ENLIGHTENED JEWS
A detailed Summary of ENLIGHTENED JEWS
Moses Mendelssohn, who was born in 1729 in central Germany, came from a poor Jewish family. He was fortunate to get a traditional Jewish education with some philosophical input. At age fourteen, he moved to Berlin to continue studying with his rabbi. While in Berlin he learned French, Italian, English, Latin, and Greek on top of the German and Hebrew he previously knew. Mendelssohn began to write and publish some philosophical essays in German. To some he was known as the "Jewish Socrates." (2)
Mendelssohn became life long friends with Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, who later wrote a play using Mendelssohn as the model Jew. He was portrayed as Nathan in Nathan the Wise, published in 1779, who was the Jewish hero and spokesman for brotherhood and love of humanity (2). This of course was written during the Enlightenment era.
Both Mendelssohn and Lessing were both heavily influenced by the writings of Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, who attempted to reconcile Christianity with science (1).
(3) Seltzer. The Eighteenth Century Enlightenment and Moses Mendelssohn's Defense of Judaism in Jewish People, Jewish Thought, 557-570.
(2) Lessing, Gotthold. Nathan the Wise. Act 3; Scenes 5-7
What Lessing is saying here that who is anyone to say what the true and right religion is. Of course each religion believes theirs is the right one or they would no longer stay faithful to it. Nathan says it best when he says, "Should I have less faith in my forefathers than you do in yours? Or, conversely, can I demand that you must deny yours and that mine may not be contradicted? The same holds true for Christians too." (3).
Some common words found in the essay are:
Saladin Nathan's, Moses Mendelssohn, Nathan Wise, Moslem Sultan, Ephraim Lessing, German Hebrew, Wilhelm Leibniz, Jewish Socrates, Wise Act, Mendelssohn Lessing, nathan wise, ring true, true ring,
Approximate Word count = 698
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
Category: Religion
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