eSefarad Noticias del Mundo Sefaradi
Talk and Presentation at the International Scientific Conference
Jews
History, Tradition, Culture
Language & Religion
CELEBRATING 70 YEARS SINCE THE RENEWAL OF
THE WORK OF THE JEWSIH COMMUNITY, SKOPJE,
AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR (1944 ‐ 2014)
Thursday, December 18, 2014 Skopje
at the Academy of Sciences and Arts
History of the Jews of Thessaloniki:
from Jews to Hellenes, from Antiquity to Modern Times
Paul Isaac Hagouel, Ph.D.¹
Abstract
More than 2 millennia of Jewish presence in Thessaloniki have shaped both the city and its Jews. The Jews of Thessaloniki, in most instances, were subject to the fortunes and misfortunes of their coreligionists in the realms of the Kingdom of Macedonia, the Roman Empire, the Eastern Roman Empire – Byzantium and the Ottoman Empire. A new and current chapter in their history is the birth of the modern Hellenic state and its foundation on civil rights. In the second decade of the 20th century the Jews of Thessaloniki finally belong, on equal par with the overwhelming Christian majority, as Hellenes in Greece. The tumultuous events of the previous century, both worldwide and locally, had profound consequences for Jewish Thessaloniki. Still the community is in search of its current identity and of a vision for the future. Our presence here enhances my optimism.
Thessaloniki was founded in 315 BCE by General Kassandros who married the halfsister of Alexander the Great, of the same name, daughter of King Fillip the 2nd of the Macedonian Kingdom. Thessaloniki became part of the Roman Empire in 168 BCE. It is conjectured that the first Jews to arrive in the city were from Alexandria circa 140 BCE. During those ancient times the appeal of Hellenism was strong: Jews inhabiting Thessaloniki and surrounding regions incorporated Greek into their religious ceremonies and were known as Romaniotes. Epigraphs (in Greek) on (2) sarcophagi, circa 2nd & 3d Century CE, attest to the Jewish presence2 , as well as the column from the ancient synagogue at Stobi (Οι Στόβοι), just 100 klms away, with the inscription in Greek referring to “Polycharmos, Father of the Synagogue”.(3)
Saul of Tarsus, or Apostle Paul the founder of Christianity, preached for 3 consecutive Shabbats at the Ets Ahaim synagogue to native Jews in Thessaloniki in 50 CE. He wasn’t very convincing: the crowd showed feelings of hostility, and he had to be spirited away towards the city of Veria.
For the period up to the creation of the Eastern Roman Empire, known as Byzantium, it is safe to assume that Jews were left to live their lives without any religious discrimination. That was so since both the Hellenic God Pantheon and the Roman one did not relate to other religions. The exemptions had to do with the political aims of various conquerors of Jerusalem who saw in Jews a nation, potentially hostile, and not a religion.
It is with the Roman Emperor Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus Augustus, also known in the Greek Christian Orthodox Church as Constantine the Great or Saint Constantine, that the fortunes of, both, Thessaloniki and its Jews were inexorably linked with the fortunes or misfortunes and policies of Byzantium. Constantine converted to Christianity and, with the Edict of Milan in 313 CE, he granted religious liberty to Christians and to other religions. However, incrementally the Christian Religion became the de facto state religion and, finally, under Emperor Theodosius I, the state Church of the Roman Empire was established (de jure) with the Edict of Thessaloniki, on February 27th, 380.
The Jewish presence in Thessaloniki is sparingly recorded in those years: There is a mention of Rabbi Tobias Ben Eliezer who, circa 1096, wrote his book, Midrash Lekah Tov [“Good Doctrine” – a commentary of the Pentateuch]. In it he also attacks the Karaites. In 1170, Benjamin of Tudela visits the city and reports that the Jews are oppressed.(4) And Archbishop Eustathios, in his account of the Norman Siege and Capture of Thessaloniki in 1185, is not kind to the Jews. (5)
This should not come as a surprise: Emperors Constantine I, Theodosius II, and Justinian I, among others, adhered to an Anti–Judaic comportment: Constantine claimed that the Jews are unclean, and the other 2 passed Anti–Judaic legislation, Theodosius in his Codex Theodosianus and Justinian in his Novella 146 on Jews. Later Emperors are also attributed with various similar acts and comportment. All of these restrictive measures applied equally to the Jews of Thessaloniki, a city second only to Constantinople in importance in Byzantium. Thus, it is almost certain that Byzantine Administration was, if not outright hostile, at the least not friendly towards the Jews.
After a brief rule by the Venetians (1423–1430), the city will be conquered by the Ottoman Empire on March 29, 1430. The White Tower is built on the onset of Ottoman rule.(6) At the same time, Sephardic Judaism is thriving in the Iberian Peninsula; however, the Catholic Kings Ferdinand and Isabella expelled all Jews who did not convert by the 31st of July of 1492.(7)
Sultân Bayezid-î Velî (II) welcomed them in the Empire. Around 15000 to 20000 settled in Thessaloniki, Selanik. Jewish Thessaloniki is now part of a vast Empire. It will remain so up to 1912. Like the Christians they were granted some autonomy on linguistic, religious and social issues. This suited the Sublime Porte in Administration. Jews were subjects but not first class citizens. Even under those circumstances sheer
numbers propelled the community to relative prosperity as it is recorded, in 1545, by Samuel Usque (8) · He characterizes it as the “Mother of Judaism”.
A century later, economic malaise and cultural decline facilitated the acceptance of the claim by Sabbetai Cevy by many Jews that he is the Messiah. After a bout with the Authorities, Cevy converted to Islam in 1666 and his followers became the Dönmeh [«Turncoats»] or the « Ma’aminim». In 1923, with the Treaty of Lausanne, they were forcibly expelled to Turkey as Muslims. Fast forwarding to the 19th Century: In 1864, of the first Judeo–Spanish newspaper El Lunar and, in 1873, the schools by the Alliance Israélite Universelle are established (9). During the same era, the Empire introduces reforms which were both late and little in order to stem the national aspirations of its various subjects, especially of the Christian ones. No notion of Ottoman citizen was forged, but, on the contrary, various religions defined ethnicities.
The end of the Balkan Wars, in 1913, finds Thessaloniki a Greek city and all its inhabitants Hellenic Citizens (10). So, after more than 2000 years the Jew of Thessaloniki becomes, by Constitutional mandate, a Greek. It was predictable that the Constitutional mandate for de jure incorporation into the national corpus could not be transubstantiated into a de facto one overnight. For that, the time span of at least a few generations was needed and, also, the resolve of the state to encourage the process through education was required.
Unfortunately, Greece was confronted with many issues, not all troubles free, during that period: The First World War, its territorial expansion in the Balkans, and its presence in Asia Minor in Smyrna after 1919. At the time, modern nationalistic Turkey under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was ascertaining itself. The over extension of Greek forces in Asia Minor resulted in defeat and they were forced to abandon all territories. With the Peace Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, the first and only ever forced population exchange between two states, based solely on religion, took place. The Dönmeh were transplanted to Turkey along with other Muslims either ethnic or nonethnic Turks (11). Also, in 1917, a major fire swept the predominantly Jewish city center of Thessaloniki· the subsequent urban planning altered forever its centurie Jewish–Ottoman character.
The majority of the Christians – Rum, Ethnic Greeks, Ionians, Yavan settled in Macedonia and, many out of those, in Thessaloniki. This altered irrevocably the population distribution and statistics. Thessaloniki still had the largest Sephardic community but it would never again regain its status as a Jewish City, Mother in Israel. Whereas before the Jewish element dominated commerce, now it had to compete against the Christian Hellenic majority when still most Jews spoke Ladino and not Greek. Everyone’s economic realm was curtailed by the new borders and the multitude of new nation–states in Europe.
Jewish communities were recognized as public legal entities with a 1920 law on Jewish Communities. The Thessaloniki Jewish Community was formally created and received its Bylaws with a decree published in 1923. The community diminished in population reaching a total of around 55000 on the eve of the Second World War. The majority lead a hand to mouth existence even though many tend to equate or believe the urban legend that most were rich. There existed some rich ones but this was not the case for the overwhelming majority.
The inter war years shaped the community in various respects: Hellenization compelled the new generation to learn and speak Greek even though instruction in French and the learning of Ladino continued. However, incorporation and social mingling for the many with the Christian majority did not advance at a desirable pace due to the large numbers of Jews and the gap of generations – the older generations continued to speak Ladino –. The Communal benevolent services catered to the needy. Synagogues functioned as well as religious schools. There were some acts of outright Anti–Semitism but it was neither institutionalized nor state sanctioned or promoted. After the Cambell mini–pogrom in 1931, many immigrated to Palestine, even though immigration to both Palestine and elsewhere had started before and continued after.
The German Reich attacks and invades Greece on April 6, 1941. Thessaloniki is occupied on April 9th. The annihilation of the Jewish Greek population of Thessaloniki, that came as a result of the implementation of the so–called Final Solution of the Jewish Problem by the German Reich, and the waste and ruins that it left on its wake, is one of the most infamous events in World History. The numeric strength of the community, just before deportations started in March 15, 1943, is deduced from a document, signed by SS Hauptsturmführer Dieter Wisliceny, where the Jewish Greek population of the city aged 6 and over was estimated at around 55000 souls (12)
Post war Jewish Thessaloniki in now counting more than 70 years life. Wounds would never heal. Memory and, especially, Remembrance, are taking their revenge. The Community offers again all services for those who wish to lead a full Jewish life. The creation of the State of Israel, as the Jewish State, enhance our consciousness as Jews in Greece but, also, compels us to ascertain even more our Hellenic identity. The challenge is to blossom as Jewish Greeks and not take the “easy way out” of Aliyah (or the hard way depending on one’s Weltanschauung!). After all Jewish Greeks fought as equals in all wars and contributed to the glory of the country and the nation.
More subtle are the challenges still emanating from the catastrophe: The maintenance and rebirth of Judeo–Espagnol as a living language, Judaic Heritage instruction to our youth beyond elementary school – a Jewish Community private elementary school thrives –, resurrection of pre–war customs and maintenance of current ones that disappear as survivors pass away, the passing to new generations of the centuries old recipes, the record of all of the above in written, audio, video, electronic from or otherwise, just to name a few.
Last, but most important and not least, the demographic challenge looms ominous: It is the most overwhelming. Vigilance and nurturing of our youth is a must, they have to be proud of our–their heritage and have to be imbued with the conviction of their destiny in keeping Judaism live in Thessaloniki. Already interfaith weddings take their toll. It is ironic that complete freedom and full emancipation is neither conductive in strengthening one’s identity nor in keeping the cohesion when a minority.
Personally, I am optimistic that Jewish Thessaloniki will always be present and, hopefully, a contributor to Judaism in the 21st Century and beyond, as well as a catalyst for tolerance, understanding and peace among neighboring nations.
Paul Isaac Hagouel
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(1) Paul Isaac Hagouel, 11 Chrysostomou Smyrnis Street, GR–54622, Thessaloniki, Greece, E–mail: hagouel@eecs.berkeley.edu, URL: independent.academia.edu/PaulIsaacHagouel Paul Hagouel represented the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki for the 70th Anniversary of the reactivation of the Jewish Community, Skopje
(2) Pantelis M. Nigdelis, Synagoge(n) und Gemeinde der Juden in Thessalonika: Fragen aufgrund einer neuen judischen Grabinschrift der Kaiserzeit, Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik , 102, pp 297-306, 1994
(3) Vulić N, Inscription grecque de Stobi, Bulletin de correspondance hellénique, vol 56, pp. 291-298, 1932
http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/bch_0007-4217_1932_num_56_1_2840 (20141121)
(4) Asher A. Editor & Tranlsator, The Itinerary of Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela, Vol. I, A. Asher & Co., London & Berlin, 1840
(5) John R. Melville-Jones, Eustathius (Archbishop of Thessalonica), Australian Association for Byzantine Studies, Byzantina Australiensia 8, 244 pages, Canberra, 1988
(6) Joseph Nehama, Histoire des Israélites de Salonique, Tome I: La communauté Romaniote, Les Sefaradis et leur dispersion, 1936
(7) http://www.redjuderias.org/google/google_maps_imgs/avila/expulsion01.jpg (20141122)
(8) Samuel Usque, Consolaçam Ás Tribulaçoens De Israel, Subsídios para o estudo da Historia da Litteratura Portuguesa VIII, Com revisão e prefacio de Mendes dos Remédios, FRANÇA AmMADO Editor, 1906, Coimbra
(9) Further correspondence respecting the affairs of Turkey, Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of Her Majesty, House of Commons, [C.1738] Turkey No. 15 (1877), page 321(303),374 pages, London
(10) Ratification of the Peace Treaty (in Greek& French), Government Gazette of the Kingdom of Greece, Issue A, Number. 229, 14 November 1913, Athens, www.et.gr [Note: It is the 1913 Treaty of Athens]
(11) Treaty of Peace with Turkey, and Other Instruments, Signed at Lausanne on July 24, 1923, together with Agreements between Greece and Turkey signed on January 30, 1923, and Subsidiary Documents forming part of The Turkish Peace Settlement [with map], Presented to Parliament by Command of His Majesty, House of Commons, Treaty Series No. 16 (1923), 243 pages, 1923, London
(12) Paul Isaac Hagouel, The History of the Jews of Salonika & the Holocaust –an Exposé, Sephardic Horizons (Editor: Judith Roumani) Volume 3, Issue 3, Fall 2013, http://www.sephardichorizons.org/Volume3/Issue3/hagouel.html
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URL Link for Power Point Presentation:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/7mg545ddzkkb5n0/Hagouel_Jews_Thessaloniki_Skopje_20141218_pres_.pps?dl= 0
or
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6Vpuw9GQ6A5a2V4ZFZIY25rRk0/view?usp= sharing
Co–organizers:
Institute of National History, SkopjeAcademy of Sciences and Arts, Skopje
Full paper with citations, to be published
in the upcoming Proceedings, is attached bellow
hello , cordiales salutations