Ethical Addresses - Series Four (Still) - 1898

W. Sanford Evans

Series Four of Ethical Addresses, published in 1898, starts out with a problem.  That is, my source for these volumes, the Internet Archive, has all 21 volumes of the series, "Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2008 with funding from Microsoft Corporation."  This particular volume skips directly from the table of contents to page 2 of the text, omitting the first page of William M. Salter's platform:  "The Cause of Ethics."  A better scan of the volume is needed.  (No doubt this statement will be repeated at we progress through the Bibliography.)

Several new authors appear in the Fourth Series:  S. Burns Weston, W. Sanford Evans, F. W. Foerster,  and Morris Jastrow, Jr.  I have already written a bit about the "adventures" of tracking down information about Foerster and the bibliographic rabbit trails that I followed in learning more about him.  The adventures continue.

• S. Burns Weston (1855 - 1936) appears in the Bibliography as the publisher of Ethical Addresses through the eleventh volume.  Weston helped found the Philadelphia Ethical Society in 1885 and served there as clergy leader.  He edited the International Journal of Ethics from its founding in 1890 until 1914.  An editorial in Ethics, the successor to IJE, sets the founding date in 1888 and actually identifies Ethical Addresses as the source of the later versions of the journal. [Singer, M. G. “Editorial: The History of Ethics.” Ethics 98, no. 3 (1988): 441–44. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2380959.]  Ethics is, according to Singer, "the oldest continuously published philosophical journal in the English language"--and it all started with Adler, Weston, and the "Ethical Union."
• W. Sanford Evans (1869 - 1949) was later known as a conservative politician in Canada.  According to Bradley J. Milne, Sandford's "early years were marked by success as a philanthropist, journalist, platform performer and lecturer for the Society of Ethical Culture in New York." (U Manitoba MA History Thesis, 1997).  His youthful platform on "Moral and Spiritual Education of Children" was a theme that he repeated in his later political career, i.e., that public schools should also teach ethics.
• Morris Jastrow, Jr. (1861 - 1921) was a noted scholar of "Oriental religions."  An assistant lecturer at Rodef Sholem Synagogue (Philadelphia), he resigned both from his position there and from Judaism in December 1886.  When he spoke at the Philadelphia Ethical Society in April, 1897, he was a librarian at the University of Pennsylvania and soon to become known as the author of numerous works on ancient and modern religions of the Middle East and other subjects.

In order to account for the historical perspective now gained from seeking more information about these contributors to Ethical Addresses, I have begun adding the appropriate source references to the Bibliography.  While my main focus (for now) remains on completing the catalog of the twenty one volumes of Ethical Addresses, I can already see a wealth of new (to me) resources coming to the fore.

An unexpected footnote in Ethical Culture history

Young Einstein

The Fourth Series of Ethical Addresses, published in 1898, has led me on one of those delightful excursions that researchers sometimes take into unexpected territory.  I had wanted to find out more about F. W. Foerster, whom Felix Adler introduced, in the Third Series:

Dr. Wilhelm Foerster has been created the first International Secretary. He is the son of Prof. Foerster to whom I have just referred, and the editor of the German weekly paper, Ethische Kultur. He was recently arrested and condemned on the charge of lèse-majesté for an article which appeared in his paper, and was confined for several months in a fortress. He was liberated on the eve of the assembling of the Congress at Zurich, and was enabled to be present at our opening meeting. He intends, as I understand, to give his whole life to the propaganda of the Ethical Movement. (p. 139)

 "Prof. Foerster" was Wilhelm Julius Foerster, a German astronomer (1832-1921) who was active in the German Society for Ethical Culture (GSEC).  Dr. [Friedrich] Wilhelm Foerster (1869-1966), was, like his father, an opponent of German militarism and active, for a while, in GSEC.  As, it seems, was Albert Einstein (1879-1955).

Trying to find out more about Foerster fils (both father and son are referred to as Wilhelm, although the son is also referred to as Friedrich, so I've resorted to an archaic solution), I ended up finding out more about Albert Einstein's relationship to Ethical Culture.  I had assumed he was merely acquainted with Adler, perhaps socially, perhaps in some social justice work.  I knew that he had, at some point, said:  “Without ‘ethical culture’ there is no salvation for humanity.”  But I did not realize that he had had a stronger connection to Ethical Culture while still in Europe.  Searching for Foerster fils, I ran across a self-published article on Yumpu that added to the picture:  "Tracing Back the Sources of Albert Einstein's Political Convictions: The Movement for Ethical Culture."  The author, Karlheinz Steinmüller, PhD, is Wissenschaftlicher Direktor at z-Punkt, The Foresight Company, and based in Berlin.  Steinmüller's notes on the article (published 2012 on Yumpu) say that it was written in 1992 but remained, to his knowledge, the most extensive look at Einstein and EC up to that point.  The article itself can be read for free and downloaded as a PDF, but it is somewhat corrupted, with a number of typographical errors (scannos?).  

Steinmüller's article posits a hypothesis--"Albert Einstein was influenced during his most formative years to a great extent by a circle of persons who belonged to the Ethical movement."  Of his hypothesis he says:

Two lines for corroboration (not yet proof) are open to us: 1[st] to establish biographical connections between Einstein and the Ethical movement, 2[nd] a comparison of Einsteins (sic) convictions with the aims of the Ethical movement. [Note:  Ordinals printed as superscripts.]

In addressing his hypothesis, Steinmüller refers to the first meeting of the International Ethical Union in Zurich.  Adler's report on that meeting was discussed in our consideration of Series Three.  A more extensive report by Foerster fils is provided in Series Four.  Steinmüller adds more historical context for the meeting and a few biographical tidbits about Adler, Gustav Maiar (a founder of the Swiss Society for Ethical Culture) and "one of the key persons in Einstein's youth" (p. 3),  and Foerster fils, noting that the latter converted to Catholicism in 1899 and left the ECM.  

The lives and work(s) of these men are all now part of the history of the Ethical Culture Movement and add some texture to those early years.  For the Bibliography, I have to figure out how to cite Steinmueller and regret that my high school German will not be up to the task of looking more deeply at GSEC.  Some additional questions arise:

• Albert Einstein apparently gave a "address" for NYSEC (New York Society for Ethical Culture)--"On the Necessity of Ethical Culture"--January 6, 1951.  Was he present at NYSEC on that date?  Or is this "address" a letter of congratulations to NYSEC on the occasion of its 75th anniversary? Is the original still archived at NYSEC?
• A version of this address seems to be included in Mein Weltbild by Carl Seelig (available in English as Thoughts and Opinions by Albert Einstein).  The publishing history seems likely to be a bit tangled.  Who said bibliographers don't have fun?  
• Algernon Black wrote to Carl Seelig in 1953 about the letter and Einstein's support for NYSEC (A. Black to Carl Seelig, July 17, 1953, Archive of the ETH, HS 304:200) according to Steinmüller. "ETH" in the context of Steinmüller's article appears to be ETH Zurich (in English, with more on Einstein here).  In the meantime, is there a copy of Black's letter in NYSEC archives?  
• Joe Chuman's pitch for his platform on "Einstein Religion" is yet another bibliographic trail to follow.  Was the platform recorded?  Is there a written text published somewhere already?  Are there plans to make the text--in whatever format--accessible to Ethicals?  
• Multiply those questions by all of our Leaders whose platforms are now more often recorded than written.  Just saying.

And so back to F. W. Foerster and his report on that first IEU meeting in Zurich.  The report is lengthy but still incomplete.  Foerster promised more information in Series Five, but, alas, did not remain a member of the Movement long enough to keep that promise.  I have to promise more discussion of his report next week. Cue dramatic musical chord.

Ethical Addresses - Series Three - 1897

The Third Series of Ethical Addresses (1897), now included in the Bibliography for Ethical Culture, provides more diversity in topics than previous issues.  Again, we have contributions from Felix Adler, William M. Salter, W. L. Sheldon, and M. M. Mangasarian.  In addition, we have an apparent lay leader from the New York Society (Alfred R. Wolff) and two women lay leaders from St. Louis (Lydia Avery Coonley) and Chicago (Mary J. Wilmarth).  I have added the new authors to the List of Authors (at the end of the Bibliography).  Can anyone provide more information about Wolff, Coonley, and Wilmarth?

My interest in the content as history of thought in Ethical Culture was piqued by entries on women's roles, with Sheldon trying to hold the line and Coonley and Wilmarth pushing it forward.  I also found the emphasis on international issues (Salter on Venezuela and Mangasarian on Armenia) reflective of a more practical application of ethics on a broader scale.  Adler's platform--"The Monroe Doctrine and the War Spirit in the United States"--is, I believe, an important statement about Ethical Culture's emphasis on the culture of peace as well as its dependence on democracy as an aspirational ideal.  Sheldon's platform on literature ("The Good and Bad Side of Novel Reading") is a precursor of several more of his platforms using literature as a basis for discussing ethics.  The interest in this particular article comes from his condemnation of some literary greats and at least one innovator as well as, for me, for his insistence on reality over fantasy.  His seems to be an approach to literature as lessons for life rather than an appreciation of the chance to find new horizons (and, perhaps, new perspectives on life's lessons).

Adler's report on "The Recent Congress of American and European Ethical Societies at Zurich" holds many interesting nuggets of information about the (then) still new Ethical Culture Movement in Europe.  (The ECM was already celebrating its twentieth anniversary in the US, an event also recorded in this volume.)  This particular report was delivered as a platform to the New York Society (October 18, 1896), so it is less formal than later reports but very reflective of Adler's own vision and interpretation.  From the beginning references to watch-towers to the ending questions of purpose and intention, Adler description is both lyrical and packed with information about these early days of the Movement.  He found three important outcomes of the Congress:  the formation of an international organization to bind the European and American Ethical Societies together (called the International Ethical Union, with Wilhelm Foerster as the International Secretary); the decision to establish a training college for Ethical Culture Leaders in Switzerland; to move beyond the essential ideas of Ethical Culture to Ethical action, or "practical philanthropy."  Adler gave strong endorsement to the "corner-stone of the Ethical Movement" in this Program (called a Manifesto by the delegates to the Congress) from the Congress:

The prime aim of the Ethical Societies is to be of advantage to their own members. The better moral life is not a gift which we are merely to confer upon others; it is rather a difficult prize which we are to try with unwearying and unceasing effort to secure for ourselves. The means which are to serve to this end are: first, the close contact into which our associations bring us with others having the same purpose in view; second, the moral education and instruction of the young in the ethical principles, which in their foundations are independent of all dogmatic presupposition; third, guidance for adults in the task of moral self-education. (p. 144)

The cornerstone is not, of course, the whole building, but the Program/Manifesto goes further to speak of involvement in the "the great social questions of the day," efforts to "obtain a more humane existence," "resistance to wrong and oppression" (to be considered "a sacred duty"), and other principles.  Noteworthy among them:  

We demand for woman opportunity for the fullest development of her mental and moral personality, and realizing that her personality is of equal worth with that of man, we pledge ourselves, as far as we are able, to secure the recognition of this equality in every department of life. (p. 146)

Is there a copy of that Manifesto somewhere in our Archives?  Is it included in its entirety in this platform address?  We know that Adler did not sign the later Humanist Manifesto I, but his endorsement of this one seems noteworthy. 

The Third Series did not present any new bibliographic challenges to me, but it did raise the question of copyright.  There will be many copyright questions associated with the entries of the Bibliography as we go forward, but the question of who owns the copyright to the Bibliography itself has been asked.  The answer is easy enough.  I do.  All rights reserved.  For now.  I may eventually change those rights to a Creative Commons license, but I am also considering shifting the copyright over to the American Ethical Union.  Given that this is a work in progress, I would like members of the Ethical Culture Movement to have access to the work as it progresses for their use in study, contemplation, Ethical action, and so on as the work continues.  As I (and others) document our shared heritage, we can decide together how best to protect this work from unwanted change or commercial exploitation.  Your thoughts are welcome.

Ethical Addresses, Series Two (1896) Part 2

The overall content of Series Two of Ethical Addresses is moving in the direction of more specific ethical issues and more precise framing of Ethical Culture rather than the broader philosophical interest of the First Series.  One essay that caught my eye was, again, from M. M. Mangasarian:  "Our Besetting Sins."  I wrote about this platform elsewhere, so I won't extend the discussion here except to point out that statements of that period continue to have relevance in the present even if only to provide a new perspective for our current thinking.  

Adler's platform, "Consolations," can also be found in this volume.  His description of the usual consolations offered in the face of death--universality of death, sympathy for loss, time's healing hand--woke within me the recollection of those consolations in facing the loss of my late husband.  Adler's clear and objective rejection of those consolations as having any real healing power made me weep.  He continued, however, to speak of compassion for and duty toward others and the functional utility of action as a source of healing (and consolation).  The thoughts that our lost loved ones live on within us brings a feeling of awe and, yes, some healing as well.  Adler ends this platform, apparently the end of a year-long series of platforms, thusly:

           The great mistake we make is that we do not look
upon our friends in the right way while they are still
alive and present with us. We cannot think of them
rightly when they are gone, if we do not think of them
rightly while they are still living. Often we regard them
as if they were our property. We believe that they exist
for the sake of our happiness, though we admit that we
also exist for the sake of theirs. But happiness is an
ambiguous term which easily becomes misleading. We
should look upon our beloved with more of awe. Their
true ministry is to be for us Revealers of the Divine, to
teach us to estimate rightly the things that are worth
trying for and the things that are not, to help us to become
equal to the standard of our best performance, and
to grow into our own true selves. And the world is not
dark when they have departed, because what they have
revealed remains. Their influence remains. The light
of their countenance still shines upon us. And to walk
always in that light, to live in the spirit of the holy dead
—worthy of them—is the supreme consolation.  [Emphasis added.]

As is often the case with Adler, it's difficult to excerpt the core idea without bringing along a fair amount of rhetorical flourish.  I'm not so sure about "Revealers of the Divine" or "holy dead," but Adler seems to have gotten well within range of something that qualifies as a consolation for such loss.  And, of course, I wept. (What?  Tears can heal, too.)

The Bibliography for Ethical Culture is now online!  I have placed it in my own Google Drive for the time being.  I continue to seek partners in this work.  In the meantime, I gratefully acknowledge the encouragement and advice given by Louise Jett (St. Louis Society for Ethical Culture) as I have taken some of the initial steps in this project.