Subject: Intro to the Jewish Diaspora
Reply-to: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
From: JUICE Administration <juice@virtual.co.il>
Subject: JUICE Diaspora History 1/12
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World Zionist Organization
Student and Academics Department
Jewish University in CyberspacE
juice@wzo.org.il birnbaum@wzo.org.il
http://www.wzo.org.il
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Course: Actors on the World's Stage: Jewish Life in the Diaspora
Lecture: 1/12
Lecturer: Rabbi Zvi Berger
Shalom! It's time to "fasten your seatbelts" and prepare to embark upon
an extensive journey through space and time, as we examine Jewish life
in the Diaspora through the ages. In the course of our "journey", we'll
become acquainted with a variety of historical periods and environments.
This may occasionally be confusing, as we jump from country to country
and from century to century, so it's particularly important that we
devote our opening lecture to some general observations concerning the
phenomenon of Jewish life in the Diaspora. During the weeks ahead, the
general factors described here will manifest themselves in a variety of
ways in the context of the particular communities and periods which we
will study.
Perhaps the best way to begin is by defining two fundamental terms.
"Diaspora" is a Greek word, meaning "dispersion". We first encounter
this term in the study of Jewish history in relation to the large Jewish
community which developed in Alexandria, Antioch, and other Greek cities
during the Hellenistic period. Note that the term is not intrinsically
Jewish; it is possible to refer, for example, to the Armenian Diaspora,
or to the Palestinian Arab Diaspora. Any nation in which significant
numbers of the national population live outside of its homeland may be
described as having its "Diaspora". In most cases, however, the term is
used in a Jewish context. This no doubt reflects the uniqueness of the
Jewish situation, that is, for the last 1600-1700 years or so, the
majority of Jews have lived outside their ancestral homeland!
It is also worth noting that the Hellenistic Jewish community, ( the
first Jewish "Diaspora"), appears to have developed not as a response to
a specific persecution of the Jews, but rather, as a simple migration of
Jews interested in exploring the potential of life in the great
Hellenistic cities of antiquity. In short, Jews reached Alexandria by
choice, which may well imply that such Jews had quite positive feelings
about their position and status. Still, the term "Diaspora" is
fundamentally "value-free". It enables us to understand the phenomenon
of Jewish life outside of Eretz Yisrael as a simple fact, without
forcing us to employ value judgments of any kind. It is virtually
impossible to describe the history of the Diaspora, however, without
describing another important term, which is far from being
"value-free"! I'm referring to the Hebrew word "Galut", which means
"Exile". Specifically, it refers to the condition of being exiled, of
being forcibly uprooted from one's own land, (which sounds pretty
negative to me)! Galut may also refer to the specific countries of the
Exile, ("Galut Bavel", for example, is the Babylonian Exile). This
uprooting need not have taken place during an individual's lifetime.
Rather, it is a national concept, which is generally understood as
referring to the period of Jewish history between the destruction of the
Second Temple (70 C.E.) and the creation of the State of Israel in
1948. A cursory glance of both scholarly and popular literature,
however, reveals a significantly more complicated picture. First of
all, the dating of the origins of the Galut to the destruction of the
Second Temple is quite problematic. True, this destruction, perpetrated
by the Romans in the context of a Jewish revolt against Roman rule in
Eretz Yisrael had major effects upon Jewish life and upon Jewish
consciousness. But despite the destruction of the Temple and of
Jerusalem, and despite the failure of the revolt, Jewish life continued
in Israel for hundreds of years! Moreover, Judaism developed greatly
during this period, which witnessed the editing of such works as the
Mishnah and the Jerusalem Talmud. Another chronological problem
involves the specific history of the Babylonian Exile, which actually
began subsequent to the destruction of the First Temple in 586 B.C.E. by
the Babylonians. (We'll dwell more on the specifics of these historical
events in the next two lectures, so if you're confused now about the
details, hang loose, it'll all work itself out!) But there is a much
more fundamental problem concerning our description of the "Galut
period" of Jewish history as the years between the destruction of the
Second Temple to the creation of the modern State of Israel. Many
writers and ideologues still speak of the Galut as a contemporary
phenomena, and this in 1997, almost 50 years after the creation of the
State of Israel! What's going on with these guys?! They must be aware
of the fact that the exile has ended, that the vast majority of Jews
are now completely free to return to Israel, should they so desire. It
seems that these thinkers, (who include, for example, Prof. Eliezer
Schweid and the noted Israeli author A.B. Yehoshua), are referring to
the subjective aspect of Galut existence, of galut as a "state of mind"
or existential condition. This state of mind may be that of the
Diaspora Jews themselves reflecting upon their own lives, or it may
reflect the negative judgment of Israeli Zionist Jews concerning
Diaspora Jewry, who they accuse of being locked into a "Galut
mentality". We will have occasion to become further acquainted with
these ideas as our course progresses, and the particular ideas of both
Israeli and Diaspora ideologues will be stressed in the last two
lectures.
For now I wish to emphasize a methodological (and personal) point
concerning the use of value judgments in relation to Jewish life in the
Diaspora. Quite frankly, (despite my own Zionist commitment), I don't
like them. My goal is to study the Diaspora as objectively as
possible. I come neither to bury the Diaspora nor to praise it, rather,
let's simply try to understand how Jews have lived and functioned in the
lands of the Diaspora. What major challenges and difficulties have we
faced and in what ways have we responded? What issues face Diaspora
Jewry today, and what might be the Diaspora "agenda" as we head towards
the 21st Century? Obviously, personal perspectives may well influence
my descriptions, ) particularly in regard to the present situation and
future trends). But I'm going to try to describe a variety of points
of view in order to present as balanced of a perspective as possible.
So without further adieu, let's start thinking seriously about Jewish
survival in the Diaspora through the ages. First of all, let's remember
that the fact of our survival shouldn't be taken for granted! Ancient
history provides numerous examples of conquered, exiled peoples who
assimilated into the cultures of their conquerors. In fact, the 10
northern tribes of Israel did precisely that, following the conquest of
Samaria in 722 B.C.E. by the Assyrians! It seems to me that a study of
Jewish life in the Diaspora reveals a number of "keys to survival".
Firstly, let's consider the strong emphasis placed in the Jewish
tradition upon the sacredness of time. As Dr. Etan Levine reminds us in
his important essay, "The Jews in Time and Space", for almost twenty
centuries, Jews shared a common calendar and not a common country. The
very fact that Jews did not control the dimension of space, (Christians
and Muslims did), no doubt encouraged Jews to sanctify time, through the
observance of the Sabbath, holidays, daily prayer, life-cycle events,
etc. Above and beyond the influence of the historical circumstance of
existence in alien environments, the very nature of Jewish faith has
always stressed the importance of awareness of time, one need look no
further than the first chapter of Genesis to discover the sacredness of
the Sabbath, with its fundamental distinction between the day of rest
and the work week. But why make such a big deal about time? Quite
simply, the emphasis upon sanctifying time allowed Judaism to
de-emphasize the importance of sacred space, creating the basis for a
faith which knows no national boundaries. Even the particularly
traumatic blow of the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, the sacred
Temple in Jerusalem, need not signify the end of Jewish life, since Jews
could continue to express their connection with their God and with their
fellow Jews in other ways. This leads us to the next "key to survival",
which is the ability to transform Jewish religious life, through the
creation of new institutions. To understand this properly, we need to
remember that during the time of Jewish independence in Eretz Yisrael in
the Biblical period, (roughly, from 1200-586 B.C.E.), Jewish religious
life was centered around cultic centers where various grain, vegetable,
and animal sacrifices would be offered to God by the Kohanim, (the
priests), and the Levites, (the priests helpers). This began with the
portable Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant, (whose origins lie in
the period of desert wanderings), and culminated in the building of the
First Temple by King Solomon in around 950 B.C.E. Try to imagine the
impact of the destruction of this Temple, the construction of which on
Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem was believed to be mandated by God Himself! The
prophet Jeremiah, who predicted that the Temple would be destroyed, and
described God's wrathful punishment which would be inflicted upon His
Temple, His city, and His people in the direst of terms, was accused by
the priestly establishment of treason and blasphemy, and was almost
killed for expressing such disturbing thoughts! Yet it was the same
"prophet of doom" Jeremiah, who sent this reassuring and eminently
practical letter to the first group of exiles in Babylon:
"Thus said the Lord of Hosts, the god of Israel, to the whole community
which I exiled from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them,
plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and beget sons and
daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to
husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters. Multiply there, do not
decrease. And seek the welfare of the city to which I have exiled you
and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its prosperity you shall
prosper". (Jeremiah 29:4-7)
In a word, Jeremiah's advice to the exiles was "adjust", or "deal with
it"! Don't wallow in doom and despair, but rebuild your lives, take
into account that you're living under foreign rule, and plan for the
future. It seems to me that it was this fundamental attitude and this
willingness and ability to adjust which led the Babylonian exiles to
build not only houses of residence, but "houses of assembly" as well.
The house of assembly, or Beit Haknesset, (later to be known by the
Greek term of "synagogue"), appears to have originated in Babylon. I
say "appears", because the historical record on this issue is very
sketchy. Some scholars have suggested on the basis of isolated
Biblical verses that "synagogues" (with your permission I'm going to use
the term anachronistically...) already existed in Biblical times before
the Temple's destruction, but most scholarly opinion follows Jewish
tradition itself in placing the origins of this important institution in
Babylonia, where it served as a replacement for the temple cult. The
tradition, by the way, bases its view on Ezekiel 11:16:
"Thus said the Lord God: I have indeed removed them far among the
nations and have scattered them among the countries, and I have become
to them a diminished sanctity in the countries whither they have gone".
The sages interpreted "diminished sanctity" ("Mikdash Me'at"), as
referring to synagogues and houses of study, (see Megilla 29a). The
term "Mikdash Me'at" is an interesting one, in that it clearly implies
that the synagogue has a lower level of sanctity than the holy Temple,
yet it still retains something of that original holiness, and as a
result, it may serve as an effective replacement for the lost Temple
cult. At this point, it may be worthwhile to clarify some terms which
may be confusing for some of you. Today, many Jews refer to their
places of worship as "temples". The correct term, however, is
"synagogues", since that is the commonly accepted Greek rendering of
the Hebrew term "Beit Haknesset" described above. Why then, are many
places which are really "synagogues" still described, even in their
official names, as "temples"?! The answer has its roots in the
particular ideological orientation of 19th Century Reform Judaism in
Germany, which called their places of worship "temples" in order to
emphasize their opposition to the return to Eretz Yisrael and to the
rebuilding of the one, holy Temple on Mt. Moriah. (But I see I'm
digressing, so more on this fascinating historical turn of events in
Lecture #8!). The significance of the transition from Temple to
synagogue lies in the fact that synagogues may be built anywhere. Thus
Jews were no longer dependent upon the Temple cult, which was limited to
Mt. Moriah only, their religious needs could be satisfied through
attendance at this new institution. Moreover, the Beit Haknesset served
as a social center as well, aiding in the maintenance of communal
identity. Similarly, the formulation of major Jewish rituals to be
observed in the home was in large part a reflection of the needs of a
people that had to adjust to the loss of their most sacred shrine. The
Passover seder meal, for example, in which the story of the liberation
from Egyptian slavery is recalled, was developed by the Sages in order
to replace the former focus of the offering of the special Passover
sacrifice at the Temple.
The third "key to survival" that I wish to mention is the ability to
establish viable forms of community organization and leadership
frameworks. Throughout the Diaspora Jewish communities organized
themselves, in order to facilitate tax collection and maintenance of a
variety of community institutions. Leaders of the community included
administrators as well as the spiritual leadership of the rabbis, who
would sit as a Beit Din (law court), in order to decide matters of
Halacha, (Jewish Law). In certain periods, Jewish communal organization
went far beyond the local level. The Exilarchs, (a descendant of the
royal house of David), served as the political leaders of all of
Babylonian Jewry for hundreds of years. Similarly, the Geonim, the
heads of the great Yeshivot, (advanced schools of Torah study), issued
rulings on Halachic questions which were sent to them from Jewish
communities all over the Diaspora. It would certainly be an
exaggeration to speak of Jewish freedom and ability to engage in
entirely independent action in the Diaspora. Jewish communal autonomy
was granted and legally recognized by the non-Jewish governing
authorities, and was therefore dependent upon their consent. But Jews
did usually succeed in achieving the right to run their own communal
affairs in accordance with the laws of Halacha.
Paradoxically, the deep ties of the Jewish people to Eretz Yisrael
helped Jews to maintain their identity while living far from the land
in the countries of the Diaspora. The historical memory of Jewish life
in Israel in Biblical and Second Temple times, as well as the fervent
belief in an ultimate Messianic redemption and return to the land, found
expression in numerous rituals, customs, and daily prayers. But above
and beyond this, a radical and daring "Galut theology" emerged. The
roots of this theology may be found in the Talmud and midrashic
literature, where the notion of the Exile of the Shechinah (the Divine
Presence on earth) is first expressed, and it reaches its fruition in
the literature of Kabbalah, the mystical tradition. In the Zohar, (the
classic text of Kabbalistic literature), the Shechinah is described as
the feminine aspect of God, which must unite with her male counterpart,
in order to ensure the maintenance of cosmic equilibrium. The exile of
the Jewish people, however, is accompanied by the exile of the
Shechinah, thus threatening the very existence of the cosmic order!
According to the Zohar, as long as Jews remain in Galut, the male and
female aspects of the Divinity unite only on the holy Sabbath. But if
Jews succeed in performing the commandments with proper intention, they
will bring about not only the end of their painful exile, but also
restore the Divine equilibrium in the universe! This belief no doubt
provided large numbers of Jews influenced by the mystical tradition with
a profound sense of purpose in life. In principle, we could not only
save ourselves, we could also save God from His self-imposed state of
Exile!
Though I've chosen to emphasize "keys to Jewish survival" in the
Diaspora, we should bear in mind that minority existence in alien
environments involved inherent dangers, which often led to serious
persecutions. The roots of anti-Semitism are many and varied, involving
religious, social, and economic factors, and medieval Jewish history
shows many examples of persecutions and expulsions from various
countries. Still, despite the fact that dispersion no doubt weakened
the Jewish people in many ways, it also provided us with new frontiers
and continual opportunities for rebuilding. For example, the
cataclysmic blow of the expulsion from Spain in 1492 was eventually
followed by the revival of Sephardic Jewry in other lands, (primarily in
the Ottoman Empire).
The last issue that I wish to deal with in this opening lecture is a bit
more subjective in nature. What's the significance of all of this, for
Jews and for the world in general today?! I would suggest three answers
to this question. First of all, the significance of the Diaspora for
the development of Judaism is clear. Many of the great works of Jewish
sacred literature, (such as the Babylonian Talmud), were created in the
Diaspora, and most of the influential movements in Jewish history, (e.g.
the Hasidic movement, as well as modern secular Zionism), developed
outside of Israel. But the impact of Jewish existence as a relatively
marginal minority in a variety of European nations also was felt in
general society, especially during the 19th-20th Centuries, when the
abundant contributions of Jews in the areas of culture, science,
economics, politics, etc. were clear to all. Finally, I believe that
the story of the Jews in the Diaspora has meaning and significance in a
more personal sense as well. Ultimately, we're talking about a people
who exhibit a remarkable ability to adjust to changing conditions and
circumstances. In this day and age, where technology advances daily,
and where the most constant phenomenon seems to be change itself, the
ability to adjust strikes me as particularly significant!
I hope this opening lecture has provided you with some "food for
thought". I encourage you to respond with questions, comments,
problems, observations, etc. online! For those who would like to
further pursue the general issues described in this lecture, I recommend
that you look at a number of readings:
1 ) The entry on "Galut" in the Encyclopedia Judaica.
2 ) Etan Levine, Diaspora: Exile and the Jewish Condition
3 ) David Biale, Power and Powerlessness in Jewish History
Next week, we'll take a look at the original Jewish Diaspora, the
Hellenistic Jewish communities in Alexandria and other Greek cities
during Second Temple times. I recommend that you read the EJ (Encyc.
Jud.) article on "Diaspora" as preparation for our next meeting. In the
meantime, be well, stay cool (or warm, depending upon where you live!),
and L"hitraot (catch you later)!
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