Background
Holdheim was born in 1806 in Kępno, Poland. The son of rigidly traditional parents, he was early inducted into rabbinical literature according to the methods in vogue at the Talmudical yeshivas.
(The first comprehensive comparative interpretation of Sam...)
The first comprehensive comparative interpretation of Samuel Holdheims radical Reform philosophy in the context of the intellectual, cultural, and political experience of mid-nineteenth century German Jewry, provided by leading international scholars in the field of Jewish intellectual history.
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Holdheim was born in 1806 in Kępno, Poland. The son of rigidly traditional parents, he was early inducted into rabbinical literature according to the methods in vogue at the Talmudical yeshivas.
Holdheim went to Prague and subsequently to Berlin to study philosophy and humanities; and his keen intellect, combined with his eagerness to learn, made it possible for him to reach his goal in an incredibly short time, though the lack of preliminary systematic preparation left its imprint upon his mind, to a certain degree, to the last. Under Samuel Landau of Prague he continued also his Talmudical studies.
In 1836 Holdheim was appointed rabbi at Frankfurt-on-the-Oder, in 1840 he was transferred to the rabbinate of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. He then became prominent as an advocate on the one hand of religious freedom and on the other of reform within the Jewish community. Various rabbinical conferences were held, at Brunswick (1844), Frankfurt-on-the-Main (1845) and Breslau (1846). At all of these Holdheim was a strong supporter of the policy of modifying ritual (especially with regard to Sabbath observance, marriage laws and liturgical customs). In 1846 he was chosen Rabbi of the new Berlin congregation and there exercised considerable influence on the course of Jewish reform. Holdheim died suddenly at Berlin on 22 August 1860.
(The first comprehensive comparative interpretation of Sam...)
Holdheim's purpose was to bring about a change in this state of affairs. In the preface to his Gottesdienstliche Vorträge (1839) he appealed both to the government to accord the modern rabbinate the dignity due to it, and to the congregations to cease regarding the rabbi as an expert in Jewish casuistry mainly charged with the duty of answering she'elot (ritual questions) and inquiries concerning dietary laws. He insisted upon the recognition of the rabbi as preacher and teacher, who at the same time gives attention to the practical requirements of his office as the expert in Talmudical law.