Jakob Guttmann (22 April 1845 in Beuthen, Oberschlesien – 29 September 1919 in Breslau) was a German-Jewish philosopher of religion (Religionsphilosoph) and rabbi. He officiated as chief rabbi of the Land rabbinate of Hildesheim between 1874 and 1892. Thereafter he served as rabbi in Breslau until his death.

Life

Guttmann was the son of a merchant from Beuthen (now Bytom). In 1861 he entered the Jewish Theological Seminary in Breslau (now Wrocław). He studied philosophy at the University of Breslau, graduating in 1868 with a doctorate on the philosophy of Descartes and Spinoza. In 1874 he became a rabbi in Hildesheim, and from 1892 he was a rabbi of the liberal Jewish community in Breslau. In 1910, he was elected chairman of the Rabbinical Union in Germany, a post he held until 1919. He also conducted active academic research, specializing in the study of the works of medieval Jewish theologians and philosophers. These studies included Abraham ibn Daud, Saadia Gaon, Solomon ibn Gabirol, Maimonides, and Isaac Abarbanel as well as works on the influence of Medieval Jewish philosophy on the views of Christian philosophers such as Thomas Aquinas and Duns Scotus. From 1911, Guttmann chaired the Society for the Promotion of Jewish Science. He was the father of Julius Guttmann.

Works