The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-03-08 00:00:00

THE SCHISM AMONGST THE JEWS,

The Morning Herald of yesterday contains rather an ex-
traordinary correspondence relating to this subject. For
some time past there has been a continually increasing schism
among the most wealthy and influential Hebrew families re-
sident in London—one party holding fast by the ancient ce-
remonials of the Jewish faith, and the other—" the new
light"—repudiating many of those ceremonials as incompa-
tible with the march of intellect, and the present state of
society generally. Much angry disquisition between the
parties, and many painful estrangements, have been the con-
sequence, and, finally, the establishment of another synagogue
by the " new light" party has led to the correspondence.
The first letter is an application from Mr. Goldsmidt to
Sir Moses Montefiore, to certify that Mr. Marks is the
secretary of a synagogue recently established in Burton-street.
Sir Moses replies that he cannot do so, as he does not recog-
nise the place of worship in Burton-street to be a synagogue.
" Mr. Goldsmid in reply says, that " the committee are
" as desirous that you should not be required to do any-
" thing really irreconcileable with your religious opinions, as
" that you should not interfere with theirs; and I therefore
" take the liberty to suggest to you, that you may, with as
" perfect consistency, certify that our place of worship is a
" synagogue of persons professing the Jewish religion, al-
" though you may not consider ours to be the right kind of
" Judaism, as (if I happened to be president of the London
" Committee of Deputies of British Jews) I might certify
" that the members of any existing synagogue profess the
" Jewish religion, although their Judaism might not be,
" as to all points, identical with mine."
Sir Moses. however, persisted in grantirig the request,
and Mr. Goldsmid then closed the correspondence by ra-
ther a lengthened communication, in which the following
passages are interesting :
Knowin4 that members of this congregation can, in
spite of Sir Moses Montefiore's refusal, celebrate and re-
gister their marriages with perfect validity, both legal and
religious, the committee have been able to exercise a
choice as to making (what but for this knowledge they
would have been compelled to make) an appeal to one of
the tribunals of the country, or to parliament, on the sub-
ject of Sir Moses Montefiore's proceedings.
And being able to exercise a choice upon the matter, the
committee shrink from exhibiting to the Christian public
the spectacle of Jew contending against Jew in a court of
justice. Still more do they shrink from affording a handle
to the opponents of Jewish emancipation, by any course
which would direct general attention to the fact, that an in-
dividual placed in a conspicuous position among the Jews,
and who, on another occasion, has rendered an important
service to the Jewish community, surpasses, in intolerant
zeal, the warmest of those opponents, since he refuses (as
far as in him lies) to those who in some degree differ from
him in religious opinion not political privileges, but the
benefit intended for then; by the
legislature, of solemnising
and registering their marriages in the mode iehtbey prefer.
Influenced by these' conlderations, the committee have
determined not at the present moment to assert their rights.
But they have directed me,ullenvcommunicating to you this
andiretuesit against Sir Moses
determination, to state, that
Montefiore's refusal astrif%ysi
think
legalitysfel ve to
no
,hoarndosf
themselves the power, either of contesattin
whatever way and at whatever time they ma6v
/pplying to parliament to take altogether out of yourt
the power which Sir Moses Montefiore has so greatly mis-
used.

We are enabled to state that the Premier was received at
the Palace last Saturday with a degree of marked kindness,
that must utterly silence the base lies propagated for their
own factious and disloyal purposes by the paltry whigs, as to
the supposed political predilections of an exalted personage.
Sir Robert Peel came to Brighton by the especial invitation
of her Majesty, and, as our readers are aware, remained at
the Palace till Monday morning, by a coincidence worthy of
mention, in the same room which the right hon. baronet had
orenpidniatiy.y_ears ago, on the occasion of his last visit to
the Paviiicii:-Ll;Pighloa Gazette.

7lasiti

HOUSE OF COMMONS