Two Important German Judaica Studies - One Lot - 1891-1908

A collection of two uncommon German-language works concerning major religious and intellectual controversies in Jewish history: the Talmudic apostate Elisha ben Abuyah and the modern struggle between Orthodox and Reform Judaism.

1. Samuel Bäck — Elischa ben Abuja–Acher — 1891

A historical and biographical study of Elisha ben Abuyah, the brilliant second-century Talmudic sage who abandoned traditional belief and became known in rabbinic literature as Acher, “the Other.”

Rabbi and scholar Samuel Bäck examines the classical Jewish sources concerning Elisha’s life, intellectual development and descent into heresy. Particular attention is given to his mystical experience associated with the “Four Who Entered the Pardes,” his possible exposure to Greek philosophy and other non-rabbinic traditions, and his complex relationship with his celebrated student Rabbi Meir.

An interesting nineteenth-century scholarly attempt to reconstruct the life and thought of one of the most enigmatic personalities in Talmudic literature.

German text.

2. Moritz Steckelmacher — Widerlegung des Sendschreibens des Dr. D. Hoffmann — 1908

A forceful Jewish theological polemic written by Reform rabbi Moritz Steckelmacher in response to a missive by Rabbi David Zvi Hoffmann, rector of the Orthodox Rabbinical Seminary in Berlin and a leading representative of German Orthodox Judaism.

The controversy concerned a proposed modernized Jewish prayer book prepared under the authority of the Israelite Council of the Grand Duchy of Baden. Hoffmann opposed alterations to the traditional liturgy, while Steckelmacher answered his objections point by point and defended the adaptation of Jewish worship to contemporary German-Jewish religious life.

The publication offers valuable primary-source evidence of the tensions between Orthodox and Liberal Judaism in Germany at the beginning of the twentieth century.

German text.

Overall significance
Together, the two volumes illuminate contrasting moments of Jewish intellectual history: an ancient rabbinic confrontation with apostasy and philosophical doubt, and a modern debate over religious reform, tradition and communal identity.

Of particular interest to collectors of Judaica, rabbinic literature, Jewish philosophy, German-Jewish history and the history of Reform and Orthodox Judaism.

Condition

1. Samuel Bäck — Elischa ben Abuja–Acher — 1891

Disbound copy with detached and loose leaves, but complete. The pages show age-related toning, occasional spotting, creasing, marginal wear and small edge tears. The title page is browned and bears several former owner’s and bookseller’s stamps. A suitable candidate for restoration or rebinding.

2. Moritz Steckelmacher — Widerlegung des Sendschreibens des Dr. D. Hoffmann — 1908

Preserved in a later cloth-backed binding with marbled paper-covered boards. The binding is worn and rubbed, with abrasions, staining and losses to the marbled paper. The work was probably once bound together with additional publications, which are not included in this lot. Former owner’s stamps appear on the title page. Interior with age-related toning, occasional spotting, creases and signs of use.

Both volumes are complete. Please examine the photographs carefully, as they form an integral part of the condition description.