Salomon Formstecher, in English also Solomon, (1808-1889) was a German rabbi and student of Jewish theology.

Formstecher was born in Offenbach am Main on July 28, 1808. After graduating (Ph.D. 1831) from the Giessen University, he settled in his native city as preacher, succeeding Rabbi Metz in 1842; he filled this office until his death on April 24, 1889.

During his long ministry he strove to harmonize the religious and social life of the Jews with the requirements of modern civilization. His aims were expressed at the Rabbinical Conference of Brunswick

Rabbinical Conference of Brunswick

The Rabbinical Conference of Brunswick was a conference held in 1844 in Brunswick, convoked by Levi Herzfeld and Ludwig Philippson. Other attendees included Solomon Formstecher, Samuel Hirsch, Mendel Hess, Samuel Holdheim...

, Frankfurt

Frankfurt

Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...

, Breslau, and Kassel

Kassel

Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...

 in the conferences of the German rabbis. The most important of his works is Religion des Geistes ("Religion of the Spirit," Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1841). It contains a systematic analysis of the principles of Judaism

Judaism

Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

. The author endeavors to demonstrate that Judaism was a necessary manifestation, and that its evolution tends in the direction of a universal religion for civilized mankind. Judaism, in contrast with paganism

Paganism

Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....

, considers the Divinity to be a Being separate from nature, and allows no doubt of God's existence. Consequently any theogony, any emanation, any dualism must be rejected. Formstecher concludes his work with a history of Judaism which is a valuable contribution to Jewish religious philosophy.

Formstecher's other works are:

• Zwölf Predigten, Würzburg, 1833
• Israelitisches Andachtsbüchlein zur Erweiterung und Ausbildung der Ersten Religiösen Gefühle und Begriffe, Offenbach, 1836
• Mosaische Religionslehre, Giessen, 1860
• Buchenstein und Cohnberg, a novel, Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1863
• Israel's Klage und Israel's Trost, Offenbach, 1835
• Ueber das Wesen und über den Fortgang der Israelitischen Gottesverehrung

Formstecher contributed to many periodicals, and edited in 1859, in collaboration with L. Stein, the periodical Der Freitagabend, and in 1861, with K. Klein, the Israelitische Wochenschrift.

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

• Meyer Kayserling
  Meyer Kayserling
  Meyer Kayserling was a German rabbi and historian.-Life:He was educated at Halberstadt, Nikolsburg , Prague, Würzburg, and Berlin. He devoted himself to history and philosophy...
  
  , Bibliothek Jüdischer Kanzelredner, ii. 137