Decree, issued by the [Austrian] Imperial-Royal Court Commission on Academics [present-day Austria]: “As it has come to pass that under the title Bne-Zion, a religious-moral textbook for the youth of the Israelite nation, has been completed and found to be adequate for its purpose, His Majesty have ordered that: 1st, this textbook shall be introduced at all Jewish schools as a mandatory book of instruction, and that all those tasked with inspecting the Jewish schools shall ensure its purpose-driven usage. 2nd, that every groom and every bride from the Israelite nation, when they apply for a wedding permit, are examined by a county official about the contents of this textbook, receiving the permit to marry only once they have passed the examination.” [Researcher’s note: Bne-Zion was a work commissioned by the Austrian government, for the instruction of Jewish students in moral and religious principles.]
Homberg, Naphtali Herz. Bne-Zion: Ein religiös-moralisches Lehrbuch für die Jugend israelitischer Nation (Bne-Zion: A Religious-Moral Textbook for the Youth of the Israelite Nation). Royal Schoolbook Printing-House: Vienna, 1812. Frontispiece. Researched by Dominik Jacobs 2/9/2020