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12th annual issue for the year 5626 (October 1865-1866). Founded and edited by R. Samsom b. Raphael Hirsch, the German periodical Jeschurun (1854–70; new series 1883–90 edited by his son Isaac Hirsch), served as a vehicle for the dissemination of his ideas ("a monthly for the inculcation of the spirit of Judaism and of Jewish life in home, community, and school"). In it, R. Hirsch published his essays, some of which were later republished in his Gesammelte Schriften (6 vols., 1902–12).
R. Samson b. Raphael Hirsch (1808–1888) was the leader and foremost exponent of Orthodoxy in Germany in the 19th century. Born in Hamburg, Hirsch studied Talmud there with his grandfather R. Mendel Frankfurter. His education was also influenced by rabbis Jacob Ettlinger and Isaac Bernays, and by his father, R. Raphael (who had changed his surname from Frankfurter to Hirsch). R. Hirsch's importance as a religious spiritual leader, his wide influence as a preacher and teacher, organizer and writer, made him a dedicated champion of Orthodoxy in its controversy with the Reform-liberal Judaism. While advocating strict adherence to halakhah, R. Hirsch tried to find a solution to the political and cultural challenges presented in modern life to Judaism. He considered his view of Judaism not as a system of philosophical speculation but as an explication of the Sinaitic revelation. Despite widespread opposition to his ideas from many circles in German Jewry his personal qualities won their respect and admiration. |
