The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-27

remarks partook somewhat OF the nature
of personal expression OF views.
First and foremost" continued the
| rabbi II am a Jew The Interpretation
which any one may put upon the word
concerns me not. / am not Jew because
my father was one. | am Hebrew be-
cause the sacrifice made by the heroes of
our faith have accrued to my benefit and
because l have ascertained to my own sat
! isfaction that l firmly believe in the reH-
gion profess, and will continue to do so
to my dying day. l hold to the doctrine
of Israel, but reserve to myself the right
to interpret that doctrine as please"
Continuing, DR.. Voorsanger touched
upon the question of the evening, "Why
Am a Reform Jew2n He said:
"I am a Reform Jew because for many
years past / have felt the necessity of
creeping little closer to my fellow-man,
no matter what he believes. / think that
the world is doing itself mortal injury in
confounding principle with Interpretation.
l believe that the dividing lines should be
removed between church and church and
sect and sect. / believe that there is in the
future some ideal scheme upon which the
world will unite. If [ am wrong then all
the prophets of Israel and he who was
called Jesus of Nazareth were mere vision
aries and dreamers.
81 firmly hold that there must be in the
future plan of universal, not sectarian
salvation. The time must come when the
war cries of the churches will be forgotten
by the human race. | have no exclusive
message from God that my neighbor can
not share. / know of no humanitarian
enterprise which l desire to carry on with
out his assistance.
"The second reason why am a reform
Jew is because | believe in the progression
OF reli gion. | do not believe in the religion
of 1000 years ago. Nor do you. My
orthodox brother says he does, but he
doesn't The Israelite of old held his God
in terror which l do not. My religion
has become a nobler and greater religion
of worship. reject absolutely forms that
have been conceived and established in
Babylonia, in Palestine, in Italy, in Spain.
in Egypt.
s'For my third reason, say because 1
am an American citizen l do not cling to
any country but this. l have no hope for
any future except for that which | have
here and do not hold with my orthodox
brother in the idea of restoration to
Palestine. / find that my reformed reli-
gion possesses principles that prevail all
over this land.
II want my religion and political opin-
ions to be alike progressive and liberal, in
tended TO do the greatest good to the great
est number. / believe that this Western
land has been a greater refuge to Israel
than the little land by the Mediterranean.
l believe that there is the possibility of our
shining forth as patriots as well as Jews
who are firm In the faith of our fathers"
Here DR.. Voorsanger paused moment
He eyed his audience and resumed in a
very deliberate manner: "In the next
place, | am reform Jew because twenty
years of experience have convinced me of
the dishonesty of American orthodoxy
There should be consistency in every form
of faith. There is respect and reverence
to be yielded to every religion, pro-
vided it is honest. l can respect a
Catholic il that Catholic be honest.
| can admire a Protestant if he
be sincere. l class all religions in the same
category. For that reason / could, even
though | am an American, reconcile my
self to orthodoxy, if it were as honest in
this country as abroad; but | say there is
no honesty in a form which stumbles
over petty rites and transgresses the prin-
cipal commandments of the faith. There
are men who are terrified because
you bare your head, and who with the
greatest equanimity violate the Sabbath.
There are people who are Mortified because
you widen the dietary laws, yet they do
not abstain from work on the hottest
day of the year. They are dis
honest and inconsistent, because ortho-
dox Judaism, as l understand it,
HusG pe ior one tulng OF dnotueri IL must
stand upon talmudical or rabbinical
ground or not at all. If it is not that, then
it becomes the inconsistency denounced
by DR.. Einhorn as a skeleton which robes
itself in gorgeous dress to delude the
public"
DR.. Voorsanger concluded by few ap-
propriate remarks concerning his de-
parture for Europe, and hoped to return to
his flock in time for the next session of
the EridaV-eyeninp services
The Taylor-street synagogue held the
concluding service of the season last night.
Special music was rendered by the choir
under the direction of Mrs. III. J. Stewart
DR.. Nieto discussed the question, "Why
am I a Jew?" and in the course of his re-
itself to my mind rather as why remain
| Jew than why am La Jew? For in regard
to the latter, to be frank, must say that
the primary reason for my adhesion to the
doctrines of the Hebrew faith is the acct
dent OF birth. Added to this are also en-
vironment and education. But putting
aside so far as 1t is in the power of man to
do all bias and prejudice, my review of all
to me known religious systems reveals the
superiority of Judaism over the others.
'First, because Judaism does not regard
itself as the only means OF spiritual or
| moral salvation, but admits that the pious
Of all denominations, or those who act as
Jney profess, merit ana attaln Salvatlon
A reservation is made, however, in the
case of those who do not acknowledge and
worship God. But here even the extreme
breadth and liberality which marks Juda-
ism makes itself felt, for the moral acts,
| and not the profession of faith, is the stand
ard by which man is to be Judged SO that
even the untutored savage, worshiping
his wooden representation Of the Deity,
is candidate for salvation.
Second, Judaism breaches liberation to
all. Third, it is a rational scientific and
logical religion based on the natural rather
than upon the supernatural, not demand
ing blind belief or any belief in the
miraculous or unnatural, but ever striving
to inculcate the highest moral and ethical
principles based upon the conception of a
God who. is holiness. Fourth, Judaism
exerts all its powers to teach people
how to live rather than to. invite