Isaak Marcus (Markus) Jost (February 22, 1793,
Bernburg
Bernburg (Saale) is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, capital of the Salzlandkreis district. The former residence of the Anhalt-Bernburg princes is known for its Renaissance architecture, Renaissance castle.
Geography
The town centre is situated ...
– November 22, 1860,
Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
) was a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
historical
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
writer.
He studied at the universities of
Göttingen
Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...
and
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. In
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
he began to teach, and in 1835 received the appointment of upper master in the Jewish commercial school (called the Philanthropin) at Frankfort-on-the-Main. Here he remained until his death, on November 22, 1860. The work by which he is chiefly known is ''Geschichte der Israeliten seit den Zeit der Maccabaer'', in 9 volumes (1820–1829). This work was afterwards supplemented by ''Neuere Geschichte den Israeliten von 1815–1845'' (1846–1847), and ''Geschichte des Judenthums und seiner Sekten'' (1857–1859). He also published an abridgment under the title ''Allgemeine Geschichte des israelitischen Volkes'' (1831–1832), and an edition of the
Mishna
The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...
with a German translation and notes (6 volumes, 1832–1834). Between 1839 and 1841 he edited the ''Israelitische Annalen'', and he contributed extensively to periodicals.
Biography
Jost was one of a poor family of eleven, most of whom died in infancy; and when his father became blind, the duty of guiding him fell upon Isaac. At the age of ten he lost his father and was taken to
Wolfenbüttel
Wolfenbüttel (; nds, Wulfenbüddel) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District. It is best known as the location of the internationally renowned Herzog August Library and for having the largest c ...
; there he attended the ''Samsonschule'', which at that time was conducted in the style of an old-fashioned ''
cheder
A ''cheder'' ( he, חדר, lit. "room"; Yiddish pronunciation ''kheyder'') is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language.
History
''Cheders'' were widely found in Europe before the end of the 18th ...
''. This condition improved, however, when
Samuel Mayer Ehrenberg took charge of the school in 1807; under him Jost began to study the
German language
German ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and Official language, official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Ita ...
. An intimate friendship connected him with
Leopold Zunz
Leopold Zunz ( he, יום טוב צונץ—''Yom Tov Tzuntz'', yi, ליפמן צונץ—''Lipmann Zunz''; 10 August 1794 – 17 March 1886) was the founder of academic Judaic Studies (''Wissenschaft des Judentums''), the critical investigation ...
, who was also a pupil in that school, and together they prepared themselves for the entrance examination of the
gymnasium. Jost entered the gymnasium at
Brunswick, supporting himself during the years 1809-13 as a tutor in the family of one of the trustees of the Samsonschule; then, supported by
Israel Jacobson
Israel Jacobson (17 October 1768, Halberstadt – 14 September 1828, Berlin) was a German-Jewish philanthropist and communal organiser. Jacobson pioneered political, educational and religious reforms in the early days of Jewish emancipation, a ...
, he entered the
University of Göttingen
The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...
, removing a year later to that of Berlin. He graduated in 1816, and took up the profession of teaching, refusing an offer of Jacobson, who wished him to become a
preacher
A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach components such as a ...
; for Jost believed that the task of modern Judaism lay not in any reform of the services, but rather in an improvement of education. His first charge was the Bock school, where, in accordance with the system then advocated by
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
humanitarian
Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...
s, Jewish and Christian pupils were educated together. In 1819, however, the
reactionary
In political science, a reactionary or a reactionist is a person who holds political views that favor a return to the ''status quo ante'', the previous political state of society, which that person believes possessed positive characteristics abse ...
government of
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...
prohibited the reception of Christian children; this severely injured the school, as a great many Jewish parents had sent their children to it solely because they desired them to come into contact with Christians. Nevertheless, Jost remained at his post until 1835, when he was called to Frankfort-on-the-Main as teacher in the "Philanthropin," which position he held up to his death.
Literary activity
Having himself suffered from the lack of system that characterized the
yeshiva
A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...
, Jost took the greatest interest in
pedagogics
Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...
, and his earliest literary work was devoted to the writing of textbooks, among which may be mentioned a
grammar
In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structure, structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clause (linguistics), clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraint ...
of the English language (''Lehrbuch der Englischen Sprache''), which went through three editions (Berlin, 1826, 1832, and 1843), and a dictionary to
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's plays (Berlin, 1830). He wrote also ''Theoretisch-Praktisches Handbuch zum Unterricht im Deutschen Stil'' (Berlin, 1835; the title of the second edition was ''Lehrbuch des Hochdeutschen Ausdruckes in Wort und Schrift'', published in 1852). To the same class belongs his
Biblical
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
history, ''Neue Jugendbibel, Enthaltend die Religiösen und Geschichtlichen Urkunden der Hebräer, mit Sorgfältiger Auswahl für die Jugend Uebersetzt und Erläutert: Erster Theil, die Fünf Bücher Mosis'' (Berlin, 1823).
In spite of his duties as a teacher and of his varied interests, Jost never neglected
Jewish literature
Jewish literature includes works written by Jews on Jewish themes, literary works written in Jewish languages on various themes, and literary works in any language written by Jewish writers. Ancient Jewish literature includes Biblical literature a ...
, especially
Jewish history
Jewish history is the history of the Jews, and their nation, religion, and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions, and cultures. Although Judaism as a religion first appears in Greek records during the Hellenisti ...
. His first work in this line was ''Geschichte der Israeliten Seit der Zeit der Makkabäer bis auf Unsere Tage'' (9 volumes, Berlin, 1820–28), which was followed by a small compendium under the title ''Geschichte des Israelitischen Volkes ... für Wissenschaftlich-Gebildete Leser'' (2 volumes, Berlin, 1832). This work, which ended with the
Napoleonic era
The Napoleonic era is a period in the history of France and Europe. It is generally classified as including the fourth and final stage of the French Revolution, the first being the National Assembly, the second being the Legislative ...
, was continued in his ''Neuere Geschichte der Israeliten'' (Berlin, 1846–47), bringing it down to the date of its publication. Toward the end of his life he wrote another historical work, ''Geschichte des Judenthums und Seiner Sekten'' (3 volumes, Leipzig, 1857–59), which deals with the whole of Jewish history down to 1858. Of other literary works of Jewish interest his edition of the
Mishnah
The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...
with vocalized text, German translation in
Hebrew characters, and Hebrew commentary, deserves special mention (6 volumes, Berlin, 1832–36).
Jost appeared repeatedly as an
apologist
Apologetics (from Greek , "speaking in defense") is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics and ...
of
Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...
against political
reactionaries
In political science, a reactionary or a reactionist is a person who holds political views that favor a return to the ''status quo ante'', the previous political state of society, which that person believes possessed positive characteristics abse ...
and detractors of
rabbinical literature
Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writ ...
; his ''Was Hat Herr Chiarini in Angelegenheit der Europäischen Juden Geleistet?'' (Berlin, 1830) was directed against
Abbé Chiarini's "Théorie du Judaïsme"; and his ''Offenes Sendschreiben an den Geheimen Oberregierungsrath Streckfuss'' (Berlin, 1833), against Streckfuss' "Verhältnis der Juden zu den Christlichen Staaten." When in the beginning of the reign of
Frederick William IV
Frederick William IV (german: Friedrich Wilhelm IV.; 15 October 17952 January 1861), the eldest son and successor of Frederick William III of Prussia, reigned as King of Prussia from 7 June 1840 to his death on 2 January 1861. Also referred to ...
of Prussia the rumor was spread that the king contemplated an alteration of the legal position of the Jews in a reactionary sense, Jost wrote ''Legislative Fragen Betreffend die Juden im Preussischen Staate'' (Berlin, 1842) and ''Nachträge zu den Legislativen Fragen'' (Berlin 1842). Between 1839 and 1841 he edited the ''Israelitische Annalen'', a weekly chiefly devoted to the collection of historical material, and between 1841 and 1842 the Hebrew
periodical
A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) is a published work that appears in a new edition on a regular schedule. The most familiar example is a newspaper, but a magazine or a journal are also examples ...
''Zion'' (in collaboration with his friend and colleague
Michael Creizenach). He was also a frequent contributor to the Jewish press, to almanacs, and to year-books.
As historian
When Jost published his first historical work, Jewish
historiography
Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians ha ...
was still in its infancy. Of older works, that of
Jacques Basnage
Jacques Basnage De Beauval (8 August 165322 December 1723) was a celebrated French Protestant divine, preacher, linguist, writer and man of affairs. He wrote a ''History of the Reformed Churches'' and on ''Jewish Antiquities''.
Biography
Jacques ...
was the best; the sources had not yet been collected; and for the religious history the unsystematic and uncritical works of the chroniclers were the only guide and source. It was inevitable that, with the appearance of Zunz's
monograph
A monograph is a specialist work of writing (in contrast to reference works) or exhibition on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, often by a single author or artist, and usually on a scholarly subject.
In library cataloging, ''monograph ...
s and the numerous similar works, published either independently or in magazines, the work of Jost should soon become antiquated. He recognized this himself at the end of his life by taking up the work again. Another shortcoming is his
rationalistic attitude toward the narratives in
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
ic sources, which leads him to see in many of the Talmudic authors shrewd impostors who played on the credulity of their contemporaries by feigning
miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
s (see his presentation of
Eliezer ben Hurcanus
Eliezer ben Hurcanus or Hyrcanus ( he, אליעזר בן הורקנוס) was one of the most prominent Sages (tannaim) of the 1st and 2nd centuries in Judea, disciple of Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai Avot of Rabbi Natan 14:5 and colleague of Gamalie ...
in his ''Allgemeine Geschischte'', ii. 108). His earlier works lack to a great extent the strictly historical interest, and evidence too much of Jewish sentiment (''Allgemeine Geschichte'' ii. 387). His rationalism is found also in the bitterness with which he speaks of
Judæo-German ("Jahrbuch," ii. 43). His best work is in the presentation of modern Jewish history, in which he is singularly exact and conscientious, and to which he gives an exhaustive literature of sources; here he exhibits not only a fine discernment of what is historically important, but a spirit of fairness which is the more creditable because he wrote in the midst of the struggle for
Reform
Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
.
Jost endeavors to do justice to
Samson R. Hirsch's
mysticism
Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in u ...
as well as to
Aaron Chorin
Aaron Chorin ( he, אהרן חארין; August 3, 1766August 24, 1844) was a Magyars, Hungarian rabbi and pioneer of early Reform Judaism, religious reform. He favored the use of the organ (music), organ and of prayers in the vernacular, and was ...
's rationalism; he recognizes the importance of
M. A. Günzburg and of
Isaac Bär Lewinsohn
Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was th ...
, while
Grätz, who wrote on this period a quarter of a century later, ignores Günzburg and Lewinsohn and speaks of Chorin with the bitterness of a partisan. It is undoubtedly due to that impartiality that Jost's work suffered by comparison with the warm Jewish spirit which permeates Grätz's work (see Grätz, "Gesch." xi. 456).
His personality
While not a man of public life, Jost devoted himself to the cause of orphans, and to his initiative was due the establishment in Frankfort-on-the-Main of a girls' orphan asylum (1853). He was instrumental also in founding a society (Permissionistenverein, 1843) for the aid of those who, according to the law then in existence, had no claim on the Frankfort charitable institutions, not being freemen of the city; he founded the Creizenach Stiftung, for the aid of aged teachers and their families (1842), and he often assisted young students and poor authors with both advice and influence. He was also a member of the Society for the Culture and Science of the Jews (
Verein für Kultur und Wissenschaft der Juden) alongside
Joel Abraham List,
Leopold Zunz
Leopold Zunz ( he, יום טוב צונץ—''Yom Tov Tzuntz'', yi, ליפמן צונץ—''Lipmann Zunz''; 10 August 1794 – 17 March 1886) was the founder of academic Judaic Studies (''Wissenschaft des Judentums''), the critical investigation ...
, and
Eduard Gans
Eduard Gans (March 22, 1797 – May 5, 1839) was a German jurist.
Biography
Gans was born in Berlin to prosperous Jewish parents. He studied law first at the Friedrich Wilhelm University, Berlin, then at Göttingen, and finally at Heidelberg, w ...
. While advanced in his views, he was indifferent to Reform, and for years never attended a religious service (Zirndorf, ''Isaak Markus Jost und Seine Freunde,'' p. 130). He married in 1816 a Miss Wolf, niece of Isaac Euchel. She died in 1842. He devoted himself with paternal affection to the pupils of the orphan asylum, whom he liked to call his children.
References
* Jost's autobiography
* "Vor Einem Halben Jahrhundert", in
Wolf Pascheles's ''Sippurim'', vol. iii, Prague, 1854, 1883
*
A. M. Goldschmidt, in ''Jahrbuch für die Geschichte der Juden'', vol. ii, Leipzig, 1861
* Klein's ''Volkskalender und Jahrbuch für Israeliten'', 1860–61
*
Nehemiah Brüll
__NOTOC__
Nehemiah Brüll (16 March 1843 in Rousínov, Moravia – 5 February 1891 in Frankfurt am Main) was a rabbi and versatile scholar.
Life
Brüll received his rabbinic-Talmudic education from his father, Jakob Brüll (de), who combined ...
, in ''
Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie
''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language.
It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...
''
*
Heinrich Zirndorf, ''Isaak Markus Jost und Seine Freunde'', Cincinnati, 1886
* A bibliography is given by
Fürst
' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German word for a ruler and is also a princely title. ' were, since the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ruled over states of ...
, ''Bibl. Jud.'', and
Zirndorf
Zirndorf () is a town, which is part of the district of Fürth. It is located in northern Bavaria, Germany in the Regierungsbezirk of Middle Franconia.
Neighbouring municipalities
The following towns and municipalities share borders with Zirn ...
, ib. pp. 225–228
*
External links
Guide to the Papers of Isaak Markus Jostat the
Leo Baeck Institute, New York
The Leo Baeck Institute New York (LBI) is a research institute in New York City dedicated to the study of German-Jewish history and culture, founded in 1955. It is one of three independent research centers founded by a group of German-speaking J ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jost, Isaak Markus
1793 births
1860 deaths
18th-century German Jews
19th-century German historians
Jewish historians
German male non-fiction writers