The Ethical Seminar in Czernowitz

Leo Baeck Institute: Constantin Brunner (actually named Leo Wertheimer) was born in Altona, Germany on August 27, 1862, the grandson of Rabbi Akiba Wertheimer. [...] Brunner lived since 1895 as an independent academic with his family in Berlin; 1913-30 in Potsdam and after l933 in exile in The Hague, where he died on August 27, 1937. With his Magnum Opus "Die Lehre von den Geistigen und vom Volk" he conceptualized a philosophical system connected to Spinoza and against Kant, Nietzsche and academic philosophy. [...] Since the publication of his main work in 1908, but especially due to his personality, Brunner attracted the spiritually young, as well as intellectuals, politicians and artists, thus creating the "Brunner-Circle". [...]

Constantin Brunner and Frederick Kettner, Misdroy/Poland, August 1912

Apart from Berlin, where a Constantin Brunner Society was formed in 1925, the main center was in Czernowitz, the "Ethical Seminar" founded by Frederick Kettner [actually named Friedrich Katz] in 1919.

The Ethical Seminar Czernowitz, 1921

The Ethical Seminar Czernowitz, 1922

Since 1933 his followers dispersed all over the world. In 1947 they founded the "International Constantin Brunner Institute" in The Hague to publish Brunner’s work once again and to advocate his memory.

Eduard Rudnicki / Eli Rottner, 1925

Leo Baeck Institute: Eduard Rudnicki, better known as Eli Rottner, was born on March 8, 1898 in Stryj, East Galicia. [...] His friend Schlomo Ball introduced Rudnicki to the Jewish Zionist youth organization Haschomer being a member himself. In the spring of 1919, however, they formed their own youth group working on a farm in Slobodka-Lesna in order to enlarge their agricultural abilities aiming to immigrate to Palestine in the near future. In June 1919, a pogrom in this town, in which several were killed and others badly injured, forced Rudnicki and Ball to leave Slobodka-Lesna. They illegally fled to Czernowitz, which was Rumanian territory since 1918. In Czernowitz, Rudnicki got to know Friedrich Katz. Friedrich Katz (1886-1957) was a teacher, philosophical author and poet, who called himself Frederick Kettner after his immigration to the U.S.A. [...] Katz played an important role in the reception of the philosophy of Constantin Brunner, being the founder of the so-called 'Ethical Seminar' in Czernowitz, which Eduard Rudnicki joined. [...] In 1957, he immigrated to Israel after having lived in Poland until then. Because of bad health, Rudnicki returned to Germany to his daughter in 1966, divorced his wife and died in 1979. Eduard Rudnicki/Eli Rottner is the author of [...] "Das Ethische Seminar in Czernowitz - Die Wiege des internationalen Constantin-Brunner-Kreises".

• PDF: The Members of the Ethical Seminar Czernowitz
• PDF: The Members of the Ethical Seminar Poland
• PDF: "Das Ethische Seminar in Czernowitz" by E. Rottner

• Link: The Papers of Constantin Brunner 1866-2010
• Link: Photographs 1866-1994
• Link: The Papers of Eduard Rudnicki 1898-1979
• Link: The International Constantin Brunner Institute
• Link: The Biosophical Institute
• Link: Lothar Bickel 1919-1951 by Meschulam Eisenstein

No.	First Name and Surname	Original Profession	Residence (1965)	Deceased	Year	Photographs 1866-1994 Series VI Subseries / Box / Folder
1	Ignaz / Irving Ausländer	employee	New York
2	Rose Ausländer née Scherzer	poetess	New York			7 / 1 / 1
3	Bella Ball née Rosenkranz	hausfrau		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944	6 / 1 / 1; 7 / 1 / 2
4	Schlomo Ball	accountant		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944	6 / 1 / 1; 7 / 1 / 2
5	Karl / Kalman Barasch	physician	Haifa / Israel
6	Jakob Baron	dentist	Milan / Italy
7	Rika Baumgarten-Pitaru	hausfrau	Haifa
8	Eliezer / Lothar Bickel	physician and writer		Deceased after 1944	1951	2 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 1 / 3
9	Mady Bickel					6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
10	Esther Billig	employee	USA
11	Margarete Bittlinger					6 / 1 / 2
12	Blitz					6 / 1 / 1
13	Donia Breger-Moris	hausfrau	Jerusalem
14	Berta Breitner	hausfrau	Israel
15	Phöbus Chacham	musician	South-America
16	Frieda Chalfen-Weidler	physician	Jerusalem
17	Babette Chomed	piano teacher	Romania
18	Eliezer Damm	employee	Czernowitz
19	Fanny Dankner	secondary school teacher	Tel Aviv
20	Rosa Dickmann	secondary school teacher	USSR
21	Rachel Drimmer	artisan	Tel Aviv
22	Rifka / Ruth Drimmer	cosmetician	Tel Aviv
23	Josef Drucker	lawyer		Deceased after 1944	?
24	Josef Ehrenkranz					6 / 1 / 3
25	Leonore Ehrenkranz née Krämer					6 / 1 / 3
26	Israel Eisenstein	physician	Ramat Gan, Israel			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2, 6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 4; 6 / 1 / 5; 6 / 1 / 6; 7 / 2 / 2
27	Lisa Eisenstein					6 / 1 / 3
28	Meschulam Eisenstein	graduate engineer	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 5; 6 / 1 / 6; 6 / 1 / 7; 7 / 2 / 3 ?
29	Toni Eisenstein née Weinrauch	secondary school teacher	Bucharest
30	Dora Eisler	psychiologist	Tel Aviv
31	Asriel Engler	secondary school teacher	USSR
32	Rosa Engler née Freund	secondary school teacher	USSR
33	Essenfeld					6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
34	Emanuel Essenfeld	physician	Caracas / Venezuela			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
35	Maximilian Fischbach	graduate engineer		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
36	Wilhelm Fischbach					6 / 1 / 1
37	Hermann Flickstein (Henry Freeman)	secondary school teacher	New York
38	Jakob Flickstein	secondary school teacher		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
39	Dora Freier-Biron	hausfrau	England
40	Koppel Fröhlich					6 / 1 / 3
41	Paula Fröhlich					6 / 1 / 2
42	Geller					6 / 1 / 1
43	Hedwig Gingold née Grabscheid	director	San Francisco
44	Norbert Gingold	composer and conductor	San Francisco
45	Bella Glasberg
46	David Glasberg	physician		Deceased after 1944	1962	7 / 2 / 4
47	Moritz / Moniu Goldschläger	MBA	Haifa			6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 7
48	Lea Gott	hausfrau	Bucharest
49	Mosche Gronich	physician	France			6 / 1 / 1 ?
50	Saly Gronich	accountant	Israel
51	Toni Gronich-Bermann	hausfrau		Deceased after 1944	1960
52	Hansi / Johann Grossmann	construction technician and painter		Deceased after 1944	1958	6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
53	Elinor Grünberg					6 / 1 / 3
54	Eugenie Grünberg née Hurtig	secondary school teacher	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 5; 6 / 1 / 6; 6 / 1 / 7; 7 / 2 / 6
55	Phobeus Grünberg	secondary school teacher	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 5; 7 / 2 / 6
56	Wilhelm Grünberg	physician	Düsseldorf			6 / 1 / 1
57	Louis Hafner	employee	New York
58	Camillo Hart	physician	USSR / ?
59	David Hasenfratz	businessman	Paris
60	Adolf Heitner	physician	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 5
61	Perle Hessing	painter	Sydney / Australia
62	Siegfried Hessing	writer	Sydney / Australia
63	Hirsch					6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
64	Anna Hirsch					6 / 1 / 1
65	Aron Hirsch	public servant	Israel			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
66	Anny Hirsch née Silberbusch	hausfrau	Israel			6 / 1 / 1
67	Josef Hitzig	university professor		Deceased after 1944	1963
68	Gisela Hitzig-Körner	hausfrau		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
69	Mirjam Hoffert-Chorani	sociologist	Tel Aviv
70	Abraham Hollinger	university professor, mathematics	Bucharest
71	Berta Hollinger	student		Suicide	1922
72	Jochebed Hollinger	kindergartener	London
73	Paul Hollinger	businessman		Deceased after 1944	1964	6 / 1 / 1; 7 / 2 / 8
74	Rosa Horowitz	pharmacist		Deceased after 1944	1946
75	Tuliu Horowitz	physician	Israel
76	Lola Huber-Feldmann	hausfrau	France
77	Rosa Huber-Semmel	hausfrau	Israel
78	Josef Hurtig	secondary school teacher		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944	3 / 1 / 7; 7 / 2 / 8
79	Milo Isackson	physician	Paris
80	Rudolf Jankiel	composer, music teacher	New York
81	Mala Just	nurse		Deceased after 1944	1949
82	Sascha Just	employee		Deceased after 1944	1945
83	Anna Kaes	hausfrau	Israel
84	Siegfried Kaes	physician	Czernowitz
85	Armin Kahn / Costa	physician	Vienna
86	Golde Kalmann-Steigmann	hausfrau	Israel
87	Magdalena Kasch					6 / 1 / 2
88	Eva Katz	hausfrau	Israel
89	Rebbeka Katz	employee	Israel
90	Chana Katz-Fajcewicz	nurse	Israel
91	Meyer Kesten	psychiologist	Buenos Aires			6 / 1 / 3
92	Friedrich Kettner (Founder and leader of the „Ethical Seminar“)	secondary school teacher		Deceased after 1944	1957	2 / 1 / 1; 7 / 4 / 1
93	Gusta Kinnsbrunner	employee	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 1
94	Siegfried Klar	businessman	unknown
95	Friedel Körner-Weinstein	stenotypist	Israel
96	Mania Kraft	secondary school teacher	New York			7 / 4 / 1 ?
97	Hermann Kraushaar / Zwi Amital	farmer	Yagur / Israel
98	Isaak Kugler	university professor	Maracaibo / Venezuela
99	Mina Kümmelmann-Schmerz	unknown	unknown
100	Lazar Lachs	businessman	Vienna
101	Camillo Landmann	secondary school teacher	Israel
102	Fanny Landmann née Silbermann	hausfrau	Haifa / Israel
103	Schlomo Landmann	jurist and accountant	Haifa / Israel
104	Sara Laufer	employee	Jerusalem			6 / 1 / 4
105	Tuliu Laufer	physician	Halifax / Canada
106	Bronia Lautermann	hausfrau	Tel Aviv
107	Toni Lazarowicz	hausfrau		Deceased after 1944	?
108	Lilly Lehr-Bitter	hausfrau	Haifa
109	Max Liquornik	employee	Toronto / Canada			6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 4 / 2
110	Isiu Loebel / Jizchak Level	physician	Giv’atayim / Israel
111	Henry Lurie	graduate engineer	New York
112	Regina Lurie née Kümmelmann	hausfrau	New York
113	Bibi Meidler	employee		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944	6 / 1 / 1; 7 / 4 / 3
114	Tusia Meidler	hausfrau		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
115	Chawa Meier	hausfrau		Deceased after 1944	1956
116	Heinrich Meier	businessman	Paris
117	Mirjam Meier née Hasenfratz	hausfrau	Paris
118	Schlomo Meilen	businessman		Deceased after 1944	1951
119	Munio Melzer	pharmacist	Israel
120	Viktor Melzer	physician	Bad Nauheim
121	Erna Menczer					6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
122	Josef Menczer	physician		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944	6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 4 / 3
123	Adam Meyer	jurist		Suicide	1925
124	Schalom Miron formerly Putterklee	bookseller	Tel Aviv
125	Siegfried Miron					6 / 1 / 3
126	Norbert Neumann	jurist		Deceased after 1944	? / 1947
127	Willi Ordinans	graduate engineer	Tel Aviv
128	Fidsiu / Fritz Osterer	employee	Tel Aviv
129	Mirjam Pograbowski	unknown	unknown
130	Aron Moses Rapaport	physician, university professor	Toronto / Canada			6 / 1 / 7; 7 / 4 / 6 ?
131	Josef Rathauser					6 / 1 / 1
132	Chawa Rauchwerger	unknown	Paris
133	Michael Rechter	secondary school teacher		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
134	Samuel (?) Reiter	unknown	unknown
135	Siegfried Reitmann	pharmacist	Tiberias / Israel
136	Susi Resch née Pesach	hausfrau	Haifa			6 / 1 / 1
137	Simon Resch	physician	Haifa
138	Abraham Retter	graduate engineer	Jerusalem			6 / 1 / 7; 7 / 4 / 6
139	Malka Retter née Brunstein	hausfrau	Jerusalem			7 / 4 / 6
140	Rinde					6 / 1 / 1
141	Friedrich Roll	graduate engineer	Düsseldorf
142	Chawa Rosenblatt	laboratory assistant	Jerusalem
143	Gisela Rosenblatt	hausfrau	Haifa
144	Emil Rosenkranz / Rosi	graduate engineer		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
145	Pnina Rosenkranz née Katz	secondary school teacher		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
146	Ludwig Rost	lawyer	New York			6 / 1 / 3
147	Misia Rost	secondary school teacher	New York
148	Eli Rottner / Edward Rudnicki	graduate economist	Jerusalem			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 5 / 1
149	David / Dagobert Runes	writer and publisher	New York
150	Maria Runes née Gronich	hausfrau	New York
151	Lotte Sack	hausfrau	Haifa
152	Frieda Sack-Schapira	hausfrau	Tel Aviv
153	Arnold Salzberg	physician	Tel Aviv
154	Ludwig Sandmann	employee		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944	6 / 1 / 1 ?
155	Jizchak Schapira	chemist		Suicide	1924
156	Nusiu Schapira	physician	USA
157	Berta Schatten	pianist		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
158	Siegi Schatten	pianist		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
159	Opanas Schewtschukiewicz (The only so-called „Aryan“)	physician	Czernowitz
160	Camillo Schleier	businessman	Paris
161	Baruch Schleim	employee	Bucharest
162	Toni Schneeberg	unknown		Perished in the Holocaust	1941-1944
163	Sunia Schneier	employee	Jerusalem
164	Rosa Schwarz-Rosenbach	employee	USSR
165	Irene Schwarzer	unknown	unknown
166	Hersch Segal	secondary school teacher	Rechovot / Israel
167	Josef Seide	employee	Tel Aviv			6 / 1 / 5
168	Lotte Seide née Klein	hausfrau	Tel Aviv			6 / 1 / 5 ?
169	Karl Semmel	businessman	Israel
170	Anny Silber	teacher	Israel			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 4; 6 / 1 / 5; 7 / 5 / 3
171	Sophie Silberbusch-Bimko	hausfrau	Israel
172	Jehuda Silbermann	pharmacist		Deceased after 1944	1958
173	Daniel Sinnreich	physician	Vatra Dornei			6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 5 / 3
174	Nathan Sinnreich	graduate engineer	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 5; 7 / 5 / 3
175	Claire Sinnreich née Hönich	hausfrau	Bucharest			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 5 / 3
176	Steffi Smuthny					6 / 1 / 1
177	Genia Sonnenschein	hausfrau	Haifa
178	Leo Sonntag	businessman	Paris			3 / 1 / 7; 6 / 1 / 5; 7 / 5 / 3
179	Erna Sonntag née Sucher	employee		Deceased after 1944	1963	6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2
180	Klara Sonntag-Meidler	employee	Paris			6 / 1 / 1; 7 / 4 / 3 ?
181	Luzy Sternberg-Grossmann	employee	Bucharest
182	Anny Sternberg-Hitzig	employee	Bucharest
183	Rika Sternberg-Holder	hausfrau	Caracas			6 / 1 / 1
184	Rosa Sternberg-Miron	sewer	Tel Aviv			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 4; 6 / 1 / 6; 6 / 1 / 7; 7 / 4 / 3
185	Lore Sternchuß née Neumann	hausfrau	Toronto			7 / 5 / 4 ?
186	Mosche Sternschuß / Sterian	secondary school teacher	Toronto			6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 5 / 4
187	Gabriel Stier	physician	Tel Aviv			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 6 / 1 / 4; 6 / 1 / 5
188	Koka Stier					6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3
189	Rosa Storfer-Landau	physician	England
190	Fabian Sucher	accountant	Israel
191	Salo Tischler	accountant		Deceased after 1944	1963	6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3 ?
192	Israel Wiegler	MBA	Haifa			6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 3; 7 / 5 / 4
193	Malcia Wiegler née Filzer	hausfrau	Haifa			6 / 1 / 3
194	Regina Wiegler	pharmacist	Buenos Aires
195	Zilly Wiegler	employee		Deceased after 1944	1945
196	Heinrich Winik	psychiatrist	Jerusalem			6 / 1 / 1; 6 / 1 / 2; 6 / 1 / 4
197	Berta Winkler-Schönfeld	hausfrau	Tel Aviv
198	Wolf					6 / 1 / 2
199	Elias Zolkiewer al. Ringer (Kettner’s deputy)	secondary school teacher	Czernowitz
200	Heinrich (?) Zucker / der Bucklige	unknown	unknown
201	Ignaz Zwielich	secondary school teacher	New York