New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-01-15
SLIPPERY MD THE HEBREW SCRIP
ftfat 9UPE.S. fs
REPLY TO THE RhBBI RApHbLL.

"beenreQuesed, by prominent citizens Of other denom
tons, that he ehould on that day examine the Bible
"yiew OF Slavery as the religious mind of the country
"Teauies to be enlightened Oh thls subject" have
persed it. a1u find that The Rabbi arrives at the con-
oon that Slavery ia rot sinful in the eyee ofthe God
| Of Israel the God of Moses and the Prophets II 10
true, he ia no friend to Slavery in the abstract, and
still less friendly the practical working Of Slavery
lie il sorry to find that he lis delivering Pro-
Slavery discourse lie distinguishes between Slavery
40 pract,sed by the Hebrews, which was " confined
within certain limits and according to which slave
was person in whom the dignity Of human nature
was TO be respected" and who lad rights, and the
beatheD System of Slavery, (Which he is "eorry to
say, is adopted in the South (which reduces the
slave 10 thing" and makes him prey TO &C two of
the worst passions of human lsture, lust ald cruelty
Still after humby praying TO the Father of Truth
and Of Mercy, he regards ii rs biz duty 10 proclaim
from the pulpit that is a sin-to preach against Say
cry in the South had resdsmil nonsense humid
reds of times before; knew that the Father OF Truth
and Mercy daily invoked in hundreds of pulpits in
thi country for Divine sanction of hlesod and bar
tsIsm; etill, being jew myself, felt exceedingly
bsnbed, NAV say outraged, by the sacrsgous words
Of tho Babb. Have We not hs4 enough
Of tie reproaeh Of Egypt" Must the stigma OF
Ee! ptan principles be fastened The people Of Israel
by Grraelitish Irs themselves? Shall the enlightened
and humane Of this country asa each other, Are these
"the people Of God, who have come from his land7'
hoped, however, that amid the food Of scum that is
turned mp by the turbulent waves Of THE stormy
tine, the words Of the Rabbi would disappear like
many other bubbles, and the blasphemous teachings
Of synagogue find no longer echoes than those Of
Christian Churches But l am grievously mistaken
Day after day brings hossnnahs 20 the Hebrew de-
famer Of the law Of his nation; and his words arc
trumpeed through the land if he the messenger
Of salvation. So deprayed is tie moral sense Of
Prc-Slavery demagogues debauched the mind of
their mammon-worshiping followers, dense the |
EeyI,an darkntss which covers their horizon tbht all
other false lights being exhausted spark Of Hebrew
Pro-Savery rhetoric is hailed lightning from |
Sinai as a new light from Zion sent to guide the peo
pie Of the United States safely through the dark tenn
pess that threaten 10 destroy their ship State. Down
with conscience humanity reason, experienced just |
lsten TO the angelic Hebrew sounds u the God-sent
Rabbi lie hiss scrutnized the Hebrew Scriptures and |
II cir commentaries the hishna, the Gemars the
diuval Rabbi4 perhaps also the Cabalists II ne has
not discovered truth, nobody will. And what stu
pendous knowledge of profhne history, from anedu-
Wan times down to the day when the Rev. II. W. |
Btecher last preached in plymouth Church AL this,
trud will convert few rational Jews Christians to
the Infamous doctrines Of Slavery but, the other
hand, it may induce many people to believe that |
the God Of the Jews Wa is, after all God Of |
Slavery Allow me, therefore, TO show both Christian
and Jewish readers of THE TRIBUNE the real value Of
tie Rabbs biblical scholarship and II space permits
also Of bic logic. "Because of Zion l viii not he
silent"
OF course lie commences with Noal, and tells rs |
how il came that that man who first planted grape
vine, &C.. &c, was acquainted with the condition Of
sn 'eyed for ngeied as the Rabbi spells IL, which he
translates by slave, and not like the English version
>by "servani and arrives ut the conclusion that next
TO the domestic relation Of husband and wife, parents
and CHILDREN the oldest relation Of society with which
we are acquainted 10 that Of mater ands slave. Anne
dcoyery which must have been charming 70 The ears Il
tie Southern part 81 his hearers The peculiar domes
tic institution almost ~ old the fratrcide OF CAM
end certainly ar old the time when the earth was
fun Of yonp.-- aud tho Lord repenns thai he had
made man determined to destroy him from the face Of
the earth Gen. VII. Thus biblical criticism besscd
instrument in the hands Of competent scholar traces
every thing to ia origin, and naturally links together the
brother Of Abel with the late Preston $. Brooks |
IAmech with Rhtit, and perhaps sister Carolinas
going out Of the Union, with mother Ewes going out
Of Paradise Who the serpent was hes long been |
discussed IL remains only to be proved that the Tree
Of knowledge was the first full grown palmetto.
But let US 90 back to Noah, whote utorances, at0r
having tasted the juice Of the vine believed TO
tain the true solution Of the pea. problem now
before the statesmen and people of America Now,
by my Jewish BRETHREN | am sorry to say, the fret
planter Of the grape vine has never been regarded
saint and distinguished Rabbs have been bold enough
to explain the word Jedo,otlao i'm hs generations
which attached to the enumeration of his virtues to
biz disparagemeD, meaning that be eminentypious
only as compared with others at time when the earth
was all corrupt, full Of violence and deserving OF de-
strue,ion Our leaned Rabbi knows this well enough
but be prefers to caponze Moab because of hiscuro on
Ham, and be aso prefers the word slave translation
Of teHebrew cJei which Noah used that OCCASION
totbe servant Of the English version Our peoples
appreciation Of Noahs personal merits, Of course
can have but little historical practical value,
but the word eJed Ia point upon which the nforma-
ticn Of Hebrew is Of decisive importance.
Now, being Hebrew myself, and pretending to an
equal knowledge Of the beautiful tongue of my
tors with the Rev. gentleman, must tell you, states
men of these United Sates that if you undertake to
reconstruct the shattered Constitution of your Great
R,publc on the baeis Of the learned RabLs transla
ton of that word you will find yourselves woefnly
mistaken. doubt If there be Jewish authority in
favor Of the Ratbs preference but certainly for every
one there are against him. Moses Mendessohn In
his celebrated German translation ofhe Pentateuch has
Kneclt (seryant), and not Skidre Dr. Zunzs German
Bible, the most fayorably received Jewish
version of our age, has knecM Rabbi
Rapha prefers the meanest of slaves Tor 'ettd