Among the prominent Jewish scholars of the nineteenth century Zunz will
always occupy a high place. Like Moses Mendelssohn in his time, Zunz, in a
later generation, carried on his spiritual work among his people with
unceasing energy and ability, though in a somewhat different direction.
While the former rendered a lasting service to the Jews by arousing in
their minds a love for secular studies, Zunz conferred a no less important
benefit upon them by bringing to light a large mass of literary matter,
which was the result of his lifelong critical researches into Jewish
history and literature. In these two departments Zunz was, in fact, a
pioneer, and the works he published in connexion with them have proved
themselves to be of considerable assistance to the student. The present
essay is mainly intended to give the reader some notion of the contents of
Zunz's most important writings, but it will also contain a brief sketch of
his life.
Leopold Zunz^[140-2] was born at Detmold, in Germany, on August 10, 1794
(15th of _Ab_, 5554). His early life was passed at Hamburg, where his
father had opened a Hebrew school. There young Zunz received his first
training, but after the death of his father he was sent by his mother to
Samson's Free School at Wolfenbüttel, where his intelligence attracted the
attention of one of his teachers, Samuel Meyer Ehrenberg by name, who
bestowed special care upon him. Here it may be mentioned, in passing, that
Jost, the historian, was his schoolfellow, and that a close friendship
sprang up between them, which lasted both their lives^[141-1].
In 1809, when only fifteen years old, Zunz was already found capable of
assisting in tuition at his own school, but while teaching others he made
use of all the available time at his disposal to increase his own
knowledge. He attended for some years the Gymnasium at Wolfenbüttel, and
in 1815 he matriculated at the Berlin University, being the first Jew
admitted as a student to a Prussian university. The principal studies he
pursued there, were history, philology, and mathematics. He frequented
especially the lectures of De Wette, F. A. Wolf, and Boeckh. He also
employed part of his time in reading books of modern literature, and in
1817 he published a few pieces of light prose and verse in some Berlin
periodicals. From a pecuniary point of view Zunz derived very little
advantage from these literary contributions, but they were nevertheless
useful to him, inasmuch as they made his name known in some of the Berlin
literary circles, and thus paved the way for his subsequent appointment to
the post of editor-in-chief of the _Sperner'sche Zeitung_ that appeared
daily in Berlin as a political paper.
It was fortunate for Zunz that, while at the university, he still kept up
his previous studies in Hebrew and Rabbinical lore, for owing no doubt to
the knowledge he possessed of these subjects he was appointed, in 1820,
the first German preacher of the Reformed Synagogue at Berlin. This
appointment, however, he gave up voluntarily, after having held it for two
years; the reason for so doing is stated in the preface to his _Collection
of Sermons_, which he published at Berlin in 1823. It appears that Zunz,
noticing the general indifference of his congregation in religious
matters, spoke his mind pretty freely about it in the pulpit. His
audiences consequently diminished, and his position became intolerable. He
therefore resigned his office, but was lucky enough after to find
employment on the above-mentioned paper, which enabled him to marry the
lady of his choice. This was Adelaide, _née_ Berman, a relation of David
Frankel, Chief Rabbi of Berlin^[142-1].
In 1835 Zunz accepted the offer made by a section of the Jewish community
of Prague to become its preacher, but, after a year's stay at Prague, he
returned to Berlin, where he was subsequently appointed Principal of the
Training College for Jewish teachers. When, in 1850, this institution
ceased to exist, Zunz retired into private life, receiving, however, a
small pension from the Berlin community as an acknowledgment of the useful
services he had rendered to Judaism by his contributions to Jewish science
and literature. On this scanty income, sometimes slightly increased by the
profits of his books, Zunz and his wife managed to live pretty
comfortably, and even occasionally to entertain their friends. Among the
latter may specially be mentioned Professor Gans, M. Jost, Joseph Lehmann,
M. Moser, Dr. Carrière, the Deputy Warburg, and last, but not least,
Heinrich Heine. Heine seems to have been especially attached to them. He
used to read to them his poems in MS., some of them, which bear a specific
Jewish colouring, were very probably suggested by his learned
host^[142-2]. In his visits to England, France, and Italy, Zunz inspected
many rare MSS., which had been hidden away in various public and private
libraries, and likewise obtained fresh material for his literary works.
Zunz always referred to his wife in the most affectionate terms, and in a
letter addressed to a friend some time before her death he said that for a
period of forty-two years she had been a most faithful helpmate to him,
sharing all his joys and sorrows, and encouraging him in his work. Her
death, which occurred on August 18, 1874, caused Zunz the greatest sorrow,
and from that moment he became more and more melancholy, and was never
again in a fit state of mind to undertake any important literary work. Yet
he lived, though in strict retirement, to celebrate his ninetieth
birthday, on which occasion a tribute of respect was paid to him by some
of his friends and admirers, which took the shape of a volume, entitled
_Jubelschrift zum 90^{sten} Geburtstag des Dr. Leopold Zunz_. It contained
literary contributions from Steinschneider, Neubauer, Jellinek, Güdemann,
David Kaufmann, Derenbourg, and other scholars. A few years later, viz. on
March 17, 1886, corresponding to the 11th of the Hebrew month of _Adar_,
Zunz died peacefully. Zunz's valuable and interesting library was
subsequently bought by the Trustees of the Montefiore College Library at
Ramsgate, while his unpublished MSS. were taken possession of by the
Trustees of the so-called “Zunz-Stiftung,” founded at Berlin in 1864 in
commemoration of Zunz's seventieth birthday, with the object of giving
pecuniary assistance to Jewish authors, and enabling them to publish such
of their MSS. as the authorities of the “Stiftung” considered fit.
Zunz's literary labours began at an early age. In 1818 he published an
essay entitled _A Study in Rabbinical Literature_, which is specially
interesting on account of its containing a definition of the various
subjects that constitute Jewish literature, to which, however, neither
past nor contemporary students had paid due attention. It may at once be
said that, though it was originally written with the view of inducing
scholars of his time to work out the subjects mentioned therein, it was
the author himself who did the most in giving effect to his own
suggestions.
In 1823 he published a sketch of the life and works of the famous
commentator on the Bible and the Talmud, Rabbi Solomon Yizchaki, commonly
called “Rashi” (1040–1105). This essay may be said to be a model
biographical sketch. It contains almost all the ingredients which go to
compose an interesting and instructive whole. It is characterized by
method and the critical acumen, which is generally sadly lacking in
biographies written before his time, and has indicated new lines of
thought in more directions than one.
A few years later, in 1830, Zunz's attention was drawn to a book entitled
_Théorie du Judaïsme_, which a French priest, Chiarini by name, had
published at Paris, in which he inimically discussed the Talmud and
Rabbinical literature generally. Being himself unable to read the
Rabbinical writings in the original, Chiarini contented himself with the
repetition of almost all the adverse criticisms which had appeared in the
writings of Buxtorf, Bartolocci, Eisenmenger, and others. At the time of
the publication of this book Zunz was collecting materials for his
intended great work _Homilies of the Jews_, but he found time to write and
issue a small pamphlet under the title of _Beleuchtung der “Théorie du
Judaïsme” des Abbé Chiarini_ (Berlin, 1830), pointing out therein some of
the more flagrant inaccuracies and plagiarisms of Chiarini's book.
But Zunz did not belong to that class of critical reviewers who, though
quick in detecting the faults of others, cannot show that they themselves
would have done much better in the same field of work. For two years after
the issue of Chiarini's book (in 1832) he published a work which showed at
once the master-mind of a first-rate scholar, and gained for its author an
enduring fame. This work was entitled _Die gottesdienstlichen Vorträge der
Juden_ (“Homilies of the Jews”). There the author gives a description of
the evolution of culture among the Jews extending over more than two
thousand years. Beginning with a general survey of the great moral
influence, which the teachings of the Bible had exercised on the mind of
the Jewish people, the author goes on to define Jewish tradition, and to
describe its progress and its development. The reader thus becomes
acquainted with the history of the genesis of the Mishna, the Talmud, and
the Midrash, and likewise with the form of prayers and sermons that
prevailed at different times among the Jews. Speaking of sermons Zunz
shows in his _Gottesdienstliche Vorträge_ that preaching has at all times
formed an important part of the synagogue service, and that, during the
eighteenth century, sermons were even delivered in the vernacular in
several Jewish places of worship belonging to Portuguese congregations.
Zunz's special object was to show the injustice of the decree of the
Prussian government, which forbade preaching in synagogues, on the plea
that it was an exclusively Christian institution. This he contended was
not historically correct, as long before the dawn of Christianity the use
of homilies in synagogues was common, and ought, therefore, not to be
interfered with in modern times. Thus it will be seen that Zunz had a
double object in view in this book. In the first place, he desired to
point out to his own people the vast amount of interesting and valuable
material to be extracted from the wide field of Jewish literature; and, in
the second, he wished to afford the outer world an insight into the
intellectual life of the Jews of past ages. They were then, according to
the evidence adduced by Zunz, much more civilized and cultured than their
unscrupulous enemies declared them to be, and they had, therefore, a good
right to claim in the country of their birth perfect equality in the eyes
of the law.
Zunz's second great work, entitled _Beiträge zur Geschichte und
Literatur_, was published in 1845. It contains a number of essays on
diverse Jewish subjects, which are full of interest. In the preface to
this work the author makes the following noteworthy remarks: “Jewish
literature plays an important part in the general culture of the nations
of antiquity, and is also closely connected with the origin and the
gradual development of Christianity at large. It has likewise exercised a
marked influence on past and present generations, and participating, as it
did, in their common struggles and sufferings, it has become, as it were,
a supplement to the entire literature of the world. And indeed, if mental
activity generally may be compared to a vast and boundless sea, then
Jewish literature deserves to be designated as one of the streams which
flowed into it and helped it to a wider expansion.”
Though, as already stated, the contents of the _Beiträge_ are of a varied
description, they deal chiefly with that section of Jewish literature that
owes its existence to the Jewish writers of the Middle Ages. Mention is
made of a good many mediaeval Jewish commentators on the Bible and the
Talmud, as well as of grammarians and moralists. Instructive remarks are
made on some of them, most of whose names and writings had scarcely been
known before. Here our admiration for Zunz's rare talents must be enhanced
when it is observed how out of stray paragraphs and notes found in old and
neglected MSS., in rare prints, or on almost illegible tombstones, he has
actually created a standard book of reference, which has now become
indispensable to every student of Jewish literature.
In the course of his investigations in the _Beiträge_ Zunz touches on a
subject which ought not to be passed over unnoticed. He refers to the
crass ignorance sometimes manifested by Christian scholars in regard to
Judaism and its literature. He quotes, for example, the names of a few
French writers, who had published books dealing with Jewish subjects, of
which they knew as little as the aforementioned Chiarini. One of them,
Cupefigne by name, actually won the prize offered by the French Academy
for the best essay on the subject, _L'État littéraire des Juifs dans le
moyen âge_. But as a specimen of what he actually knew of the Talmud Zunz
quotes the following note he found in the essay. It runs thus: _Le Gemare
titre Sanhed._ _Sectio 14; le Talmud même titre_. With this kind of
Talmudical knowledge says Zunz, with just indignation, a French professor
has ventured to write a long dissertation on Rabbinical literature, for
which he was rewarded by the most learned literary society in France with
a valuable prize^[147-1].
Another masterpiece of Zunz, ranking almost as high as his _Homilies of
the Jews_, is _Die synagogale Poesie_, which deals specially with the
_Piyutim_ and _Selichoth_, and which was published in 1855. It is
virtually only the first volume of a work, which would certainly have
remained incomplete without the two additional volumes, issued in 1859 and
1865 under the respective titles _Die Ritus des synagogalen
Gottesdienstes_ and _Nachtrag zur Literaturgeschichte der synagogalen
Poesie_. Each of these volumes treats of a variety of subjects, though
they all belong to one and the same department.
Though the literary matter contained and discussed in _Die synagogale
Poesie_ is extremely copious and interesting, it is impossible to do more,
within the limits of a short essay, than to refer to it briefly. Beginning
with the Psalms the author describes the process of the gradual
development of psalmody into the so-called _Agadah_, and that of the
latter into the various kinds of prayers usually read in the synagogue,
including the “Penitential Poems,” called _Selichoth_. These, containing,
as they do, some of the most heartrending incidents in the mediaeval
history of the Jews, Zunz discusses with special warmth and feeling. One
particular passage excited the admiration of George Eliot, who printed a
translation of it in _Daniel Deronda_. It runs as follows:—
“If there are ranks in suffering, Israel takes precedence of all the
Nations;—if the duration of sorrows, and the patience with which they are
borne, ennoble, the Jews are among the aristocracy of every land;—if a
literature is called rich in the possession of a few classical tragedies,
what shall we say to a national Tragedy lasting for fifteen hundred years,
in which the poets and actors were also the heroes.”
When some later writers, including Professor Paul Legarde, criticized the
_Synagogale Poesie_ adversely, asserting that Zunz had wasted his time and
energy in the preparation of an elaborate work on the _Piyutim_, most of
which are admittedly valueless, the late Professor David Kaufmann defended
his friend, the author, in a remarkable pamphlet. He says, _inter alia_,
that in writing about the _Piyutim_ Zunz was chiefly actuated by the
desire to display before the eyes of the world the unexampled miseries and
sufferings, which the Jewish people endured during a period extending over
more than a thousand years. Thus it was obvious that, whether the
_Piyutim_ have by their existence enriched Hebrew literature or not, Zunz
has, at all events, by his long dissertation on them, brought to light a
piece of history of his people which, for various reasons, was worthy of a
permanent record.
Another noteworthy point connected with the _Synagogale Poesie_ is, that
it contains a considerable number of versified German translations of
pieces of liturgical Hebrew poetry, which renders them more intelligible
to the ordinary reader than would otherwise have been the case. The
following example may serve here as an illustration. One of the dullest
liturgical pieces composed by the Hebrew writer Kaliri (about 700 A. D.)
is no doubt the Hebrew hymn beginning with the words, _Adam-u-behemah_
(אדם ובהמה), which is read in most of the synagogues on _Hoshanah
Rabbah_. Yet Zunz translated it into excellent German. A free English
translation is appended:—
On all that lives and moves
Look down, O Lord, with grace;
Preserve in health and strength
The feeble human race.
Oh, let the earth again
In spring-like aspect shine,
Producing lovely flowers,
Delicious figs and vine.
Let rain bedew the fields,
The mountains high and low,
That plants, and herbs, and trees
Luxuriously grow.
Arouse anew to life
All that abides on earth,
And let our hearts rejoice
In lively songs and mirth.
It may be mentioned here, in passing, that some of Zunz's poetical German
translations are in style and form hardly inferior to the specimen
renderings of Eastern poetry found in the works of Goethe, Herder,
Rückert, and Bodenstedt. In fact, it is not too much to say that Zunz's
German poetry and prose are classical. His style is praised by Varnhagen
von Ense, who describes it in his _Diary_ as being in many places most
elegant and attractive.
As already stated, it was in 1859 that Zunz published an additional volume
to the _Synagogale Poesie_, called _Die Ritus des synagogalen
Gottesdienstes_, which mostly consists of inquiries into synagogal rites.
He alludes to the varied rites that had been in vogue among Jews living in
different countries, and he points out certain customs adopted by the
synagogue which had their origin in the Christian Church. To these, he
says, belong the customs of making monetary offerings in the synagogue
during the reading of the Law, which had, however, long been in use in the
Gallic Church. There, in return for such offerings, the officiating priest
was wont to read a prayer, called in Latin _Oratio post nomina_. This
prayer corresponds, according to Zunz, to the one still recited in some
synagogues by the precentor on mentioning the offerings made by the person
“called-up” to the reading of the Law, which is well known by the name of
_Mi-Sheberach_ (מי שברך). Zunz also thinks that the usage practised in
the synagogue of reciting prayers in memory of the souls of departed
parents and near relations, likewise originated in the Christian Church,
as mention is made of it in the early Christian liturgy.
The third volume forming part of the _Synagogale Poesie_ was, as already
stated, published by Zunz in 1865 under the title of _Die
Literaturgeschichte der synagogalen Poesie_. Though a small supplement was
added to it about two years later under the heading of _Nachträge zur
Literaturgeschichte der synagogalen Poesie_, it virtually closed the
series of Zunz's three epoch-making works that deal almost exhaustively
with the most important branches of Jewish science and literature. In this
particular field of study and research, Zunz proved himself to be a
first-rate critic and investigator, and there he also attained conspicuous
success. But, while admiring in Zunz his many-sided talents, and more
especially his extensive knowledge of earlier and later Hebrew literature,
credit must also be given him for the honesty with which he records the
obligations he owed to his literary friends for their aid in the
preparations of his literary compositions. Among them may be specially
mentioned Delitzsch, Rapoport, Luzzatto, Sachs, and Dukes, with all of
whom Zunz for many years carried on a lively correspondence. This helped
him greatly in his researches. Thus, for instance, in 1832, Zunz was only
aware of the existence of 200 _Selichoth_, but from the information
supplied by his friends he was enabled to add to the list of these
liturgical poems until they had reached the large number of 1,816.
It is natural that Zunz had many admirers among men of education, who were
able to read and appreciate his German works. Yet it is interesting to
note that a great many Jews, who were only slightly acquainted with
German, but had an extensive knowledge of Hebrew and the Talmud, held him
in great esteem as a Hebrew scholar. This distinction Zunz owed to his
mastery over the Hebrew style, examples of which are to be found in the
preface to his edition of Krochmal's _Morè Nebuche Ha-Z'man_ (מורה נבוכי
הזמן), and likewise in the Hebrew periodical _Kerem Chemed_. The latter
contains a biographical sketch of the famous Jewish critic, Azariah de
Rossi (1514–98), which is not only remarkable for its learning, but also
for the excellence of its composition. Zunz also wrote some pretty Hebrew
verses, specimens of which he gave in his metric Hebrew translation of
Klopstock's _Die Sommernacht_, which appeared (in 1819) in Heinemann's
Annual, called _Yedidja_.
It is to be regretted that Zunz, when at the height of his fame, and
already advanced in years, thought fit to write an essay published in the
_Zeitschrift der deutsch-morgenländischen Gesellschaft_, vol. XXVII, pp.
669–89, embodying the views of Biblical criticism of the advanced school.
There he tries to prove, for instance, that Leviticus and certain parts of
Deuteronomy were composed at a much later date than tradition has assigned
to them, and that the Day of Atonement and the festivals of New Year and
Purim were unknown to the early composers of the Pentateuch. These views
naturally aroused the anger of all strictly orthodox Jews, and they also
brought him in conflict with his ultra-radical friend Geiger, who censured
him for his obvious inconsistency, because in another essay (published in
the second part of his _Gesammelte Schriften_) Zunz spoke of the practice
of wearing phylacteries as a noble and sacred institution which ought to
be rigorously observed, while here he questioned the sanctity of the
holiest day in the Jewish calendar. But, though Zunz subsequently defended
his apparently antagonistic views to the accepted traditions of the Jews,
it would certainly have been better for his reputation had he left
Biblical criticism alone.
Zunz was undoubtedly filled with a deep love for his people. By his
labours he showed to the world that the Jews had, like other nations, a
history, a science, a philosophy, and a remarkable literature, on the
strength of which they were entitled to claim equal rights and privileges
with their fellow men in all that concerned their intellectual, social,
and political life. In this point his aims and ideals were somewhat akin
to those of his great prototype and predecessor Moses Mendelssohn. In
fact, they had much in common both in respect of their life and their
character. Both being of humble origin, they had both at the outset of
their scholastic career to contend with poverty and want. They were both
deeply attached to their people, and did what in them lay to remove their
disabilities, and especially to encourage them in the correct use of their
native tongue. It is true that in religious matters neither of them
exercised a favourable influence on his surroundings. But this at least
will be universally admitted that the admiration entertained by Heine for
Hebrew literature was chiefly due to his long and friendly intercourse
with Zunz, which no doubt gave rise to those laudatory expressions found
in his _Perlen des Romancero_, his _Rabbi von Bacharach_, and more
especially in his book entitled _Heine über Börne_.
Was Zunz ever really happy? This question, if raised, could hardly be
answered affirmatively. Long before and after his marriage he experienced
constant disappointments; and as for the state of his mind subsequent to
the death of his wife—who, by the way, left him childless—we learn from
the correspondence he then carried on with Professor David Kaufmann, how
completely overcome he was. The fact is, that Zunz fancied that he and his
works were not sufficiently known to, and appreciated by, his
co-religionists and the literary fraternity of the day, and on this
account he once sent to Kaufmann the following characteristic lines:—
Bist du mit Grafen nicht verwandt,
Und Börsenrittern unbekannt—
Du wirst—sei immerhin ein _Kant_—
Von Zeitungsschreibern nie genannt.
On another occasion, when writing to him, Zunz complains of the
indifference manifested towards him and his works by the Jews, and with
bitter irony he goes on to say that they would no doubt have established
an annual fast-day in his memory had he been the Gedaliah of the Bible, a
governor of a Jewish province, and murdered by an assassin's hand^[153-1].
Zunz considered himself, and more especially in his declining years, a
disappointed man; but if the extent of a man's happiness is to be measured
by the amount of useful work he has done for the benefit of others, then
Zunz deserves more to be envied than to be pitied. He has certainly not
lived and laboured, as he himself fancied, in vain. He will always occupy
a foremost place in the annals of Jewish history and scholarship, and will
ever be honoured as the Nestor of Jewish science and literature.
Footnotes:
[140-1] A sketch of the “Life and Works” of Zunz by the writer of this
article has appeared in German (in 1890) in Dr. Rahmer's _Literaturblatt_.
[140-2] In one of his letters to the late Prof. David Kaufmann, Zunz
explains the origin of his name by saying that it was originally “Zons,”
having been adopted by an ancestor of his from his little native town,
which was situated somewhere on the banks of the Rhine.
[141-1] In another of his letters to Prof. Kaufmann, Zunz mentions the
names of two works, the reading of which especially inclined him to the
serious study of Jewish historical and literary works. These were the
Jewish historical book צמח דוד, by David Gans (1641–1718), and the
_Bibliotheca Hebraea_, by Wolfius (1689–1739).
[142-1] He also was Moses Mendelssohn's Talmudical teacher.
[142-2] In one of his letters to Prof. Kaufmann, Zunz mentions that he had
in his chest many old missives from Heine.
[147-1] In Geiger's _Jüdische Zeitschrift_ (1868) Zunz has an article
containing several other amusing mistakes made by Christian scholars, when
translating Hebrew phrases into Latin, or into the vernacular. The
following is a characteristic specimen: The well-known Hebrew phrase,
occurring in the Passover Hagadah, זו פרישות דרך ארץ, is translated by
Rittangel by _Dispersio per omnem viam terrae_!
[153-1] This letter to Kaufmann was written at Berlin, and dated Sept. 10,
1877.