Frankism
Encyclopedia
Frankism was an 18th-century to 19th-century Jewish religious movement centered around the leadership of the Jewish Messiah claimant Jacob Frank
, who lived from 1726 to 1791. At its height, it claimed perhaps 50,000 followers, primarily Jews
living in Poland
and other parts of Eastern Europe
. Unlike traditional Judaism
, which provides a set of detailed guidelines called halakha
that are scrupulously followed by observant Jews and regulate many aspects of life, Frank claimed that "all laws and teachings will fall" and asserted that one's most important personal obligation was the transgression of every boundary.
Frankism is commonly associated with Sabbateanism, a religious movement that formed around the claim that the 17th-century Jewish rabbi
Sabbatai Zevi
was the Jewish messiah
. Like Frankism, the earlier forms of Sabbateanism believed that at least in some circumstances, antinomianism
was the correct path. Zevi himself would perform actions that violated traditional Jewish taboos, such as eating fats that were forbidden by Jewish dietary laws
and celebrating former fast days as feast days. Especially after Zevi's death, a number of branches of Sabbateanism evolved, which disagreed among themselves over which aspects of traditional Judaism should be preserved and which discarded. Some branches of Sabbateans actually converted to Islam
, in emulation of Zevi—in 1666, the Ottoman Sultan had forced Zevi to become a Muslim. The more radical branches even engaged in orgies. In Frankism, orgies featured prominently in ritual.
Several authorities on Sabbateanism, including Heinrich Graetz
and Aleksander Kraushar, were skeptical that there was such a thing as a distinctive "Frankist" doctrine. According to Gershom Scholem
, another authority on Sabbateanism, Kraushar had described Frank's sayings as "grotesque, comical and incomprehensible." In his classic essay "Redemption Through Sin" Scholem argued a different position, that Frankism was a later and more radical outgrowth of Sabbateanism. In contrast, Jay Michaelson
argues that Frankism was "an original theology that was innovative, if sinister" and was in many respects a departure from the earlier formulations of Sabbateanism. In traditional Sabbatean doctrine, Zevi and often his followers claimed to be able to liberate the sparks of holiness hidden within what seemed to be evil. According to Michaelson, Frank's theology asserted that the attempt to liberate the sparks of holiness were the problem, not the solution. Rather, Frank claimed that the mixing between holy and unholy was virtuous.
Eminent descendants of Frankists include former United States Supreme Court justice Louis Brandeis
.
Jacob Frank
Jacob Frank was an 18th century Jewish religious leader who claimed to be the reincarnation of the self-proclaimed messiah Sabbatai Zevi and also of the biblical patriarch Jacob...
, who lived from 1726 to 1791. At its height, it claimed perhaps 50,000 followers, primarily Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
living in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and other parts of Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
. Unlike traditional Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, which provides a set of detailed guidelines called halakha
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
that are scrupulously followed by observant Jews and regulate many aspects of life, Frank claimed that "all laws and teachings will fall" and asserted that one's most important personal obligation was the transgression of every boundary.
Frankism is commonly associated with Sabbateanism, a religious movement that formed around the claim that the 17th-century Jewish rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Sabbatai Zevi
Sabbatai Zevi
Sabbatai Zevi, , was a Sephardic Rabbi and kabbalist who claimed to be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. He was the founder of the Jewish Sabbatean movement...
was the Jewish messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
. Like Frankism, the earlier forms of Sabbateanism believed that at least in some circumstances, antinomianism
Antinomianism
Antinomianism is defined as holding that, under the gospel dispensation of grace, moral law is of no use or obligation because faith alone is necessary to salvation....
was the correct path. Zevi himself would perform actions that violated traditional Jewish taboos, such as eating fats that were forbidden by Jewish dietary laws
Kashrut
Kashrut is the set of Jewish dietary laws. Food in accord with halakha is termed kosher in English, from the Ashkenazi pronunciation of the Hebrew term kashér , meaning "fit" Kashrut (also kashruth or kashrus) is the set of Jewish dietary laws. Food in accord with halakha (Jewish law) is termed...
and celebrating former fast days as feast days. Especially after Zevi's death, a number of branches of Sabbateanism evolved, which disagreed among themselves over which aspects of traditional Judaism should be preserved and which discarded. Some branches of Sabbateans actually converted to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, in emulation of Zevi—in 1666, the Ottoman Sultan had forced Zevi to become a Muslim. The more radical branches even engaged in orgies. In Frankism, orgies featured prominently in ritual.
Several authorities on Sabbateanism, including Heinrich Graetz
Heinrich Graetz
Heinrich Graetz was amongst the first historians to write a comprehensive history of the Jewish people from a Jewish perspective....
and Aleksander Kraushar, were skeptical that there was such a thing as a distinctive "Frankist" doctrine. According to Gershom Scholem
Gershom Scholem
Gerhard Scholem who, after his immigration from Germany to Palestine, changed his name to Gershom Scholem , was a German-born Israeli Jewish philosopher and historian, born and raised in Germany...
, another authority on Sabbateanism, Kraushar had described Frank's sayings as "grotesque, comical and incomprehensible." In his classic essay "Redemption Through Sin" Scholem argued a different position, that Frankism was a later and more radical outgrowth of Sabbateanism. In contrast, Jay Michaelson
Jay Michaelson
Jay Michaelson is a writer, teacher, and scholar in the USA. His work involves spirituality, Judaism, sexuality, and law. He is a columnist for The Forward and a featured blogger for the Huffington Post He has written three books, Everything is God: The Radical Path of Nondual Judaism , God in...
argues that Frankism was "an original theology that was innovative, if sinister" and was in many respects a departure from the earlier formulations of Sabbateanism. In traditional Sabbatean doctrine, Zevi and often his followers claimed to be able to liberate the sparks of holiness hidden within what seemed to be evil. According to Michaelson, Frank's theology asserted that the attempt to liberate the sparks of holiness were the problem, not the solution. Rather, Frank claimed that the mixing between holy and unholy was virtuous.
Eminent descendants of Frankists include former United States Supreme Court justice Louis Brandeis
Louis Brandeis
Louis Dembitz Brandeis ; November 13, 1856 – October 5, 1941) was an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States from 1916 to 1939.He was born in Louisville, Kentucky, to Jewish immigrant parents who raised him in a secular mode...
.
External links
- The Collection of the Words of the Lord, by Jacob Frank. Edited, translated, annotated and with an introduction by Harris LenowitzHarris LenowitzHarris Lenowitz is a professor of Languages and Literature at the University of Utah. He specializes in Hebraic studies, particularly the writings of the 18th-century Jewish false messiah Jacob Frank and the use of Hebrew in Christian art in the West....
.