Page:Jewish Encyclopedia Volume 1.pdf/563

515 — THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

515

issued a call for another conference to meet in Philadelphia in N'oveinlier of that year, at which, mainly throuirh Einliorn, the following principles of Peforni Judaism were enunciated: Afllf-r

America, Judaism in

sion lo a rational and humanitarian conception of religion ; and that the masses, therefore, should 1m- enlightened as to the history and mission of the Jewish people, and their six'ial and spiritual condition elevated

through

pres.s pulpit,

and

si'hool.

The

I. Israel's Mi'ssinnli' piml Ls not the restoration of a .lewlsli state Hixt Its si't'lusion fniin (iDier ntitiniis, luit ttn- union or all pefjples In tin* knowle<l(je of the one Supn-riu- (hmI. tin- urntlcutlon of all niankinri, and thi'lr el«*vaIton to purity and liollnt'ss. II. The destruction of Isniel's indi-pondrncc Is not to he considered us Ihc punlshuient for Isnid's sinrulncs.s, but as the fulIlhnent of tin* rlivinc puriK)sc in senduijr Israel forth into the worWI u|H)ri lis prlcslly nilsslon. to ieail men to a c»trre<*t knowledjrc of (iod and to ihc pciforiuancc o( His will. III. The Aarouic pi-lcsllioo(l and the sjicrlllclal services In the Temple were tiut pifpanitory and temporary steps to the hetlcr They liave therefore flttlntr of Israel for tills world-wide tiLsk. disapiM'ured now f(pn'cr: and all n-fi-rences to them in our prayers should tie in the way of hislorical mention only. I". The belief in a resurrection of the IxHly has no relijjioiis foundation in Judaism the belief In the itnmortallty of the soul Is the proper formulation for our belief In this connection. V. The employment in worship of the Hebrew lan^ua^e, In which the priceless tn-asures of divine revelation have iK'en presen'ed ami the immortal monuments of a literature dominatlntt all civilization have been liande<l down, must be regulated by the knowledge or Ipnorance of that laut'uaKe by the [leople (ur wbuiu the ritual la arranged.

B. nuile child of a .lewisli mother is by the fact of Its birth, much as the feinali- child, a member of the Jewish cuminunlly, even without circumcision.

The

Just as

In addition, the subjects of inarria.ffc and divorce were discussed; the law of the land was recognized in such mattei-s as the paramount authority, and various moditications in keejiing with the age were promtilijated. (Questions not fully discussed at the conference were ]iostponed to another convention to beheld the following year at Cincinnuli. This i)rojected conference did not take place, however; but in June, IsTI. a convention was held there at which certain ill considered uttei'aiK-es about revelation and a personal (tod were made, which provoked an intlignant protest liv Einhorn and eighteen other Heform labbis No other Heform conferences (see CoNKr-;nKX<Ks). of note took place until November. 1885, when at Pittsburg, in obedience to a call issued by Kohler, another attempt was made to fnrniulale principles and to reconcile dilTerences. The following is an abstract of the Pittsburg resolutions: Art. 1 declari's that .liidalsm conveys the hiphest ooncepllon of (iofl and of Ills relation to man that (iod Is the Creator and Ruler of the World. Kaiher and Kducal4ir of the human race. Art. 2 treasures the Holy s<Tiptures as the record of Divine Revelation, and of the conse<-ration of the Jewish la-ople as the missionaries of the line (od. In comiiositlon and literary arranKcmeni. the sriplures are only the work of men, with the uii]ioidiible lliiitiations of their a^e. Ai-t. :t well, tines the resiilis of natural wienceasthe tn'st helps t<i the uudei-standlni; of the worklnir of Divine I.ove In the world, Ihc inble serving jw (fuide ti^ Illustrate the Divine Power workinif wllliln us. Art. 4 retfaiils Ihe Mosaic laws iLs Intended for the tniinin^ of tbe Jews of Palestine In their foniier siirrouridinpi; that only the monti laws are fllvine; and that all siH-lal. jiolltical. and priestly statutes, inconsistent with our iiKMlern habits and views,

are to

Ih-

rejeded.

diilari'S that the Mosalc-niliblnlcal laws on diet, purity, the spirit of priestly fail to imbue iiuHleni Jews holiness ; laid that Ihelrobservanceto-ilay would obstruct nither enhance monil and spiritual elevation. than Art. *l pni-lalms Isniel'H Messianic hoin- to Im' the ho[M' for the ealalillshmeni of the aulhorltv of in-iu-e. truth. Justice, uml love amoni; all men. .No nduni to Palestine Is exiM'cteil. nor the n-InfftlluMon iiiere of a Jewish state, or of a worship eonductiti liy di-sci'ndaiils of Aanin. Art. 7 dei-lan-s Judaism to h' an ever-imiwlnff. pntffTi'sslve, anil nilional ii'liirion of niixlem civlll/atlon, and tLssen.s the neeiwdty of pnwrv InK Identity with the (fnal past of thi' Jewish

Art.

.'i

and dress

wKh

nation. Art. H hails the efTorl.M made by various relluloiis denominations toward removing the liarrlei-s si'panitln^ sis-i front s>lltrlous (ruths atul ml.sslon auiontf Jews and Opntllev. Art. In dis-lares the pnwnt a^taled stn(e of Judaism (o N* a period of tmnsltlon fnmi a blind IM-Uef 111 audiority and exclu-

declarations of the Pittsburg conference, wliile to a great extent acceptable to all shades of Judaism, contained, nevertheless, certain planks that gave dire offense to the more Orthodox notably to tlmse declaring against the ho]ie for the restoration of Palestine as a .lewish home, and against the dietary laws, etc. Various pronouncements at the conference in favor of Suntlay services and discussions arising from motions favoring the admission of proselytes without circunu-isioii evoked a heated agilaticm, which eventually led to the foundatinn (.May 'J. IMSti) of the itliiidox .Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, the main moving spirit in which was Morals, who was its director until his death. One of the first cares of the Keform movement was naturally for an improvement in the traditional prayer-ritual. .Moderate changes, as already shown, had been advocated by the Charleston movement, and also in the various prayer-books successively ]nit forth by Szold and Jastrow. liy Wise in his " .^Iinhag America," by Iliibsch, and" by others: but the most radical embodying principles afterward formulated by the Philadelphia conference was that of Einhorn, •"Olat ha-Tamid " (The Perpetual OlTeriug), published 18.">, with German translation; ed-

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English by E.

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the line of harmonizing TJnion the various inde]iendeut rituals that Prayerhad sprung up in all the dccadesof atBook. tempted ritual reform was done by the Central Conference of American rabbis (organized in Detroit, 1889; Isaac M. Wise, first president) in producing the " Inion Prayer-book," which, lo a very large extent, was founded on the Einhorn book (18'J4-9.")). Laboring under certain imperfections of literary style anil a rather vague expression of Keform ideas, it is nevertheless, in point of practical utility, a considerable improvement over its predecessors, and has accordingly been adopted in the ma,iority of Reform and even Conservative congregations in America contributing thus to the great desideiatuni of a uniformity of service all over the in

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" Union Hymnal." published by L'nited States. the stimc conference in 1897. exhibits the weak features of the prayer-book to an even greater degree a proposed new edition will probably remove the L'nitication of .Sunday school instruction has latter. also been a deparlmeni in w hicli the Central Conference has worked most acceptably (the Hebrew Sabbath Siln ml rnion biiiig founded in 1880 with Pabbi David Pliilipsou, of Cincinnati, as president). For the ediuational development in Aniericau Judaism, see .Saiuiatii s( iiooi, and Co.nkiumation. The distiiK live tendency of ])rogressive American Juilaism has thus been toward a scholarly and earnest development from the Ancient or Orthodox phase, in he light of the circumstances and tieinands created by the new sphere anil the modern age. As concerns its future course in the l'nited States, it seems destined by its numbers and its vigor lo be a ))romiiienl factor in Ihe development of the Juilaism I

Any future addition of nualifving elements can come only from the Orthodox side of of the world.

European Jewry; that

is, from the oppres.sed disof ea.sterii Europe. Since IKS-J, these have been arriving in large numbers throughout the Hut pos.sessed of learning as well as rnited States. intelligence, such elements will in all probability, after a geiienition or two in their new surroundings, conform themselves lo the mean hctweeu extreme

tricts