Jacob Zallel Lauterbach (1873–1942) was an American
Judaica scholar and author who served on the faculty of
Hebrew Union College and composed
responsa for the
Reform movement in America. He specialized in
Midrashic and
Talmudical literature, and is best known for his landmark critical edition and English translation of the
Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael.
Life and work
Jacob Z. Lauterbach was first and foremost a talmudist (
Freehof 1951). However, he was thoroughly familiar with all the modern techniques of critical scholarship, including manuscript comparison and decryption. After retiring from his position at
Hebrew Union College, he continued to live at the College and to mentor students.
He was the author of several books besides the three-volume Mekilta, and was a prolific contributor to the Jewish Encyclopedia, for which he authored or co-authored 260 articles, which are listed in
Rothman (1951) and online at the Jewish Encyclopedia's page for the
contributions of J.Z. Lauterbach. He additionally contributed 17 articles to the
HebrewOtzar Yisrael encyclopedia of
Julius Eisenstein, which are also listed in
Rothman (1951).
Among his scholarly publications may be listed the following. Again, the full list is provided in
Rothman (1951).
"The Talmud and Reform Judaism" (1911), American Israelite 58(18):p. 1.
"The attitude of the Jew towards the non-Jew" (1921), C.C.A.R. Yearbook 31:186–233.
"A significant controversy between the Sadducees and the Pharisees" (1927), HUCA 4:173–205.
"Is it permissible to let a non-Jewish contractor, building a synagogue, work on the building on the Sabbath?" [A responsum] (1927), C.C.A.R. Yearbook 37:202–206.
"Should one cover the head when participating in divine worship?" [A responsum] (1928), C.C.A.R. Yearbook 38:589–603.
Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael: A Critical Edition on the Basis of the Manuscripts and Early Editions with an English Translation, Introduction, and Notes (1933)
References
Freehof, Solomon B. (1951), "Jacob Z. Lauterbach: An appreciation", in Lou H. Silberman (ed.), Rabbinic Essays by Jacob Z. Lauterbach, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press.
Rothman, Walter E. (1951), "A bibliography of the writings of Jacob Z. Lauterbach", in Lou H. Silberman (ed.), Rabbinic Essays by Jacob Z. Lauterbach, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press.
Lauterbach, Jakob Bezalel, in:
Salomon Wininger: Große jüdische National-Biographie. Band 3. Czernowitz, 1928, p. 608