mʾḳs ṿynr khhsṭṿryṿn shl yhdṿt hʾmntsyftsyh / MAX WIENER AS A HISTORIAN OF JEWISH RELIGION IN THE EMANCIPATION PERIOD
מאקס וינר כהסטוריון של יהדות האמנציפציה / MAX WIENER AS A HISTORIAN OF JEWISH RELIGION IN THE EMANCIPATION PERIOD
Max Wiener's book Jüdische Religion in Zeitalter der Emanzipation was published more than fifty years ago; yet it is still the most penetrating historical presentation of the complex of questions which confronted Judaism at the beginning of the modern era. Wiener was not only a historian, but a...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | Hebrew |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
HUC
1986
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| In: |
Hebrew Union College annual
Year: 1985, Volume: 56, Pages: 29-46 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | Max Wiener's book Jüdische Religion in Zeitalter der Emanzipation was published more than fifty years ago; yet it is still the most penetrating historical presentation of the complex of questions which confronted Judaism at the beginning of the modern era. Wiener was not only a historian, but also a theologian of significance. Like Geiger he believed that there should be reciprocity between theology and historical research in order to make theology the guide for the present and for the future. This article discusses the basic theological assumptions of Wiener's historical analysis of "Jewish religion" and it seeks to indicate what theological conclusions may be drawn from his analysis. For Wiener the uniqueness of "classical" Judaism — namely, biblical and rabbinic — derives from the fact that it is a special unity between religion and nation, and between a universalistic idea and a particular, exclusive group. One cannot separate these two elements without truncating the living meaning of Judaism. Emancipation shattered the unity and the totality of Jewish life ("Jüdische Einheitskultur"), posing a deep challenge for the modern Jew. Wiener discusses the various religious reactions to this challenge and shows that none of them was able to offer a full and tenable alternative to classical Judaism. His personal conclusion was that only through Zionism could Judaism have any prospect of overcoming the crisis of modernity and recreating a viable unity between the Jewish religion and nation. But this could only be achieved by a religious reform which would lay the foundation for a new synthesis between religion and nationhood. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Hebrew Union College annual
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