Anthroposphy and anti-Semitism
Was Rudolf Steiner an anti-Semite? A study
by Manfred Leist, Lorenzo Ravagli and Hans J�gen Bader
"All is race;
there is no other truth."
(Benjamin Disraeli, British Prime Minister)
"Any person
who speaks of race ideals today
is speaking of impulses which lead mankind into decadence."
(Rudolf Steiner, 1917)
From Introductory Remarks:
There is a definite reason for
publishing this study. A number of allegations have recently been publicly
leveled against Rudolf Steiner in Germany; they pertain to his supposed
anti-Semitism and racist attitude. The intention of these allegations is
obvious: they are an attack on Waldorf schools and other institutions that base
their activity on Rudolf Steiner's teachings, because the necessity is seen to
establish "political correctness" in this sensitive area of society.
But Steiner is not the only target.
The Holocaust has sharpened sensibilities considerably. Other prominent
personalities have also been the addressees of such accusations in recent
times: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, for example. Goethe, an anti-Semite! A
charge of this sort - which, incredible as it may seem, was actually brought
forth - can be sure to command the attention of the general public. It will
certainly also elicit strong refutations, because anyone with even an inkling
of Goethe's achievements will find this accusation just too extreme and in
complete contradiction to the man and his work. However, it is possible to find
remarks by Goethe which, if one does not know and take into consideration their
historical background, would seem to corroborate this claim.
If such accusations are leveled
against Rudolf Steiner, it is a good deal more difficult to defend him. His
work is much less well known than Goethe's, and therefore the accusations
appear to be more believable. This makes such claims harder to refute.
There has been an inflation of
allegations of anti-Semitism in recent years which has not been particularly
conducive to combating real anti-Semitism. Jens Jessen drew attention to this
inflation and its pernicious effect in the German weekly periodical Die Zeit,
No. 49/2000. Only "sophrosyne", the little esteemed secondary virtue
of level-headedness, will in the end be able to secure the survival of the
primary virtue, the opposition to true anti-Semitism.
And indeed: if Steiner's real
intentions were dealt with and people became sufficiently familiar with them,
that is, if sophrosyne were to hold sway, it is hardly conceivable that anyone
would reap the benefits of sensationalism by accusing Steiner of being an
anti-Semite�"
Rudolf Steiner was born in
Kraljevic, Austria on February 27, 1861, and died in Dornach, Switzerland, on March
30, 1925. He was a scientist, writer, lecturer and philosopher, as well as
being the founder and leading light of Anthroposophy, a movement based on the
belief that there is a spiritual world comprehensible to pure thought but
accessible only to the highest faculties of mental (spiritual) activity.
Steiner edited Goethe's scientific
works, and from 1889 to 1896 worked on the standard version of his complete
works at Weimer. During this period Steiner wrote his "Philosophy of
Freedom", then moved to Berlin to edit the literary journal "Magazin
f�r Literatur" and to begin an extensive, life-long lecturing career.
Convinced of the possibility of
spiritual perception independent of the senses, he called the activity of his
research "anthroposophy", centering on "knowledge produced by
the higher self in man". All of his many books and over 6,000 lectures are
available in German and most in English as well.
The practical results of Steiner's
work include hundreds of "Waldorf" schools the world over, bio-dynamic
agriculture and anthroposophical medicine. These movements continue growing and
nourishing society.
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