German Persecutions Lead to New and Lasting Jewish Customs
German Persecutions Lead to New and Lasting Jewish Customs
By Shelomo Alfassa
For many centuries, the Jewish
communities in medieval Germany suffered greatly under the hand of the
non-Jewish populace. During this period, German Jews enacted special pious customs
which they felt would help them demonstrate their sincere emunah (faith) toward Hashem. A simple example of this is the
custom of a man who is to be married--to fast before his wedding day. Fear and
reverence for the Almighty played a role in the development of these customs,
several of which are still followed today and have since entered into
mainstream Jewish society.
The stringency of waiting six
hours between eating meat and dairy was long a practice in Spain, one
instituted by Alfassi, the HaRaMBaM, and Shelomo ben Aderet. Many Ashkenazi sages
including Rabbeinu Tam and Ra'avyah, as well as other Tosafot, generally
favored a briefer period. German Jews long have had (and still do) a custom of
waiting three hours between eating meat and dairy. Yet, during the Middle Ages,
these suffering Jews, long anguished both physically and economically in
Germany, took it upon themselves to wait a full six hours as an act of emunah. They
were attempting to demonstrate to Hashem that they revered Him although they
were suffering, while at the same time, seeking His mercy. Today, six hours has
evolved to become the standard in most communities as the period of time to
wait between eating meat and dairy.
Many say that
there are Kabbalistic reasons why we light two candles on Shabbat, yet, any
reason ascribed to Kabbala would have been a late adaptation. The lighting of
two Shabbat candles as a norm was not in practice during the Middle Ages. In
fact, it was the Jews of Germany who initiated the practice of kindling two
candles on Friday night, as a way to enhance the misvot of lighting and to demonstrate increased emunah. Only later in
Spain, was the popular reason attributed, one which says we light two candles
in remembrance of the two obligations of Shabbat, Shamor v'Zahor (guard and remember). It's interesting to note that while
there still is no strict halakhic ruling or Kabbalistic meaning which mandates
two candles, today, lighting of two candles has become the minimal standard
worldwide.
In preparation for the period of
national mourning which commemorates the calamities that befell the Jews
between the 17th of Tammuz
and the 9th of Av (Tisha B'Av), the Talmud mentions that we
are not to eat meat and wine (both considered luxuries) but only prior to the pre-fast meal. The first
rabbi to mention such a prohibition of wine and meat was Rav Hai Gaon (10th
-11th century), who said it was the prevailing custom in Babylonia
(Iraq), during the Nine Days. Yet, it was the German Jews who as an act of
piousness instituted the custom of not eating meat during the extended period
between the 17th of Tammuz and the 9th of Av. Today, this
old German custom has been adopted by all observant Ashkenazi communities and
many of the Sephardic communities.
The German Jews adopted the
stringent custom that when preparing matsa,
to only use wheat that has been under Jewish supervision from the time of the
harvest to the time of baking, known commonly as matsa shemura. This was a custom Sephardim had earlier adapted from
the HaRaMBaM. Today, almost all observant communities world-wide seek matsa
shemura for their seders.
Jews in Germany instituted the
custom to keep their lulav and willows till Pesach, to burn them as fuel for the
baking of matsa. This is based on the Talmudic idea that since they served for
one mitsvah, they should (and may) serve for another. We are reminded also,
that it says in Pirke Avot, every mitsvah leads to another mitsvah. Today, many
Jews keep some sort of custom to utilize the several month-old lulavs in
preparation for Pessah.
To kiss a holy object such as a Sefer Torah or mezuzah is a display of veneration and symbolically represents
one's devotion to Judaism and loyalty to Hashem. The widespread practice of
kissing a religious book when it is put down, is thought to have its origins
from 12th century Germany, a time of great persecution for Jews. The
custom is thought to stem from the Hassidei
Ashkenaz, a movement of Jewish mysticism in Germany. This movement was
considered different from Kabbalistic mysticism because it emphasized specific
prayer and moral conduct. Due to extreme persecutions, many of the Hassidei
Ashkenaz migrated to Spain and Portugal during the early part of the 13th
century; eventually the movement ceased to exist, yet, the custom of kissing a
religious book lives on today.
These customs developed out of
strictness, out of fear and out of faith. Increasing their misvot, and when
possible, taking upon themselves stringencies, pious Jews sought mercy from the
Almighty. As a people, the Jews of Germany had suffered tremendously from the
year 1096 leading up to 1349, when the "Black Death" (an infectious disease) peaked,
killing an estimated 30%-60% of Europe's population. Sadly, the Jews were
blamed for causing the disease by the non-Jewish German population, this is but
one reason why they suffered severely.
The crushing anti-Jewish attacks
of the period led to a massive exodus east to Poland, where the German Jews
resettled and created new religious communities and new religious traditions.
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