Community Magazine November 2019

30 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE Most of the men wore cotton robes, usually with stripes. The rich wore robes made from higher quality material. Most of the men wore a high tarbush on their heads. The poor wore turbans. In the winter, the men wore a coat called a jaba over their robe. Distinguished rabbis and men with important posts wore this coat all year around. Francos and some of the bankers and merchants wore European-style clothing, but not hats. The HachamBashi and Community Leadership Until the 1890s, the Jewish community was led by the Hacham Bashi (Chief Rabbi) – a post held by a great spiritual leader and outstanding Torah scholar, who served as the religious authority and the community’s representative to the Ottoman government. The Hacham Bashi was attired in a special robe, and his turban was larger and of a different color than the standard turbans worn by the Jews. Rabbis who held this position included Avraham Entebi, Mordechai Labaton, Shaul Dweck Hacohen, Menashe Sitihone, and Aharon Shweka. In 1865, the Ottoman government produced a document known as Hukat Hamilat Hayehudi , which defined the leadership and representation of the autonomous Jewish communities in the Ottoman empire. In Halab, this edict went into effect in the 1890s. From that time on, the leadership was shared by two rabbis, one of which acted as the representative to the government, while the other served as the community’s spiritual leader. Among the rabbis who served in this capacity were Moshe Cohen, Moshe Swed, Avraham Dweck Hacohen, and Eli Hacohen Tawil. A committee made up of public activists took care of the community’s social and financial matters. The Francos did not participate in the community’s institutions, and instead founded and funded their own educational system and charity institutions. The Chief Rabbi was appointed by a board known as Toveh Ha’ir and approved by the Sultan. This committee was made up of the heads of the community, men of wealth and aristocracy, along with the rabbinical judges ( Dayanim ). The Dayanim had a major influence on the life of the Jewish community, besides their role as judges, arbitrators, and conciliators. The rabbis were arranged in a hierarchy of authority, with the upper class consisting of the Heads of the Rabbis and the Dayanim of the court. The next class was made up of the functionaries, and the third contained the Torah scholars who did not hold any official public post. Torah scholars enjoyed various privileges, particularly tax exemptions. Forty Torah scholars received a stipend from a community fund known as Keren Kayemet . The stipend given to each Torah scholar was designated according to his place on a list. The first name on the list had the largest stipend and was usually that of the Chief Rabbi, followed by the elder rabbis. The lowest amount was for those who had been on the list for the shortest amount of time. Torah scholars who devoted themselves solely to learning were highly respected and esteemed by the general populace. It was believed that the blessing and curses of Torah scholars had great power, and this belief increased the rabbis’ prominence and authority. Those who paid taxes to the community fund had the right to vote for members of the local committee. The community fund was financed by taxes and by various pledges. The wealthy also contributed their part. The community supported five funds. The first fund was for assisting the sick, founded mainly by the Francos, who brought this tradition from Italy, to aid the ill and to help them pay for their medical expenses. In 1903, a Jewish hospital was founded by the Tzedaka Umarpeh Society, financed partially by the community fund, as well as a pharmacy which distributed medications for free to the indigent. The other funds were to support Torah scholars, the burial society, guest hospitality, and Bedek Habayit . Girls from underprivileged families were given an honorable dowry from the community fund. Besides paying internal taxes, members of the community were required to pay large sums to the government. Until the middle of the 19 th century, both the Jews and the Christians were required to pay a special tax, the jizha , which symbolized their inferior status. From 1856, they were also required to pay another tax, known as bedel oskari . Rabbi Jacob Saul Dwek, Hakham Bashi in Aleppo, 1907. The indoor Tebah (pulpit) Torah students – the “Sealed Ark” is visible at the end of the aisle.