Modern Jewish Theology

Samuel J. Kessler is Åke and Kristina Bonnier Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies and an assistant professor of religion at Gustavus Adolphus College. He is the author of The Formation of a Modern Rabbi: The Life and Times of the Viennese Scholar and Preacher Adolf Jellinek. George Y. Kohler is an associate professor in the Department of Jewish Philosophy and director of the Joseph Carlebach Institute for Jewish Theology at Bar Ilan University. He is the author of Kabbalah Research in the Wissenschaft des Judentums (1820–1880): The Foundation of an Academic Discipline and Reading Maimonides’ Philosophy in 19th Century Germany: The Guide to Religious Reform.

• AcknowledgmentsIntroduction    Notes on Translations and AnnotationsList of AbbreviationsPart 1. Writing Theological Modernity: The Nineteenth Century1. The Essentials of JudaismGotthold Salomon, “Thirteen Basic Teachings of Religion” (1829) Translated by Dana RubinsteinMichael Creizenach, “Foundational Doctrines of Israelite Belief” (1833) Translated by George Y. KohlerJoseph Dernburg, “The Essence of Judaism According to Its Most General Principles” (1839) Translated by Michael A. MeyerZecharias Frankel, “Speech at the Memorial Service for the Benefactor of the Jewish Theological Seminary, Breslau” (1855) Translated by Thomas Abraham TearneyLudwig Philippson, “Introduction to the Five Books of Moses” (1844) Translated by Alexandra ZirkleSamuel David Luzzatto, “Lessons in Jewish Dogmatic Theology” (1863) Translated by Emanuel Fiano2. Torah as Law and RitualSamson Raphael Hirsch, “Nineteen Letters Concerning Judaism: Eighteenth Letter” (1836)Translated by Paul FranksAbraham Geiger, “The Relation of the Natural Meaning of Scripture to Its Talmudic Interpretation” (1844) Translated by George Y. KohlerSamuel Holdheim, “The Ceremonial Law in the Kingdom of the Messiah” (1845)Translated by George Y. KohlerLeopold Stein, “The Necessity of the Written Law” (1877) Translated by Samuel J. KesslerHeinrich Graetz, “Correspondence of an English Lady about Judaism and Semitism: Fourteenth Letter” (1883) Translated by Maren ScheurerManuel Joel, “Toward an Orientation in the Question of Cult” (1869) Translated by Samuel J. Kessler3. The Relevance of JudaismSalomon Formstecher, “Religion of the Spirit” (1841) Translated by Gershon GreenbergSigismund Stern, “The Task of Jews and Judaism in the Present Age” (1845) Translated by Michael ZankSamuel Hirsch, “The Religious Philosophy of the Jews” (1842) Translated by Gershon GreenbergDavid Einhorn, “The Benefits of the Jewish Doctrine of God” (1852) Translated by Michael A. Meyer4. God    Joseph Lewin SaalschÜtz, “Ethical Monotheism” (1844) Translated by Noa Sophie KohlerDavid Kaufmann, “On Maimonides’ Negative Theology” (1877) Translated by Shira BilletPart 2. Twilight of Modernity: The Early Twentieth Century5. The Search for EssenceHermann Cohen, “Judaism as a Worldview” (1898) Translated by Samuel J. KesslerHeymann Steinthal, “The Idea of the Creation of the World” (1899) Translated by Mary M. SolbergLeo Baeck, “Revelation and World Religion” (1905) Translated by Victor Grubenwieser and Leonard PearlSolomon Schechter, “Some Aspects of Rabbinic Theology” (1909) Max Wiener, “On the Being and Meaning of God” (1937) Translated by Robert S. Schine6. Judaism and the Origin of EthicsMoritz GÜdemann, “Instruction and Life” (1902) Translated by Brian Britt and Steve BrittBenzion Kellermann, “Liberal Judaism” (1907) Translated by Garrett E. PaulMoritz Lazarus, “The Ethics of Judaism” (1898) Translated by Henrietta SzoldBenno Jacob, “Judaism and the Results of Assyriology” (1902) Translated by Noa Sophie Kohler7. What Is Distinctive about Jewish Theology?Kaufmann Kohler, “Jewish Theology” (1918) Julius Guttmann, “Establishing Norms for Jewish Belief” (1927) Translated by Gertrude HirschlerAlexander Altmann, “What Is Jewish Theology?” (1933) Translated by Edith Ehrlich and Leonard H. EhrlichPart 3. The Existentialist Turn: The Weimar Years and Beyond8. Theological ExistentialismMartin Buber, “Judaism and the Jews” (1911) Translated by Eva JospeFranz Rosenzweig, “The Star of Redemption” (1921) Translated by Benjamin PollockNotes    Bibliography    List of ContributorsIndex

“Exciting! This anthology has the potential to help reframe the entire field of modern Jewish thought. Its study tends to leave out the nineteenth century almost totally-and yet, as the editors show, this was an extremely important period for the development of Jewish thought and the attempt to negotiate modern sensibilities about religion and science. Additionally, because many of the nineteenth-century figures were at the intersection of Wissenschaft and philosophy, attending to them can better integrate modern Jewish thought into Jewish studies as a whole.”-Robert Erlewine, professor and director of the Center for Jewish Studies at Eastern Michigan University and author of Judaism and the West: From Hermann Cohen to Joseph Soloveitchik “What a gold mine! You have before you the keys to a world of rich, provocative, and often still startlingly relevant Jewish thinking. There was a robust Jewish theological conversation before Heschel and Soloveitchik, before Kaplan and Levinas, before Plaskow and Adler, but only now, with this wonderful volume, has this vital world opened to non-specialists and non-German readers.”-Shai Held, president and dean of Hadar and author of The Heart of Torah “Modern Jewish Theology will be an indispensable and enduring resource for scholars, students, and teachers.”-Asher D. Biemann, professor in the Department of Religious Studies, Jewish Studies Program, University of Virginia