenciesas follows:"From the moment that a religionsolicits the aid of philosophyits ruin is inevitable.. . . German scholars,besides the providing of new garmentshave made all sortsof experiments withher. They conceivedthe idea of bestowingon her a new youth.. . . An

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 43 lightenmentindeed developed a scientificschool of biblicalcriticism whose intentionswere serious and constructive.However, both deismand biblicalcriticism achieved in theirway whatEnglish and Frenchdeism achieved in theirs. Germandeism may be said to beginwith an attackon supersti- tionby the Dutch BalthasarBekker,52 followed by a similarattack by ChristianThomasius, and his subsequentcampaign against reli- gious intoleranceon the part of the Christianchurch.53 Although Germancritics of the Bible suchas Arnold,Edelmann, Baumgarten, and Michaelis defendedthe scripturesfrom the interpretationsof theEnglish and Frenchdeists,54 some of which were discussed above, theydo insiston a scientificstudy of thetext according to threecri- teria: authenticityof the text,and philologicaland historicalanal- ysis. On these bases, Michaelis reached the scholarlyconclusion, whichis identicalwith the deistic view, that we maydoubt the divine inspirationof some of the New Testamentbooks.55 It is a far cry fromthe traditionallyunique and divine truthprofessed by the Church. Semlerfound the biblical law to be a local law of a local religion, limitedto itstime. Christianity and Judaismerred in thatthey trans- ferredthese laws far beyond their limitations of timeand place. Thus thetrue of religion was stifledby an abundanceof laws,injunc- tions,and ceremonies.The HebrewBible, accordingto Semler,is a nationalbook of the Jewsalone, and theirGod is a nationalGod, notthe God ofNature. It standsto reason-Semler is repeatingwhat Voltairesaid-that sincethe Jews did notbelieve in theimmortality endeavourwas made to emptyChristianity of all historicalcontent, and thusleave nothingbut morality.By thisprocess Christianity was reducedto puredeism" (Re- ligion and Philosophy in Germany [Boston, 1959], p. 88). 52 BalthasarBekker, De Betroverde Weereld (Amsterdam,1691); Bekker,The WorldBewitched (London, 1695), I, Ch. xix,pp. 182 ff.;Ch. xx,pp. 197 ff;Ch. xxiv, pp. 244 ff. 53 See Andrew Dickson White, Seven Great Statesmen in the Warfare of Hu- manitywith Unreason (New York, 1912), pp. 137-38, 155 ff.,Hazard, TIle European Mind, pp. 172-76. 54 GottfriedArnold, Historie und Beschreibung der Mystischen Theologie, oder Geheimen Gottes Gelehrtheitwie auch derer A Iten und Neuen Mysticorum (Frank- furt,1703); SiegmundJakob Baumgarten, "Appendix Being an Examinationof the Several Opinionsof Those Who Pretend,that Abraham'sPosterity Reigned in Egypt," A Supplement to the English Universal History (London, 1760), I, 328; "Remarkson theUniversal History," ibid., II; Hazard, EuropeanThought, pp. 58, 66-68. 55 Hazard,European Thought,pp. 69-70.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 44 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES

of thesoul, as thereis no directmention of it in theBible, the He- brewscriptures cannot be identifiedwith the truth.56 Reimaruswas thedeist par excellenceof the German Aufklirung. He was the firstto relinquishthe Leibnizianbelief in harmonybe- tweendivine revelation and reason,and to side withBayle. Revela- tionwhose natural origin or cause one can discernis not a resultof supernaturalforces. On the otherhand, the divinerevelation as we have itis buta humantestimony of a divinerevelation, which should be testedby the same criteriawhich are used forany otherhuman testimony,namely, the trustworthiness of the witnesses, their moral character,as well as by thelogical and ethicalaspects of theirtesti- mony.It followsthat the Hebrew Bible is not of divineorigin, nor is theNew Testament.Hence bothProtestantism and Catholicismare humaninventions and theirlaws are a distortionof thenatural law. Reimarusconcludes that all should returnto the pure, universal naturalreligion.57 Lessing should be mentionedespecially in connectionwith his plea forreligious tolerance in Nathanthe Wise and withhis vision of a forthcomingdivine revelationwhich will supersedeChristianity and theNew Testament."8

The deisticattack on Judaismhad a dual purpose: (1) to point outthe loose and weak foundationupon whichChristianity is based, so as to do awaywith the Christiandoctrines which are foundedon theBible and on divinerevelation; (2) to combatthe notion of posi- tivereligion, the symbolof religiousisolation. Even thoughthis systematic and concentratedattack did nothave an immediateeffect on thegreat majority of Jews, for it did notreach them,in Germanythe Hebrew and JewishEnlightenment was very greatlyaffected by it. Some factorsexplaining this phenomenon shouldbe discussed.For one, deism utilizedconcepts which were

56 Ibid., pp. 71-73. 57 See Pfleiderer,The Philosophyof Religion,I, 101-4; Theodore M. Greene, "The HistoricalContext and ReligiousSignificance of Kant'sReligion," Introduction to Kant's Religion Withinthe Limits of Reason Alone (New York, 1960), pp. xvii- xviii;,From Rousseau to Ritschl,being a translationof elevenchapters of Die ProtestantischeTheologie im 19. Jahrhundert(London, 1959), p. 122. 58 See note9, above.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 45

somehowrelated to the spiritof Judaism.The deisticunity of God and objectionto theTrinity is a typicalJewish idea. Rejectionof the doctrineof originalsin and the soteriologywhich is based on it, as well as theidea of freewill-all of thesewere quite familiarto the JewishEnlighteners. In addition,there were those among the deists who identifiednatural religion with the laws of theTorah-the Ten Commandmentsand the Seven Noachian Laws59-very much to theliking of the Maskilim60 (both Jewish and HebrewEnlighteners). The factthat deism, unlike atheism, functioned somehow within the boundariesof religion had somethingto do withthe readiness of the Maskilimto absorbsome deistic views. Being affiliated in one wayor anotherwith Jewish tradition (especially the Hebrew Enlighteners), theyconsidered deism a newreligious movement whose aims were to changeand reviverather than destroy religion;61 they saw in it the religionof European Enlightenment,coming to termswith the de- mandsposed by a new era, based on reason and scienceand dedi- cated to tolerance.62 We shallnow considerthe effect that deism had on theliterature of theHebrew Enlightenment in Germanyduring the latterpart of theeighteenth century and the firsttwo decades of the nineteenth. It is appropriateto beginwith Moses Mendelssohn,who is consid- ered to be the "father"of the JewishEnlightenment. Despite the

59 Some allusionto theeffect that certain parts of the Mosaic Law are obligatory on everyoneis to be foundin JohnLocke's The Reasonablenessof Christianity,The SacredClassics (London, 1836), XXV, 19, and in Blount'sThe Oraclesof Reason, p. 147. 60 Moses Mendelssohn,"Schreiben an den HerrnDiaconus Lavater,"Gesammelle Schriften(Berlin, 1930), Jubilaumsausgabe,VII, 11; "Letterto JohannCaspar Lavater,"Jerusalem and OtherJewish Writings (New York, 1969), tr. and ed. AlfredJospe, p. 117. 61 See Mendelssohn'spositive attitude toward the deistsin his letterto Karl- Wilhelm,Hereditary Prince of Braunschweig-Wolfenbiittel,Jerusalem and Other JewishWritings, p. 124. 62 One of the Hebrew Maskilim,Mendel Breslau,wrote an articlein the first Hebrewliterary journal, Hame'asef [The Collector],in 1790,in whichhe called on therabbis and thespiritual leaders to assemblein orderto institutecertain reforms in the Jewishreligion as well as in religiouseducation. In his articleBreslau en- couragedhis readersto walk in the footstepsof the enlightenedpeoples of Europe who seek the truth,worship God, and pursuetolerance. He furthermentions an unnamedEnglish writer who, amongothers, "called us forpeace" (Hame'asef,VI [1790],301-14). I believeBreslau alludes to JosephPriestley who addressedthe Jews as follows:"Your wholenation is to be the head of all the nations.. . . We will receiveand honoryou as our elderbrethren. . . . Your nationis the greatobject towardswhich our eyesare directed"(Letters to theJews [New York, 1794],p. 47; firstedition, 1787).

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 46 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES

contentionof some writers63that Mendelssohn was a deist,it is my conclusion,after having studied both the deistic literature and Men- delssohn'swritings, that Mendelssohn was not a deist.6'Though he was influencedby the deistic movement, as we shallsee, and although he sharedsome of itsviews, he was hardlypart of it. His philosophy of Judaism,though a productof the European Enlightenment,re- jects some of the fundamentaldoctrines of deism.His conceptof God contradictsthat of the deists;65 the idea of revelationin Judaism

63 Heinrich Heine, Religion and Philosophy in Germany, p. 96: "Moses Men- delssohnsaw in pure Mosaisman institutionthat might serve as a lastintrenchment of deism;for deism was his inmostfaith, his mostprofound conviction." John Orr refersto some of Mendelssohn'sviews as deistic;however, he pointsout the differ- ence betweenthe English deists and theJewish philosopher in theirattitude toward Judaismand the HebrewBible (EnglishDeism, pp. 193-94). JohnM. Robertson calls Mendelssohna deistbut adds: "He was popularchiefly as a constructivetheist" (A ShortHistory of Freethought[New York, 1960],II, 281). OttoPfleiderer implies thatMendelssohn, in his view,was a deistin his book The Philosophyof Religion,I, 107-8. Amongthe Jewish scholars, Guttmann and Koplandalso writeto thiseffect, (Isaac JuliusGuttmann, Dat Umada' [Religionand Knowledge][Jerusalem, 1955], p. 203; Louis J. Kopland,"The Friendshipof Lessingand Mendelssohnin Relation to the Good-willMovement Between Christian and Jew,"Central Conference of AmericanRabbis, 39 [1929], 370). OtherJewish scholars regard Mendelssohn's deismas unquestionable:J. Zvi Zehavi, Tenu'at HahitbolelutBeyisra'el [The As- similationistMovement in Israel] (Tel Aviv, 1943), p. 20; Max L. Margolin,The Theological Aspect of Reformed Judaism (Baltimore, 1904), p. 107; Walter Roth- man,"Mendelssohn's Character and Philosophy,"CCAR, 39 (1929), p. 323; Felix A. Levy,"Moses Mendelssohn'sIdeals of Religionand Their Relationto Reform Judaism,"CCAR, 39 (1929), pp. 353, 355. Some of Mendelssohn'scontemporaries referto thisvery subject: Johann Balthasar Kolbele accusedMendelssohn of being a deist(Mendelssohn's Gesammelte Schriften, VII [1930],51), an accusationwhich is deniedby Mendelssohn(ibid.; see also his denial expressedin a letterwritten in Yiddish-Germanto Elkan Herz-Gesammelte Schriften,XVI [1929], 150-51). AaronWolfssohn, a HebrewMaskil, is of theopinion that Mendelssohn introduced naturalreligion among the Jews (Jeschurun[Breslau, 1804], p. 115). Citingthis source,Barzilay wrongly asserts that Wolfssohn"regarded Mendelssohn as the founderof deismamong the Jews"(Isaac Eisenstein-Barzilay,"The Treatmentof the JewishReligion in the Literatureof the BerlinHaskalah," Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research, 24 [1955], 55). Some other writerscare- lesslyuse theterm "deistic" in theirdiscussion of Mendelssohn'swritings, which are a far cry fromdeism; see David Rudavsky,Emancipation and Adjustment(New York, 1967), p. 70. It is unfortunatethat Rudavsky neglected to pointout thatthe originalauthor of the descriptionof Mendelssohn-verbatim-isno other than Joseph Klausner in his monumental work Historia Shel Hasifrut Ha'ivrit Hahad- ashah [Historyof ModernHebrew Literature] (Jerusalem, 1960), I, 52. 64 I elaboratedon thistheme in mybook Moshe Mendelssohn: Bechavlei Masoret [Moses Mendelssohn:Bonds of Tradition](Tel Aviv, 1972). Michael A. Meyer, too, is of the opinionthat Mendelssohn was no deist; see his The Originsof the Modern Jew; Jewish Identity and European Culture 1749-1824 (Detroit, 1967), p. 38. 6;5Mendelssohn depicts God as an activeagent in theworld in generaland in the historyof theJewish people in particular.See Jerusalem,pp. 62 ff.See also "The Principlesof Judaism-A Credo,"in ibid.,p. 154.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 47

accordingto Mendelssohn--whichis manifestedby the giving of theTorah, a sortof revelationof law, standsin directopposition to thedeistic concepts of bothrevelation and law;66his unequivocal beliefin a certain,unique, positive religion,67 too, eliminateshim as a deist. MendelssohnJudaized-if one may use thisterm-a fewdeistic principlesand rejectedmany others. He did absorbthe preaching of theEuropean Enlightenment with regard to natural,universal reli- gion,religious tolerance and morality,and withregard to emphasis on reason and a historical-criticalapproach to accepted religious beliefsand customs.However, this Maskil was bound to Jewishtra- dition,from which-unlike some of his followers-he could not escape. Torn as a personbetween two worlds, two cultures-the old and the new world,the Jewishworld and the recentlyaccessible European culture-Mendelssohn'shesitation is discerniblein his writingsin his rationalizationof the original,orthodox, traditional Judaism. Mendelssohnattempted a bridgebetween the Jewish culture which seemedto be decliningin Germanyand thepowerful, influential, and temptinggeneral culture of thetime, the latter being a decisivefac- torin thedecline of theformer. It was a two-waybridge: on theone hand,he endeavoredto bringhis Jewish contemporaries closer to the new,enlightened ideas, and on theother he attemptedto presentthe trueJudaism to theoutside, enlightened world. True Judaismwas a farcry from the distorted image of a corruptedMosaic religionpre- sentedby criticsof religion,deists and atheistsalike-as well as by Christiantheologians-as a resultof either bias or lack ofknowledge or misconception.Nor was it the Judaismpracticed by Rabbi RephaelHacohen, the zealot ultra-orthodox contemporary of Moshe ben Menahem (Mendelssohn),considered by the Maskilimas the symbolof old-fashioned,ossified Judaism and, as a result,as their arch-enemy.68 Some deisticideas Mendelssohndressed in a Jewishfashion in orderto makethem attractive to theJews as wellas to emphasizehis Leitmotifthat Judaism is an enlightenedreligion. In an obviousal- lusionto thedeistic rejection of revelationaccording to Christianity,

66 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, pp. 61 ff. 67 Ibid.,pp. 89 ff. 68 See myarticle "Some Notes on theNature of Saul Berlin'sWritings," Jouirnal of Hebraic Studies, 1, No. 2 (1970), 53-57.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 48 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES he paraphrasesa well-knownbiblical verse: "The voice that was heardat Sinai on thatgreat day did notproclaim, 'I am theEternal, yourGod, thenecessary autonomous Being, omnipotent and omnis- cient,who rewardsmen in a futurelife according to theirdeeds.' "69 In itscontext, Mendelssohn is saying,the revelation at Sinai did not intendto bringforth eternal truths of -whichto him are at- tainableby reasonalone and not by miracles-but ratherhistorical truthand laws. Similarly,the ideas of theearly English deist, Lord Herbertof Cherbury,concerning the relativityof both historyand tradition-oneof thebasic doctrinesof deism-find theirway into Mendelssohn'sJerusalem in the formof paraphrasesin a biblical style.70 The deisticdisclaimers of the proofof faithfrom miracles, ex- pressedby Hobbes, Blount,Tindal, and others,7'are said by Men- delssohnto be quite familiarto Judaism.No ,in Mendels- sohn'sJudaism, can eitherprove or contradicta truthof reason.He supportshis viewfrom the biblical injunction concerning a prophet, who,through miracles and othersigns, is preachingidolatry. Despite theproof from the miracles and signs,this prophet is not to be fol- lowed and shouldbe put to death.72Further, Mendelssohn accepts thedeistic critical view on theauthority of prophecies73 as consonant withthe view of Judaism. Accordingly, he maintainsthat the Talmu- dic law modifiesand limitsthe biblicallaw concerningprophecies: to followa prophetand his propheciesis a positivelaw, whichdoes not stemfrom the proofthat the propheciescame true,but rather fromthe will of thelegislator, i.e., God. An analogouscase is thatof the two witnesseson whosetestimony the court'sdecision lies, but whichis not necessarilythe truth.Mendelssohn unequivocally in- siststhat according to theTorah miraclesare nota sureidentification of a missionfrom God;74 this is undoubtedlya deisticposition.

69 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, p. 69. 70 Lord Herbertof Cherbury,"Religio Laici," De Causis Errorum(London, 1645 [facsimileedition, Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt, 1966]), p. 127; cf.Klausner, Philosophim Vehogei De'ot, p. 75. See Mendelssohn's Jerusalem,p. 70. 71 Hobbes, Leviathan,pp. 285-86; Blount,The Oracles of Reason, pp. 9-10; Tindal, Christianityas Old as the Creation, p. 192; Toland, "The PrimitiveConsti- tutionof theChristian Church," A Collectionof SeveralPieces (London, 1726), 11, 174. 72 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, pp. 70-71. 73 John Spencer, A Discourse Concerning Vulgar Prophecies (London, 1665), p. 110; Hobbes,Leviathan, p. 244; Blount,Religio Laici, (London, 1683), pp. 45- 46; Tindal, Christianityas Old as the Creation, pp. 258-59. 74 Mendelssohn,Gesammelte Schriften, VII (1929), 43-44.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 49

In his attemptto presentJudaism to thenon-Jewish Enlighteners in theirown terms,Mendelssohn argues that eudaemonism-happi- ness on earthand in theafter-life, seen by thedeists as theprincipal characteristicof truereligion75-is actuallypart and parcel of true Judaism.Unlike Christianity, which denies happiness to non-believ- ers-thus causingthe deists to doubtthe authenticity of Christianity, forGod wouldnever send the great majority of thehuman race into damnation-Judaismdoes allot the whole of humanityits shareof happiness.76 Mendelssohnalso endeavors to correct some misconceptions whichare to be foundin thedeistic literature. Spencer, Blount, Mor- gan, and othersdeveloped a theory,originated by Herodotus,that theMosaic laws are actuallyborrowed from the Egyptians, that God had to permitthe Jews to practicethese borrowed laws because they were ignorantand corrupted.In orderto keep themunder strict discipline-the deistsasserted-he burdenedthem with very strict laws, withthe Torah as theirworst punishment.77 The rationaleis said to indicatethe low statusof Jews among the nations. Against this background,Mendelssohn states emphatically that there exist rea- sonableand humaneexplanations for the Mosaic laws; thatJudaism has a universalduty or mission-to preachand teachthe truecon- ceptsof God and his attributesamong the nations.78 A carefulstudy of Mendelssohn's writings does revealsome direct borrowingfrom deism. There is one strikingparallel between John Toland and theJewish philosopher. The deistToland writes:"Jesus did not,as 'tisuniversally believ'd, abolish the Law of Moses (Sacri- ficesexcepted) neither in wholenor in part,not in theletter no more thanin the spirit."797And "the Jews,tho' associatingwith the con- 75 See, forexample, A. W., "Of NaturalReligion, as Opposedto Divine Revela- tion,"The Oraclesof Reason,p. 198: "The Rule whichis necessaryto our future Happiness,ought to be generallymade knownto all men.But no Rule of Revealed Religionwas, or ever could be made knownto all men. Thereforeno Revealed Religionis necessaryto futureHappiness." 76 Mendelssohn, Jerusalem,pp. 65-66. 77 See Herodotus,The Histories(Baltimore, 1960), p. 116; Herbertof Cherbury, The AntientReligion of the Gentiles,p. 23; Herbert, A Dialogue Between A Tutor and His Pupil, p. 233; Spencer, A Discourse ConcerningProdigies, p. 8 [my pagina- tion]; Blount, Religio Laici, p. 54; Blount, Oracles of Reason, p. 134; Shaftesbury, Characteristics,II, 181-90;Tindal, Christianity as Old as the Creation,p. 90; Thomas Morgan,The Moral Philosopher(London, 1738), I, 247-60, 268-71. Cf. Ettinger, "Jewsand Judaism,"p. 186; Klausner,Philosophim, p. 85. 78 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, pp. 89-90, 104-5. 79 John Toland, Nazarenus: or, Jewish, Gentile, and Mahometan Christianity (London,1718), p. 5.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 50 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES verted Gentiles . . . were still to observe their own Law thro-out all generations."80An almostidentical phrasing is to be foundin Mendelssohn'swritings: "The founderof the Christian religion never statedexplicitly that he wantedto abolishthe Mosaic law or exempt the Jews from it. . . . I cannot find in the New Testament any groundspermitting the dispensationof the Jewsfrom Mosaic law, even if theyembrace Christianity."'8' Parallelscan also be foundbetween Mendelssohn and Matthew Tindal'sChristianity as Old as theCreation. Both identify the Jewish religiouslaw withthat of the Jewish civil law,82 both limit the obliga- tionto adhereto theMosaic law to theJews themselves,83 both make itclear that compulsion in religiousmatters is notin accordancewith thetrue spirit of religion,84and bothpreach religious tolerance.85 It is beyonddoubt that Mendelssohn was influencedby deisticthought; he mentionsHerbert of Cherburyand his principlesof deism,Pierre Bayle,and Toland, and he alludesto thedeists in general.86It is not surprisingthat Mendelssohn's library included some of thewritings ofToland, Bayle, Diderot, Voltaire, and otherEnlighteners-not to mentionthe works of such Germandeists as Reimarus.87 Emphasisis putin thisstudy on Mendelssohn,for he was thespiri- tualleader of theHebrew Enlighteners in Germany,who referredto himas "theSocrates of our time" and equatedhim with the two great

80 Ibid.,p. iv. 81 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, pp. 125-26. 82 MatthewTindal, "An Essay Concerningthe Powerof the Magistrate,and the Rightsof Mankind,in Mattersof Religion,"Four Discourses(London, 1709), p. 185; see also Tindal's The Rights of the Christian Church Asserted, pp. 149 ff.Cf. Mendelssohn'sJerusalem, p. 99. This viewhad been expressedearlier by Hobbes in Leviathan,which could have been theircommon source (ed. A. R. Waller [Cam- bridge,1904], p. 259). 83 Tindal, Christianityas Old as the Creation, pp. 196-97; see also Tindal, The Power of the Magistrate,pp. 147, 184; cf.Mendelssohn's Jerusalem, pp. 98, 116-17. 84 Tindal,The Power of the Magistrate,pp. 133, 152, 190-91: Tindal,The Rights of the Christian Church, pp. 38-43, 90. Cf. Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, pp. 22-23, 34-35, 46-47. 85 Tindal, The Power of the Magistrate,pp. 241-42; Mendelssohn, Jerusalem,pp. 106-7, 117, 145-47. 86 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, pp. 72, 37, 124; withregard to thereference to Toland see Mendelssohn'spreface to the Germantranslation of Menasheben Israel's Vin- diciaeJudaeorumn (the Hebrewedition of Jerusalemand otherwritings published in Tel Aviv,1947, p. 150). 87 Verzeichniss der Auserlesenen Biichersammlung des Seeligenl Herrn Moses Mendelssohn(Berlin, 1786 [facsimileedition, Leipzig, 1926]).

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 51

Moseses of Judaism-Moses and .8Their esteemfor Mendelssohnwas expressedin a paraphraseof Pope's epigramon Newton:"Truth and Religionlay hid in darknessfor many a genera- tion/TillGod said letthere be Moses! And therewas light."8" A contemporaryof Mendelssohn,the Hebrew writerand poet NaphtaliHerz Wessely,is consideredby somescholars to be theEn- lightenerpar excellence of the period, and theliterary personality that signalsthe beginningof the HebrewEnlightenment.90 However, a carefuland criticalstudy of thewhole of Wessely's work leads us to a differentconclusion. Not only was Wesselyone of the right-wing orthodoxamong the German Maskilim, who, rather than reforming, advocatedconserving Judaism, he rejectedcompletely the deistic trends.9'Wessely opposes the first and foremostprinciple of theEn- lightenment-relianceon humanreason.92 Aware of Wessely'santi- Enlightenmentviews, Mendelssohn hesitated to send himhis book, Phaedon,a treatiseon theimmortality of thesoul, based on inquiry and reason.93Wessely also attackedthe deists,whom he considered worsethan atheists.Worst of all are the Jewishdeists "who truly knowthat the Torah was givenby God, mayhis name be blessed,and whostubbornly dismiss it because of theirreliance on theirown wis- dom and reason."94It was onlyafter his move fromAmsterdam to Berlin,center of HebrewHaskalah at thattime, after his acquain- tancewith the Maskilimand afterhis collaborationwith Mendels- sohn,that Wessely produced his pro-Haskalahdeclaration (Divrei ShalomVe'emet), advocating modern education for Jewish children. Apart fromthis, Wessely's only inclinationtoward the Enlighten-

88 See Heine, Religion and Philosophy in Germany, p. 94; Hame'asef, 11 (1785), 81: "From Moses to Moses therewas no one wise like Moses"; a similarepigram had been made on othergreat scholarswhose name was Moses, especiallyMai- monides.I have elaboratedon thistheme in mypaper entitled The Image of Moses Mendelssohn As Reflected in the Early German Hebrew Haskalah Literature (Hame'asef, 1783-1797) scheduled to be published in The Proceedings of the Fifth World Congress of JewishStudies. 89 Hame'asef, III (Tamtuz, 1786), 161 [pages misnumbered;should be p. 177]. Pope's linesare, of course,"Nature and Nature'sLaws lay hid in Night:/Godsaid, Let Newton be! and all was Light!" (Poetical Works of Alexander Pope [New York, 1896],p. 475). 90 Klausner, Historia Shel Hasifrut Ha'ivrit Hahadashah, I, 10-11. 91Naphtali Herz Wessely,Levanon [Lebanon] (Vienna, 1829), pp. 44b-45a. 92 Ibid.,p. 8a (in theintroduction). 93Mendelssohn, Gesammelte Schriften, XVI (1929), p. 118; see also Wessely's reply,ibid., p. 122 [Hebrew]. 94 Wessely,Levanon, p. 48b.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 52 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES

mentis indicatedby his advancingin orderof importanceas well as in historicalorder the law of man in relationto the law of God. Wesselyuses theterm "Torat Ha'adam" (Law of Man).95Almost all scholarsmaintain that Wessely applied this term only to theteaching of secularstudies to Jewishchildren before their religious studies.96 Among the scholarswho do not interpretthe termin thisway is Shapira,who equates Wessely'sTorat Ha'adam withMendelssohn's "eternaltruths."97 (Undoubtedly Mendelssohn's influence on Wes- selyis seen here,even thoughJerusalem was publisheda yearafter Divrei Shalom Ve'emet,for Mendelssohn'sviews had been well knownto the Maskilimeven beforethe publicationof his book.) Eliav identifiesTorat Ha'adam with"natural education," similar to thatpreached by the school of PedagogicPhilanthropinism in Ger- many.98They all fail to note thatWessely himself identified Torat Ha'adam withthe sevenNoachian Laws, thatis, withnatural reli- gion.99This statementis immeasurablyimportant to our study,for it clearlyindicates that the deistic views were so powerfullyinfluential thatthey gained ground even amongthe traditionalelement of the Hebrew Maskilim.Other deisticideas, too, foundtheir way into Divrei Shalom Ve'emet: religioustolerance, a commonground for all or mostreligions, which may lead to rapportand understanding amongthem (to Wessely,that common ground is the Mosaic Law, or the Bible)."'0Paradoxically, none of Wessely'ssubsequent writ- ingsreveals any inclinationtoward deism or towardthe Enlighten- ment.10'Discussion of thisphenomenon is beyondthe scope of this paper.102 95 Wessely, Divrei Shalom Ve'emet [Words of Peace and Truth] (Berlin, 1782- 1785), p. 2a (mypagination). 96 Klausner,Zinberg, Lahover, Asaf, Scharfstein, Kaufman. 97 H. N. Shapira,Toldot Hasifrut Ha'ivrit Hahadashah [The Historyof Modern HebrewLiterature] (Tel Aviv, 1939 [reprint,1967]), pp. 196 ff. 98 MordechaiEliav, HahinuchHayehudi Begermania [Jewish Education in Ger- many](Jerusalem, 1961), p. 41. Eliav followsE. Simon in his article"Pedagogic Philanthropinismand JewishEducation," Kaplan's Jubilee Book (New York, 1953), p. 172 [Hebrew]. 99 Wessely, Divrei Shalom Ve'emet, p. 2a. 100Ibid., p. 13b, 101Editorial advice published in Nahal Habsor [The brook'Besor,' or: good tid- ings](1783); SeferHamnidot [Book of Ethics] (1785); Ma'amar Hikur Hadin [An Essay (on) Search (or investigation)of Justice](1788); ShireiTif'eret [Songs of Glory](1789-). 102 This subject,as well as otherspertaining to the writingsof Wessely,are dis- cussedin my paper entitled"Naphtali Herz Wessely'sAttitude toward the Jewish Religionas a Mirrorof a Generationin Transition,"read at the 1970 AnnualMeet- ing of theAmerican Academy of Religion.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 53

Underthe influence of theEnlightenment in generaland deismin particular,and withtheir minds set on achievingemancipation for the Jews,the Maskilimof Berlinadvocated, preached, and fought forchanging and modernizingthe Jewish religion, the Jewish culture or civilization,as well as theJewish way of life.103It is necessaryfor our purposeto distinguishbetween two basic divisionsamong these Maskilim.There were the extremistswho wrotemainly in German and themoderates who expressedthemselves in Hebrew.104 The dif- ferencein language,as well as thedifference in position,implies two widelydifferent kinds of audience. The German-JewishMaskilim cateredmainly to thenon-Hebraic Jewish readers, to thenon-obser- vantenlightened Jews, to the assimilationists,and to the Christian public at large.The HebrewMaskilim aimed at theirfellow Mask- ilim,who had strongerties withthe Jewishtradition than did the GermanMaskilim, and at the enlightenedorthodox as well as at theiropponents-the orthodox rabbis. This, however, does not pre- clude extremistswho publishedin Hebrew;their extreme positions wereof an entirelydifferent nature from the ones held by the Ger- man-JewishEnlighteners.'05 Despitethe distinctly deistic views expressed by suchMaskilim as Saul Ascher,David Friedldnder,Solomon Maimon, and Lazarus Bendavid,who used Germanas theirprincipal language, and though theywere instrumental in theformation of Jewishdeistic thought in both languages,this paper will concentrateonly on theircounter- partswho wrotemainly in Hebrew. Typically,the firstHebrew Maskilimin the last decades of the eighteenthcentury did not begin theiractivities with an outright criticismof Judaismand its authority,or witha campaignfor reli- gious reform.Allowing for deviations,their career is somewhat analogousto thefirst steps of theearly deists. When we notethat all of the firstgeneration Hebrew Maskilim-unlike theirGerman- Jewishcolleagues-came froma traditionalbackground, a transi- tionis to be expected.It usuallystarted as a moderateEnlightenment in theform of layingemphasis upon wisdomand reasonin matters religious,followed by attemptsto reconcileJudaism and the En-

103 See my article"Intimations of ReligiousReform in the German Hebrew HaskalahLiterature," Jewish Social Studies,32 (January1970), 3-13. 104 Cf. Barzilay,"The Treatmentof the JewishReligion," p. 40; Barzilay,"Na- tionaland Anti-NationalTrends in the BerlinHaskalah," Jewish Social Studies,21 (July1959), 167-68. 105 Such as Saul Berlin;see note 109,below.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 54 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES lightenment,and to show the compatibilityof theirreligion and philosophy,and thelike. Thus a Maskil like Isaac Satanowwrites: "Torah and wisdomare twinsisters,"106 and "There is no beliefor knowledgein the Mosaic religionwhich is contraryto reason."'107 Subsequently,in orderto provethese statements, the Maskilim had to resortto a discussionof what is knownin Hebrew as Ta'amei Hamitzvot,that is, a rationalexplanation of the commandmentsin theHalachah (legal system).In so faras theydid so, theyfollowed in thefootsteps of Mendelssohn,as his disciples.However, the result was beyondthe expectationor the wish of Mendelssohn.For once permissionwas grantedto reason-actually to ratiocinate-about the divine law, its temporalaspects were immediatelyapparent. Thus the Hebrew Enlightenerscame close to some of the deistic viewson theChristian as well as Jewishlaw. As earlyas 1771 therewas publishedthe first demand to change the Jewishlaw accordingto the conditionsdictated by time and place. Its author,whom I considerto be thefirst religious reformer of theHaskalah literature,was MordechaiSchnaber, an enlightened physicianwho was a contemporaryof Mendelssohn.108 A distinctionshould be made herebetween the techniques of the deistsand thoseof the earlyHebrew reformers. Unlike the deists, who used argumentsbased on miraclesand prophecies,it seemed inconceivableto theirHebrew followers to attackbiblical miracles and prophecieswhich they considered the foundationfor both Ju- daismand theBible. Theywere never so detachedfrom Judaism as to wishits destruction, and theyrevered the Bible, if not as thedivine holyscripture, then as thesource for Hebrew civilization-its origi- nal, uncorruptedreligion, its culture,literature, history, and law. I have foundonly one instancein theGerman Haskalah literature (in Hebrew)where miracles are questioned-not divinemiracles as attestedin theBible, but rather those known to have been performed bysome great rabbis. Such are themiraculous performance of Rabbi Levi who broughtdown beer fromheaven by utteringthe divine name,or themiraculous creation of the Golem, that legendary figure who saved the Jews,by the sixteenth-centuryrabbi of Prague. The authorof thiscritique of miracleswas Rabbi Saul Berlin,a unique phenomenonin Hebrewliterature.109 106 Isaac Satanow, Mishlei 'Asaf [Proverbs of Asaf] (Berlin, 1792), II, 70a. 107 Isaac Satanow, Holech Tamim, [He Who Walks Upright] (Berlin, 1795), p. 6b. 108 Mordechai Gumpel Schnaber [George Levison], Ma'amr Hatorah Vehaho- chmah [An Essay (on) the Torah and Wisdom] (London, 1771), p. 2. 109Saul Berlin, Ketav Yosher [An Epistle of Righteousness] (Berlin, 1795), p. 3b.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 55

The Hebrewcritics of religionfunctioned within the framework of theirreligion, very much like the deists,except that their argu- mentswere based on theHalachah, the Jewish legal system,on legal precedentsand authoritativeopinions. Arguments from reason alone woiildnot have reachedtheir target, namely the traditional element withtendencies toward the Enlightenment, as well as thetraditional rabbis. The attemptto persuadeindividual rabbis should be consideredin lightof the difference between the Christian and theJewish religious legal systems.Generally speaking, in Judaismit is up to the indi- vidualrabbi, or to a smallgroup of rabbisfrom one locality,to de- cide on religiousmatters in question,to enact religiousdecrees and abolishothers, without the need of any hierarchicalor ecclesiastical adviceor consent.This is legallypermissible so long as therabbi or rabbiscan supporttheir non-heretical decision by a rabbinicauthor- ity,or a precedent,or can proveits derivationfrom any numberof authoritativeHalachic codices. Actual solicitingof favolableviews and decreesfrom rabbis known to be sympatheticto religiousreform was practicedby the Jewishreformers in 1818 in connectionwith religiousinnovations which had been institutedin the newlyestab- lishedreform temples of Berlinand Hamburg.'"' This dissimilaritybetween European deism and itsHebrew equiv- alentis self-explanatory.But thereare in theHaskalah literaturea numberof techniques which can be tracedback to thedeists. One of theseis the repetitiveclaim by Hebrew Enlightenersthat original Judaismhas been distortedthroughout the ages up to the present time,and that it is theirduty to bringJudaism back to its pure form."'1Even the conservativeMendelssohn took part in this.He admittedopenly that present-day Judaism possessed "excesses and abuses"created by men,'12and he even foughtpublicly, against the orthodoxauthorities, for banning the practiceof excominunication and foran earlyand immediateburial of the dead. Restorationof the correct,original practices was demanded."'3These two issues be- cametest-cases, and, in theMaskilim's view Mendelssohn triumphed,

110 See my article "The Methodology Employed by the Hebrew Reformersin the First Reform Temple Controversy (1818-1819)," Studies in Jewish Bibliography, History and Literature in Honor of 1. Edward Kiev (New York, 1971). 111See Hame'asef, 11 (1785), 88, 152, 154 (by an anonymous writer); "Discus- sion of Two Friends," V(1789), 270 (believed to have been writtenby Saul Berlin). 112 Mendelssohn,Jerusalem, p. 115. 113 Mendelssohn, Gesammelte Schriften, XVI (1929), 154 ff.; Hamne'asef,II (1785), 169-74, 178-87; Mendelssohn, Jerusaleml,pp. 34-35, 143-44.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 56 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES in practice,against the rabbis. This led theMaskilim to regardthese twoissues as thesymbols of thefight for Enlightenment. They were discussedcontinuously for almost three decades in the literatureof the GermanHaskalah.114 The historical-criticalapproach to Judaismwhich led to the de- mandto restoreit to its originalform may be creditedwith another achievement,the recognitionon the partof the HebrewEnlighten- ersthat Judaism has alwaysbeen flexibleand readyfor change, and thatsome changeshave alwaystaken place in Judaismin one way or another.What had been consideredby the orthodoxrabbis as TorahShebe'al Peh, theoral law containingan elaborationof Torah Shebichtav,the written law-both traditionallythought of as having beengiven to Moses at Sinai-was consideredby theEnlighteners as indicativeof a development,a change,or even a reformof theorigi- nal Mosaic religion.If thiscould be provedto be a legitimatepractice in JewishHalachah-according to the Maskilim'spoint of view- theroad was open forsome changes in theirown day and age."3o Theirefforts were continuous and manifold.Deism is dividedby Leslie Stephen into constructiveand destructive(or critical) deism,"6and theefforts of theHebrew Enlighteners may be classi- fiedin likemanner. Constructively, they continued to tryto persuade the orthodoxrabbis on theirown groundand in theirown terms. Citationsfrom rabbinic responsa literature were widelyquoted by suchEnlighteners as Schnaber,Berlin, Isaac Satanow,and othersat theend of theeighteenth century, and by Eliezer Liebermann,Meir Bresselau,and Rabbi Aharon Chorinin the firstpart of the nine- teenth.Also of a constructivenature was Mendel Breslau'sappeal, publishedin 1790 in Hame'asef,the organof the HebrewEnlight- enment,to convenean assemblyof rabbisfor the sole purposeof alleviatingthe burdenof Judaism."7 This appeal unheeded,their frustrations multiplied, and theMas- kilimhad to resortto moreeffective measures. By theturn of thelast decadeof theeighteenth century, the situation was ripefor a change

114 For details,see notes30 and 31 in myarticle "Intimations of ReligiousReform in theGerman Hebrew Haskalah Literature." 115 Schnaber, Ma'amar Hatorah Vehahochmah, p. 2; Saul Berlin, Besamim Rosh [Incenseof Spices] (Berlin,1793), No. 251, p. 77a: the Torah itselfis subjectto change,and so are theprinciples of Judaism(p. 76b) and theoral law (p. 71a). 116 Cf. Stephen,History of English Thought,1, 76. 117 Mendel Breslau, "MichtavimShonim" [Various Articles],Hame'asef, VI (1790), 301, 310.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 57

of tactics.By then some of the Hebrew writers-Schnaberand Satanow-had publishedtheir first books, which mildly advocated theEnlightenment and whichonly covertly alluded to deisticviews; Hame'asefand itswriters were by thenignoring their promise, made public immediatelyafter Mendelssohn's death (in 1786) to follow in his footstepsin accordancewith the Torah,18 and theybegan publishingparables and poemswhich heralded new destructiveand aggressivetrends."19 Aware of thesetrends, Wessely reproached the Enlightenersin 1788 forpublishing these extreme parables.120 By then,too, Rabbi Saul Berlin,ahead ofhis time in theextremity of his positionas well as his techniques,had circulatedhis pungent satireKetav Yosherin manuscriptform among the Maskilim.Pre- cedingJoseph Perl, Isaac Erter,and JudahLeib Gordonby halfa century,this most talented Hebrew writer,who has unfortunately failedto get appropriaterecognition from the scholarsof Hebrew literature,is reminiscentof anotherclergyman of theEnglish deistic movement,Conyers Middleton, as well as of Voltaire.His sharppen is directedagainst the abundance of meaninglessand ridiculous religiousinjunctions, against superstition,the Talmud, and the Kabalah. Moreover,he invertsthe typical deistic argument concern- ing the borrowingof Jewishconcepts by Christianityby sayingin effectthat Judaism, too, is to blame for absorbingChristian con- cepts.121 In 1789, Rabbi Saul Berlin,in a disguiseof orthodoxyfor which he was neverforgiven by eithercontemporary traditional rabbis or by laterscholars, both of whomdid notunderstand his predicament as theson of therevered rabbi of Berlin,led theHebrew Enlighten- mentin another"first." This was a personalattack against the sym- bol of rabbinicauthority of the time-Rabbi Rephael Hacohen of Hamburg-modeledwith a greatdeal of innovationand ingenuity on thedeistic attack against the Christianclerics. It was Voltaire's ecrasez l'infamein Hebrewattire.'22 Although he publishedhis at- tackunder a pseudonym,Berlin's identity as theauthor was known

118 Hamne'asef,III (1786), 212. 119 Ibid., V (1789), 194, 226, 312. 120 Ibid., IV (1788), 165. 121 Berlin, Ketav Yosher, p. 16b, concerningthe connection between the coming of the Messiah and Adam's sin (i.e., original sin) in the Jewishand Christian reli- gions. Cf. Hame'asef, VI (1790), 45. 122 [Saul Berlin], Mitzpeh Yokte'el [Watchtower of Yokte'el] (Berlin, 1789).

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 58 EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY STUDIES to all buthis father.Saul Berlinhad to pay dearlyfor his daring:he was excommunicatedby the religiouscourt of Hamburgand was forcedto leave his rabbinicpost with the Frankfurt Jewish commu- nity.He vehementlyfought the excommunicationon a numberof fronts,getting support from his fatherand theenlightened leaders of theJewish community in Berlin.Considering his best defenseto be outright,open attack,he publishedanother powerful onslaught on his traditionalistadversary, Rabbi Hacohen, thistime in the form of a reviewof thelatter's book. Duringall thistime the Hebrew reformer was preparinghis swan song: a reformedShulhan Aruch (Jewishcode of law), whichhe ironicallyattributed to a fourteenth-centuryrabbinic authority, Rabbi Asherben Yehiel,known as Rosh. All histalents were put into thisbook, publishedin 1793-satire, irony,sarcasm, and his great eruditionin rabbinicwritings. As an orthodoxrabbi of thetime ob- servedin anguish,there was hardlya religioustransgression wliich he did not permit.In the finalanalysis, it appeared as thoughthe Rosh, thatstrictly religious rabbi, was advocatingchange and re- formsnot onlyin the Oral Law but also in the WrittenLaw-the Torah; thateven such principlesof Judaismas theTemple worship and the beliefin the Messiah mightbe changed,and indeed had been changed-or had not been part of Judaism-at one pointor another.A detailedanalysis of thevarious aspects of thiswork, en- titledBesamim Rosh, meritsspecial attentionbeyond the limitsof thepresent paper.123 Significantly,Rabbi Berlinreiterates in his book the positionof his Enlightenmentcolleagues with regard to religiouscoercion, ex- communication,burial, prayerin German,the exclusion of the Piyutimand Selihot(liturgical prayers) from the prayerbook, and othermatters. Moreover, he presentsfor the first time a detaileddis- cussionof reforms, instead of the customary generalized demand for alleviatingthe burden or fora fewchanges in a numberof customs.

As I havenoted, the beginning of the 1790s marksa turningpoint

123 See my article"The ReligiousReforms of 'Traditionalist'Rabbi Saul Berlin (A Chapterin theHistory of theStruggle of HebrewHaskalah in Germanyfor the Revival of Judaism)," Hebrew Union College Annual, 42 (1971) [Hebrew].

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions HEBREW LITERATURE OF THE HASKALAH 59

towarddestructive trends in deisticand semi-deisticwritings of the HebrewEnlightenment in Germany.The forcesfrom within and the developmentin thereligious reform ideology discussed above were nurturedby European deism,as well as by German-Jewishdeistic writings.It shouldbe rememberedthat Saul Ascher'sviews on Jew- ish reformand his attemptsto destroythe legal systemin Judaism appearedin 1792 in his book entitledLeviathan; in the same year SolomonMaimon publishedhis autobiographywith its deisticthe- ologyand itscritical views on Jewishcustoms. A yearlater, in 1793, Lazarus Bendavidpublished his deisticexposition of the Jewsand Judaism,and David Friedliinder,too, about this time began his deisticactivities which culminated in 1799 in his infamous(from a Jewishpoint of view) letterto Teller,head of the BerlinProtestant Church,expressing his willingness, and thatof someof hisfollowers, to embraceChristianity under certain conditions. In thethree decades that followed, the demands for change found in Hebrewliterature are not as covert.Religion is blamedby Isaac Satanowfor spreading hatred in the world.124As a result,religious toleranceis preachedeven amongthe Jews.Both are deisticideas. Superstitiousbeliefs and customsare deploredin a mannerreminis- centof Voltaire.The many,many religious laws, injunctions,cus- toms,and practicesencompassing every minute and everystep of theJew's life are attacked.And, finally, Jewish religious authority- therabbi-is beingsharply criticized, especially by Saul Berlinand, some twentyyears later, by such reformersas Liebermann,Bresse- lau, andDavid Caro. Concurrently,however, the Maskilim stress the importanceof aspectsof moralityin Judaismso as to demonstrate itscompatibility with deism and theEnlightenment. The writingsof theseHebrew Maskilim-among others-formedand shapedunder theimpact of European deism, played an importantrole in theestab- lishmentand developmentof the religious reform movement in Ger- many,and precededand heraldedsuch Hebrew reformersof the 1860s and 1870s as JudahLeib Gordonand Lilienblum.

Austin,Texas 1969-Beer Sheva,Israel 1971

124 Satanow, Mishlei 'Asaf, II, pp. 55a-b, Ch. 31:10, p. 77a, Ch. 42:15.

This content downloaded from 128.146.23.50 on Mon, 27 Apr 2015 14:44:25 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions