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In Honor of Jay Domb, President of Congregation Tifereth Yisrael — The Yemenite Synagogue of Manhattan
13 April 2015
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This month’s featured essay is an original translation of Rabbi Yosef Qafih’s 1982 speech before the Knesset celebrating the 100th anniversary of Yemenite aliyah (immigration) to Israel.
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Rabbi Yosef Qafih
Rabbi Qafih (1917-2000) was a Yemenite-born rabbinical judge and scholar of Jewish theology who made aliyah in 1943. Once in Israel, Rabbi Qafih served on the country’s Supreme Rabbinical Court and translated the classics of the Jewish theological tradition—Rabbi Se’adya Gaon’s Book of Beliefs and Opinions, Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi’s Kuzari, Maimonides’ Guide of the Perplexed, and more—from Arabic to modern Hebrew. In addition to being expert in both the Jewish legal and theological traditions, Rabbi Qafih was a daring thinker who didn’t hesitate to attack conventional pieties. This month’s feature is a good example of his iconoclasm. |
Rabbi Qafih (1917-2000) was a Yemenite-born rabbinical judge and scholar of Jewish theology who made aliyah in 1943. Once in Israel, Rabbi Qafih served on the country’s Supreme Rabbinical Court and translated the classics of the Jewish theological tradition—Rabbi Se’adya Gaon’s Book of Beliefs and Opinions, Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi’s Kuzari, Maimonides’ Guide of the Perplexed, and more—from Arabic to modern Hebrew. In addition to being expert in both the Jewish legal and theological traditions, Rabbi Qafih was a daring thinker who didn’t hesitate to attack conventional pieties. This month’s feature is a good example of his iconoclasm.
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In his 1982 speech before the Knesset, “On Yemenite Jewry and the Land of Israel,” Rabbi Qafih noted that during two thousand years of exile Yemenite Jews always remembered that the Land of Israel was their true home. Modern Zionism, however, was a European Jewish movement created in response to the failure of assimilation: “‘Zionism’ was created as a remedy for the opposition to making aliyah, but without a malady, there is no need for a remedy.” In other words, Yemenite Jewry never deviated from the traditional belief that Jews belong in the Land of Israel. Yemenite Jewish communities accordingly can be found in Jerusalem throughout history. With his acerbic tongue and dry sense of humor, Rabbi Qafih claimed, in front of Israel’s political elite, that Yemenite Jews were the true Zionists! |
In other words, Yemenite Jewry never deviated from the traditional belief that Jews belong in the Land of Israel. Yemenite Jewish communities accordingly can be found in Jerusalem throughout history. With his acerbic tongue and dry sense of humor, Rabbi Qafih claimed, in front of Israel’s political elite, that Yemenite Jews were the true Zionists!
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But wittiness aside, Rabbi Qafih’s speech highlights a profound distinction between Ashkenazi and Yemenite forms of Zionism. While Ashkenazi forms of Zionism originally responded to a crisis of identity and often constituted themselves, in turn, as rebellions against the Jewish tradition, Yemenite Jewry understood aliyah to be a fulfillment of the Jewish tradition. Continuity, not crisis, animated the Yemenite Zionist impulse. What’s true of Rabbi Qafih’s Yemenite Zionism is generally true of Sephardi forms of Zionism. Using Professor Daniel Elazar’s terminology, the character of Sephardi Zionism, like Sephardi Judaism, can be characterized as classical, not romantic: respectful of the past, open to the challenges of the present, and marked by a noble simplicity. |
What’s true of Rabbi Qafih’s Yemenite Zionism is generally true of Sephardi forms of Zionism. Using Professor Daniel Elazar’s terminology, the character of Sephardi Zionism, like Sephardi Judaism, can be characterized as classical, not romantic: respectful of the past, open to the challenges of the present, and marked by a noble simplicity.
Running through May 3rd, 2015
at the TBG Theatre
312 W 36th Street, New York, NY
The American Sephardi Federation invites you to attend the poignant story of a woman’s self-discovery through her relationship with her father, a Greek Jew who survived Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. Now he just wants to dance with his daughter at her wedding. Not too much to ask, right?
Please click
here to buy tickets
Pepper, Silk & Ivory: Amazing Stories about Jews and the Far East
April 20th at 7:00PM
at the Center for Jewish History
15 West 16th Street, New York, NY
Join the American Sephardi Federation for a discussion with Rabbi Marvin Toyaker and Ellen Rodman, co-authors of Pepper, Silk & Ivory, a new book exploring the colorful and captivating history of Jews in Asia.
Please click
here to RSVP
June 10th, 14th, 22nd, 24th
at the Center for Jewish History
15 West 16th Street, New York, NY
The American Sephardi Federation invites you to the world première of David Serero’s Merchant of Venice. The French-Moroccan baritone opera singer directs and stars (as Shylock) in his own Sephardi adaptation of Shakespeare’s play about love, commerce, and bigotry. Featuring a diverse cast and Sephardi music, there will be a preview matinee on June 10th, ahead of opening night on June 14th.
Please click
here to buy tickets
Contact us by email or phone (212-294-8350) to learn about opportunities to underwrite our newly designated office spaces and publications in honor or memory of loved ones.
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Copyright © 2015 American Sephardi Federation, All rights reserved. Thank you for opting (on our websites, at an event, or by email) to receive American Sephardi Federation Programming Updates and Publications. We apologize if this message was sent in error. The American Sephardi Federation’s Sephardi House is an integral part of the Center for Jewish History (15 West 16th St., New York, NY., 10011). American Sephardi Federation | http://www.Sephardi.House | info@Sephardi.House | (212) 294-8350
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Copyright © 2015 American Sephardi Federation, All rights reserved.
Thank you for opting (on our websites, at an event, or by email) to receive American Sephardi Federation Programming Updates and Publications. We apologize if this message was sent in error.
The American Sephardi Federation’s Sephardi House is an integral part of the Center for Jewish History (15 West 16th St., New York, NY., 10011).
American Sephardi Federation | http://www.Sephardi.House | info@Sephardi.House | (212) 294-8350
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