Emil Gustav Hirsch was born in
Luxembourg City, a son of the rabbi and philosopher
Samuel Hirsch on May 22, 1851. He later married the daughter of Rabbi
David Einhorn. He studied at the
University of Pennsylvania, and in 1872 went to
Berlin for post-graduate work. He was rabbi at
Har Sinai Congregation in
Baltimore (1877–78), and in
Louisville, Kentucky (1878–80). But he did his greatest work in
Chicago. For forty-two years (1880–1923), Hirsch served as the rabbi of
Chicago Sinai Congregation, one of the oldest synagogues in the Midwest. At this post, he became well known for an emphasis on social justice. From Chicago Sinai's pulpit, he delivered rousing sermons on the social ills of the day and many Chicagoans, Jews and Gentiles alike, were in attendance. Appointed professor of
rabbinical literature and
philosophy at the
University of Chicago in 1892, Hirsch also served on the
Chicago Public Library board from 1885 to 1897. He took some part in politics as a member of the
Republican Party. He was an influential exponent of advanced thought and
Reform Judaism. He edited
Der Zeitgeist (Milwaukee, 1880–82) and the
Reform Advocate (1891–1923). He also edited the Department of the Bible of the
Jewish Encyclopedia and contributed feminist articles to
The American Jewess. He also wrote studies of the
historical relationship between Judaism and Christianity, including appreciations of its founding figures
Jesus and
Paul. In addition, he published a number of articles for the Reform Advocate, a weekly journal which he edited for thirty years. From 1872 to 1876, he studied at the Universities of Berlin and Leipzig. Returning to America, he married Mathilda Einhorn in Louisville, Kentucky. Here, he remained until his death on January 7, 1923. Hirsch left a legacy as a renowned preacher in American Jewry. Many scholarly articles in the Jewish Encyclopedia were contributed by him. His social and philanthropic pursuits were a valuable contribution. Hirsch is the namesake of the
Emil G. Hirsch Metropolitan High School of Communications, located in the
Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood in Chicago. In keeping with his interest in education, Hirsch advised a wealthy congregant,
Julius Rosenwald of
Sears, Roebuck & Co., to use part of his wealth to help build public schools for black students in the segregated South; their facilities were consistently underfunded. The rural school building program, based on the use of matching funds from local communities, was one of the largest programs, but not the only, administered by the
Rosenwald Fund. He was a
presidential elector in the
1896 presidential election. He was the maternal grandfather of U.S. Attorney General
Edward Hirsch Levi. == See also ==