Aaron Chorin
Encyclopedia
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
and pioneer of religious reform
Reform Judaism
Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...
. He favored the use of the organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
and of prayers in the vernacular
Vernacular
A vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
, and was instrumental in founding school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
s along modern lines. Chorin was thus regarded as a leader of the newer Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
. He also interested himself in public affairs — he took an active part in the efforts for Jewish emancipation
Jewish Emancipation
Jewish emancipation was the external and internal process of freeing the Jewish people of Europe, including recognition of their rights as equal citizens, and the formal granting of citizenship as individuals; it occurred gradually between the late 18th century and the early 20th century...
, and was very influential with the state authorities.
Early years
Chorin was born in Hranice (Přerov District), MoraviaMoravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
(now in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
) in 1766. At the age of fourteen he studied in the yeshivah of Rabbi Jeremias in Mattersdorf
Mattersburg
Mattersburg is a town in Burgenland, Austria. It is the administrative center of the District of Mattersburg and home to a Bundesliga football team, SV Mattersburg.- Location :...
, Hungary, and two years later at Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
in the higher Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ical school of Ezekiel Landau. Here he also learned German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
. Chorin married on December 26, 1783, and entered commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
; but his business career being unsuccessful, he accepted the post of rabbi at Arad
Arad, Romania
Arad is the capital city of Arad County, in western Romania, in the Crişana region, on the river Mureş.An important industrial center and transportation hub, Arad is also the seat of a Romanian Orthodox archbishop and features two universities, a Romanian Orthodox theological seminary, a training...
in the spring of 1789, which he occupied till his death.
His First Work
In 1798, Chorin published his first pamphlet, Imre No'am (אמרי נועם Words of Pleasantness), in which he argued that as the sturgeonSturgeon
Sturgeon is the common name used for some 26 species of fish in the family Acipenseridae, including the genera Acipenser, Huso, Scaphirhynchus and Pseudoscaphirhynchus. The term includes over 20 species commonly referred to as sturgeon and several closely related species that have distinct common...
had scales
Scale (zoology)
In most biological nomenclature, a scale is a small rigid plate that grows out of an animal's skin to provide protection. In lepidopteran species, scales are plates on the surface of the insect wing, and provide coloration...
it was permitted as food according to Scripture. His opinion, although following that of Landau and other authorities, was strongly opposed by Mordecai Benet
Mordecai Benet
Mordecai ben Abraham Benet was a Talmudist and chief rabbi of Moravia born at Csurgó, a small village in the county of Stuhlweissenburg, Hungary.-A Gifted Child:...
and his partisans. Rabbi Isaac Krieshaber of Páks
Paks
Paks is a town in Tolna county, central Hungary, on the banks of the Danube River. Paks is the home of the only Hungarian nuclear power plant, which provides about 40% the country's electricity....
wrote a refutation, Maḳḳel No'am (מקל נועם Staff of Pleasantness), which called forth a second pamphlet by Chorin, Shiryon Ḳasḳassim (שריון קשקשים Armour of Quills), (Prague, 1799).
By his determined opposition to the traditional usages in Hungary, Chorin incurred the hostility of most of his colleagues. In the spring of 1802 he journeyed to the Somogy district. The favorable impression which his sermon
Sermon
A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...
s made upon his Jewish hearers there induced him to consider himself as the future rabbi of this district, and on the title page of a pamphlet he published he assumed this title. The rich and prominent Moses Lakenbacher, president of the congregation of Nagykanizsa, promised Chorin his influence with his brethren of the district; but when Lakenbacher became aware of the strong opposition of the conservative party against the reformer he soon turned against him.
Opposition by the Orthodox
At Prague in 1803, Chorin publishedMaimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
' thirteen articles of faith, and gives evidence of knowledge rare among his Hungarian contemporaries. Next to the Halakha
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
, Chorin also interpreted the Aggadah
Aggadah
Aggadah refers to the homiletic and non-legalistic exegetical texts in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, particularly as recorded in the Talmud and Midrash...
in a philosophical way. This method he applied in like manner to the Zohar
Zohar
The Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
, which he, far from all mysticism
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
, considered as a rich source of speculative knowledge. This view referred only to the theoretic or intuitive, and not the practical, Kabbalah
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
, the belief in which he considered as contradictory to sound reason. At the beginning of this book are printed the approbation of Rabbi Moses Münz and a eulogistic Hebrew poem of Rabbi Moses Kunitz. This work gave great offense to the Orthodox party, which thwarted the publication of a second edition, for which Chorin had prepared many corrections and additions. Benet wrote to the Arad congregation that the book contained heresies
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
and must be burned. The congregation, however, stood by their rabbi; but some of its members sided with Benet, and their leader, a rich man, publicly insulted Chorin while he was preaching. The Arad board now applied to Münz to certify that the book contained no heresies. Having given his approbation to the author, Münz was in a great dilemma, since he was urged by the Orthodox party to condemn Chorin and to inflict upon him an exemplary punishment. He concluded to yield to the insinuations, and on September 1, 1805, he invited two rabbis to come to Óbuda
Óbuda
Óbuda was a historical city in Hungary. United with Buda and Pest in 1873 it now forms part of District III-Óbuda-Békásmegyer of Budapest. The name means Old Buda in Hungarian...
to form with him a tribunal before which Chorin was summoned. The session of the court was prolonged to the next day, but then Münz failed to appear.
Sentence Pronounced
Samuel Butschowitz, rabbi of Assod, now pronounced sentence that "Chorin must retract the contents of his book. Should he refuse to do so, his beard will be cut off as a penalty for his heretical transgressions." Thereupon Chorin, whom the populace had stoned in the courtyard of the synagogue, declared that he subordinated his views to those of the theologians of his time, and desired that his book be suppressed. The court also decreed a reduction of Chorin's salary, but the board of his congregation indignantly rejected this decree. Chorin appealed to the imperial government which, on June 24, 1806, annulled the judgment and condemned the leader of his adversaries at Arad to pay the expenses of the lawsuitLawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
; the same was also to be punished for his scandalous conduct on Shabbat Shuvah, 1804. Chorin declared that he forgave his adversary, and declined his claims for compensation of the expenses. To avoid further trouble, he determined to give up writing.
Attitude Toward Reform
The ReformReform Judaism
Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...
movement among the Jews of Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
met his hearty approval. In Ḳin'at ha-Emet (Zeal for Truth), a paper written on April 7, 1818, and published in the collection Nogah ha-Ẓedeḳ (Light of Righteousness), he declared himself in favor of reforms, such as German prayers, the use of the organ, and other liturgical
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
modifications. The principal prayers, the Shema', and the eighteen benedictions, however, should be said in Hebrew, he declared, as this language keeps alive the belief in the restoration of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. He also pleaded for opening the temple for daily service. Influenced by Münz, Chorin recalled this writing on February 19, 1819; but a year later he published Dabar be-'Itto (A Word in Its Time), in which he reaffirmed the views expressed in Ḳin'at ha-Emet, and pleaded strongly for the right of Reform. A German translation by Löb Herzfeld appeared at Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. This directed upon him the attention of the progressive party in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Michael Lazar Biedermann, a prominent man, proposed the appointment of Chorin at the new temple to be erected at Vienna; but the government being opposed to it, Isaac Noah Mannheimer
Isaac Noah Mannheimer
Isaac Noah Mannheimer was a Jewish preacher.The son of a chazzan, he began the study of the Talmud at an early age, though not to the neglect of secular studies...
was elected instead.
Consulted by Baden
The government of the grand duchy of BadenBaden
Baden is a historical state on the east bank of the Rhine in the southwest of Germany, now the western part of the Baden-Württemberg of Germany....
asked Chorin (on February 3, 1821), through the banker S. Haber, for his opinion about the duties of a rabbi, and about the reforms in the Austrian states. Chorin answered by writing Iggeret Elasaf, or Letter of an African Rabbi to His Colleagues in Europe, which was published by M. I. Landau (Prague, 1826). In it he stated that the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
comprised religious truths and religious laws, the latter partly applicable only in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
, partly obligatory everywhere. These may be temporarily suspended, but not entirely abolished, by a competent authority, such as a synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
. Only ordinances and precautionary laws which are of human origin may be abrogated in conformity with the circumstances of the time. As for mere customs and usages (minhagim), the government, after having consulted Jewish men of knowledge, may modify or abolish them; but in no other way may it interfere with religious affairs. Chorin also pleaded for the establishment of consistories, school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
s, a theological seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
, and for the promotion of agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and professions among the Jews. Some of these ideas he carried out in his own congregation, which included a great number of mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
s. He succeeded in founding a school, and introducing liturgical reforms into the synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
; even an organ was installed at his instance. He permitted the eating of rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
and pulse
Pulse (legume)
A pulse is an annual leguminous crop yielding from one to twelve seeds of variable size, shape, and color within a pod. Pulses are used for food and animal feed. The term "pulse", as used by the Food and Agricultural Organization , is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry seed...
during the days of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
.
To his theory of a synod regulating and modifying Jewish laws and customs, Chorin always adhered. In his Treue Bote (Prague, 1831) he declared himself against the transfer of the Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
to Sunday, but expressed the opinion that, considering the requirements of our time, synods might mitigate the severity of the Sabbatical laws, especially in regard to traveling and writing.
In another treatise, Hillel, which appeared at Buda
Buda
For detailed information see: History of Buda CastleBuda is the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest on the west bank of the Danube. The name Buda takes its name from the name of Bleda the Hun ruler, whose name is also Buda in Hungarian.Buda comprises about one-third of Budapest's...
in 1835, he interpreted the prophetic promises about the reuniting of Israel to signify the establishing of a supreme religious authority at Jerusalem. Hillel, in the form of a dialogue, and other contributions of his pen were published in the fourth volume of Bikkure ha-'Ittim. In 1819 he wrote Abaḳ Sofer (The Dust of a Writer), published by Landau (Prague, 1828), containing glosses about Yoreh De'ah, Eben ha-'Ezer, the phylacteries, an exposition of Proverbs
Book of Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs , commonly referred to simply as Proverbs, is a book of the Hebrew Bible.The original Hebrew title of the book of Proverbs is "Míshlê Shlomoh" . When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms. In the Greek Septuagint the title became "paroimai paroimiae"...
I.10, et seq., and two riddles.
In his Yeled Zeḳunim (Child of Old Age), (Vienna, 1839), partly in Hebrew, partly in German, he again strongly advocated practical reforms in regard to railroad traveling on the Sabbath and on holidays, the abridgment of the seven days of mourning
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
, the use of the organ, etc., and gave a short sketch of his life. His biographer, Leopold Löw
Leopold Löw
Leopold Löw was a Hungarian rabbi.-Biography:Born in Černá Hora, Moravia, he received his preliminary education at the yeshibot of Třebíč, Kolín, Lipník nad Bečvou and Eisenstadt , and then studied philology, pedagogics, and Christian theology at the Lyceum of Bratislava and at the universities...
, wrote an introduction to this work.
In consequence of the Damascus affair
Damascus affair
The Damascus affair was an 1840 incident in which the accusation of ritual murder was brought against members of the Jewish community of Damascus. Eight notable Jews of Damascus were falsely accused of murdering a Christian monk, imprisoned and tortured. Several of the imprisoned died of torture,...
in 1840, Chorin republished the apology written in 1753 by Sonnenfels, in which the author proves the falsity of the blood accusation
Blood libel
Blood libel is a false accusation or claim that religious minorities, usually Jews, murder children to use their blood in certain aspects of their religious rituals and holidays...
. Chorin added an introduction and Löw a biographical notice.
On July 26, 1844, during the last weeks of his life, he wrote from his sick-bed a declaration expressing his full accord with the Rabbinical Conference of Brunswick
Rabbinical Conference of Brunswick
The Rabbinical Conference of Brunswick was a conference held in 1844 in Brunswick, convoked by Levi Herzfeld and Ludwig Philippson. Other attendees included Solomon Formstecher, Samuel Hirsch, Mendel Hess, Samuel Holdheim...
, and on August 11 he sent an address to the conference of Hungarian rabbis at Páks. He died at Arad
Arad, Romania
Arad is the capital city of Arad County, in western Romania, in the Crişana region, on the river Mureş.An important industrial center and transportation hub, Arad is also the seat of a Romanian Orthodox archbishop and features two universities, a Romanian Orthodox theological seminary, a training...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
.
He took an active part in the efforts for Jewish emancipation, and was very influential with the state authorities. His grandson, Franz Chorin, was a Hungarian deputy.