Jews are not a religious society, but a secret society. Media and Media

Jews lived in their own communities, which separated them from the rest of the city's inhabitants. From a state-social point of view, this meant that the community was an institution operating in accordance with a number of rules that ensured Jews self-government in accordance with Jewish laws. The community was an autonomous entity. This autonomy, as we have already seen, was ensured by privileges issued by the authorities, which allowed Jews to create independent Jewish bodies of self-government. Each community had public organizations responsible for various spheres of life: administration, education, social assistance and the synagogue. The regulations of Jewish self-government regulated all aspects of an individual's life and determined his way of life. They complemented Halacha in determining the daily routine of each person and in establishing the framework of his economic and social activities. The community was in some way a closed structure, which itself determined the principles of its existence, but at the same time, it maintained extensive connections with the outside world and tried to adapt to its special requirements.

The basic appearance of the Jewish community in Germany and France, known as the “Ashkenazi community,” took shape in the 10th-11th centuries. The process of its formation occurred simultaneously with the growth of the Jewish population in various cities of Germany and northern France and in parallel with the creation of new cities in these countries. In places such as Mainz and Speyer, centers of Torah study emerged that shaped the face of European Jewry. The activities of leaders who enjoyed authority among their communities paved the way for the adaptation of Jewish life to the conditions of European activity. As a result of these activities, a strict communal structure was formed with its own authoritative leadership and clearly formulated rules of Jewish legal proceedings, as well as a developed system of relations between Jews within the community and relations between the community and the surrounding Christian society. These foundations of social order became the basis for the development of Jewish communities in Christian Europe and in later periods. The leadership in these communities was usually in the hands of the highest religious authorities, who combined intellectual activity with socio-political activity. As we have already said, such outstanding figures before 1096 were RaGMa and RaSHI, who laid the foundations for both intellectual activity and public organizations of the Jewish community. In his answers to halakhic questions and in the rulings attributed to him, Rabbi Gershom essentially laid the foundation for understanding how the Jewish community should be structured and operate. Two generations later, Rashi defined the framework of Jewish learning and halakhic rules of conduct (Halacha). Rashi's commentary on the Torah and Talmud actually ended a certain period in the history of European Jews and marked the beginning of a new period based on the results of the activities of Rashi itself. In the XII-XIII centuries. The successors of the work of Rashi were the Jewish sages of Germany and France, who are called the authors of the additions (“baalei tosafot”), since they wrote additions to the commentaries of Rashi.

It should be noted that at the beginning the communal system was not founded in Europe. Historians, among whom we should mention Salo Baron and Isaac Baer, ​​write that the main features that characterized the life of Jews in Europe in the period of interest to us are much more ancient. These characteristics developed concurrently with the development of Judaism during the Second Temple period and later. Isaac Baer wrote:

“[...] The community is thus an immanent formation in our history. It was not exile that gave birth to it, although the nature of the community's organization made it easily adaptable to any place, both in the Land of Israel and in exile. This organizational structure was suitable for any social and economic typology, be it peasants, artisans or traders, but with the self-evident condition that the external structure of the community would correspond to the religious and social trends that, in fact, created it, and which it should bring to life in opposition to pagan cultures and the Greek city as a whole [...]"

1. Try to convey in your own words quotes from Baer's article, while maintaining the connection between his statement and the question of the place of the Jewish minority in European society.
2. There is a sense of discussion in Baer’s words, but at the same time he does not allow us to understand against whom and against what statement his words are directed. Can you try to formulate a different point of view on this issue, using Baer's own words? In this case, you are not required to make a judgment regarding the correctness of a particular point of view. All that is required is simply to contrast one point of view with another.

The continuity between the early foundations of the Jewish community in ancient times and the much later structures in Europe that Baer points to is in some ways self-evident. Despite all the changes that have occurred in Jewish life over many generations, the basic forms have always been preserved both in the sphere of beliefs and convictions, and in social and Everyday life. If things had happened differently, Jews would not have become a minority group in Europe, but would simply have dissolved into European society. Judaism existed through obedience to the instructions of the Torah, Talmud and Mishnah, which served as the basis for both the study and execution of the commandments. This is that ahistorical and temporary constant, without which it is impossible to define medieval Jewry. But along with this unchanging basis, we can also find very significant differences in the development of different communities in different places and in different time, which point to a specific context that required such ways of adaptation from Jewry. Moreover, some phenomena that seem to us today to be an integral part of Judaism arose in a specific place and were previously unknown.

So, the Jewish community in Europe differed in its rulings and way of life from the previously accepted Jewish way of life. Irving Agus, who researched the history of the Jews in Germany and France, states:

“Their customs, their leading personalities, their treatment of wives and children, and their social structure bore little resemblance to the Jews of the Second Temple period or even to the average Babylonian and Egyptian Jew of the Geonic era.”

What factors do you think are at stake? What is the reason for the difference between the worldview of the Babylonian Jews and the Jews who lived in European countries Oh?

One can compare the process of creating Jewish communities in Europe with the process of formation of European culture that was taking place simultaneously. European civilization was built on the foundations laid by the lost Roman civilization. This process consisted of adapting a certain part of Roman structures to new needs. Jewish communities began the process of independent creation based on the tradition of centers for Torah study and community leadership that existed in Babylon. We must remember that during the formation of Jewish communities in the awakening Western Europe, the spiritual primacy in the Jewish world belonged to the leaders of communities in the countries of Islam. The Babylonian sages were recognized and undisputed authorities and leaders for the vast majority of Jews around the world. In that historical period, when the Ashkenazi communities went through the process of formation, they fully accepted the teachings of the Babylonian center. From the 11th century and further the Babylonian Talmud became the basis of thinking and social legislation for Western communities, but its adoption was preceded by a long dialogue, the task of which was to combine existing reality and tradition with the text. In ancient times, Ashkenazi sages edited these texts to suit their tradition. In some cases, the spiritual leaders of Ashkenazi Jewry acted contrary to the clearly expressed position of the Geons. This is what they did, for example, in the matter of being late in prayer and imposing fines outside the Land of Israel. The Babylonian Halakha sometimes led to conclusions that affected the economic functioning of European Jews. That is why such conclusions were subject to changes. This is exactly what the sages did when they allowed Jews to sail on rivers on Saturdays and holidays or to hire non-Jews as servants. In this way they tried to eliminate the discrepancy between Halacha and the demands of reality, which would make life for Jews in Europe simply impossible.

Illustration 11

Entrance to the synagogue in Regensburg. Engraving by Albrecht Aldorfer (circa 1480-1538) from 1519. The sign reads: “Entrance to the Jewish Synagogue of Ratisbon (Regetsburg). Released on February 21, 1519.

The history of the development of Jewish legislation (Halacha) is, in essence, the history of a long debate over the Talmudic texts. Each generation has tried to resolve the difficulties that these texts posed to them in order to clarify their meaning for themselves. During all periods of development of Jewish legislation, its drafters set themselves the task of preserving the Jewish essence and creating a framework for Jewish life, while adapting them to the norms of European life. Here are the words of Yaakov Katz on this issue:

“[...] Jewish legislation tries to maintain a balance between two active forces: adaptation to existing conditions, on the one hand, and the preservation of the Jewish essence, on the other. At times, Halakha follows social changes, as many historians have noted, [...] however, it never loses sight of its other purpose - to preserve Jewish self-identification, retroactively justifying inevitable changes. Therefore, one of the achievements of Jewish law is that it did not allow the individual or large groups Jews to interfere in the social and religious life of the Christian environment, since it limited and conditioned only those concessions that were required by the conditions of existence. Jewish legislation did not create the very fact of religious and social demarcation from the Christian environment; this division arose as a result of ethnic attachment to one’s own image and “chosenness”, as tradition described them, and all the restrictions that served as a means of separating the Jews from their environment were the consequence of this attachment. Jewish legislation was only required to determine the details of this socio-religious separation, and it relied on historical sources, while taking into account the conditions of the current reality. It was not the task of Halakha, based on precedent, to create new things or renew old things in the sphere of original religious concepts or in the sphere of public life - it was only to order and control.”

The way of life of Jews in Europe was initially based on an oral tradition passed down from father to son. This tradition created a whole system of customs (minhagim), which were considered sacred and binding. Some of them clearly contradicted the Talmud. Despite this, the medieval Ashkenazi sages tried to preserve these customs wherever possible, even if it was clear enough that in doing so they deviated from written Jewish law. Israel Ta-Shma devoted a detailed study to the question of the place of customs in the culture of Ashkenazi Jews and found that in no other communities was local custom given such importance as here. The halakhic discussion was thus influenced by the desire to give a halachic justification to the accepted custom.

The community reached its organizational peak when the institution of the rabbinate took shape and was defined. Mordecai Breuer wrote:

“The authority of the rabbinic communal elite was a consequence social development, during which the image of a sage took shape, whom the whole society recognizes as an interpreter of Jewish legislation and the leader of the community.
At the same time, a constant two-way dependence was formed between the rabbi and the rest of the society, based on the authority and power of this rabbi. This process began in the 9th-10th centuries. during the settlement of the Rhine Valley by families who came from Italy and brought with them a tradition of community organization that was adopted in the Land of Israel [...]” .

As time passed, this structure underwent a process of acceleration, became an institution, and the position of the rabbi was no longer determined by his “importance.”

SOURCES OF INFORMATION ABOUT THE JEWISH COMMUNITY

The character of the Jewish community can be reconstructed from halachic literature, which preserved decrees and decisions concerning various aspects of life. The term “Halakha” refers to the normative part of Jewish creativity, that is, to what has not only spiritual significance, but also effective application in the matter of fulfilling the commandments. Halacha is perceived as a detailed explanation of the commandments of the Torah with an explanation of the correct ways to fulfill them. Halakha was not a rigid set of laws and rules. She always tried, sometimes moderately, sometimes with excessive ardor, to find ways to solve practical problems that arose. The development of Halakha occurred in four directions, which reflected the characteristics of the main trends in Halakhic literature:

Comments: a commentary is essentially a reading of a text and an attempt to understand it in accordance with the stereotypes of the time. Commentaries on the Talmud, which were compiled during the period under consideration, contain, among other things, an attempt to read the text in relation to current problems day. At times, when there was an obvious discrepancy between the words of the ancient sages and modern socio-economic needs, commentators chose not to relate to the apparent meaning of these words. Commentaries on the Talmud played a central role in defining the character of the Jewish community and the limits of its authority.

Legal provisions: decisions made by the Jewish community were formalized into laws that were shaped by the outstanding leaders of this community. However, from time to time, as is usually the case, the need arose to change these legal provisions in order to bring them into line with the new reality, which posed halachic problems that simply had not arisen before. Sometimes these legal provisions were not connected with religious realities at all and were social character. The regulations are a clear manifestation of Jewish self-government and the strengthening of communal administration. There were legal provisions that turned out to be generally accepted throughout the entire geographical space in question, and there were also those that were adopted by individual communities.

Questions and answers (responses): The literature of questions and answers dates back to the times of the Babylonian Geons. It consists of questions that were sent by recognized experts in Halacha. These questions were asked mostly when the Jews had any doubts about a certain everyday affairs. Decisions based on personal problems formulated in questions are given great importance in the development of Jewish law. In many cases, issues arose as a result of discrepancies between economic and social conditions or customs and Halakha. In his answers, the sage developed this theme and decreed exactly how one should behave. The question-and-answer literature contains instructive material about life in Europe at that time, about its problems and difficulties.

Collections of resolutions: collections of resolutions are given a special place. We are talking about the literature that summarized all the rulings and halachic information and catalyzed them according to their areas of application. Literature of this kind first appeared in Muslim countries. First of all, we should mention the book of decrees of Rav Isaac Alfasi, compiled in the 11th century, and the work of the RamBaMa “Mishne Torah”, written in the 11th century. The books of rulings were intended to provide an immediate and clear answer to every Jew who wondered what he should do.

These types of halachic literature were not unique to Europe. They have characterized rabbinic Jewish creativity throughout the world since ancient times. However, this literature acquired a special character in the Jewish communities of Europe during the period described, reflecting the special path of development of these communities.

In matters of internal governance, the community enjoyed complete independence. True, many decisions were adopted with the consent of all other communities located in a certain geographical region, and there were leaders who enjoyed the unquestioning authority of halachic legislators, but this did not contradict the independence that each individual community defended. Rabbi Gershom (RaGM) decreed that “the verdict that the communities passed remains in force and what they do is done by right.” This unequivocal ruling suggests that the existence of differences between each city and region was well known. The position expressed in the words of Rabbi Gershom was developed so that Jewish life in each individual place could best meet the constantly changing local requirements. Rabbi Yosef Tov Elem, author of the addendums (tosafot), one of the most important European sages of France in the 11th century, emphasizes that “[...] it was decreed that the sages authorized each individual community to make its own rulings regarding itself, and no other community has no right to cancel them.” It was believed that such independence of each community corresponded to the political reality of that time. Israel Ta'Shma writes the following on this matter:

“The historical foundations of such a communal organization originate in the internal Jewish tradition, as reflected in Talmudic literature, and in the great importance attached to the pronounced decentralization of power that took place throughout the territory of the collapsing Carolingian state in the first feudal period, that is, according to Apparently, during the initial period of the formation of communities in France. During the same period, power in France was divided between big amount local rulers who waged a stubborn and brutal struggle among themselves to expand their sphere of power and influence, and the influence of the king as the supreme power was undermined everywhere. And in Germany, despite the fact that the situation of the central government was not so catastrophic, the actual political power was in the hands of local rulers. The background for all this was the ancient tradition of clan relationships, which the princes tried to protect from coups and changes initiated by the central government.”

How can one determine the place of the Jewish community in Europe at the time under discussion, based on the above quote?

The Jewish community was founded on the principle that it had the right to manage its own affairs and to force every member of the community to obey. The community had the right to impose its will on the individual; it could impose punishments such as excommunication or lashing. Various regulations that were passed at that time were designed to prevent economic rivalry between Jews and ensure unhindered trade. From earlier decrees, probably adopted in accordance with existing customs, more complex and mature structures have now grown up. Here are some examples:

"Maarufi"- an early decree, most likely a copy transferred from the Muslim world, which was supposed to prevent business rivalry between Jews in the field of trade. This ruling prohibited a Jew from entering into a trading relationship with a Christian client who was a regular client of another Jew.

Settlement ban- a resolution according to which members of a certain community had the right to prevent the settlement of new Jewish settlers on the territory of a given city in the event that these new settlers could take away their earnings.

Late in Prayer- a ruling according to which a Jew who was in the process of a dispute with one of the community members could delay community prayer until the dispute was resolved.

It should be noted that these regulations are basically similar to the regulations of the Christian guild, which was formed at the same time. In both cases, we are talking about organizations that set as their goal the ordering of social and economic life, as well as the prevention of internal business rivalry between its members. It is difficult to unambiguously determine how exactly these structures were created. Baer believed that Jewish communities preceded the emergence of corporate structures in Christian cities and even served as a model for their creation. This, although an unfounded assumption, seems very likely to us. The commercial life of the city served as the basis for Christian corporate associations. We already know that early European communities consisted mainly of Jewish traders, and therefore many regulations had to regulate trade. Be that as it may, the social structures that arose in the Jewish quarters were similar to parallel structures that arose at the same time among Christian townspeople. All these rules, which arose in Jewish and Christian environments, became clear and formally justified in the 12th century. In both groups, these rules were supposed to solve pressing problems that the changing reality posed to them.

JEWISH COMMUNITY AND CHRISTIAN ORGANIZATIONS

Simultaneously with the development of the European Jewish community, social and cultural organizations of the Christian city were formed. Each of the organizations performed numerous and varied functions, while the community performed all of these functions simultaneously. Despite this fundamental difference, it is interesting to compare the Jewish community and the organizations of a Christian city. Such a comparison will help us understand what relationships existed between organizational structures majorities and minorities, in what ways they were similar to each other and how they differed from each other.

Jewish Community and Guild

The guild was a characteristic institution of the medieval Christian city. The first guilds appeared in the main trading cities of Italy. Various forms of guild organization appeared in the cities of northern Europe as early as the 11th century, but they were fully formed only at the beginning of the 12th century, when these formations acquired a formal and official character. In the initial period, townspeople were not divided into traders and artisans. From the middle of the 12th century. The urban population began to grow. With the development of production, a distinction emerged between the guild of merchants and the guild of artisans. The city turned into a formation consisting of several guilds. The guild was an association consisting of people engaged in the same business. The purpose of the association was to protect the economic and social rights and interests of its members. In the cities there were guilds of traders in wool, wine and other goods, as well as guilds of textile manufacturers, guilds of shoemakers, bakers, and so on. Merchant guilds adopted a charter that was supposed to ensure normal trade and prevent competition between their members. Artisan guilds determined the quantity of products that each artisan could produce, as well as the order of production, the price level, the number of assistants that an artisan could keep, and the order of training that one had to go through to become a master in their profession. The Guild united people not only on professional grounds, it also united people from a socio-religious point of view. In essence, the guild determined all areas of the lives of its members. When joining the guild, they swore an oath of allegiance. At the heart of the guild was a feeling of deep solidarity among all its members. The guild was formed around the image of a certain Christian saint, who was considered the patron of all its members. She created her own own structures: churches, schools and charitable community institutions. Members of the guild celebrated holidays and special events together, and also participated in mourning ceremonies and experienced grief together. Typically, guild members settled in the same area, differed in specific details of clothing, and even had their own banner and special symbols, which were a source of community pride.

In the city, which consisted of guilds of merchants and artisans, there also lived a Jewish community, operating in accordance with the same principles on which the guild was founded. The community, like the guild, was an organization that set itself both economic and religious goals. It defined itself as a religious community, but its charter was also intended to streamline economic relations between its members. Members of the Ashkenazi Jewish community, like members of the guild, were united by common professional interests. We have already noted that in the 11th century. The Jewish community served in the Ashkenazi region as something of a “guild of merchants.” Since interest-bearing loans became an almost exclusively Jewish activity, this phenomenon, especially in Germany, has become even more pronounced. At the same time, the communities of Spain and Italy were of a completely different character. These communities were less homogeneous; they had clear professional and class differentiation. In addition, members of the Jewish community created structures that were similar to those found in guilds. At the center of the community was a synagogue, and schools and charitable institutions were grouped around it. The development of communal leadership, including the rabbinate, also largely corresponded to how city and guild leadership was formed. From all of the above it follows that the Jewish community was an integral part of the city. Despite the differences between it and the other guilds, one cannot help but perceive the Jewish community as one aspect of the overall urban structure. Jews were not always allowed to settle in cities. They were prohibited from living in various cities in France and Italy and, most likely, the reason for this ban was economic rivalry. But where Jews were allowed to live, their existence was based on legal principles more or less similar to those on which the rest of society was based. Jews paid high taxes, but this gave them the right to govern independently inner life communities in the same way as the city guilds did.

Illustration 12

Master of the Crafts Guild and his apprentices. Miniature from a 15th century manuscript. (London. British Library, Ms. Royal 15.E.il, fol. 265)

On the map of the medieval city, the Jewish quarter is not much different from all other parts of the city. In the center of the Christian quarter there is a church, in the center of the Jewish quarter there is a synagogue. Like all other groups of city dwellers, Jews stood out for their special manner of dressing, special pronunciation of words and special customs. This similarity with the Christian majority was often the cause of problems on both sides. Because of these problems, leaders of both communities sought ways to separate. This fact itself suggests that the differences between Jews and Christians were not always striking.

We talked about the similarities between the Jewish community and the guild.
Based on these similarities, can you point out the differences? For example, how did the Jewish community differ from the guild of textile merchants? Point out at least a few differences.

In addition to comparing the Jewish community with professional guilds, a comparison arises with such a special guild as the universities. In the 12th century intellectual life was grouped around cathedrals and famous teachers who were concentrated there. Gradually a structure of education took shape, eventually leading to the creation of universities. Universities were created as corporate organizations that included teachers and students. Their establishment was supposed to ensure the creation of convenient conditions for study and dissemination of knowledge. In the XII-XIII centuries. Several universities appeared, the main ones being those in Paris, Bologna and Oxford.

Illustration 13

Jewish merchants. There are gold and silver coins on the table in front of everyone. Illustration in a 15th-century Hebrew manuscript. (detail). (Oxford, Bodleian Library, Ms. Opp. 154, fol. 39v)

Translated from Latin, the term “universitas” means “whole”, “complete”, “comprehensive”. Hence, in Roman law, the definition of a university appeared as an association of people, to which the law treats as a special group. For example, the Jews living in the Roman Empire were treated as “universitas Judaeorum,” the community of all Jews. In the Middle Ages, the term was used to designate a Christian corporation or guild. It is true that universities were subject to the norms and conditions prescribed to them by the civil authorities and the church, but in everything that concerned internal management and the choice of framework they were autonomous organizations. Social norms of behavior and professional criteria were regulated by university leadership. Soon universities became the leading and formative institutions in Europe in the field of spiritual life.

Universities attracted young people to the city, who became their living and radical component. True, they were connected with the city and city life, but still they remained, as it were, outside. Tension between students and townspeople often erupted into riots and open fighting. This was especially true of foreign students, who gathered into separate groups called “nations” (nationes). These “nations” created their own churches and administrative organizations, as well as their own courts to decide their internal disputes. This method of organizing foreign students was merely a special expression of the general character of the universities.

In The Birth of Civilization, Shlomo Ne'eman explores the relationship between the university and the city. He concluded that “some of this dialectic of mutual dependence and mutual tension also reflects the typical relationship between the city and the Jewish community within its borders.”
Try to confirm this point of view with the help of information you have already received.
Try to find the weaknesses in this analogy.

Illustration 14

Interior of the synagogue. Illustration in a Hebrew manuscript from Spain. Mid-14th century Behind the worshipers can be seen a raised platform in the synagogue, supported by thin columns, to which a staircase leads. (London, British Library, Ms. Or. 2884, fol. 17v).

We came to the conclusion that the Jewish community functioned as a guild. The institution of the rabbinate, the official leadership of the community, was formed along with the system of professionalization in the urban economic system, that is, with the guild. Israel Yuval showed how in the 13th-14th centuries, along with the organization of the social and economic system, similarities arose between professional guilds and the rabbinate. He's writing:

“If we want to compare the formation of the rabbinate with some parallel phenomenon in Christian society, we should look for this similarity in the processes of specialization and monopolization in the social and economic spheres of the late Middle Ages. The economic and legal principles according to which the guilds were governed in Germany took final shape already in the 13th century, although their struggle to transform these achievements into political force began only in the 14th century, that is, as mentioned above, at the same time as The institution of the rabbinate was formed. It goes without saying that direct parallels should not be drawn between the institution of the rabbinate and the guilds. They were built on different ideological and functional foundations. However, it seems that there is still a causal connection of some similarities in the atmosphere and in the complex concepts adopted in both spheres, which make it possible to place these two phenomena under a common roof. This may contribute to the historical understanding of what the Ashkenazi rabbinate is. The semantic expression of this similarity is found in the correspondence of technical terms denoting internal distribution both in the guilds and in the rabbinate. The guild is divided into three classes: masters (Meister), hired workers (Gesellen, Knechte) and apprentices (Lehrlinge). The former are the owners of the workshops. They were allowed to practice their profession only after receiving a master's diploma. One step lower are hired workers, those who have already completed the training course, but have not yet received the title of master. Apprentices were students of the master who worked for him for payment during the entire period of upbringing and professional education.

A remarkably similar division into three categories existed in the rabbinate. The title “master” corresponded, of course, to the title “rabbi”, who bore the title “moreinu” - “our teacher”.

In German documents he is always designated by the words: master (Meister) or senior master (Hochmeister). The last word comes from the Latin word “magister”, which means “teacher”.

The second in the rabbinical hierarchy was “haver” - “comrade”. This ancient Jewish concept, which had different meanings during the Second Temple period and later, evolved into 14th-century Germany. with the development of Ashkenazi ordination to official rank. “Haver” is the best student (talmid hacham) who has not yet been initiated and received the title of “moreinu.” The linguistic proximity between the words “Geselle” and “haver” is quite impressive. We are clearly dealing with a very exact translation a term that existed among Christians, a word that existed among the ancient Jews. We will not be able to accurately determine the duties that the “haver” performed. We are dealing with the reproduction of a technical term from the Christian environment, which was never filled with real content in the rabbinate system. The term remained primarily a designation of honorary rank. [...]

The third level of the rabbinical hierarchy is, of course, the student who studies with the rabbi and owes him this honor. In the literature of that time, much space was devoted to the discussion on the rights and responsibilities of a student in relation to his teacher before and after the teacher ordains him as a rabbi. We find similar regulations regarding the rights and obligations of the apprentice in relation to the master teaching him in the records of the artisans' guilds. Let us note that a hundred student (talmid), like his colleague Lehrling, often received some kind of payment from his teacher. True, this custom existed among Jews in ancient times, which does not diminish its similarity with the custom that existed among Christians. Perhaps this similarity only strengthened the application in modern times of the ancient Jewish custom [...]”

Both in professional guilds and in Jewish communities, it was customary to carefully select students and eliminate those who were called “ignoramuses”, they were perceived as a threat to the entire educational system and social hierarchy. Thus, the process of formation of the rabbinate goes hand in hand with the process of formation of economic structures and shows how the Jewish community fit into the cultural and economic fabric of Europe.

USURY

The rise of the urban classes in general and the creation of the guild of Christian merchants in particular gradually led to a narrowing of the opportunities for economic initiative for Jews. As we remember, the guild considered itself a Christian organization, so Jews were not allowed to enter it. After the Crusades, strong and reliable ties emerged between Europe and the East, so the need for Jews as intermediaries between the distant worlds of Europe and the East decreased. It was at that time that the church strictly forbade every Christian to engage in giving away money at interest. As a result, this area of ​​the economy was almost exclusively in Jewish hands.

We find the theological justification for the ban on usury in the Bible: “If you lend money to the poor of my people, do not oppress him or impose an increase on him.” [Exodus 22:25]; "To a foreigner lend it at usury, but do not lend it to your brother at usury” [Deut. 23:20]. Until the 12th century. The church turned a blind eye to the existence of interest-bearing loans among Christians. Many Christians gave money on interest. Monasteries also did this, especially as a result of the expansion of trade in the 11th century. However, starting from the middle of the 12th century. and especially from the 13th century, profits received from lending money on interest began to be considered a sin. Theologians and jurists began to speak out against usury, which from that time began to be considered robbery and an immoral act. The decisions of the Third Lateran Council, which took place in 1179, say:

“Because interest-bearing lending has taken root everywhere, so that many abandon other activities in order to begin to lend money on interest (usura), as if this activity was permitted, and do not pay attention to the fact that in both testaments it is condemned. Therefore we decree that those who are known to lend money at interest will not be admitted to communion altaris and, if they die in this sin, will not be buried in a Christian cemetery. Let no one take donations from them either. And the one who takes and buries them according to Christian custom will be obliged to return everything that he received (from them), and before he fulfills the demand of his bishop, he will be removed from office.

1.Who are sanctioned against moneylenders?
2. What do we learn about moneylenders and their assistants from the description of the sanctions imposed on them? How do church leaders feel about their activities?

The Church's position on interest-bearing loans was contrary to the needs of a developing economy. Credit was necessary both for economic prosperity and for the development of trade. There was not a single sphere of activity in European society that did not require loans: knights needed them to conduct military operations, merchants needed them to finance business trips and transactions concluded during these trips; The urban poor also needed them to somehow make ends meet. Many believe that the church opposed usury for conservative reasons: it wanted to leave society in the state it was in, retard economic development, and thereby prevent the emergence of new centers of power that could undermine the basis of its (the church's) influence.

Despite all efforts, the church was unable to completely eradicate usury. Various groups, the largest of which were the Lombards, continued to lend money on interest. Sometimes they did this with the permission of the authorities, recorded in the privilege. But, with the exception of the groups mentioned, Christians actually stopped engaging in usury. Thus, for Jews, largely pushed away from trade, opportunities opened up in the business sector, which was very important for the economic development of Europe. Very soon usury became characteristic feature Ashkenazi Jewry. The Jewish communities can with a great degree of plausibility be defined from this time as a guild of moneylenders, operating along with all other guilds. Of course, what distinguished this guild from all others was not only the area of ​​its activities, but the business sphere became one of the characteristics of the Jew, both in his own eyes and in the eyes of the surrounding society.

The fundamental church ban on usury was imposed not only on Christians alone, but on the entire society as a whole. Usury was perceived as godlessness and a contradiction to the unconditional instructions of the Bible. At the same time, the need for loans was so great that it forced us to turn a blind eye to usury, so the Jews continued to engage in this type of activity. However, usury, even if it flourished under the very nose of the church, only increased Christian hatred of Jews. Economic difficulties were combined in these cases with religious hostility and maintained its intensity. Jews began to be considered deceivers and robbers. This image became their lot for several hundred years. Arguments against usury became a central motif of religious controversy. I had to look for theological arguments that could repel the attacks of Christians and justify this area economic activity Jews. The author of the book “Sefer Nitsachon Yashan” (“Book of Old Victories”) writes:

“Who will lodge in your tents and who will live on your holy mountain, innocent, honest and truthful in their hearts [...] this is how the infidels defame us and ask: why do you take interest from non-Jews? For the verse says, “Do not lend money on interest,” and these words apply to both the uncircumcised and the circumcised. Answer: Who gave Israel the Torah? Almighty. And who did he give it to? Moses. And Moses said: “Give to the Gentile on usury, but do not give to your brother on usury.” And if you say that the sons of Esau are also called brothers, for it is said: “Do not disdain the Edomite, for he is your brother.” This must be answered like this: “It is true that they were previously brothers and it was forbidden to give on interest until they excluded themselves, but now they are considered strangers, because when they saw that the Temple was being destroyed, they did not come to help , as it is said: “On that day when you stood opposite, on that day when strangers took his army captive and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them.” And what more, when they themselves helped to destroy it, as it is said: “Remember to the Edomites the day of Jerusalem [...].”

Try to formulate the claims of Christians and the response of Jews to them in accordance with this quote.

Usury is a clear expression special situation Jews who were part of society and at the same time were outcasts in it. Their activities were necessary for the existence of a Christian society, but they also aroused hatred towards them. These activities contributed to deepening the gap between both religions. She inflamed the hatred of Christians and created a negative image of the Jew in their eyes. And from the point of view of the Jews themselves, permission to lend money at interest to Christians forced them to clearly define Christians as pagans.

In the XII-XIII centuries. usury became the main occupation among the Jews of England and France and almost unique gender activities of Jews in Germany. Usury also became very widespread among the Jews of Spain, despite the fact that Jews there found a place for themselves in other areas of activity. In the 12th century many Jews flocked to England, whose rapid economic development at that time created a great need for money. Most often, we were talking about moneylenders with very little capital, who lent money to poorer sections of society. But there were some moneylenders among them who handled very large sums of money, who helped finance royal projects or lent money to monasteries. In the 13th century. in England, to some extent in France, a system of royal supervision over interest-bearing loans developed, and special notaries were involved in the preparation of debt papers. Thus, the Jews were under control, but, on the other hand, the security of their deposits was also ensured to some extent. We must remember that usury was dangerous profession, to a large extent based on elements of risk. Moneylenders charged unusually high interest rates for loans (in Germany they usually charged 30% per annum, but sometimes it was as high as 80%. However, they did not charge interest for late repayment of a loan. There is evidence that in Spain, moneylenders demanded an even higher interest rate). Such high percentages were associated with the very high degree of risk that characterized this profession. And without cash, there was a real possibility of an economic crisis. Moreover, a significant part of this money ultimately ended up in the state treasury in the form of a tax that Jews were required to pay. Thus, the loan also served as an indirect tax, a way for the authorities to collect money from their subjects “through the mediation of the Jews.”

In retrospect, the mass transition of Jews into the sphere of usury greatly undermined their social position and served as the basis for the creation of a negative satanic image of the Jew. Later, when the number of Jews in Western Europe greatly decreased, usury became one of the main reasons for their expulsion from the region. On the other hand, as long as there was an urgent need for hard currency, usury was one of the main reasons for the preservation of the Jewish community. Thus, usury remained one of the main types of economic activity of Jews, despite all the attempts of the kings of England and France in the 13th century. eradicate this phenomenon.

What follows is a very long description of the arguments in favor of usury, based on quotations from the Bible and other books. We cannot present all these arguments here, but some excerpts from them clearly show how difficult the situation was for the Jews who had lost the opportunity to earn money. These excerpts also show how this complex issue was perceived on the Jewish street:

“And if the king says that he is doing all this to eradicate the sin of usury in this country. Let us answer him in three ways: firstly, even if there is a sin in this, as they believe, it is better to endure this Jewish sin than to commit several great sins, as we have already written about this. Secondly, it would be better for the king to tolerate this sin among the Jews, who do not belong to his religion, and he should not insist that they accept his faith, than to force people of his faith to break this law in public. For if the king orders an inspection throughout the state, he will be convinced that since he [forbidden] giving money to Jews at interest, the number of his fellow Christians has increased, who give money on interest and demand ever greater interest than the Jews took before . […] And make sure that the king protects from sin those who are not of the same faith with him, and leads his fellow believers into sin. Because it is impossible to do without loans. And he himself, no matter how great his wealth, was forced to take money several times at high interest, and his officials did this several times in order to keep the state intact when he was away, and from this money they paid salaries to ministers , workers and city guards. […] Thirdly, because interest-bearing loans are not expressly prohibited in our law, but it is only said not to take interest from the poor and an Israeli from an Israeli [not to take it], as it is said in the Book of Exodus [Exodus 22, 24][...]

And common sense tells me why should I oblige myself that if I give a rich man money on interest and he wins with my money, then I will not be involved in the profit from his field, vineyard, house, if I live in it? […]

And after all these words, why does my lord the king change his laws, decrees and customs, according to which he, his ancestors and the ancestors of his ancestors judged us, our ancestors and the ancestors of our ancestors […] why do you change your own laws and the laws of yours ancestors to take our capital, rob and deceive us, crush us without warning?[...]

And most of the debtors swore to the one who gave the loan to pay him immediately at his request, and now, because of your decree, they are breaking their oath. And you are helping them in this serious crime.”

Analyze the various arguments of the author of the given lines. Note which areas they relate to (legal proceedings, economics, etc.).
What is the difference between the various arguments? Compare them.
If this letter had been sent, what arguments would the king find most convincing?

As mentioned above, usury was one of the factors that aggravated the tension between Jews and Christians, and also contributed to the creation of the satanic label that was attached to all Jews. In the popular Christian consciousness, Jews became guilty of sin because they became apostates, engaging in usury, which was forbidden to believers. This feeling intensified due to high interest rates, which the Jews took for loans. These people naturally did not take into account the amount of taxes imposed on the Jews. In many places the words “Jew” and “usurer” became almost synonymous. At the Paris Conference of 1212, the Jews were represented as a meeting (Knesset) of moneylenders. Thus, religious affiliation and special occupation became two sides of the same definition.

RamBaM (Maimonides) - Moshe ben Maimon (1138-1204) - the largest codifier of Halakha, scientist, philosopher and physician. In his book “Mishneh Torah,” work on which lasted ten years, he set himself the task of bringing together and codifying in content all post-Talmudic halakhic literature. The Mishneh Torah is divided into 14 books, each of which represents a special category of Jewish law. Along with purely halachic issues, the book discusses philosophical and scientific issues.

Jewish community “Among our own”

Among our own (Jewish community in Khamovniki)- the first Jewish community after the collapse of the USSR, created on the initiative and at the expense of local Jews. Located in the Moscow district of Khamovniki. Founded in 2008 by Rabbi Yosef of Kherson, the envoy of the Lubavitcher Rebbe in Moscow, entrepreneur Dmitry (Dov) Agarunov and other students of the rabbi.

general information

The community aims to attract young and mature Jews seeking to grow in Jewish identity, knowledge and/or tradition. The age range of the community is 26-40 years old, the majority of whom are middle class and above, including students, professionals and entrepreneurs.

The community believes that Jewishness is impossible without the Torah and mitzvot, and that “community” is a result achieved through the joint efforts of the participants.

The principle of community is maximum self-realization within the framework of kosher and human capabilities given by G-d. Any Jew can join the community. Any community member can take the initiative to develop new directions.

The community honors the thousand-year-old traditions of the people, while adhering to the modern format of life. The community considers itself to be Orthodox (kosher) Judaism, the Hasidic movement of Chabad. The community is a member of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia.

Structure and hierarchy

Community Rabbi- spiritual leader and administrative leader.
Board of Directors- the governing body that determines the development strategy and direction of budget expenditure. The Board of Directors includes the founders and key sponsors of the community.
Youth Board of Directors- governing body of community activities with youth. The MSD includes graduates of the Aviv leadership school who have made a significant contribution to the development of the community based on the results of the year.

Media and Media

The community actively cooperates with leading Russian-language media. The community rabbi is a regular media interlocutor:

• federal and cable TV channels - “First”, “Russia”, “Culture”, “Zhivi”, etc.,
• radio stations "Kommersant FM", "Moscow Speaks", "RTV Podmoskovye", "Komsomolskaya Pravda", etc.,
• newspapers "Vedomosti", "Rossiyskaya Gazeta", "Nezavisimaya Gazeta", " TVNZ", "New News", etc.,
• glossy magazines and...

Media resources and channels of communication with the audience are Rabbi's blog on Facebook and an archive of 22,000 questions and answers from rabbis MoyRabbi.ru.

History of the community

The founders decided to create the community in the spring of 5768 from the creation of the world (2008 according to generally accepted chronology).

From that moment on, the founders of the community began to hold educational events in cafes and business centers in the Khamovniki district, attracting the region’s Jews and the Internet audience.

On Cheshvan 18, 5769 (11/16/2008), premises were rented for holding regular events at 2nd Frunzenskaya St., 10. Photo gallery of the Day open doors: 1, 2.

The first educational event was the conference “Torah and the Crisis”, part of the sessions of which were devoted to the financial and economic laws of the Torah, the other part - speeches by entrepreneurs on business topics. The conference was covered by the business newspaper Vedomosti.

In 2008, an educational center named after. Moshe Adlerov, consisting of dozens of “personally tailored” educational programs of various formats and levels of “immersion” in Judaism.

The community synagogue is named after Gavriel Agarunov ז"ל.

In the fall of 2008, the community entered into a strategic partnership with the international youth movement of Russian-speaking Jews “Ezra”. The joint activity of “Ezra” and “Among His Own” was called “Ezra Among His Own.” Thanks to the partnership, “Among Our Own” became one of the 5 operators of the Taglit project. Birthright" in the CIS countries. Every year, Ezra Among the Owls sends 500 to 1,000 young people aged 18 to 26 years old on educational trips to Israel.

In the summer of 2009, the community's governing body, the Board of Directors, was formed, which includes the community's founders and key sponsors. The board of directors developed a three-year community development strategy. The strategy was approved at the general Council of permanent community members. The goals and objectives of the community were: → To create a community of quality Jews capable of autonomous existence - Jewish and financial. → The desired result is 200 regular participants, of which 100 are members, 100 are regular guests.

In 2009, the Aviv Leadership School was created to develop young community leaders. As part of the leadership school, young people gain knowledge and skills in the Jewish tradition, applied psychology, informal pedagogy and management.

In the fall of 2010, the community moved to new premises at number 5 on 1st Frunzenskaya Street, increasing the size and quality of the premises.

In August 2011, the community purchased its first Torah scroll.

In the spring of 2012, a Youth Board of Directors was created to manage youth activities. The board of directors includes young people, graduates of the Aviv leadership course, who have made a significant contribution to the activities of the community based on the results of the past year.

Activities

Community Community. In the community - a community of like-minded people and enthusiasts of modern active image lives that live based on Torah values. The community has developed hospitality and shared leisure activities. Key days for community meetings are Jewish holidays and Shabbat.

Jewish holidays. At festivals, all participants gather in the community - from “religious” to “secular”. All holidays in the community are held in parallel in Super lite, Lite and High definition formats.

Education Super lite. Education for “beginning Jews” is an educational program for those who are interested and afraid. In such a lesson, everything will be planned to help you touch without fear of being “overwhelmed” or forced. Of course, we will always offer you the opportunity to take it a step further, but the choice will always be yours and yours alone! However, this is our credo in everything we do. And at super lite events this point is emphasized, since we know how sensitively our guests sometimes perceive their first steps in Judaism.

Lite. Suitable for those who consciously want to know more and implement some of this in life. As always, at your own discretion.

High definition. For those who feel ready to consistently and seriously live in the spirit of the Torah and according to its laws, without indulgences or compromises.

Luxury. Cultural and educational evenings for people with high social culture.

Religion Synagogue. In the community synagogue, public prayers are held on all Jewish holidays, Shabbat and weekday Torah scroll reading days - Mondays and Thursdays.

Rabbi consultations. Any member and guest of the community can receive qualified and friendly advice from the rabbi or his assistants.

Rituals and commandments. Consultations and assistance in fulfilling the commandments and traditional rites of Bar and Bat Mitzvah, Chuppah, mourning and memorial prayers and ceremonies.

Links

• MoyRabbi.ru is an online community project, a reference bureau on Judaism.

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

JEWISH COMMUNITY (עֵדָה , eda; קְהִילָּה , keh illa; קָהָל , kah al; in the Russian tradition kahal), a religious association (at least ten men, see Minyan) or organized parishioners of a synagogue, a self-governing Jewish population of a shtetl, city, etc. In a broader sense, it is used to refer to all Jews living in a certain locality, region, country (in English - community, in Hebrew - יִשּׁוּב, ishshuv/cm. Yishuv /).

Ancient period. In the biblical stories about the people of Israel and their leaders, the expressions coexist Adat Israel- `community of Israel` (Ex. 12:3), Ziknei Israel- `elders of Israel` (Ex. 12:21; Num. 11:16), adat Adonai- `community of the Lord` (Num. 27:17; 32:4), zikney x a-‘eda- `elders of the community` (Judges 21:16; Lev. 4:15), Zikney am- `elders of the people` (Ex. 19:7), zikney x a-‘ir- `elders of the city` (Deut. 22:17; Judges 8:16), etc. Sometimes even words close in meaning - eda And kah al occur in the same verse (for example, Lev. 4:13). However, despite some semantic identity, one can already notice differences in the use of these terms in the Bible: eda- a collection of the male population (from 20 years of age and older) capable of carrying weapons, which is why this word is more often found in texts with military themes.

Concept kah al, according to a number of Bible scholars, included the entire society, that is, men, women, children, and even foreigners living among the Jews (Deut. 31:12; Num. 15:15; Jer. 44:15). Eda as a kind of national assembly, usually convened at the Tabernacle of the Covenant (Num. 27:2), in the era of kingdoms loses most authority, while the elders and nobles continued to decide city affairs (I Ts. 21:8). They, apparently, during the years of the Babylonian captivity were the core of the formation of the community as a religious association. From the era of Persian rule, information has come down that in the city of Betulia (in the Russian tradition of Bethulia), the elders were headed by three commanders, endowed with judicial and military powers (Judith 6:14–16). During the Second Temple period, the influence of Hellenistic forms of urban government increased in Eretz Israel. Thus, the Sanhedrin, along with religious, legal and political power was given the function of the Jerusalem Municipal Council. Tiberias (founded at the beginning of the 1st century AD), like the Greek polis, had a council headed by an archon and a city assembly - agoronomos (convened in the square, sometimes in the synagogue), which controlled the economic activities of the council.

Although the community as an association of synagogue parishioners is not mentioned in ancient literature, its existence is indirectly confirmed by early baraytas and Tosefta, which regulate the relationship between an individual and a collective: the right of the collective to force its members to participate in the affairs of the synagogue, regulate prices, protect the property interests of a member of the collective in case of damage, inflicted by another member, and also prohibit turning to a non-Jewish court without the consent of society (baraita of the 3rd century BC), etc. These rules were in force even before the completion of the Mishnah. Even Paul of Tarsus, who was further away from Judaism than the other apostles, demanded that his comrades go to court not before the “ungodly”, “infidels”, but before the “saints” (I Cor. 6:1–6), since the first Christians, like the Jewish Christians , followed this Jewish custom. By the way, Paul in his letter repeatedly calls the Christian community holy (ibid., 1:2), which apparently reflected the prevailing Jewish tradition of calling the synagogue community keh illa kdosha(“holy community”), which was recorded only in medieval Jewish literature.

In the Hellenistic-Roman diaspora, elements of autonomy granted to Jewish communities by pagan rulers determined their functions for many centuries. The large community of Alexandria (which did not include all the Jews of the city) constituted a special polytheum (a unit of organization of the urban population), divided into several synagogue communities in which the leadership of Jewish life was concentrated. This urban community was initially headed by elders, and in Roman times by an ethnarch ('head of the people'), who in the second half of the 1st century. BC e. was replaced by the gerousia - a council of ten members. In Berenice (now Benghazi, Libya), the Jewish polytheum was headed by nine archons. In Rome itself there were several synagogue communities in which there were the titles “pater synagogue” (‘father of the synagogue’), “archisynagogus” and even “mater” (‘mother’) or “pateressa synagogue”, which over time became largely formal and hereditary. In 321, Emperor Constantine, addressing the Jewish community of Cologne, addressed his decree to the “priests”, the arch-synagogue and the “patres synagogarum” (that is, the “fathers of the synagogue”). Inscriptions from the 4th century have also been preserved. with the mention of the arch-synagogues from the city of Elche (Valencia, Spain) and Claudius Tiberius Polycharmus (who built a synagogue with a stand in the city of Stobi - now a settlement in Macedonia, Yugoslavia), indicating that even on the outskirts of the empire there were various titles and self-names of the leaders of synagogue communities. Notable people of the community who performed the functions of its representatives were titled in the Gemara tovei x a-‘ir(literally “the best in the city”; Meg. 26a, b) - the title was entrenched in Jewish communities from the Middle Ages until the 20th century. behind the city notables. Up to the 5th century. Nasi from Eretz Israel (see also Gamliel) instructed the communities of the empire through their envoys (an inscription from the city of Stobi also mentions naxi).

Middle Ages. The medieval community essentially sought to imitate the structure of the Second Temple Jewish city and its institutions. It became, as it were, a “Jewish enclave” that existed according to its own laws within a Christian or Muslim city. The community as a religious-national organization, which initially arose for the joint performance of prayers and the fulfillment of other religious instructions, took a central place in Jewish life. Although the term keh illa kdosha first mentioned in the 9th century. in the documents of the Jewish traders of Kairouan (now in Tunisia), the Jewish community in the narrow sense had actually been formed many centuries earlier. The preservation of the community was facilitated by the collective responsibility for paying taxes (to the king or feudal lords) and ensuring synagogue-religious privileges, as well as the corporate-class structure of the entire medieval society. No less important were the ancient traditions of Jewish collectivism, the right of each community, reflected in Halacha, to adopt regulations (see Takkanot) regulating intra-community life, as well as the cohesion of various parts of the diaspora.

As in the Christian city, there was a tendency in the Jewish community to turn the communal leadership into a closed oligarchic group, endowed with wealth, learning and nobility of the family and having the leisure to perform their duties without compensation. However, from time to time, the discontent of ordinary members of the community forced its leadership to change the system of elections, taxation, community structure, etc. The elections were secret; some positions (such as charity trustee) were directly elected; but indirect voting (electoral college - borerim, who nominated leadership from among themselves) was more popular. All affairs in the small community were under the control of only one person. According to established tradition, the community was led by an elected council of seven notables ( shiv'a tovei x a-'ir- `seven glorious men of the city`), although in many countries, for example, in Spain (especially in Aragon), this rule was often not followed. The number of elders - members of the board that decided all public affairs - often fluctuated depending on the size of the community. The foremen, who each had their own functions, were called differently in different countries and regions not only in local languages, but also in Hebrew, for example, rosh(`chapter`), rush, Parnassus(`breadwinner`, `leader`), tovim(`best' - honorary members), gabbai (head of local Jewish communities), Naaman(`trusted`), shammai(property appraiser), stadlan (petitioner), etc.

In many communities, they were alternately chosen from among the elders. parnos x a-hodesh(`leader for a month`); in Germany, Moravia and Western Hungary he was subordinate to the executive board; in Poland and Lithuania - for a month his power was sole. The concept of rabbi ( Rav) as the spiritual leader of the community appeared in Western Europe around the 10th century, and in the 12th century. has already become widespread, although his position began to be paid by the community much later. In large communities, rabbis were both civil (see Dayan) and ritual ( sea ​​x oraa, marbits tora) affairs, heads of yeshivas ( Rosh Yeshiva) or preachers (see Maggid). Other community officials were the hazzan (cantor), shochet(slaughterer, see ritual slaughter), shammash (synagogue servant, who sometimes served as a bailiff), sofer(the secretary who led the pinkas). Usually the core around which the community was formed was minyan- a quorum of ten men required for public worship.

Each community from the moment of its founding sought first of all to provide itself with a synagogue, a cemetery and a court (see Beth Din).

The community provided religious, judicial, social and financial services to its members, maintained schools (see Talmud Torah) for the children of the poor (large communities also maintained yeshivas), provided the presence of a mikveh, as well as the ritual slaughter of livestock and poultry, etc. the Middle Ages, communal organizations arose, the main or private function which included charity and mutual assistance. The most influential among them was the burial brotherhood of the Chevra Kaddisha ('holy society'; in some areas of Spain it was called kat x a-kabbarim- `group of gravediggers`). Members of the Bikkur-Holim ("visiting the sick") society provided the sick with medical care (large communities maintained doctors for those in need), medicines, care, and moral support. Sick poor people were usually placed in a community hospital and hospice, which over time in some countries received the name ekdesh. Various societies also cared for the poor: malbish-‘arummim(`clothing the naked`), Osei-chesed(`doers of good`), rodfei tzedek(`seekers of justice`) in Spain, Gmilut Hassadim(`mutual mercy`), x alvaat-hen(`gracious loan`), mishmeret kodesh(`holy guard`) - in Ashkenazi communities. Society x akhnasat calla(`introduction of the bride [under the huppah]`) among the Ashkenazis and mohar x a-btulot('ransom of virgins') in Italy provided dowry brides with everything they needed. There were other societies, among them: Pidyon Shevuim(`ransom of captives`) in Italy and other European countries, tmicha be-Eretz Yisrael(`support for Eretz Israel`) in Italy and the Netherlands, leilei-ashmurot(`nights of vigil') in Spain for night prayers and reading psalms, hastening the coming of the Messiah.

Community courts enjoyed broad powers. The right of each community to a judicial verdict, which was not subject to appeal to non-Jewish authorities, since the end of the 11th century. gradually spread in European countries (see Judicial autonomy). However, community members could appeal to the court of authoritative rabbis from another community. As an extreme measure of punishment, excommunication from the community was usually awarded (see Herem), and in Spain and Poland the death penalty was even applied to informers (in some countries the execution was carried out by the authorities). Punishments included expulsion from the community, pillory, imprisonment and fines. Communities also served as financial agents of the authorities and carried collective responsibility for collecting taxes and duties, and also regulated the socio-economic life of their members. For example, khazaqa (the right to actual possession, ownership or use) was widely used in such areas as rent regulation, the right of a craftsman or merchant to personal clientele ( marufia- a term used only in Ashkenazi communities) or the right of a Jew to reside and conduct business in a given locality ( hezkat x ha-ishshuv among the Ashkenazis). In the 12th century guild rules began to penetrate the life of Ashkenazi Jews, and communities began to deny access to settlements to “foreign” Jews ( herem x ha-ishshuv, see Herem), which was contrary to the traditions of Jewish solidarity.

Communities strictly, although not always successfully, regulated the luxury of clothing and the scale of celebrations. Many communities struggled with polygamy (see Monogamy and Polygamy) even before its ban, adopted by the Ashkenazim at the end of the 10th century. - early 11th century ( takkana Rabbi Gershom ben Yekh udy Meor ha-Gola). Debauchery, immodest behavior, and gambling were severely persecuted by the community leadership.

The X-Askala movement was anti-dogmatic and anti-traditional in Central and Eastern Europe. The Industrial Revolution put an end to the comparatively simple pre-capitalist relations which Jewish civil law could satisfactorily regulate. Cases have become more frequent when Jews, during conflicts, violated the ban on appealing to a non-Jewish court. These events took place against the background of the formation of modern united states in Central and Southern Europe and the economic and political decline of Poland and the Ottoman Empire. The Jew as an individual found himself in a non-Jewish society, where national Jewish institutions played almost no role.

In modern times until World War II organizational form The Western European Jewish community was a consistory, introduced by Napoleon I in France and the conquered territories. In Paris there were Orthodox, Liberal and Sephardic congregations. Eastern European Jews created their own federation of communities.

In the Netherlands, after the abolition of the consistorial system introduced in 1808, the former Ashkenazi and Sephardic communities were restored in 1814. In 1817, the Central Commission for Jewish Affairs was established (abolished in 1848). In 1870, a Central Commission was created for ten districts, each of which had its own independent rabbi and received government subsidies. The powers of the community were curtailed in 1917.

In Belgium, the consistorial system, which had existed since Napoleonic times, was renewed in 1835, and membership of the community became compulsory. In 1873, the state began providing subsidies to Jewish communities. Since 1892, membership in the community has become voluntary. In 1933, the Council of Jewish Organizations was established.

In Italy, during the Napoleonic occupation, a consistorial system was introduced. With the restoration of the ancien regime, this system was changed in some Italian states. After the unification of Italy, pan-Italian laws were adopted. During the fascist regime, belonging to the community was mandatory. In Switzerland, Jewish communities founded the Union of Swiss Jewish Communities in 1904. There were several all-British synagogue organizations in Great Britain. One of them, the Board of Deputies of British Jews, founded in 1760 and based mainly on synagogue congregations, served as the official spokesman for the views of English Jews on non-communal issues. Ashkenazi congregations were concentrated around the United Orthodox Jewish Communities of Great Britain (United Synagogues), headed by the chief rabbi. Other congregations were affiliated with the Federation of Synagogues, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, the Liberal, Reform and Spanish-Portuguese congregations. Among the countries of the British Commonwealth, there are Jewish central representative bodies: in Canada - the Canadian Jewish Congress, in South Africa - the Board of Deputies and the Committee for Jewish Education, in Australia - the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the Bureau of Deputies in individual states.

The Jewish communities of Central Europe, especially Germany, were highly organized and enjoyed broad powers. Each city had only one community. It was an officially recognized system. Unions or federations of local communities were created on a territorial basis. In 1876, an imperial law was adopted on the right to secede from Jewish communities (without changing religion) and on providing the opportunity for different movements of Judaism to create separate religious associations. This law allowed the Orthodox (who were a minority in Germany) to establish their own independent communities. The Weimar Constitution of 1919 abolished state control over the communities. A democratic procedure for elections to bodies of community self-government was introduced. In 1921, the activities of the territorial Union of Jewish Communities of Prussia were legalized. The Jews of Bavaria, Saxony, Baden and Württemberg established similar unions.

There was no uniformity in the organization of Jewish communities in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In Galicia, rabbis resisted the secular leadership's efforts to govern the community. In Bohemia, the Jews had a central representative body. In Moravia, 52 autonomous communities had separate municipal administration and police. In the German provinces of Austria proper and mainly in Vienna, Jewish communities enjoyed the right to levy a community tax for religious purposes. The law of 1890 regulated the life of all communities in Austria-Hungary, allowing the existence of one (single) community in each locality; belonging to the community became mandatory. (The law remained in force even after the proclamation of a republic in Austria in 1918.)

In Hungary until 1871 there was a struggle between liberal and orthodox leaders. The end to this struggle was put by the government, which approved the division of independent communal unions into three groups: liberal reformists (see Reformism in Judaism), Orthodox and supporters of the status quo, who remained aloof from the struggle. The Jews of the Czech Republic formed the Supreme Council of the Federations of Jewish Communities of Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia (southern part of Opava, Cieszyn), which later came under the general Austrian law of 1890. In Slovakia there were neological (reformist) and Orthodox communities; in Transcarpathia, the dominance of the Orthodox was complete. In 1920, the Organization of Orthodox Jewish Communities, recognized by the Czechoslovak Republic, was founded there.

The old forms of communal organization were most stable in Eastern Europe, where after the First World War, national minority rights were recognized (albeit briefly), and in a number of countries Jewish schools began to receive state subsidies. The secularization of Jewish life contributed to the emergence of many political parties.

Despite the fact that from 1844 to 1917 the kahal (community) organization was not de jure recognized in the Russian Empire, the centuries-old traditions of Jewish communal self-government were preserved until the revolution. After the abolition of the kahal, the government transferred Jewish affairs to the police and city authorities, and continued to entrust Jewish societies (a camouflaged semblance of the Jewish community, kahal) with the two most onerous duties: collecting taxes and supplying recruits. In 1857, in the Jewish societies of the Russian Empire, the elective position of state rabbis was established (the election was approved by the provincial authorities), essentially government officials in charge of recording civil status, for which smicha was not obligatory.

The February Revolution of 1917, which formally and effectively equalized the rights of Jews and abolished all restrictions, created conditions under which Jews could find a form of autonomy that best suited the demands and aspirations of the people. The Jewish population was preparing for the convocation of the All-Russian Jewish Congress and partially managed to hold elections to democratic communities in large cities. But after the Bolsheviks seized power (October 1917), the so-called Jewish Commissariat (Central Commissariat for Jewish National Affairs) was established in January 1918 with the goal of establishing “the dictatorship of the proletariat on the Jewish street.” The struggle intensified after the All-Russian Congress of Jewish Communities, held in Moscow at the end of June - beginning of July 1918, with the participation of representatives of Jewish parties, at which a Central Bureau (Community Center) was elected, designed to “coordinate” the work of Jewish institutions and create the preconditions for Jewish national autonomy . However, in June 1919, the Jewish Commissariat issued a decree on the liquidation of the Community Center and the closure of local communities, as well as the transfer of all community funds and property to local branches of the Commissariat. Already before this, in many cities, the liquidation of autonomous institutions of Jewish communities, the closure of synagogues, yeshivas, heders, and schools teaching in Hebrew was carried out. The Jewish Commissariat (lasted until April 1924), with the help and under the ideological leadership of the Yevsektsiya (Jewish section of the RCP/b/; 1918–30), liquidated all traditional Jewish institutions.

In 1920, the Idgezkom (Evobshchestkom; Jewish Public Committee for Relief to Victims of War, Pogroms and Natural Disasters) was created, which received the support of the Joint and coordinated extensive social assistance to the Jewish population, previously carried out by a number of Jewish organizations (see Jewish Committee for Relief to War Victims ; OSE). Under the short-lived government and parliament of independent Ukraine in January 1918, the Ministry of Jewish Affairs, the National Council were established, and national-personal autonomy was formally granted to Jews. All these undertakings did not actually materialize due to the constant change of power in Ukraine and the wave of Jewish pogroms during the civil war.

In 1921, on the initiative of the British mandate authorities, the Supreme Rabbinical Council of Palestine (see Supreme Rabbinate) was created, headed by Sephardic and Ashkenazi chief rabbis. After the decision of the authorities (1926, supplemented by the “Code on the Jewish Community”, 1927) to provide a number of functions of internal self-government to representative bodies of the country’s population, created along religious and communal lines, the charter of the Knesset Israel (Jewish communities of Eretz Israel) was approved in 1928 ), and the Supreme Rabbinical Council is recognized as its highest religious authority. The Knesset Israel was represented by the Assembly of Deputies ( Asefat xa-nivkharim), whose executive body was the Va'ad Leummi. The Orthodox circles of the Ashkenazi communities of Jerusalem, who did not recognize the authority of the Supreme Rabbinical Council and the Supreme Rabbinate created by it, united into a community x a-'eda x ha-haredi(literally `devout community`), associated with Aguddath Israel. This community had its own rabbinical council and bet din. Since 1945, the influence of the Natorei Karta (extremist ultra-Orthodox community) has prevailed in the Va'ad ha-'eda ha-haredi. The first community council of Jerusalem (Va'ad ha-keh illa) was elected in 1918, and in 1919 community councils were formed in Tiberias, Safed and Hebron. Since 1928, community councils in Eretz Israel have organized religious city councils and created oversight bodies for the activities of community religious services. In the early 1940s. community councils were created in Petah Tikva, Ramat Gan, Netanya, Hadera, Rehovot, Bat Yam and others populated areas. The Va'ad Leummi worked closely with the Supreme Rabbinate and the local community councils (united under the Va'ad ha-keh illot), which formed part of the official structure of the Knesset Israel.

The activities of world Jewish organizations are carried out on several different levels. The World Zionist Organization and its member organizations, as well as the Joint, B'nai B'rith and later the World Jewish Congress, began to create the infrastructure for a Jewish confederation uniting the national communities of almost all countries of the world.

The strengthening of the organizational aspects of world Jewry after World War II is partly a consequence of changes in the life of Jewish communities in individual countries.

The most important Jewish organizations and national governing bodies are concentrated in the State of Israel; this trend especially intensified after the Six-Day War. The main factors responsible for this are Israel's ability as an independent state to address the political concerns of the Jewish people, its deep interest in strengthening Jewish unity throughout the world, and its ability to mobilize Jewry and Jewish organizations for broad social efforts, regardless of their affiliation. voluntary nature.

See also Autonomy; Judicial autonomy; Demographics; Kagal; Consistory; Rabbi; Synagogue. For information on Jewish communities and community organizations in individual countries and cities, see the relevant articles.

The largest ethnic groups among Jews are (from Central and of Eastern Europe, in particular almost all the Jews of Russia) and (originally from Spain and Portugal, then scattered throughout the Mediterranean).

Other ethnic groups are: Arab Jews; Lakhlukhs, Persian and Bukharian Jews; Georgian Jews; Mountain Jews; Krymchaks; Indian Jews, Romaniotes, Italians (Romim), Falasha, etc.

The study of the genotype of different groups of Jews and comparison with the genotypes of other peoples shows that the main Jewish groups closer friend friend than to neighboring peoples. This contradicts arguments that Jews are united only by cultural and not ethnic origin.

Close groups

Based on religion, the so-called Jews consider themselves to be Jews. Judaizers and crypto-Jews.

Crypto-Jews are the descendants of Jews who were forcibly converted to or, who continued to secretly profess elements and preserve elements of the transformed Jewish everyday culture: Maranos (maranos - lit. “pigs”) (“new Christians” on the Iberian Peninsula, southern USA, in Latin America and in the Philippines; now they partially join the Jewish communities of their countries or move to Israel - the most compact group of Maranos is preserved in the city of Belmonte in Portugal); Xuetos (descendants of baptized Jews of the Balearic Islands); Jadids and Chalas in Iran and Central Asia, formally considered Muslims, but preserving elements of Jewish culture in everyday life; Dönme in Turkey.

In terms of religion, Jews are associated with Judaizers - groups of different ethnic origins who profess or strive to profess Judaism (often its unique form) and consider themselves part of the Jews: subbotniks Central Russia, Siberia and Transcaucasia; Bnei Menashe of the Indian states of Mizoram and Manipur and the Myanmar state of Chin; Telugu-speaking Bnei Ephraim in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, who converted to Judaism in 1981; Abayudaya in Uganda; Bantu-speaking Lemba in South Africa and Zimbabwe, etc.

Finally, on the periphery of the Jewish ethnic group there are ethno-confessional groups and. The latter are not considered by Jews as part of the Jewish people.

Jewish languages

The oldest language of the Jews is (), in which the (Hebrew Bible) is written.

In the first centuries A.D. e. it was replaced as a colloquial language by one of them; later in the diaspora, Jewish languages ​​and ethnolects arose on the basis of the languages ​​of the surrounding peoples.

Hebrew ceased to be a means of oral communication, but persisted in the form of lashon hakodesh (“the language of holiness”) as the primary written language serving the religious, literary, educational, cultural, and business spheres.

In the 20th century, this language was revived in the form of Hebrew and became the official and main spoken language of the Jews of Israel.

In diaspora countries, Hebrew (the ancient Hebrew language) is preserved as the main language of Judaism. The spoken language of a number of communities in the USA, Israel, Belgium, Great Britain, Canada and some other countries is . Of the other specifically Jewish languages ​​and ethnolects, the most preserved are Tat (Mountain Jewish), Jewish-Aramaic, and Jewish-Iranian.

Today, about 45% of Jews speak English (in the USA, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, South Africa, Israel, etc.), approximately 34% speak Hebrew (in Israel and the USA), 13% speak Russian, about 5 % - in Spanish, about 4.5% - in French, about 4% in Yiddish, approximately 3.5% in Arabic (including e), German, Romanian, Persian, Polish, Amharic are also common, Portuguese, Hungarian, Dutch, Turkish, etc.

Religion

Most Jewish believers are followers of Judaism (Jews).

The term "Judaism" comes from the Greek. Judaismos, which goes back to Hebrew. Yahadut (יהדות), the same root as Yehudi - Jew / Jew.

The sacred book of the Jewish people is the Tanakh (Jewish Holy Scripture) (TaNaKh - abbreviation: Torah Hebrew. תורה‎‎, Neviim Hebrew. נביאים‎‎, Ketuvim Hebrew. כתובים‎‎ -, Prophets and Scriptures).

TaNaKh is part Holy Scripture Christians (Old Testament) and is revered in Islam.

Traditional culture

The inferior socio-economic status of Jews in the Diaspora contributed to the formation of a specialized culture among them.

The participation of Jews in agriculture was limited everywhere, the main occupations were crafts and trade, some were engaged in entrepreneurship and usury, and liberal professions. B

Most Jews lived in closed communities (kehilah) in urban areas (ghettos in Italy and Germany, juderia in Spain and Portugal, mellahs in North Africa, mahalla in Iran and Central Asia).

Self-government (kahal) was headed by the economic elite (gvir - “strong”, parnas - “breadwinner”) and the rabbinate.

Remnants of a large family remained; in the Near and Middle East, until the mid-20th century, polygamy (normative monogamy was introduced among the Ashkenazim in the 10th century). The account of kinship is patrilineal, but according to Judaic norms, only those born of a Jewish mother are considered a Jew.

The common Jewish features of material culture were determined by the prescriptions of Judaism: in food, mandatory head covering for men and married women and others. With the abolition of a number of restrictions on the rights of Jews in modern times, in most European countries their assimilation and acculturation took place, a departure from, mixed marriages spread; Jews in Eastern Europe and Asia maintained their traditional culture longer.

At the same time, the consolidation of Jews developed, expressed in the emergence of pan-Jewish cultural and political movements.

In 1881-1914, the migration of Jews (especially from the Russian Empire) intensified - to Western Europe, America, Australia, etc., with the spread of the ideology of Zionism, their resettlement began. The ethnic development of European Jews was destroyed by the Holocaust during World War II. After its end, the emigration of Jews to the countries of the New World intensified, as well as to the newly formed one, where the nation of Israelis was taking shape.

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Number

The population size declared in censuses may differ significantly from the number of persons who internally recognize themselves as Jews.

In Russia, in post-revolutionary censuses, the nationality was named by the respondent himself. Therefore, for example, until the 1930s. in them, people who did not consider themselves such (at that time about 20%) do not appear as Jews.

Subsequently, the proportion of Jews in the USSR who did not consider it reasonable to declare their nationality continued to grow - until the beginning of the 80s.

Jewish communities

Organized Jewish communities exist in 110 countries.

The largest Jewish communities (over 60 thousand people) are located in the following countries:

1. USA - 5.2 - 5.5 million people. (of which recent immigrants from former USSR about 400 thousand)
2. Israel - 5.4 million people. (2008 census; of these, more than 1.12 million people were recent immigrants from the former USSR)
3. France - 575 thousand people.
4. Argentina - 400 thousand people.
5. Canada - 348.6 thousand people. (2001 census)
6. Great Britain - over 300 thousand people.
7. Germany - about 250 thousand (of which 110 thousand are registered community members; in total there are about 216 thousand people from the former USSR) (data for 2004).
8. Russia - 233.4 thousand people. (2002, census, including in Moscow 80.4 thousand people, St. Petersburg 36.6 thousand people, in the city of Birobidzhan of the Jewish Autonomous Region does not exceed 7 thousand people)
9. Ukraine - 104 thousand (2001 census)
10. Australia - 90 thousand
11. South Africa - 89 thousand
12. Brazil - 87 thousand (2000 census)

In the Jewish Pale of Settlement, Jews could, with the permission of the provincial authorities, establish synagogues and prayer schools (for every 30 houses there was a school and for every 80 houses there was a synagogue), at a certain distance from Christian churches. Outside the Jewish Pale of Settlement, permission to establish prayer houses depended by law on December 25, 1867 on the Minister of the Interior.

A Jew guilty of allowing public or public worship without the permission of the authorities was subject to a monetary penalty of no more than 300 rubles. All Jews who constantly gathered in one or another synagogue or prayer school formed a prayer society that elected a spiritual board for three years to manage the internal structure and management of synagogues, prayer schools and charitable institutions.

The spiritual board consisted of a scholar (to explain doubts relating to worship or rites of faith), a headman and a treasurer. Local rabbis by rank were considered indispensable members of spiritual boards. Members of the spiritual boards were confirmed in rank by the provincial board and were under the supervision of the city public administration, to which they were obliged to report. In addition, the Jews of every city and significant town were organized, in fiscal forms, into economic-tax societies.

Until 1844, the governing body of these societies was the Kahal, which was elected by Jews from among themselves and consisted of 3 to 5 authorized representatives. The kahals were abolished by law on December 19, 1844, with the exception of the city of Riga and the cities of the Courland province, where the kahals were abolished only in 1893. At the end of the 19th century, Jewish societies elected tax collectors and commissioners; but the latter were responsible only for the distribution of fees for the maintenance of Jewish public and charitable institutions; layout registers were submitted to the local city public administration, in whose jurisdiction the Jews were in charge of economic and tax affairs. Rural societies existed separately from villagers of other faiths.

The Jewish faith does not have a special spiritual class. Nevertheless, the government wanted to place educated rabbis at the head of Jewish societies, and for this purpose in 1844 it was ordered to establish rabbinical schools, comparing them with gymnasiums in relation to general subjects. The law of June 7, 1855 decreed that after 20 years no one could be appointed as a rabbi or teacher of Jewish subjects, except for those who had completed a course in Jewish rabbinical schools or in general higher or secondary educational institutions.

The rabbi is considered the guardian and interpreter of Jewish law; but he does not have the right to punish Jews with fines, curses and expulsion from society, or to refuse any of them to perform the rites of faith. The rabbi is entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining metric books and performing the rituals of circumcision and naming of infants, marriages, divorces and burials. The position of rabbi is filled by choice, and those elected are confirmed in positions by the provincial government and sworn in. In populous societies, assistant rabbis may be elected.

In 1842, a commission of elected representatives of Jewish communities was convened to resolve certain issues (on the form of the Jewish oath; on divorce law, etc.), and on June 24, 1848, the regulations on the rabbinical commission, consisting of the Ministry of the Interior, were approved. Its purpose is to promote transformative forms of government through the sanctioning by the religious authority of the commission of government orders regarding the Jews. The commission has no independent significance and does not initiate any cases without an order from the Minister of Internal Affairs.

The election of candidates for members of the commission is left to merchants, rabbis and the most honorable of Jews with the permission of local governors-general or governors. The approval of candidates depends on the Minister of the Interior. The chairman and members of the commission receive a small salary from the collection amounts. The commission's journals are submitted to the Minister of the Interior, who, in case of disagreement with its submissions, either refuses them or subjects the items contained in them to a new consideration by the commission. The Rabbinical Commission convened in 1852, 1857, 1861, 1879 and 1893.