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We
find, in almost every number of the Jewish Intelligence something highly
interesting to us, though it is generally very strangely coloured with
the prejudices of the editor, whose endeavour it is to induce the Jews
to swerve from their religion. But our readers understand, no doubt,
that in praising us something must always be added, to prove that the
Society of which the Jewish Intelligence is the organ, is correct and
praiseworthy in its constant labours to deprive us of our faith. With
these few remarks we request the attention of our readers to the
subjoined, from the August number of the Jewish Intelligence.
“As
concerning other developments of Hebrew genius, so the sacred Scriptures
provide us with sufficient glimpses of the progress of public oratory
among the Jews. Their science of its cultivation was not indeed of the
same species with that which obtained among those nations whose
diplomacy, whose peace and war, for centuries after centuries were
discussed and voted in the daily open-air assemblies of the people, and
there alone; but if fluency of speech, guided by artificial rules and
embellishments, if a declamation of intense fervour, exactly spited to
the genius of the hearers, and, in after times, a peculiar subtlety in
juridical harangues, if these constitute eloquence, then abundant
indications remain of its genuine character among the ancient
Israelites.
“Yet
it most be remembered that as the Holy Bible was not compiled for a
monument of arts and sciences, the records of speeches there found are
only to be regarded as compendia of such speeches. Thus, in reading the
account of Michaiah, the son of Imlah, it is evident from several
incidental allusions through the chapter, (1 Kings 22.), that the
prophet enjoyed an unusual reputation for oratory;—we cannot help
feeling this, although the actual words recorded are but few in
number;—they are, however, entirely practical, and though highly
figurative, are quite shorn of extraneous ornament.
“Public
oratory was cultivated in the ‘Schools of the Prophets,’ which
appear to have had their origin soon after the schism of Israel and
Judah; prior to which time we find no other eloquence than such as still
prevails in Oriental nations, consisting of short appeals, such as that
of Abraham to the men of Heth; of proverbs or parables, as in the
instances of Jotham and Nathan. Extraordinary events did indeed produce
the exceptions of Moses, Joshua, and Ezra, but it became another matter
when rhetoric was studied by hundreds of youths in company during
successive centuries.
“During
the second temple there arose considerable intercourse with the other
subjects of the Macedonian empire, and the Roman conquest tended still
more to spread the knowledge of Grecian literature. Hence, probably, the
Jews became gradually alive to the value of soaring on stronger pinions
for longer flights. And such men as Josephus would in troublous times
become rather a Grecian than a Jewish orator. But the Sanhedrin itself
gave occasion for much of logical acumen, for pleadings, replies, and
delivering judgment. In the New Testament the very comprehension and
precision of the sentences by Caiaphas (John 11. 49, 50) and Gamaliel
(Acts 5. 33) bespeak for them a character as practised lawyers.
“We
have purposely omitted the instances of sublimity by Divine influence in
the great prophets of the Old Testament, and in the apostles of the New,
this subject requiring a different consideration.
“Again,
since their dispersion among the Gentiles, as in other intellectual
pursuits, so in this, wherever and whenever the Jews have been left free
to compete with their fellow-men, they have earned a fair proportionate
share of success. Manasseh ben Israel and Emanuel Abu ab are not the
only names of eminence in this department. And at the present time there
are very eloquent speakers in the German synagogues, and among the
French legislators, and barristers of the Jewish religion.
“These
remarks have been elicited by the perusal of a sermon recently printed
by request, as delivered in the central synagogue of Paris, on the
second day of Pentecost (Sabbath, May 25), by a M. Isador, Rabbi of
Phalsbourg, in Alsace, who, although a youthful preacher, surprised the
very numerous auditory of the metropolis by his fluency, energy, and
self-composure.
“As
Christians* we may expect to find some points in the discourse which we
cannot on our part approve, but the following extract, will serve to
show with what intensity the topics of synagogue-religion (although few
in comparison with those of Christianity) can be treated. His text was
Isaiah 2:3, ‘O house of Jacob, come ye and let us walk in the light of
the Lord; and the exordium opens thus:—
“
‘How bright were those days of old, when urged by the splendour of the
solemnity, and stirred by the love of God, all Israel abandoned yearly
their homes to flow towards Jerusalem, that holy city, the centre of
light, and the place of the God of hosts, לכו
ונעלה אל הר
ה׳ ‘Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the
Lord.’ This cry resounded on every side, this word was in every mouth,
and all went to present themselves before the Lord in the temple which
he had beautified with his own name. There they drank in light from the
very source of light, there before the face of God and in the presence
of his law, they vowed to maintain for ever that blessed union thus
cemented by the annual confederation. Then was Israel flourishing, then
was the sceptre illustrious in the hands of Judah,—we formed but one
nation and one model-people, כי
מציון &c., ‘For out of Zion shall go
forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.’
“
‘But years succeeded to years, and ages to ages, human vicissitudes
beat upon us, the sceptre departed from Judah, the temple was burned,
and our nationality was trampled to the dust,
ויצא מן בת
ציון ‘And from the daughter of Zion all her
beauty departed.’ (Lam. 1:6.) Thence we departed into exile, our
hearts swelling with grief, and eyes turned towards our native land; we
hung our harps upon the willows, and there we wept!’
“And
a little further on—
“
‘Know ye what is this ‘Feast of Weeks,’ so improperly termed
Pentecost? It is this. In the year three thousand of the world, seven
weeks after leaving Egypt, in an arid desert between Memphis and
Babylon, God revealed himself to a petty people whom he had first
purified in the crucible of pain and suffering. That petty people were
we. Israel saw him come, not like an earthly king, but as King of kings,
as Maker of all things, and with all their elements at command, as one
who amid the boundless space calls on the stars, and then those starry
worlds rush forward, in one voice replying, ‘Here are we!’ He
descended to the skies, clothed with light as with a robe, the
lightnings and thunders went before him, and O, it was not from a
burning bush, but in all his Divine glory that he dictated to us his
will and proclaimed his law, השמע עם
קול &c., ‘Did ever people hear the voice of God
speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?’
(Deut. 4:33.) At this spectacle all nature clapped her hands, and the
people dazzled with excessive splendour exclaimed, ‘We will do it and
we will obey.’ Such is the ‘Feast of Weeks.’”
“Having
thus in accordance with the best models of ancient rhetoric, awakened
attention by a glowing recitation of facts and events with which the
audience are thoroughly conversant, the preacher advanced to his
argument (the alliance of religion and civilization), but previously
invoking the Divine aid—
“
‘Thou, O Lord, the God of grace and compassion, who givest eloquence
to all who speak for the honour of thy holy name, vouchsafe to clothe me
with strength and courage in presence of this assemblage, so vast and so
new to me; purify my words in thy Divine crucible, that they may, like
the dew of heaven, glide into all their hearts, and win them to the holy
cause of truth,’ &c.
“In
treating the professed subject of the sermon—a subject which upon the
Continent is too frequently made to lean towards Rationalism—the rabbi
disclaims with scorn any participation in such principles.
“
‘There is a civilization so called by the world, which, however, is
most false and perilous—and there is a civilization true, and like
truth itself an offspring of heaven—this one is a sister of religion,
the other its most implacable foe. Sciences and arts may serve to
fortify the faith of man, but cursed, thrice cursed be the day when
civilization shall hear a parricidal hand against religion; for beside
the tomb of that, when but scarcely closed, itself will expire, and man
will revert to his early degradation . . . . . Reason alone has never
established any thing in religious truth—far from this, it may be the
universal solvent, it may be a double-edged sword to strike and destroy,
to attack or defend, but it builds up nothing; at the end of the most
conscientious investigation of questions the most palpitating with
interest and vitality, there will ever stand in gigantic stature the
awful wherefore which cannot be answered.’
“A
few more examples of the eloquence which comes from the heart:—
“
‘My brethren, a religion based on cold conviction or dry demonstration
is none at all. It is but a barren religion without warmth or soul; a
frozen dead religion, without noble energy or sublime devotedness. I
will have none of it! . . . . O how the heart of man should be filled
with love for Him who says, Come to me, whoever thou art, rich or poor,
great or mean, happy or wretched, come to me, and find a heart which
knows thee and loves thee; for I am with thee, I am thy Father, both
when I chastise and when I bless, in life and after death! O what balm
of consolation for a distracted heart! how this religion assuages evils
and binds up wounds; and how sweet to say, ‘My beloved is mine and I
am his!’ And this religion is our own.’
“Upon
the boasted immutability of the Jewish faith the speaker proceeds—
“
‘Plato and Socrates, these are fair names; philosophy has none fairer;
yet how often has been pulled down what they built up—how often built
up what they demolished. But our religion, the lowly daughter of Zion,
assaulted for ages, whose walls for ages have been still repaired when
injured. She, like a giant whom children attempt to bind with ribands;
she stands erect, and her immobility is itself a victory. And is not
this very permanence, this immutable duration the proof of its eternal
nature? . . . . Let us return to the faith of our forefathers, and not
reject the treasure with which God endowed us, 3,000 years ago—three
thousand years! thirty centuries! Ah! brethren, how many religions have
been swept away in that long course of years. How many whose very tracks
are gone! while ours, immortal as the God who gave it, still remains,
for ever, pure, grand, mighty, like its Creator; persecution but
enlarnges it, time but hallows it.’
“Such,
we conceive, apart from the doctrines contained, to be true eloquence,
mingling tenderness with sublimity. But pained indeed must be the heart
of every scriptural friend of the people of Israel to discover a total
absence of any hopes for future nationality, no expectation of a
Messiah, or of a return to the Holy Land; for the sum of Jewish bliss is
supposed to be accomplished in their regeneration as French citizens,
according to the Charter of 1830; and deep is the pathos from what we
have read to the following address made to the youth of the
congregation, near the close:
“
‘ If, amid society into which you soon will enter, efforts are
required for adhering to the faith of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, these
you will make; if sacrifices are demanded, these you will perform,
knowing that lofty though the hill may be, there is rest upon its
summit. And when grown up and had in reputation, still you will abide
with us, labouring for the good of humanity and the honour of your
brethren. When men forsake our banner—I mean the banner of our
religion, for since that day when the enemy’s axe sapped the walls of
Zion we have no other—the flag of France is ours, that which waves
above our dwellings. To that flag be all honour and prosperity! Let
there be labour, love, devotion, all for France, our land, so
fair and so generous! let there be civil fusion complete and entire, but
to relinquish our religious standard, never! Should men thus desert us,
you will not curse them. Cursing is not for man! but you will pity them,
feeling that he alone forsakes his faith whose heart has lost all
sentiment of honour.’
“We
may ask, but without discussion at this moment, can the amalgamation
here alluded to, but which is more openly proclaimed in other
publications by Jews of France, be consistent with the genuine faith of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? Let Israel ponder this serious subject with
the Scriptures open, and with prayer before Almighty God.”
We
beg the editors to reflect that it is not anti-Jewish to regard the
country we live in as our home, notwithstanding we look forward to the
Messiah to restore us. The prophet Jeremiah already commanded us to
“seek the peace of the city to which we have been banished,” and
consequently we are bound by our faith to be good citizens or faithful
subjects as the case may be. We, therefore, do not condemn our French
brothers for loving France; on the contrary, we would as a Jew be
compelled to denounce them as wanting patriotism were they to be wanting
in the love of country for “La belle France” which distinguishes its
other inhabitants. Perhaps the editors of the Intelligence with all
their love for converted Jews mean to insinuate that it would be wrong
on scriptural grounds to emancipate the English Jews; if so, we beg them
to be undeceived, England will not suffer by freeing us from our civil
disabilities; and when once free she may rest assured, that she will not
have among her inhabitants any more devoted to her interests, more
faithful in war, and more reliable in council than the very Israelites
who look forward to their restoration to the ancient Palestine, under
the guidance of the Messiah whom they expect to redeem the world.
Ed. Oc. |
