Torah im Derech Eretz ( – Torah with "the way of the land"Rabbi Y. Goldson, Aish HaTorah: "The Way of the World", Ethics of the Fathers, 3:21) is a phrase common in Rabbinic literature referring to various aspects of one's interaction with the wider world. The term also refers to a philosophy of Orthodox Judaism articulated by Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808–1888), which formalizes a relationship between traditionally observant Judaism and the modern world. The resultant mode of Orthodox Judaism is sometimes termed Neo-OrthodoxySamson Raphael Hirsch: The Father of Neo-Orthodoxy or, in some historiographies, Frankfurter Orthodoxy.
Derech Eretz
The term Derech Eretz, literally "the way of the land", is inherently ambiguous, with a wide range of meanings in Rabbinic literature, referring to earning a livelihood and behaving appropriately, among others..
The phrase Torah im Derech Eretz is first found in the Mishna in Tractate Avoth (2:2): "Beautiful is the study of Torah with Derech Eretz, as involvement with both makes one forget sin".
Rabbi S.R. Hirsch
When Hirsch first came to Frankfurt in 1851, he proclaimed Torah im Derech Eretz as the "banner" for his congregation, the Israelitische Religionsgesellschaft — the phrase has since been synonymous with Hirsch as well as with his philosophy. As seen, Hirsch was not unique in extending Derech Eretz to include broad knowledge of the secular world; rather, his role was to formalize a philosophy of Derech Eretz that incorporated a practical response to modernity. Hirsch's philosophy has been variously interpreted within Orthodoxy.
Hirsch's Torah im Derech Eretz In Hirsch's view, Derech Eretz refers not only to livelihood, but also to the social order, with the associated mores and considerations of courtesy and propriety, as well as to general education. Hirsch thus developed the concept of Derech Eretz to embrace Western culture while maintaining strict adherence to Jewish law.
Worldly involvement
Hirsch seeks to demonstrate in all his writings that the combination of Torah and Derech Eretz is not only possible but necessary if Judaism is to dominate not only the religious sphere of personal and communal life, but the secular, mundane sphere as well. To Hirsch, the fulfillment of Torah—Derech Eretz—therefore requires worldly involvement and general participation in society, as facilitated by the requisite knowledge. "Judaism is not a mere adjunct to life: it comprises all of life. To be a Jew is not a mere part, it is the sum total of our task in life. To be a Jew in the synagogue and the kitchen, in the field and the warehouse, in the office and the pulpit ... with the needle and the graving-tool, with the pen and the chisel—that is what it means to be a Jew."Hirsch, Religion Allied to Progress
Secular culture and education In Hirsch's view, Judaism must "include the conscientious promotion of education and culture". Hirsch speaks of the Mensch-Yisroel ("Israel-man"), the "enlightened religious personality" as an ideal: that is the Jew who is proudly Jewish, a believer in the eternal values of the Torah, but also possessing the ability to engage with and influence contemporary culture and knowledge. "The more, indeed, Judaism comprises the whole of man and extends its declared mission to the salvation of the whole of mankind, the less it is possible to confine its outlook to the synagogue. [Thus] the more the Jew is a Jew, the more universalist will be his views and aspirations [and] the less aloof will he be from ... art or science, culture or education ... [and] the more joyfully will he applaud whenever he sees truth and justice and peace and the ennoblement of man."
Jewish law Hirsch was emphatic that Derech Eretz in no sense allows for halakhic compromise. In his view, Judaism is "an untouchable sanctuary which must not be subjected to human judgment nor subordinated to human considerations" and "progress is valid only to the extent that it does not interfere with religion". He states that "the Jew will not want to accomplish anything that he cannot accomplish as a Jew. Any step which takes him away from Judaism is not for him a step forward, is not progress. He exercises this self-control without a pang, for he does not wish to accomplish his own will on earth but labours in the service of God." In The Nineteen Letters of Ben Uziel, Hirsch remarked that it would have been better for the Jews not to have been emancipated if the price they had to pay was assimilation. (See also, Modern Orthodox Judaism#Standards of observance.)
Interpretation See also the discussion on this point, in the article on Rabbi Hirsch.
As mentioned, the philosophy of Torah im Derech Eretz has been variously interpreted within Orthodoxy. The range of interpretations arises particularly in light of the tension between Hirsch's insistence as to faithfulness to Jewish law and tradition, and the challenges posed to this by interaction with the secular world.
Under a "narrow interpretation", exposure to secular philosophy, music, art, literature, or ethics must be functional. Under a "median interpretation", this exposure is permissible, and even required, for the sake of the domination of Torah values over one's worldly matters. Under a "broad interpretation" this exposure is permissible, providing a complement to—and even a synthesis with—Torah.
Thus as regards involvement in the secular world, the "narrow interpretation" essentially restricts Derech Eretz to a gainful occupation; permissible knowledge would be limited to functional and occupation related knowledge, and (possibly) secular knowledge that enables one to better interpret and understand the Torah. The "median interpretation" encourages the study of secular knowledge, but only insofar as this permits application of a Torah outlook and philosophy to human knowledge and culture. The "broad interpretation" permits the general acquisition of secular culture and knowledge as valuable in its own right.
Hirsch himself appears to have embraced the "median interpretation", albeit with the qualifications above. He states that "Torah im Derech Eretz, as used by our sages, means the realization of Torah in harmonious unity with all the conditions under which its laws will have to be observed amidst the developments of changing times"Gesammelte Schriften vii p. 294 Thus on a regular basis, he quotes secular scientists in his Torah commentary. Some scholars believe that he was influenced by Hegel and Friedrich Schiller;Prof. E. Segal, University of Calgary;Avi Hein, jewishvirtuallibrary.org in fact, in a speech given in the school he founded on the centenary of the birth of the latter, he claimed that the universalistic principles of Western culture embodied in Schiller's writings are Jewish values originating in the Torah.Mordechai Breuer, Modernity within Tradition, p. 70Professor Levi points out, however, that Rabbi Hirsch was required to make the speech for "political reasons" and that in this speech Hirsch "did not even hint, not a single word, that the Jewish people had anything at all to learn from [Schiller's] ideas." See הרש"ר הירש כמורה דרך לדורנו (Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch as a guide for our generation), section: יהדות על טהרת הקודש
On the other hand, Hirsch cautioned as to the danger of scientific knowledge leading one away from God; further, his schools, unlike others in Germany at the time, taught modern (business) languages as opposed to classical languages. Famously, in his commentary to , Hirsch clearly delineates the relationship of secular knowledge and Torah, where Torah is "ikkar" (עיקר), the essential, while secular knowledge is "tefel" (טפל), secondary or supplementary to Torah. He states that "[w]e are confident that there is only one truth, and only one body of knowledge that can serve as the standard. ... Compared to it, all the other sciences are valid only provisionally".
His commentary on is perhaps more explicit: "The study of the Torah shall be our main intellectual pursuit. ... We are not to study Torah from the standpoint of another science or for the sake of that science. So, too, we are to be careful not to introduce into the sphere of the Torah foreign ideas. ... Rather, we should always be mindful of the superiority of the Torah, which differs from all other scientific knowledge through its Divine origin. ... [Our Sages] do not demand of us to completely ignore all the scientific knowledge ... [but rather] that a person [be] familiar with these other realms of knowledge, but ... only from the Torah's perspective ... and they warn us that neglecting this perspective will jeopardize our intellectual life."
Neo-Orthodoxy: the "Breuer" communities In 1851, Hirsch was called to become the rabbi of the breakaway Orthodox community of Frankfurt am Main. This community soon became the model for "modern communities" strict in adherence to Orthodox practices, sometimes called, "Frankfurter Orthodoxy". Hirsch's son-in-law Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Zalman (Solomon) Breuer, succeeded him after his death. Wary of establishing a dynasty, the Frankfurt community did not appoint Hirsch's son to be his successor.
After World War I, in order to show their rejection of religious liberalism, followers of the community started to call themselves "Neo-Orthodox"; this mirrored the parallel movement in Lutheranism (called "Neo-Orthodoxy"). Thus, at this point, Hirsch's romantic liberalism and the values of the 1848 struggle for civil rights were less relevant – and the rejection of many elements of Weimar German culture was prevalent. Solomon Breuer and Isaac Breuer were leaders of this conservative turn by the community.Mordechai Breuer, Modernity within Tradition, chapter 7
Following Kristallnacht, Breuer and his family emigrated to Antwerp, and then to New York City. Once in New York, Breuer started a congregation among the numerous German refugees in Washington Heights, which closely followed the customs and mores of the Frankfurt community. The congregation, Khal Adath Yeshurun, is colloquially known as "Breuer's". Rabbi Shimon Schwab, also a native of Frankfurt, served as the second Rabbi of the "Breuer" community, until his death in 1995. Solomon Breuer and Joseph Breuer are often regarded as Hirsch's intellectual heirs, while Schwab is regarded as aligned with the more traditional Lithuanian orthodox communities.
The Breuer community has cautiously applied Torah im Derech Eretz to American life, narrowing its application over time.In fact, as of 2008 there has been some conflict between leading members of the community as to which direction it should take: see under Khal Adath Jeshurun (Washington Heights, Manhattan) and Controversial Moments At Rav S.R. Hirsch Memorial Celebration, Article by Elliot Resnick, The Jewish Press, Friday, June 27, 2008, p. 18 Schwab warned of the dangers of contemporary moral attitudes in secular culture and literature, and emphasized that followers of Neo-Orthodoxy therefore require a strong basis of faith and knowledge, and must exercise caution in engagements with the secular world.
Schwab also frequently emphasized that Torah can never be regarded as parallel with the secular knowledge. "Torah study is the highest duty of the Jew", and "even to suggest that anything can be parallel to Torah is a blasphemy of the highest order; Torah is above all, and everything else in life must be conducted in accordance with the Written and Oral Torah." Still, entry into commerce or the professions is seen as a valid component of Torah life, to be facilitated by an appropriate secular education (with the caveat that campus life is "incontestably immoral"). "Carrying on one's professional life in consonance with the halakha is in itself a practice of Torah." One must "establish the Torah's primacy over the modes of business and professional life so that his behavior transforms even that 'mundane' portion of his life into a sanctification."