The Denver Jewish news., 1919-02-20
The Essence Of Judaism
ADDRESS DELIVERED BEFORE
THE JUDEANS OF NEW YORK.
BY Theodore Reinaeh. Prof of History
Of Religion. Paris.

men: l will first express my deep
gratitude for the cordial greeting
which l just received from you, aud
altho your praise has made my mod
csty suffer very much, accept it as
going beyond and above my head to
my own country, for which 1 know
your well deserved feelings, and your
sincere sympathy.
When ! was first asked n few
months ago by your distinguished sec
rctary, Mr.. Max KOhlcr, TO deliver a
lecture before your society, declined
the offer. The reason was that am.
i will not say n scholar. but would
be scholar. and therefore, when l give
a lecture l want it to be treated in II
scholarly manner and on subject
.familiar to my studies. Well, had
not prepared and l had no means to
prepare something interesting or orig
inal connected either with the his
tory. archaeology or literature of the
past of Judaism, and had too much
respect for yourselves and for myself
wOrkedOut memoir. some hasty and in
significant gossip Since then. the call
having been modified to suit my pos
sibilities, am very glad to find my
self tonight among you, and to be al-
lowed to repay in some measure my
debt of gratitude by very short adj
dress. the subject of which, as your
chairman has just told you. is simply
my personal feeling about the essence
of Judaism.
/ remember that some twenty OF
twenty-five years ago. in writing ths.
second edition of small book on the
history of the Jews, which has bc"n
perhaps more copied than quoted.
vcntured to express the opinion that
Judaism. which in old times had been
an Asiatic fnct, which in the Middle
Ages and modern times had been
European fact. would, perhaps. in the
course of time. become chiefly an
American fact. What did l mean by
this rather adventurous prophesy?
did not mean only that in point Of
ruml,er the Jewish population OF .Smer-
lea, which was then increasing In
particularly rapid manner, at the be-
ginning of great stream of immigra-
tion from the Eastern countries Of
Europe did not mean only that in
point of numbers the Jewish populn-
tion of America would soon be larger
than that of perhaps any other coun-
try in the world. meant also that
the legal and social conditions of the
Jews in America. that their internal
organiza iion. that the forms of their
worship and even the contents of ten
cts of their faith. would he likely to
serve one day or other rs pattern for
Judaism in the remainder of the diaS
pOra.
Events have occurred since my writ
ing these lines which by no means
oblige me to rctract them. 1t Is NOT
that I am prepared to underrate or TO
ridicule the movement which mas
arisen under the name of Zionism.
The longing of many prosecuted ana
suffering Jews, destitute of any father-
land. to find home and shelter In
Palestine is justified. even were it un-
der the protection of one or of sew
erul of the civilized nations of Europe.
Nor am ! blind or unfair to the efforts
that have been made and are being
made by, some generous minds IN tua'
direction. But it is my intimate and
INV ripely weighed conviction. that even
under the best administration, even
under the best economic organization
and management, Palestine Is hardly
able to provide food for the twentleth
mart of the Jewish population OF the
world. 1t is also my intimate conVic-
yiction that every action tending to re-
transform Judaism from religious
and spiritual fact to national ana
material fact, is an endeavor not ON!
TO stop. but to reverse. the haturhi
flow and stream of its history, an at
tcmpt of reaction doomed to bant
ruptcy. and the only practical result
of which would be to foster, by new
arguments and by new weapons tEe
most dangerous and loathsome form
of anti-Semitism-I mean that anu
Scmitjsm which affects to consider
and represent the Jew as foreign
and unassimilable element thrust H.
the core of modern communities. harm
full as every strange body of the KIM
and which had better be thrown out or
DESTROYED altogether Therefore the
t.sc
the Jewish problem. taking it as
whole. is not. in my opinion. the re
turn to Jerusalem" We have to ar'