Editing Orthodox Judaism (section)

===Hamburg Temple dispute===
[[File:Moses S. Schreiber Litho.jpg|thumb|[[Moses Sofer]] of [[Pressburg]], considered the father of Orthodoxy in general and ultra-Orthodoxy in particular.]]
The founding of the [[Hamburg Temple]] in 1818 mobilized the conservative elements. The organizers of the [[synagogue]] wished to appeal to acculturated Jews with a modernized ritual. They openly defied not just the local rabbinic court that ordered them to desist, but published learned tracts that castigated the entire rabbinical elite as hypocritical and [[Obscurantism|obscurant]]. The moral threat they posed to rabbinic authority, as well as ''halakhic'' issues such as having a gentile play an organ on the Sabbath, were combined with theological issues. The Temple's revised prayer book omitted or rephrased petitions for the coming of the Messiah and renewal of sacrifices (''post factum'', it was considered to be the first [[Reform Judaism|Reform]] liturgy). More than anything else, this doctrinal breach alarmed the traditionalists. Dozens of rabbis from across Europe united in support of the Hamburg rabbinic court, banning the major practices enacted there and offering ''halakhic'' grounds for forbidding any changes. Most historians concur that the 1818–1821 [[Hamburg Temple disputes|Hamburg Temple dispute]], with its concerted backlash against Reform and the emergence of a self-aware conservative ideology, marks the beginning of Orthodox Judaism.

The leader and organizer of the Orthodox camp during the dispute, and the most influential figure in early Orthodoxy, was Rabbi [[Moses Sofer]] of [[Pressburg]], [[Hungary]]. Historian [[Jacob Katz]] regarded him as the first to grasp the realities of the modern age. Sofer understood that what remained of his political clout would soon disappear, and that he had largely lost the ability to enforce observance; as Katz wrote, "obedience to ''halakha'' became dependent on recognizing its validity, and this very validity was challenged by those who did not obey". He was deeply troubled by reports from his native [[Frankfurt]] and the arrival from the west of dismissed rabbis, ejected by progressive wardens, or pious families, fearing for the education of their children. These émigrés often became ardent followers.

Sofer's response to the crisis of traditional Jewish society was unremitting conservatism, canonizing every detail of prevalent norms in the observant community lest any compromise legitimize the progressives' claim that the law was fluid or redundant. He was unwilling to trade ''halakhic'' opinions for those he considered to be pretending to honor the rules of rabbinic discourse, while intending to undermine them. Sofer regarded traditional customs as equivalent to vows; he warned in 1793 that even the "custom of ignoramuses" (one known to be rooted solely in a mistake of the common masses) was to be meticulously observed and revered. Sofer was frank and vehement about his stance, stating during the Hamburg dispute that prayers in the vernacular were not problematic ''per se'', but he forbade them because they constituted an innovation. He succinctly expressed his attitude in [[wordplay]] he borrowed from the Talmud: "The new (''[[Chadash]]'', originally meaning new grain) is forbidden by the Torah anywhere." Regarding the new, ideologically-driven sinners, Sofer commented in 1818 that they should have been anathemized and banished from the People of Israel like earlier heretical sects.

Unlike most, if not all, rabbis in Central Europe, who had little choice but to compromise, Sofer enjoyed unique circumstances. He, too, had to tread carefully during the 1810s, tolerating a modernized synagogue in Pressburg and other innovations, and his [[yeshiva|''yeshiva'']] was nearly closed by warden Wolf Breisach. But in 1822, three poor (and therefore traditional) community members, whose deceased apostate brother bequeathed them a large fortune, rose to the wardens' board. Breisach died soon after, and the Pressburg community became dominated by the conservatives. Sofer also possessed a strong base in the form of his ''yeshiva'', the world's largest at the time, with hundreds of students. And crucially, the large and privileged [[Hungarian nobility]] blocked most imperial reforms in the backward country, including those relevant to the Jews. Hungarian Jewry retained its pre-modern character well into the 19th century, allowing Sofer's disciples to establish a score of new ''yeshivas'', at a time when these institutions were rapidly closing in the west, and a strong rabbinate to appoint them. A generation later, a self-aware Orthodoxy was well entrenched in the country. Hungarian Jewry gave rise both to Orthodoxy in general, in the sense of a comprehensive response to modernity, and specifically to the traditionalist, militant [[Ultra orthodox|ultra-Orthodoxy]].<ref>Michael K. Silber. ''The Historical Experience of German Jewry and its Impact on Haskalah and Reform in Hungary''. In: Jacob Katz, ed., ''Toward Modernity: The European Jewish Model'' (New Brunswick and Oxford: Transaction Books, 1987). pp. 108–113, 118–122, 150 (footnote no. 57).</ref>

The 1818–1821 controversy also elicited a different response, which first arose in its very epicenter. Severe protests did not affect Temple congregants, eventually leading the wardens of Hamburg's Jewish community to a comprehensive compromise for the sake of unity. They replaced the elderly, traditional Chief [[Dayan (rabbinic judge)|Dayan]] Baruch Oser with [[Isaac Bernays]]. The latter was a university graduate, clean-shaven, and modern, who could appeal to the acculturated and the young. Bernays signified a new era, and historians marked him as the first modern rabbi, fitting the demands of emancipation: his contract forbade him to tax, punish, or coerce, and he lacked political or judiciary power. He was forbidden from interfering in the Temple's conduct. Conservative in the principal issues of faith, in aesthetic, cultural, and civil matters, Bernays was a reformer and the Temple leaders. He introduced secular studies for children, wore a [[cassock]] like a Protestant clergyman, and delivered vernacular sermons. He forbade the spontaneous, informal character of synagogue conduct typical of [[Ashkenazi]] tradition, and ordered prayers to be somber and dignified. Bernays' style re-unified the Hamburg community by accommodating their aesthetic demands (but not theological ones, raised by only a learned few).<ref>Ismar Schorch, ''Emancipation and the Crisis of Religious Authority: The Emergence of the Modern Rabbinate''; in: Werner Eugen Mosse etc., ''Revolution and Evolution: 1848 in German-Jewish History''. Mohr Siebeck, 1981. pp. 208–209</ref>
 
[[File:Isaac Bernays.JPG|thumb|[[Isaac Bernays]] in clerical vestments. The ministerial style of dress seen here was ubiquitous among Central and Western European (neo)-Orthodox Jews.]]
The combination of religious conservatism and modernity in everything else was emulated elsewhere, earning the label "[[Torah im Derech Eretz|Neo-Orthodoxy]]". Bernays and his like-minded followers, such as Rabbi [[Jacob Ettlinger]], fully accepted the platform of the moderate ''[[Haskalah]]'', taking away its progressive edge. While old-style traditional life continued in Germany until the 1840s, secularization and acculturation turned Neo-Orthodoxy into the strict right-wing of German Jewry. It was fully articulated by Bernays' mid-century disciples [[Samson Raphael Hirsch]] and [[Azriel Hildesheimer]]. Hirsch, a Hamburg native who was ten during the Temple dispute, combined Orthodox dogmatism and militancy against rival interpretations of Judaism, granting leniency on many cultural issues and embraced German culture. The novel mixture termed Neo-Orthodoxy spread.

While insisting on strict observance, the movement both tolerated and advocated modernization: Traditionally rare formal religious education for girls was introduced; modesty and gender separation were relaxed to match German society; men went clean-shaven and dressed like Gentiles; and exclusive Torah study virtually disappeared. Basic religious studies incorporating German {{Lang|de|[[Bildung]]}} provided children with practical ''halakhic'' knowledge for thriving in modern society. Ritual was reformed to match prevalent aesthetic conceptions, much like non-Orthodox synagogues though without the ideological undertone, and the liturgy was often abbreviated. Neo-Orthodoxy mostly did not attempt to reconcile its conduct and ''halakhic'' or moral norms. Instead it adopted compartmentalization, de facto limiting Judaism to the private and religious spheres, while otherwise yielding to outer society.<ref>David Ellenson. ''Rabbi Esriel Hildesheimer and the Creation of a Modern Jewish Orthodoxy''. University of Alabama Press, 2003. pp. 17–19.</ref><ref>For a concise introduction: Michael K. Silber, ''[http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article.aspx/Orthodoxy Orthodoxy]'', [[YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe]].</ref> While conservative Rabbis in Hungary still thought in terms of the now-lost communal autonomy, the Neo-Orthodox turned Judaism from an all-encompassing practice into a private religious conviction.