Dutch chief rabbi of Zwolle (Overijssel) from 1902 until his death in 1941.
Hirsch originated from an orthodox Jewish environment, he was already destined for a rabbinical career by his father at a young age, who taught hin Jewish teaching and sciences. In Amsterdam he visited the special (Jewish) primary school of Rabbi J. Polenaar and the Dutch Israelite Seminary conducted by J.H. Dunner, an orthodox religious gymnasium that trained rabbis and religious teachers. He completed a compulsory examination in classical literature on 30 April 1895 at the University of Amsterdam. He concluded his studies in 1900 with obtaining the Morenu (Hebrew: ??????, lit.) “our teacher”title (the highest attainable degree), which gave the right to exercise a rabbinic function.
Hirsch was a good and fascinating speaker, and after a lecture in Zwolle in 1902, the local assembly appointed him unanimously as chief rabbi in the 20-year-old shepherd-less province of Overijssel. During his installation in the Zwolle synagogue, he explained his program, clearly formed by education and education. After the observation that the true Jewish life was threatened by discontent, materialism, far-reaching assimilation, deviation from the religious commandments and lack of Jewish knowledge and Jewish education, he pleaded for the restoration of traditional Judaism, of which Torah and tradition are the basis and the touchstone had to be. Hirsch proposed to restore and defend these principles in his resort without any concessions.
Some examples of the implementation of this program are the foundation by Hirsch of two Zwolle-based Thorastudie and education societies and the requirement for the traditional fence for the women’s gallery in the Zwolle synagogue. Also the interest in the history of the Jewish people, according to him a guide to the world through his morality and fulfilment of the religious laws, was closely related to his ideas. The foundation, under his leadership, of the Dutch department of Agoedas Jisroeil after the First World War also hung directly with his ideals. Until his death, Hirsch was chairman of this division of the world federation of law-abiding Jews, who placed the Torah at the center of Jewish life and opposed Zionism, materialism and assimilation. This position made him one of the most important leaders of Dutch orthodox Judaism. Through this and through the treatment of general Jewish issues, he gained national and international recognition. In the Netherlands, his influence increased even more by the various interim chief rabbinates he held and by his many speeches and articles, in which frequently current issues from Thorate texts were approached and considered.
Hirsch also fulfilled numerous other functions, especially in the charitable field, both inside and outside the Jewish community. He was, for example, a member of the board of the Dutch Israelite Seminary, the Central Israelite Orphanage in Leiden, the SA Rudelsheim Foundation for Jewish Imprisoned Children, the Israel Association for Ailing Foreign Jews, the Zwolle Department of Pro Juventute, the Association for the Control of Tuberculosis and the Nut. He also personally tried to alleviate the spiritual and material needs of his fellow man.
Hirsch was delighted that his efforts to raise Judaism as he strove for that in Overijssel were in agreement and support. In his resort he was a beloved foreman. Because of his workforce, piety, modesty, charitable work and principled attitude he was considered a man in many Jewish and non-Jewish circles. The number of attendees attending the celebration of his 25-year jubilee in 1927 was also great. As a result of this fact, the Eits Chajim society gave him a three occasion reasons (Amsterdam, 1927). The developments in Germany in the early thirties worried him. From 1933 he was involved in supporting German-Jewish refugees. He regarded the great persecutions of 1938 as a punishment for all of the fate of Israel, because of apostasy from the commandments and sabbath removal. The horrors, according to him, were to bring people to repentance. He had also made such a statement after the First World War. Israel, however, would restore itself, because it is God’s people, he thought.
Hirsch died a natural death on 11 August 1941 and was buried two days later with great interest at the Jewish cemetery in Zwolle.
Personal
He was the son of Simon Azarja Hirsch (?27 January 1841, A’dam – ?25 nov 1916, A’dam), merchant, and Ganna Spitz (29 jun 1845, A’dam- 15 July 1888, A’dam). They had fourteen children. He married on 8-12-1902 Betty Wormser (6 January 1877, Karlsruhe – 23 July 1943, Sobibor, Poland) in Zwolle. They got five sons, two of them died young, and seven daughters. Only two of the remaining ten children survived the Shoah.