A remarkable unpublished manuscript from 19th-century Italy, in the author’s handwriting, that I recently acquired serves as a poignant testament to an often overlooked, unique and forgotten Jewish community – the Jews of Italy.
Italian Jews in the 18th and19th century, though almost universally traditional in practice, adopted a form of secularism, embracing modernity and adopting some of the features of the Haskalah (Enlightenment) movement. Their works seemingly played a pivotal role in fostering the practice of toleration, which emerged in fragmented and sporadic episodes across Europe. While the Jewish experience in Europe is marked by a long history of persecution, interspersed with intermittent and partial periods of tolerance, it is evident that, through the advocacy of a novel conception of toleration, coupled with the nascent but unmistakable shift towards secularization and assimilation, Italian Jews made a significant contribution to one of the most transformative movements in European history in their own unique way.
This manuscript, a German translation of the Hebrew Grammar Book by Shadal (R. Samuel David Luzzatto), was authored by his devoted disciple, the Italian Rabbi Moshe Ehrenreich, titled Rationalle grammatiks der hebraischen SpracheHebraicae by Samuel David Luzzato. This substantial manuscript volume features the German translation by R. Ehrenreich of his mentor’s seminal work, Prolegomeni ad una Grammatica Ragionata della Lingua Ebraica, first published in Padua in 1836.
Having completed his studies at the Gymnasium of Brody, R. Moshe Levi Ehrenreich (1818-1899), drawn by the esteemed reputation of Shadal, traveled to Padua to study at the Istituto Rabbinico, where he was awarded his rabbinical diploma on May 10, 1845. He promptly began teaching in Görtz, where he formed a close friendship with R. Isaac Reggio (Yashar, as he became known), whose daughter, Helena, he later wed.
Following a brief tenure in Trieste, he assumed the rabbinic position in Modena, and in 1861, he became the rabbi of Casale, Piedmont. In 1871, he served as a teacher to the families of Guastalla and Malvano in Turin, and in 1882, he was appointed principal of the Talmud Torah in Rome. Shortly thereafter, he was elevated to the esteemed position of chief rabbi of Rome. Through his dedicated efforts and under his stewardship, the Collegio Rabbinico Italiano was re-established in 1887. In 1894, advancing age necessitated his retirement from the rabbinate.
While Jews in certain Western European countries were abruptly thrust into modernity during the 18th century, gaining access to universities and achieving a measure of equality as citizens, Italian Jews had enjoyed the privilege of university attendance for centuries. This embrace of academic study and the opportunity to integrate into broader society led to widespread assimilation in Western Europe. In contrast, Italy, long accustomed to such societal integration, largely circumvented the tensions between tradition and modernity. This unique position facilitated the development of a parallel Haskalah movement in Italy, one that advanced the study of Judaism within academic circles without the compulsion to abandon religious tradition. The stark contrast in these historical trajectories resulted in profound differences between the communities. In regions like Germany, many Jews who adopted the ideals of the Haskalah ultimately abandoned their traditional practices, resulting in a diminished interest in the academic study of Judaism. Conversely, Italian Jews who maintained their traditional beliefs continued to engage in rigorous Jewish scholarship. By the close of the 19th century, Italian Jewry had produced a significant number of esteemed Hebrew grammarians, poets, and scholars from within the Orthodox camp. Elsewhere, the academic study of Judaism was often accompanied by neglect or disdain for traditional religious observance.
