Funeral orations. Morais, Sabato. Philadelphia, PA. 1887 · Sabato Morais Digital Repository · Legacy Projects from Judaica DH at Penn Libraries

Title

Funeral orations. Morais, Sabato. Philadelphia, PA. 1887

Author

Morais, Sabato

Date Created

1887

Location(s)

United States -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia

United States -- Pennsylvania

Format

4 pages on 1 sheet

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/page/NoC-US/1.0/?

Language(s)

English

Source

Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies

Sabato Morais Collection, Box 11, Folder 7

Has Format

https://colenda.library.upenn.edu/items/ark:/81431/p31c1v08p/manifest.json

Link to Colenda

https://colenda.library.upenn.edu/catalog/81431-p31c1v08p

Provenance

Transfer of Custody from the Hebrew Education Society, 10 March 1913.

Is Format Of

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/judaicadh/morais/main/TEI/SMBx11FF7_8.xml

content

For a funeral
No sensible person should boast simply because he has derived his extraction from a worthy parentage, but to those who follow in the wake of an upright ancestry, the knowledge of such a descent must bring veritable pleasure. We Israelites take special pride in the righteous venerable deeds of the fathers, and recall them in our national prayers, when we exclaim: "Thou O God rememberest for our sake the piety devotion of the patriarchs." I am aware that this circumstance has given rise to a painful an unjust a charge painful to my our feelings; to the accusation of our being an ostentatious and uncosmopo--litan race, unduly always vaunting our lineage and mission the nobility of our mission, but I bear with the false accusation imputation and in spite thereof rejoice whenever I perceive that the virtues of our predecessors are wisely extolled by being practically cherished I mean, by a reproduction among their successors. Now wishing to apply the sentiment which I have just expressed, I will say, that the offspring of Moritz Loeb may point with unfeigned satisfaction to the life career of their aged father. That he resided for a series of years in one locality, and suc--ceeded in winning public respect; that for several decades he conducted a paper journal in a foreign language in English-speaking America and yet conciliated the good-will of the natives, without regarding no susceptibilities, avoiding to offending those who differed from him in political principles; all of that must be regarded by his sons and daughters a cause for a well founded boast. For To So has testified the daily press and testified, and I have moreover learned that in their the bereaved ment they grief, the have been comforted by the in their grief the assurances of

of fraternal condolence from distinguished men of distinction. But I, as a servant of Israel's God, direct their atten--tion to the path of honor integrity pursued by the venerable de--ceased parent, as that which they must tread upon, in order to perpetuate the good name they have inherited and continually rightly deserve the esteem of the community. I, confess that in my capacity, I experience also a degree of gratification at counting among my senior colleagues, who taught sacred lore, a brother of the lamented departed Dr Henri Loeb, the emeritus late Chief Rabbi in Belgium, one of whose volumes of instruction, one which was translated in our vernacular, has long served as a text book in our religious Sunday schools, together with a prayer which he composed for the closing of the religious exercises. Still pleasing as that may be also to the mourners, I contend that a soothing balm to the wound bleeding sore, which the loss of a loving father in--flicted created, must be the truth enunciated is only the remedy indicated by our sages, namely, a life of virtue; for our own virtuous actions are the genuine gold purchasing solace and a merited commendation. The offspring progeny of Moritz Loeb will feel comforted by reflecting on the example received, and more so by determining to conform therewith. The daughters of the lamented Israelites, having con--tracted conjugal duties, and being bound besides by the sacred ties of maternity, will naturally re-cover by the degrees [?] from the blow sustained sooner than their mother.

It is the widow who calls therefore for my deepest sympathy. True Correct as I believe the Rabbinical axiom generally to be, that the absence of a wife is deplored most by her husband, I hold likewise that the demise of the latter is most keenly felt by the former. In the present instance the very fact that the deceased required the constant attention and solicitude of his life-compa--nion, will render his departure more melancholy unutterably sad, for it will have occasioned a void, which robs home of its at--tractions and turns it very night into a solitude. Human language must necessarily fail to procure relief to such a sorrows. The promises of reason and faith, will can assuage it and they will, I hope, afford the widow the calm serenity of pious resignation. I hope, For she must realize that the mind once illumined with a bright understanding can never perish like the senseless and material flesh. She must also have learned from Holy Writ that the spirits sees not destruction, for it partakes of the essence of the all-spiritual God. Nevertheless But though so blissfully sustained, it is largely from those to whom she gave birth that the relict of our coreligionist Moritz Loeb, must draw derive ceaseless comfort.

They must be brought draw closer still to their mother by a filial devotion which admits of no weariness. They Sons and daughters must endeavour jointly to render cheer the writer of her existence cheerful though by with the warmth of an un-abated affection. May they resolve to do so and merit become thereby the recipients of a celestial reward, experienced in this life and met in that world which has no end. And now let us pray that the depositing of the one body of our fellow-believer into its final abode on the eve of the Sabbath, may signify an be a prognostic of foreshadow allotted Sabbath rest a repose where immortality reigns. May the qualities of the mind and of the heart which our departed brother exercised righteously, gain for him consummate bliss, and may all his supreme repose and beatitude. Oh Eternal. Let the shortcomings of thy servant as a man and an Israelite be hidden beneath the wings of everlasting Thy unfailing mercy, even as it is written: "I, yea I blot out thy trespasses for my own sake, and thy sins I will remember no more," and as thy inspired psalmist has declared "The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger and plen-teous in loving kindness." So may it be O Lord, our Universal Parent and Saviour!. Amen.

Identifier

p31c1v08p

identifier

SMBx11FF7_8