Zacharias Frankel

On the occasion of the opening of Zacharias Frankel College at Potsdam University (Germany) in 2013, Esther Seidel looks at life and work of Zacharias Frankel (1801–1875) in the context of the Jewish Theological Seminary. Frankel, one of the eminent rabbinic representatives of German Jewish scholarship, is for many a pioneer for the endeavor to strike a balance between Orthodoxy and classical Reform. This makes him also a founding figure for Conservative Judaism as it later emerged in North America. His concept of a “positive-historical” Judaism seeks to combine scholarship with piety. The Breslau Jewish Theological Seminary marks the peak of his programmatic influence in the development of modern Jewish denominations. Founded in 1854, it could have celebrated its 160th anniversary in 2014.