The aborted candidacy of Rabbi Asher Ginsburg: A failed attempt at modernization

Abstract

The Napoleonic edict of 1808 that established theconsistorial system for French Jewry created a new rabbinate thatwas intended to differ from the ``old'' both in terms of itsauthority and its mission. When the first vacancy occurred in therabbinical triumvirate that, together with two lay leaders,constituted the Central Consistory, it afforded the leadership anopportunity to shape the future of the French rabbinate andJewish religious life. Their choice of Rabbi Asher Low Ginsburg,son of the late and distinguished rabbi of Metz (the ShaagatAryeh), signals an attempt to endow the new rabbinate withprestige and legitimacy. In addition, the consistorial leadershipmay have chosen R. Asher, a man with positive views on haskalahand secular learning, in the hope that his candidacy would helpmodernize the rabbinate and further the goal of ``regeneration''for French Jewry set by both the French government and theenlightened Jewish leadership. Seen in this light, R. Asher'sultimate rejection of the post, followed by the appointment ofRabbi Emmanuel Deutz, was a setback for the consistory and theprocess of modernization.