Theodor Herzl and the Dream
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Upon returning from yet another meaningful trip to Israel and having experienced the then new Herzl Museum, I decided to share with my congregation some of what I gleaned from that experience.
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Rosh Hashanah Morning 2008 / 5769
Temple Emanu-El, Edison, NJ
This past summer, as many of you know, I was privileged to be in Israel for a few brief days. On that trip, I had the incredible good fortune to visit a place I had never been, and to meet a voice from the past, one that would give me a new perspective on a very old tale. One that opened my ears, my eyes and my heart, in a way I had never imagined was possible. A voice that would encourage me to dream like I had never dreamt before. This is his story…
The year was 1860. The day was Wednesday, May 2nd. The place was the city of Budapest. The world was filled with challenge and great detest.
There are trials and tribulations in all lands. Perhaps similar to the ones you have read about in this morning’s Torah portion, the famous Binding of Isaac passage. From what I can gather, God is putting Abraham through the greatest test of his life – the test of faith. Luckily for Isaac, Abraham is successful, and the miracles of the Bible hold true once again.
I am not such an avid believer. I am a dreamer. And I am a doer. But we will return to this topic in a few minutes. Why does the date and place matter? Well, Budapest is where I was born, on May 2nd, 1860. You see, my name is Binyamin Ze’ev Herzl, more often known in your day as Theodor Herzl, and I am here to share with you my story. People credit me as the father of Zionism….
However, in order for you to come to understand my vision and my dream, I think you must come to know a bit of who I am, for the environment in which I grew up, the atmosphere and culture I absorbed, all played a large part in developing my view of the world.
Where to begin? Let us begin with the personal. My parents Jeanette and Jacob Herzl provided me with a very nice and comfortable life. My family members were particularly close. My sister and I would read, walk and play together, and we spent much time together while receiving tutoring.
We lived almost next door to the large liberal Reform Temple in Budapest. I attended there regularly with my father on the Sabbaths and Holy Days. And at six years old I joined the Jewish school run by the Budapest Jewish community. Of course, at thirteen, I became a Bar Mitzvah. However, our home was not one filled with Jewish rituals, but we did maintain Jewish character. I especially recall receiving a blessing from my parents before each important endeavor in my life, a ritual I have never forgotten.
Perhaps greater than the influence of my father was the influence of my mother, with whom I developed a particularly close relationship. She was educated German through and through. On a daily basis, she could be found quoting German literature, especially the classics. Though she was familiar with the Jewish world, it was not her passion. Her life revolved around implanting the German cultural heritage in us, her children. And like many Jewish mothers, she was quite proud of me, and had a wonderful way of implanting in me her sense of form, of tactfulness and of simple grace. She had identified my special talents even as a young lad, including language studies, music and piano lessons, and perhaps that is why my only true love was literature.
For the rest of this sermon, please download below.
Temple Emanu-El, Edison, NJ
This past summer, as many of you know, I was privileged to be in Israel for a few brief days. On that trip, I had the incredible good fortune to visit a place I had never been, and to meet a voice from the past, one that would give me a new perspective on a very old tale. One that opened my ears, my eyes and my heart, in a way I had never imagined was possible. A voice that would encourage me to dream like I had never dreamt before. This is his story…
The year was 1860. The day was Wednesday, May 2nd. The place was the city of Budapest. The world was filled with challenge and great detest.
There are trials and tribulations in all lands. Perhaps similar to the ones you have read about in this morning’s Torah portion, the famous Binding of Isaac passage. From what I can gather, God is putting Abraham through the greatest test of his life – the test of faith. Luckily for Isaac, Abraham is successful, and the miracles of the Bible hold true once again.
I am not such an avid believer. I am a dreamer. And I am a doer. But we will return to this topic in a few minutes. Why does the date and place matter? Well, Budapest is where I was born, on May 2nd, 1860. You see, my name is Binyamin Ze’ev Herzl, more often known in your day as Theodor Herzl, and I am here to share with you my story. People credit me as the father of Zionism….
However, in order for you to come to understand my vision and my dream, I think you must come to know a bit of who I am, for the environment in which I grew up, the atmosphere and culture I absorbed, all played a large part in developing my view of the world.
Where to begin? Let us begin with the personal. My parents Jeanette and Jacob Herzl provided me with a very nice and comfortable life. My family members were particularly close. My sister and I would read, walk and play together, and we spent much time together while receiving tutoring.
We lived almost next door to the large liberal Reform Temple in Budapest. I attended there regularly with my father on the Sabbaths and Holy Days. And at six years old I joined the Jewish school run by the Budapest Jewish community. Of course, at thirteen, I became a Bar Mitzvah. However, our home was not one filled with Jewish rituals, but we did maintain Jewish character. I especially recall receiving a blessing from my parents before each important endeavor in my life, a ritual I have never forgotten.
Perhaps greater than the influence of my father was the influence of my mother, with whom I developed a particularly close relationship. She was educated German through and through. On a daily basis, she could be found quoting German literature, especially the classics. Though she was familiar with the Jewish world, it was not her passion. Her life revolved around implanting the German cultural heritage in us, her children. And like many Jewish mothers, she was quite proud of me, and had a wonderful way of implanting in me her sense of form, of tactfulness and of simple grace. She had identified my special talents even as a young lad, including language studies, music and piano lessons, and perhaps that is why my only true love was literature.
For the rest of this sermon, please download below.
| theodore_herzl_and_the_dream.pdf |
