Editing Samson Raphael Hirsch (section)

=== Oldenburg ===
In 1830, Hirsch was elected [[chief rabbi]] (''Landesrabbiner'') of the [[Grand Duchy of Oldenburg|Principality of Oldenburg]]. During this period, he wrote his ''Neunzehn Briefe über Judenthum,'' (''Nineteen Letters on Judaism'') which were published under the pseudonym of "Ben Usiel" (or "Uziel"), at Altona in 1836. This work made a profound impression in German Jewish circles because it was "something new — a brilliant, intellectual presentation of [[Orthodox Judaism]] in classic German, and a fearless, uncompromising defense of all its institutions and ordinances".<ref name=Klugman/>

One of the young intellectuals strongly influenced by the "Nineteen Letters" was [[Heinrich Graetz]]. Following a personal letter that Graetz wrote to Hirsch, Hirsch offered Graetz to host him at his own house for the continuation of his studies. Graetz then lived at Hirsch's house in Oldenburg from 1837 to 1840, as a pupil, companion, and amanuensis.<ref>Shmuel Ettinger and Marcus Pyka, "Graetz, Heinrich," ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'', Encyclopedia.com. 9 Sep. 2021</ref>"
Hirsch's major works are discussed in further detail [[#Works|below]].

In 1838, Hirsch published, "as a necessary concomitant" of the ''Letters'', his ''Horeb, oder Versuche über Jissroel's Pflichten in der Zerstreuung'', as a text-book on Judaism for educated Jewish youth. He had written ''Horeb'' first, but his publishers doubted that a work defending traditional Judaism would find a market in those times with reform in vogue.<ref name=Klugman/>

In 1839, he published ''Erste Mittheilungen aus Naphtali's Briefwechsel'', a polemical essay against the [[Reform Judaism|reforms in Judaism]] proposed by Geiger and the contributors to the latter's ''Wissenschaftliche Zeitschrift für jüdische Theologie'' (such as [[Michael Creizenach]]); and in 1844, he published ''Zweite Mittheilungen aus einem Briefwechsel über die Neueste Jüdische Literatur'', also polemical in tendency and attacking [[Samuel Holdheim|Holdheim's]] ''Die Autonomie der Rabbinen'' (1843).<ref name=Klugman/>