Seligman Baer Bamberger

Not to be confused withSeligman (Isaac) Baer,a Masoretic and liturgical scholar.

Rabbi Seligmann Bär Bamberger memorial plate at Würzburg Lehrerbildungsanstalt, Domerschulstraße 6,Jüdische Gemeinde Würzburg

Seligman Baer (Isaac Dov) Bamberger(bornWiesenbronn,nearKitzingen,Bavaria, 6 November 1807; diedWürzburg13 October 1878) was aTalmudistand a leader ofOrthodox Judaismin Germany. Between 1840 and his death he served as rabbi of Würzburg, and is therefore often referred to by his position asthe Würzburger Rav.

Life

He commenced hisyeshivastudies inFürthat the age of fifteen, under Rabbis Wolf Hamburger and Judah Leib Halberstadt. Five years later he receivedsemicha(rabbinic ordination), but did not enter the rabbinate because a university degree was required for that in 19th-century Germany. He opened a general business store in Kitzingen. The store was not successful (possibly because Bamberger preferred to spend as much time as possible studying Talmud). He married two years later, to the daughter of Rabbi Seckel Wormser ofFulda.

In 1838 he represented the Orthodox camp at a conference instigated by the Bavarian government at which several Reform-minded notables had hoped to bring about changes in the organisation of the Jewish communities. As a result of his success at this conference he was invited to succeedAbraham Bingas rabbi ofWürzburg.

In Würzburg he rapidly opened ayeshiva. In 1855 he opened an elementary school, the first of its kind in Germany (previously children had been instructed in small synagogue schools). In 1864 he also opened a seminary specifically for the training of teachers of Jewish subjects, of which there was a shortage in Germany. This seminary was calledBais Medrash L'Morim(בית מדרש למורים - A House of Learning for Teachers) or in GermanIsraelitische-Lehrer-Bildungs-Anstalt( "Jewish Teacher Training Institute" ) often referred to by its initials I.L.B.A. ILBA survived until 1938; its teachers and students were deported to theBuchenwaldandDachauconcentration camps.

Works

Bamberger was one of the last rabbinical writers in Germany. His first work wasMelecheth Shamayim(מלאכת שמים - The Work of the Heavens, Altona, 1853, a reference to theBabylonian Talmud,Eruvin 13a) on the laws pertaining toTorah scrolls,tefillin(phylacteries) andmezuzot(door scrolls). It was republished in 2022.

A work first published in 1858 titledAmirah le-Beth Ya'akov(אמירה לבית יעקב - Words to the House of Jacob, a reference toExodus19:2 andRashi's commentary there) deals with the three areas of practical Jewish law pertaining specifically to women:niddah(separation during menstruation),challah(a tithe from dough) and the lighting of candles on the night of theShabbat.[There is also a section dealing with the laws ofMelicho.] Originally published in his native German, subsequent publications have been made in multiple languages. The original Hebrew translation was produced by Rabbi Simcha Bamberger.An English translation was produced by Rabbi I. Nathan Bamberger.More than a dozen editions have been published to date. It has been widely translated and is still in use today. The famed Korban Mincha Siddur (סידור קרבן מנחה) includes a copy of theAmirah le-Beth Ya'akov.Other rabbis includingShlomo Zalman Auerbachand RabbiTzvi Pesach Frankwrote additions to this work which are part of the newest editions.

A modern day chalitza shoe designed after the chalitza shoe used by the Würzburger Rav, Rabbi Seligmann Bär Bamberger.

Moreh la-Zovechim(מורה לזבחים - Teacher for those who bring Sacrifices, 1863) deals with the practical laws ofshechita(ritual slaughter).Nachalath Devash(נחלי דבש - An Inheritance of Honey, 1867) deals primarily with thehalizahritual, and his workYitzchak Yeranen(יצחק ירנן - Isaac will Rejoice, 1861-2, a reference to the Sabbath afternoon prayers) is a commentary onShaarei Simcha(שערי שמחה) by Rabbi Yehuda ibn Gayat. This work in particular was a great breakthrough in the world of academia since it was the first time that this manuscript had been printed.Koreh be-Emeth(קורא באמת - Reading in Truth, 1871 and 1879, a reference toPsalms145:18) addresses Torah exegesis whereTalmudorMidrashuse changes in letters to derive meanings from particular words.

In 1850 he published a pamphlet outlining the attitude towards non-Jews in theTalmud.This was intended to inform a debate in the Bavarian parliament on civil rights for the Jews.

TheAustrittsgesetz

A column in the Vienna-based newspaperDie Neuzeitabout the aside incident.

On 28 July 1876 the German parliament passed theAustrittsgesetz,which allowed Jews to secede from their religious community. Many Jewish communities had by that time been dominated by theReform movement,with Orthodox members forming informal groups (minyanim) to represent their interests. Following the passing of theAustrittsgesetz,RabbiSamson Raphael HirschofFrankfurt,who had campaigned for the law to be passed, declared that Orthodox Jews in Frankfurt had the duty to officially secede from theLiberalGrossgemeinde.Bamberger visited Frankfurt, and declared that this was not mandatory. A heated exchange of open letters followed between the rabbis. The conflict ultimately led to only a relatively small number of Orthodox Jews seceding from the main community, and until theSecond World Warthere were two Orthodox communities in Frankfurt: one under the auspices of theGrossgemeindeand the other one being Hirsch's community Adath Yeshurun. See further underSamson Raphael Hirsch #Frankfurt am Main.

Sources

• N. Bamberger,Rabbiner Seligman Bär Bamberger,Würzburg, 1897;
• Meyer Kayserling,inGedenkblätter,1892, p. 6; inAllg. Zeit. des Judenthums,1878, p. 716;
• This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Singer, Isidore;et al., eds. (1901–1906)."BAMBERGER, SELIGMAN BAER".The Jewish Encyclopedia.New York: Funk & Wagnalls.