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Carrying Odessa
Seated from left to right: a young rabbi, Lilenblum, Ravnitsky, Ahad Ha’am, Mendale Mo”s, Levinsky
Standing: Borochov, Klauzner, C.N Bialik
133 years ago last night, a fire broke out in a schnapps distillery in Odessa. The distillery’s manager, also the son in law of the owner had other plans that night. But Asher Zvi Ginsburg rushed to the distillery that he hated running. He tried to assure his father in law that he will find another way to support the family as he witnessed his livelihood turn to dust. Then, some time after midnight he made his way through the empty streets to an apartment where seven friends were anxiously awaiting his arrival.
“Children of Moses,” he opened, “today he was born, and today he died. Moses, master of the prophets, man of truth, whose soul, words and deeds were governed by the rule of absolute justice.” The seventh night of the Hebrew month of Adar Bet was chosen as the appropriate night for the creation of a secret society by the name of The Children of Moses, which would work toward the establishment of a movement to prepare the hearts of the Jewish people for a new type of nationhood.
“We aim to expand the understanding of peoplehood, turning it into a lofty and noble concept, a moral ideal, in the heart of which lies the love of Israel, and which encompasses every good attribute and every honorable property; we will strive to liberate the word “national” from the heavy physical form it currently holds, and to raise it to the level of an ethical, respected and beloved concept in the eyes of…
