''Words of Peace and Truth'' ( he, Divrei Shalom ve-Emet) was a Hebrew work produced by the

Jew 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""Th ...

ish

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researche ...

Naphtali Herz Wessely Naphtali Hirz (Hartwig) Wessely ( yi, נפתלי הירץ וויזעל, translit=Naftali Hirtz Vizel; 9 December 1725 – 28 February 1805) was an 18th-century German-Jewish Hebraist and educationist. Family history One of Wessely's ancestors, J ...

, an associate of

Moses Mendelssohn Moses Mendelssohn (6 September 1729 – 4 January 1786) was a German-Jewish philosopher and theologian. His writings and ideas on Jews and the Jewish religion and identity were a central element in the development of the ''Haskalah'', or 'Je ...

and a prominent figure of the

Haskalah The ''Haskalah'', often termed Jewish Enlightenment ( he, השכלה; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Western Euro ...

. Published in 1782, the tract aimed to encourage Central European Jewry to accept the

Edict of Toleration An edict of toleration is a declaration, made by a government or ruler, and states that members of a given religion will not be persecuted for engaging in their religious practices and traditions. The edict implies tacit acceptance of the religion ...

issued by

Emperor Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, which sought to promote a greater degree of acculturation and

secularization In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...

among the Jewish community. The text was geared particularly toward

Rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

nic leadership. Wessely wished to convince the Rabbinic authorities that the spread of secular

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

would be to the benefit of the Jewish community, and was not something that they should fear. He essentially differentiated between two different kinds of

knowledge Knowledge can be defined as awareness of facts or as practical skills, and may also refer to familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is often defined as true belief that is distinc ...

: ''Torat Ha-Elohim'' (

divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...

, or religious knowledge) and ''Torat Ha-Adam'' (

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

, or secular knowledge). While both components are necessary, Wessely argued that the acquisition of secular education must precede the acquisition of divine knowledge; ultimately, secular learning is a universal body of knowledge which is to be supplemented by the religious instruction of the

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...

. In many ways, Wessely's reprioritization of education was contrary to traditional Jewish practice. The study of secular subjects first and the Torah second seemed repugnant to many rabbis, who denounced the work in harsh terms. In

Vilna Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional u ...

, the book was burned publicly; however in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and other places, it was applauded as an enlightened and legitimate work.

References

The Moses Complex in Modern Jewish Literature
Age of Enlightenment Jewish Austrian history Judaism-related controversies {{Judaism-book-stub