Arnold Ehrlich
Arnold Bogumil Ehrlich (15 January 1848 in
Ehrlich's exegetical work is an important contribution to modern biblical exegesis. Ehrlich's work was highly influential on the Jewish translation produced by the Jewish Publication Society in 1917 and its successor of 1962–82.[3]
Life
Born Jewish in Volodovka, near Brest-Litovsk, now Belarus. At an early age he studied German in his village, and had read the Bible in the Moses Mendelssohn translation. Ehrlich was married at fourteen and had one son named Mark. At seventeen, Ehrlich came to the conclusion that he could no longer abide the stringencies of his environment and he sought association with the wider fields of knowledge he hoped to find in Germany. His wife did not agree with the move or his liberal views, and she and their son did not go with him to Germany. He then went on his own and he entered school there to learn arithmetic, geography, and other elementary school subjects alongside boys of ten. Such subjects were simple for a lad who started learning the German language at the age of five years.
He also worked as a librarian in the Semitics department of the Berlin Royal Library. It was at this time in Germany that Ehrlich somehow came to the attention of Professor
Ehrlich wrote in fluent English and spoke it fluently and flawlessly, though with a slight accent. He was a close student of many languages, and was both a philologist and a student of the
During his years in the United States, Jewish scholars and students sought him out, but Ehrlich surely paid a frightful price for that New Testament translation he did at a young age with Delitzsch. Many regard this translation as a beautiful piece of modern Hebrew composition, but it cost him and he was to pay for it throughout his life. He was sorely resentful of the fact that, despite general recognition of his status as a scholar, he had not been chosen Professor of Bible at the Hebrew Union College. He was never invited to teach in either of the major rabbinical seminaries and among the Orthodox he was disliked. No one wanted to appoint a man with a background of engaging in a New Testament translation, who would invite criticism from all conservative quarters. He also insisted upon "mister" with his pupils because no university had ever granted him a higher academic degree.
He is the author of a biblical commentary called Mik'ra Kiph'shuto ("The Plain Meaning of the Bible"). It embodies his main point of view that the Bible itself is the best source for the knowledge of Hebrew as a language and for the ancient Hebraic ideas, even though the cross references of comparative passages or words might be separated in widely disparate ages. He felt that somehow original meanings persisted and that the cross references or parallel passages often shed light upon obscure sentences as well as upon mistakes in the original Bible text. Modern archaeology has opened new vistas through the centuries, but Ehrlich had no knowledge, in his time, of what the future would bring into this realm.
He had a strong influence on the young Mordecai Kaplan.[1][2] Ehrlich's strongest affection was for Louis Ginzberg of the Jewish Theological Seminary. He admired Dr. Ginzberg's thoroughness, his vast and comprehensive knowledge, and the originality of his mind. He also had a high regard for Professors Malter and Margolis of the Dropsie College. But Ehrlich had no doubts as to his own status, for he was convinced of his own superiority in his chosen area of research.
Ehrlich was antisocial in his life in that he felt uncomfortable and uneasy in ordinary human relationships. But he was completely social in his outlook, in his passion for justice, in his desire for the self-realization of all people regardless of race, color or creed. He was totally removed from people and came alive only when he discussed his philological interests. He was an avid reader in all fields, particularly in philosophy, and maintained a steady correspondence with Hermann Cohen until his death one year before Ehrlich. As a matter of self-discipline, he required himself to read through Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason every year. Ehrlich's one diversion was to attend the movies of the early 20th century. He adored Westerns and historic presentations. The great scholar could watch these films and find complete "escape." He preferred this to spending time with people, whom he avoided. He was entranced by the new sociology, despite his personal social discomfort, and was intrigued by the new
Ehrlich was sought after by many non-Jews who wanted to study under him. Two of his well-known Christian pupils were Dr.
A few years prior to 1917 he discovered that he had not been included in the committee appointed by the Jewish Publication Society and the Central Conference of American Rabbis to prepare a new translation of the Hebrew Bible. When the work was published in 1917, he was furious that the committee used his name as a consultant.
Ehrlich was an occasional attendant at religious services and synagogues where he hoped to find preachers who could use the biblical text with the related midrashic or other rabbinic commentaries. He disliked the Union Prayer Book, primarily because he felt that its reform of the liturgy had not gone far enough. He felt that all the passages which belittled human dignity should be revised or eliminated. He believed that a modern Jewish prayer book should, of course, be rooted in traditional forms, but that prayers which involved a servile humility were unbecoming to modern man and should be rewritten.
Many of the older generation rabbis studied under him at one time or another, either at Emanu-El or as private pupils. Among them were
Ehrlich was married twice. His son Mark, from his first wife, was born in Poland and arrived in Manhattan, New York in 1885 without his mother. His second wife, Pauline (October 13, 1858-?), of Austrian descent, gave birth to a daughter named Olga born 1881 in Manhattan, New York. He had four grandchildren. Mark had Rose (1891), Joseph (1897) and Helen (1902) Ehrlich in Manhattan. Olga married Dr. Julius Auerbach and had a son named Arnold (1912).
According to the January 10, 1920 Nation News Archive:
The death of Arnold B. Ehrlich, which occurred in the city of New York a short time ago, has deprived the world of Biblical scholarship of one of its most brilliant exponents. Ehrlich was not officially connected with any institution of learning; his name is little known outside of the narrow circle of professional Bible students, and is possibly not sufficiently known even among them. Yet, his life work, represented by eleven substantial volumes dedicated to the elucidation of the
Scriptures, merits the grateful appreciation of all those to whom the Bible is an integral part of human civilization.[4]
Ehrlich's exegetical work is an important contribution to modern biblical exegesis. Ehrlich's work was highly influential on the Jewish translation produced by the Jewish Publication Society in 1917 and its successor of 1962–82.[3]
Works
His best known works are,
- (in Hebrew) Mik'ra Kiph'shuto (מקרא כפשוטו) [The Bible Literally]. Leipzig: 3 vols, 1899–1901; reprinted New York: Ktav, 1969.
- (in German) Randglossen zur Hebräischen Bibel; textkritisches, sprachliches und sachliches [Notes on the Hebrew Bible]. Leipzig: J.C. Hinrichs. 7 vols, 1908–14; reprinted Hildesheim: Georg Olms, 1968. Jacob H. Schiff and Dr. Isaac Adler.
He also prepared textbooks to introduce students to rabbinic literature and prepared an anthology of aggadic passages representative of material that students might later have to study at the Emanu-El Theological School that he taught at.
His poetic German translation of the Psalms had wide acclaim in its day, but this volume is now out of print and may be found only in large university libraries. His scholarly work is written in German because, prior to World War I, German was regarded as the language of Jewish scholarship.
Unpublished notebooks can be found at the New York library of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. These notebooks are the addenda to the Randglossen.
References
- ^ a b
Scult, Mel (May 2002). Communings of the Spirit: The Journals of Mordecai M. Kaplan, 1913-1934. Wayne State University Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-8143-3116-3.
- ^ a b
Kraut, Benny (1998). "Review of A Modern Heretic and a Traditional Community: Mordecai M. Kaplan, Orthodoxy, and American Judaism". American Jewish History. 86 (3). Johns Hopkins University Press: 357–363. JSTOR 23886287.
- ^ a b "Ehrlich, Arnold Bogumil | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com.
- ^ A Great Bible Scholar (The Nation, January 10, 1920) at www.thenation.com
Further reading
- American Jewish Archives; vol. xxiii; no. 1; April, 1971
- The teshuva of Arnold Ehrlich on Ehrlich's apostasy and return to his faith [url no longer supports images]
- Judaism Faces the Twentieth Century on Mordecai Kaplan's relationship with Ehrlich.
- "Ehrlich's Monumental Work on the Old Testament" review of Randglossen zur hebraischen Bibel, textkritisches, sprachliches und sachliches by Arnold B. Ehrlich. Review by Julius A. Bewer The American Journal of Theology, Vol. 20, No. 2 (Apr., 1916), pp. 274–275 [1]
- "Some Hitherto Unrecognized Meanings of the Verb Shub" by Robert Gordis Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 52, No. 2/3 (Jun. - Sep., 1933), pp. 153–162 [2] "The starting point for our inquiry is the acute observation of that master of Biblical Hebrew, Arnold B. Ehrlich."
- "Arnold B. Ehrlich: A Personal Recollection" by R M Stern, available on http://americanjewisharchives.org/journal/PDF/1971_23_01_00_stern.pdf
External links
- Mik'ra Kiph'shutah by Arnold Ehrlich (Shabbatei ben Yom Tov ibn Boded) is available here.