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This hymnal, included with Siddur Aḇodath Yisrael was first prepared for Temple Oheḇ Shalom (Baltimore, Maryland) by Rabbi Benjamin Szold (1829-1902). The edition we have imaged and made available here is from the 2nd revised edition from 1873 which Marcus Jastrow prepared for his Philadelphia congregation, Rodef-Shalom. The siddur was initially published in one volume. However, the 1885 printing of the 2nd revised edition of 1873 separates the contents of Aḇodath Yisrael into two volumes, the first containing Sabbath, Festival, and Weekday prayers, and the second volume containing the High Holiday services. Songs and Prayers and Meditations was published as a supplemental section, appended to the first volume.
Making digital images of these works available is the first step in our process of making the entire prayerbook, both Hebrew liturgy and English translation, machine-readable (copy-pastable and searchable). If you would like to take part in the transcription of this work, please join our opensiddur-tech discussion group.
As indicated by the title-page, the English edition of this Prayer and Hymn Book corresponds with the German edition by Rev. Dr. B. Szold both in arrangement and in text, so that either of them may be used in Divine Service while the prayers are read, or the hymns sung, in Hebrew, English or German.
As in the German, so in this edition, the method of a literal translation of the Hebrew prayers has been disregarded, and in lieu thereof a paraphrase chosen which renders the spirit of each prayer without burdening it with Oriental phraseology. By so doing, the Editor thinks, he has furnished an available Prayer Book for those who are not familial with the Hebrew language.
The poetical pieces in this Book being, however, monuments of Hebrew poetry, have been rendered in verse, in imitation of the style of each poem either in meter or without, so as to give the reader an approximate idea of the Hebrew poetry of the Middle Ages.
In the thorough revision of the prosaic parts contained in the Book, the Editor acknowledges the aid of other hands, so that there might be spared no painstaking to make the style easy and smooth.
The following valuable renditions of poetical writings have been contributed by a friend and colleague: “O God whose grace,” pp. 342, 421, and 465; “Lord, thy people,” p. 425; “From thee my praise,” p. 467; “O God, to thee,” p. 491; and the Hoshaanoth, p. 581 to p. 583, for which contributions, the Editor avails himself of this opportunity to express his sincerest thanks.
The metrical translations of the Psalms in the Prayer Book (pp. 2, 15, and 50 to 56) are, with some alterations, taken from The Psalms of David by Abner Jones.
As to the Songs for Divine Services hereto attached, No. 17 is from Addison with some modifications, and No. 138 written by a friend. With a few exceptions the songs agree in meter with those of the German edition, so that the same melodies are adaptable for both.
For the remainder of the Psalms and Hymns, both in the Hymn and the Prayer Book, and for the translations of the Hebrew poems, the Editor, though with timidity, takes the responsibility upon himself alone, looking forward for a kind reception by the public for whom the book is intended.
M. J.
Philadelphia, Adar 12th 5633.
(March 10th 1873.)
“📖 Songs and Prayers and Meditations for Divine Services of Israelites, arranged by Rabbi Benjamin Szold and translated by Rabbi Marcus Jastrow (1873)” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.
Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)
Marcus Jastrow
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