Livornese Traces in American Jewish History: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh Arthur Kiron University of Pennsylvania, [email protected]
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University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Scholarship at Penn Libraries Penn Libraries 2001 Livornese Traces in American Jewish History: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh Arthur Kiron University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://repository.upenn.edu/library_papers Part of the Jewish Studies Commons Recommended Citation Kiron, A. (2001). Livornese Traces in American Jewish History: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh. Retrieved from http://repository.upenn.edu/library_papers/71 Suggested Citation: Kiron, Arthur. "Livornese Traces in American Jewish History: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh." in Per Elia Benamozegh. Ed. Alessandro Guetta. Edizioni Thalassa De Paz, 2001. This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/library_papers/71 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Livornese Traces in American Jewish History: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh Disciplines Arts and Humanities | Jewish Studies Comments Suggested Citation: Kiron, Arthur. "Livornese Traces in American Jewish History: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh." in Per Elia Benamozegh. Ed. Alessandro Guetta. Edizioni Thalassa De Paz, 2001. This book chapter is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/library_papers/71 LTRR VOLUMR PUBBLRC TR ~ Aa. Vv., Pensare Auschwitz, Pardes Italia 1, 1996. Aa. Vv., Ebraicita e Germanita, Pardes Italia 2, 1999. A. Guetta, Filosofia e Qabbalah. Saggio sul pensiero di Elia Benamozegh, 2000. Sedici autori Per Elia Benamozegh. in appendice: L'Origine des dogmes chretiens, cap. III. e Da Em La-Miqra: commento a Genesi I, 1. Per Elia Benamozegh. Atti del Convegno di Livomo (settembre 2000) (Testo origin ale. Presentazione e traduzione di Alessandro Guetta) Alessandro Guetta (ed.). Con due appendici: L'Origine des dogmes chretiens, cap. III, e da Em La-Miqra, comrnento a Genesi I, 1 - Di di Elia Benamozegh. Progetto grafico di Flavio Consonni Elia Benamozegh. Stampa FDA Eurostampa - Borgosatollo (BS) Un ringraziamento particolare aHa BRA.MA. Edizioni di Milano per la sua cortese collaborazione © Edizioni Thalassa De Paz - Milano, coop srI. - Dicembre 2001 Via Maddalena, 1 - 20122 Milano Tel. 02.805.24.25 - Fax 02.33.607.908 7 KN DKCE onlD' 'l£ln "!):) I c"r",.,c C"cl1='t I O'M'!)l o .. .,~., !)"Z't) I O"~'l n!)'?n!) ~IU"" eJlft'C!) Cl1l '?PC:l, I C"M!)"nCM C"n''''M nol!)M n,yc C""p" Alessandro Guetta, Presentazione p. 9 n,~pn n"'~n '37 n,;,"" '£)0 '37 .,~." C~£)W Samuele Zarrough, Saluto del Presidente della Comunita Ebraica di Livorno 15 ,m.,tiJltl '~N~'~ ", ~N'Crv c." tttlll "'P,nn c~nn' Isidoro Kahn, Riflessione 19 'l.,""tl l"CN t:l 'n'~N ntttl 1. IBenamozeglb. ll1l.el suo cOll1l.testo stOIr-o.co cultuIrale 27 Gadi Luzzatto Voghera, Percorsi dell' emancipazione ebraica in Italia 29 NOUVEAUX DIALOGUES Arthur Kiron, Livomese traces in american jewish history: Sabato Morais and Elia Benamozegh 45 SUR ...LA KABBALE Bruno Di Porto, Elia Benamozegh, un volto mediterraneo dell'ebraismo ou integrale e modemo, mistico e storico, nell'incontro con l'Italia 67 Rerutation critique , historique, et theologique des Dialogues sur Ia meme 2. IL:El1IraislIllO di fIronte al CIrisiianes-o.m.o, de M. Ie Pror. LUZZATO de Padoue all'rrslaID e al Monote-o.srno U niveIrsale 87 .par ·.. ELIE BENAMOZEGH Richard A. Cohen, Benamozegh and Uvinas on jewish universalism 89 Rabbin Predicateur it Livourhe. Paul Fenton, Rabbi Elie Benamozegh s attitude to other religions: the case of Islam 107 Shmuel Trigano, La dimension politique de I 'Alliance dans Morale Juive et Morale Chretienne d'Elie Benamozegh 119 LIVOURNE Marco Morselli, Il manoscritto impubblicabile: CHEZ L' AuTEun- ET C. De l' Origine des Dogmes Chretiens 141 1865. 3. 153 Mino Charnla, Ebraismo "vivo" e spinozismo secondo Benamozegh 155 Irene Kajon, Rivelazione ebraica e razionalismo antico e modemo in Elia Benamozegh 167 8 9 Leonardo Amoroso, Benamozegh e Vieo 187 Alessandro Guetta, La modernita inattesa del pensiero di Elia Benamozegh 207 Giuseppe Laras, Elia Benamozegh: tra mistieismo e positivismo 223 4. P ercorsn Jel pe snero: TraJnznoll1l.e , PlRE§E T Z[ E U nnversainsm.o, Psncoal1l.al" sn 231 d.i " GueHa Donato Grosser, L'importanza della Torah orale nell'insegnamento di Rav Eliyauh Benamozegh 233 Catherine Poujol, Quelle aetualite pour le Noaehisme? Seetes, Jondamentalisme, antisemitisme 245 Gerard Haddad, Laean et Benamozegh 259 5. 269 Appendice I: De l'Origine des Dogmes Chretiens, par Elie Benamozegh. Chapitre III: Caraeteres du Saint-Esprit 271 Appendice II: Elia Benamozegh: da Em la-Miqra (Matriee della Serittura), prima parte del eommento a Genesi I, I: 297 Presentazione di Alessandro Guetta 299 Traduzione di Alessandro Guetta 301 Testo originale 314 Frontespizio di Em la-Miqra 315 45 Jrth lillJr llJr ll1l. U ni rersniy of P ennsy ranlla - b.nJaJ Ip[1.na L rr H STOR BE MOZEG 1 S B T D ELrr 'I_especiolly gratejullOAlessan- Among Sabato Morais' personal papers, which are a-tta and Samuel Zarrugh jar mainly hou ed at the Center for Judaic Studies Library ",y 10 -;'vIM.. I participation. and Heit/iunwrand Benjamm Nat/lOllS at the University of Pennsylvania, there exists a printed fo'trtJl/ing an earlier draft· pro pectu titled' Manifesto." On the top of the first page, in Morais' hand, appears the date "June 1876." The announcement, written in Italian, proposes a new work of theology for publication, aiming to serve not only a pedagogic purpose but also to stimulate, it is hoped, a new ecumenical rapport about the underlying unity of all religions, as based upon Judaism. The pro pectus was i sued by the Livome e rabbi, Elia Benamozegh. According to the Manifesto, the forthcoming book will bear the Italian title: Israele e l' Umanita. Printed beneath the announcement appears an excerpt from a letter written by Giu eppe Mazzini, the prophetic spirit of Italian unification, in upport of the religiou principle found in "I rael and Humanity." Benamozegh, according to Mazzini, had ent him the manu cript to read and comment upon. Mazzini managed to do 0 before his death in 1872. He therefore was able to aid po thumously the cau e of it I Sabato Mora is Papers, ellter jar publication a formally proposed four year later2. Judaic Studies Library {hencejorth SM-CJSL}, Ullil'ersityojPeIUlsyll'ania. Here we find a rather typical yet entirely neglected Box 16, FF5. triangulation: Jewi h religious humani m, Italian nationali m and American Jewi h hi tory. Where doe thi document come from? The city ofLivomo. Where do we find it today? In Philadelphia. The existence of thi rare printed notice for what would eventually 46 ARTHUR KiRON LIVORNESE TRACES IN AMERJ CA J EWISH HISTORY 47 become Benamozegh's most famous work (Israel et J NB: Benamozegh's year of 5 1hefol/oIVing essay builds on sections rabbis in America).5" frequently and erroneously L'humanite) in fact hints at a hitherto unexamined d· sertation, "Golden Ages, After Morais left Livorno, the two remained in touch. 1822. On Benamozegh's life, ~~: TIle VtctorianR abbinic relationship that ultimately bridges the Atlantic Jewish Guglielmo Lanes, Vita e opere di . oj.Sabato Morais " (Cohmlbta Their extant correspondence is not substantial, but Morais H~n nd world of the nineteenth century. Benamozegh (Leghorn: S. 1999), especially chapters one.a . 1901) and additional OIOI,rOJ!r4!lJJ1 V., The quote is from The Yudishe publicly spoke of Benamozegh with great respect>. He compiled by Alessandro four. ("T" J . I Benamozegh and Morais' intellectual biographies eten (New York) ,Ie eWI 1 claimed to have read nearly everything Benamozegh Benamozegh: bibliografia," gaz ") Pesah Blat ("Passover provide a kind of case study for comparison and Gazette , MensiJe di Israel [hencefonh ") March 24, 1899, p. 12, quoted wrote, and summarized enough of his works to provide Issue ' K· "D t d 7 contrast. Both Benamozegh and Morais, despite the 53, nos. 1-2 (1988), pp. 67-81 and cited in Anhur Iron, . LIS an . evidence to confmn as much • different locations in which they lived out their lives, PhiJosophie et Cabbale: Essai Ashes: The FW1eralandForg~ttmg .ofSa pensee d'Elie Benamozegh ( bolO Morais, " American JeWish History, Thus, each shared similar formative life experiences in first and foremost must be understood in relation to Montreal, 1998), pp. 307-352. ,'01. 84, IW. 3 (September 199<!), pp. I ~6- Livomo and each would rise to become a revered spiritual their formative years in Livorno. Briefly, Eliyahu ben importance of port cities for 57 and p. 157, note 5. A reVIsed versIOn history, see, for example, Lois oj.'''Dust andAs/1es".appears as chapter leader and preacher. More specifically, there is one Abraham Benamozegh was born in the Italian port city The Port Jews of Habsburg eight ofthe dissenanon. - discernible clue in Morais' life and writings which also 3 Absolutist Politics and EnlJrghtl:nJIII of Livorno on April 24, 1823 • Shabthai ben Shemu'el Culture (Stanford, CA, lYY';I)an.rtDm 'SM-CJSL, Series I. Correspondence figures prominently in the outlook of Benamozegh: the Morais was born there eleven days earlier on April 13. Sor/,'in, "The Pon Jews: Notes and Box 16, FF5. concept of abnegation, abnegazione in Italian, humiliti The city's Jewish population then numbered perhaps a Social Type," Journal of StllClies. vol. 50, no. 1 (l999),pp. 1 Sabato Morais, "Biografle d'illustri (in French), 'anavah (in Hebrew). For Morais the concept 4,000 residents, largely concentrated in a central area israelit; italiani viventi. Elia of abnegation contained several nuanced layers of 4fn 1 823,theyea r oflJen'llTrU~zegh:'G 8eTUUTWzegh, " Vessillo Israelitico vol. 4• near the city's port and only synagogue Both were Morais' birth, Livorno's 28 ( 1880), pp. 205-08; cf idem, Italian religious and political, as well as personal meaning: educated and went on to receive their rabbinical trai population (including Jews) Hebrew Literature, compiled and edited selflessness, sacrifice, duty and service.