would like to add to what Paul wrote about the degree and manner in the w=
ay
Czernowitz Jews kept their religious believes and customs;
The Jewish community of Czernowitz in the years between the two world wars
Included strictly religious people, many of them followers of various Hassi=
dic rabbis,
Many who were strictly religious did not follow a Hassidic rabbi and Often =
made fun
of the Hassidim and their rabbis. (For instance the words of one song were:=
Nisim,
Nisim ve Neflues, Der Rebbe geyt arein ins wasser and kimmt arois a nasser.
(Miracles, miracles and wonders The Rabbi Gose into the water and comes out=
wet),
those born in Czernowitz
In the early part of the 20th century, had lost their beliefs, did not atte=
nd synagogue
Except on high holidays and did not keep Kosher kitchens.
But many of the non-religious had orthodox relatives and generally the peac=
e was kept
Within families. In the 1920ies and thirties Czernowitz was not considered=
religious
Enough for the very orthodox. My great-grandparents who had moved to Czerno=
witz
in 1880 left to go back to Maramures in 1915 for just this reason.
Mimi
Sent from my iPad
On May 31, 2015, at 10:07 AM, "Paul Heger" <pheger_at_gmail.com<mailto:pheger@=
gmail.com>> wrote:
I see that the topic of the wedding in Sadagura became a real interesting i=
ssue. I would like to broaden somewhat its boundaries, and discuss the diff=
erent groups of Czernowitzer Jews, that is, their attachment to their relig=
ion. There were, in my opinion, orthodox Jews, and I refer to Jews who meti=
culously kept the religious obligations, such as total Sabbath rest, strict=
ly kosher food, daily prayer, traditional Jewish education to their childre=
n and so on. On the opposite side, we had in Czernowitz assimilated Jews, o=
f which many did not even know to read the Hebrew Sidur, and went to the Te=
mple to say kaddish, reading it from a prayer book in Latin characters. An=
d then were the bulk of the Jews, who considered themselves =93religious.=
=94 Many went Sabbath morning to an orthodox =94Schil=94, did not approve t=
he playing of the organ on Sabbath in the Temple, but went from there to op=
en their stores, if their wives could not do it. There was no reform congre=
gation in Czernowitz, like in Germany or in Hungary to create a suitable or=
ganization with recommended customs and behavior, but I believe that those =
Jews who went to the =93Schil,=94 and did not keep the Shabbat, preferred t=
he warm atmosphere and the imploring and exciting prayer songs.
This segment of the Czernowitzer Jews went to meet the =93Rebbes,=94 when t=
hey visited Czernowitz, to give them a =93Quittel,=94 a small piece of pape=
r on which the Gabbe wrote their requests asking the Rebbe to bless them to=
attain the accomplishment of their wishes. Every visitor obviously left =
some money on the Rebbe=92s table. Here enters the magic aspect of the =93W=
underrabbiner=94, as the Rebbes were called in German; in Yiddish one defin=
es the =93Ruv=94 the learned rabbi, the religious head of the congregation,=
and the hassidic =93Rebbe,=94 whose qualifications were in another domain,=
in their magical power of their closeness to the Almighty and their influe=
nce on Him. And since many believed in the Rebbe=92s power, it was accepte=
d as true by others, including non-orthodox Jews, who joined therm.
Now I come to Simon=92s question; I assume that what he wrote that his gran=
dfather was no hassid, he intended he was not orthodox. As I explained abov=
e, the non orthodox Jews in East Europe, (Ukraine was the birthplace of the=
hassidic movement) like those in Czernowitz believed in God and in the mag=
ic power of the =93Rebbes.=94 The =93Rebbe=94s wishes at the wedding were a=
ppreciated as a good omen for a successful married life, and therefore he w=
ent to Sadagura. We may compare it to the recent custom in Israel the kissi=
ng of the =93mezuzah=94 by people who do not lead a religiously prescribed =
life. The belief in the magic power instigates it.
Paul
-snip-
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Received on 2015-06-01 13:32:39