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Gottesdienstlichen Vorträge Der Juden Historisch Entwickelt INTRODUCTION TO THE REPRINT OF LEOPOLD ZUNZ, DIE GOTTESDIENSTLICHEN VORTRÄGE DER JUDEN HISTORISCH ENTWICKELT. * Any survey of the scholarly literature pertaining to midrash, or its expression in the rabbinic works of the homiletic genre, must begin with the scientific work of Leopold Zunz (1794-1886), who devoted his research to the textual history of the rabbinic homilies and the liturgies of Judaism. Even today the works of Zunz need to be consulted before attempting to work with rabbinic homilies or before reviewing the accumulative literature on the topic in the 21st century. The present volume is another reprint of Zunz's work in respect to midrashic literature. Die gottesdienstlichen Vorträge der Juden historisch entwickelt (The synagogal addresses of the Jews and their historical development),56 which was an influential work in such diverse areas as the continuing emancipation of Jews in Prussia, the This essay is dedicated to Hans and Adam: Hans Schaper, who embod- ies education in Wolfenbüttel and the memories of my European past, and Adam Kaufman, who embodies education in my new intellectual home in the USA, which represents the future. 56 First published in 1832. Based upon Zunz' s corrections and notes in his own copy of the book, the second edition was edited by Nehemia Brüll (1843-1891), the founder of the Jahrbücher für jüdische Geschichte, and published in 1892. After World War II, the second edition was reprinted in Germany in 1966, at a time when the fledgling field of Judaic Studies commenced in West Germany. This reprint represented a new awareness of the scientific contribution of German Jewish scholarship. The impor- tant second edition of Zunz's work was translated into Hebrew; it was edited and amended by the Talmudic scholar Hanokh Albeck (1890-1972) and published in 1947 (Ha-derashot Be-jisra'el). The next Hebrew edition followed in 1954. A further edition appeared in 1974. xxi* xxii* INTRODUCTION TO THE REPRINT incipient historical-scientific scholarship of Judaism, the education of gentiles in respect to Judaism,57 and the encouragement of Jewish self-reflection as well as Jewish self-definition.58 This work like no other stresses the centrality of Jewish ser- mons and homiletic midrashic literature. Zunz saw the Jewish past in terms of homiletic literature that expressed the spirit of Judaism. The original introduction to the gottesdienstlichen Vorträge written by Zunz himself had been censored and removed by the Prussian government from most of the published volumes, as is well- known.59 As a passionate spokesman for liberalism, Zunz wrote: "It is high time that the Jews of Europe, particularly those of Ger- many, be granted right and liberty rather than rights and liberties — not some paltry, humiliating privileges, but complete and uplifting civil rights."60 Zunz emphatically spelled out the efforts of German Jewry since Moses Mendelssohn in respect to civil rights, reform, and the disrespect of their ancient heritage. Zunz further expressed his deep concern about the political events of his time; establishing that Jews in fact had Synagogal homilies was a major accomplishment in his time. Finding comfort61 in Jewish historical developments and the timeless messages of consolation as expressed in rabbinic homilies and an inquisitive engagement with the larger cultural con- texts that are hidden in these homilies, was supported by Zunz's notion of the importance of a sound philological method and the close study of Hebrew texts through the ages. In Zunz's own words: "The fact that many Jews in our day are lost to the study of rabbinic literature is, however, due to plain ignorance, the conse- quence of ever-decreasing instruction in the Hebrew language."62 57 Barzilay, "Leopold Zunz", 176. 58 Hayoun, "La Science du Judaisme", 133, sees the aspect of self- representation as an outgrowth of other intellectual developments in Juda- ism that began with Maimonides. 59 An English translation of the censored text is found in the Introduction of Zohn, "Scholarship and Emancipation". 60 Zunz, "Introduction," 515. 61 Ismar Schorsch traces part of this consolation to Zunz's last work, which deals with the dates of death of about eight hundred Jews; see Schorsch, "History as Consolation", 34. 62 Zunz, "On Rabbinic Thought", 23; Zunz, Etwas über die rabbinische Uteratur. INTRODUCTION TO THE REPRINT xxiii* This was a factor that led him to base his research on material remains, the corpus of manuscripts and printed editions, the com- mentators and their texts, in order to elucidate a spiritual message.63 He applied his scientific approach to religious change, although ul- timately the science of Judaism {Wissenschaft des Judentums) needed to remain independent of spiritual explications.64 This dedication to the historical scientific study of the Jewish tradition is also reflected in Zunz's ambiguous attitude towards the rabbinate of his time, in which he served only sporadically and unsuccessfully.65 Zunz was spending greater efforts in reconstructing the accurate transmis- sion, the early standardization, and the historical background of the midrashic texts than serving practical rabbinics. A short spiritual biography of the scholar Zunz is served well by focusing upon his early education. Zunz's formative period was his school days at Wolfenbiittel, a marvelous town of tolerance and education, with the ducal library filled by the librarian Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729-1781) and the spirit of Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786) hovering over it.66 It was in Wolfenbiittel67 that the nine-year-old orphan Leopold Zunz68 was taken under the spiritual and educational wings of Samuel Meyer Ehrenberg, the newly ap- pointed director of the Jewish school, with whom he would take walks69 along the banks of the river Oker while absorbing Jewish 63 Cohon, "Zunz and Reform Judaism", 1, explained Zunz's approach as a "spiritual phenomenon," which was going beyond the merely aesthetic change of the atmosphere of the nineteenth century synagogue. 64 Meyer, "Jewish Religious Reform and Wissenschaft des Judentums", 19, 40. 65 His sermons had to be announced to the Prussian police. Several sermons were published in 1823; see Zunz, Predigten, gehalten in der Neuen Israelitischen Synagoge. An analysis of some sermons is found in Niehoff, "Zunz's Concept of Haggadah". 66 Glatzer (ed.), Leopold Zun%. Jude - Deutscher — Europäer, 3-72, contains a short description of Zunz's major stations in life. 67 The importance of the educational climate in Wolfenbiittel was also recognized by Schorsch, "From Wolfenbiittel to Wissenschaft". 68 Trepp, "Leopold Zunz", 249, emphasizes the "grundlegende" (formative) education that Zunz received in Wolfenbiittel. 69 Cohon, "Zunz and Reform Judaism", 1, writes that "He used to take the young Leopold on his walks, and initiated him, when he was of a very xxiv* INTRODUCTION TO THE REPRINT knowledge.70 This spiritual and academic mentorship would later continue in letters. In the same manner Zunz corresponded with his peers, such as Moritz Steinschneider, Abraham Geiger, Samuel Holdheim, and many others.71 After Ehrenberg's death in 1853, 72 Zunz published the biography of his teacher. In Wolfenbüttel, Zunz attended the Jewish school " Samson'sche Freischulethe later "Samsonschule," and the public high school (the German Gymnasium that teaches science and classics), the later "Grosse Schule" (1803-1809). Even as a high school student, who demonstrated an enormous aptitude for mathematics, Zunz worked as an assistant instructor at the Jewish school. After gradu- ating from high school he continued to teach at the Jewish school until 1815. The study of Hebrew texts at the Jewish school laid the foundation for Zunz's future inquiry into rabbinic texts, while the high school education laid the foundation for his scientific histori- cal inquiry, first into the historical work of Azariah de Rossi (1513/14-1578) and finally into Jewish sermons, culminating in the Gottesdienstlichen Vortrage. His fellow-student was Isaak Markus Jost (1793-1860), who was to become a noted historian while remaining a friend of Zunz's, even after the latter critically edited his historical work.73 Zunz's outstanding scholastic abilities took him to the Uni- versity of Berlin (1815-1819); he received his doctorate from the university at Halle in 1821 for his research about Sefer Ha-ma'alot by Shem Tov ibn Falaquera (1225- after 1290). As a student, he con- ceptualized his first summary approach to rabbinic literature tender age, in Hebrew Grammar, Pentateuch, and the Jewish script." These spiritual walks resemble the walks taken by the rabbis of antiquity (Pesiqta Rabbati 1) as well as the peripatetic philosophers and the famous "Easter walk" (Osterspa^iergang) in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust. 70 Zunz himself expressed fond memories of his time in Wolfenbüttel. See Zunz, "Mein erster Unterricht in Wolfenbüttel". 71 It goes beyond the scope of this introduction to specify this exchange in more detail; see, e.g., Schmelzer, "Briefe von Leopold Zunz und Moritz Steinschneider an Ludwig August Frankl"; Kisch, "Zunz' Briefwechsel mit Meir Wiener". 72 Zunz, Samuel Meyer Ehrenberg. 73 Schorsch, "From Wolfenbüttel to Wissenschaft," 111. Zunz was also the editor of the work of another Jewish historian, Nachman Krochmal; see Schorsch, "The Production of a Classic: Zunz as Krochmal's Editor". INTRODUCTION TO THE REPRINT XXV* (1818), Etwas iiber die rabbinische Uteratur.1A This dynamic work of the youthful scholar contained an enthusiastic program of the Sci- ence of Judaism, which he integrated into his own plan of work. His plan was to liberate Jewish literature from the narrow confines of halakhic literature. Zunz recognized that Judaism also addressed the sciences and many aspects of the humanities that went far be- yond the religious perspective. An intensive familiarity with Jewish, mainly Hebrew, literature would open vistas of unknown and for- gotten realms of Jewish history. He considered the view that Judaic culture is a part of the history of culture in general a historical ne- cessity, caused by the unfolding of the Enlightenment.
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