Solomon Schechter

Solomon Schechter (born Dec. 7, 1847, Foc-şani, Rom.—died Nov. 19, 1915, New York, N.Y., U.S.) was an outstanding authority on the Talmud, and a researcher who discovered important ancient documents. He was also a leader of Conservative Judaism in the United States.

Schechter studied the Talmud, the authoritative rabbinical compendium of Jewish law, lore, and commentary, in Vienna, Berlin, and London. In 1890 he became lecturer in Talmudic studies at the University of Cambridge. His book, Some Aspects of Rabbinic Theology (1909), which led to a sympathetic reappraisal of the teachings of the Pharisees, is an outgrowth of his lectures at Cambridge.

In 1896 Schechter went to Cairo to examine a cache of ancient writings, known only from the manuscript fragments that had been brought back by travelers to Egypt. In the old synagogue at Cairo, he found hidden within the geniza (a repository for sacred documents and objects) a priceless hoard of ancient manuscripts, among them a fragment of the Hebrew text of Ecclesiasticus and a document relating to the pre-Christian Jewish sect the Essenes.

In 1902 Schechter went to New York City to serve as president of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He developed that institution into a major centre for research in Judaica and for the training of rabbis in Conservative Judaism. In his approach to Judaism, Schechter emphasized the study of Jewish history, through which, he believed, a true picture of the workings of God would emerge. He originated the idea of “catholic Israel,” a concept emphasizing the continuity of past and present Judaism. In 1913 he founded the United Synagogue of America, which eventually grew from 23 to more than 800 Conservative congregations. He considered this organization his greatest legacy, because he believed deeply in a strong congregational base for Conservative Judaism.