Category Archives: Karaite Rabbanite Relations

February 12, 2013 · 6:00 am

Talmud Envy

Several months ago, I wondered aloud: “What’s the difference between Kol Melacha and Melechet Avodah?” I still laugh at the response I got: “If only there were a book in which wise men discussed these issues and wrote it down.” Of course, the “book” referred to in the response is the Talmud and the “wise men” are the Rabbis.

Perhaps, I have Talmud envy – not in the 10th Commandment sense, of course. And definitely not in the “binding law” sense. But I would so love books that were highly-regarded expositions of Karaite thought and were widely available. I recently discussed this with someone whom I’d met through the Karaite Jewish University. His views were telling about the accessibility of Karaite literature: “Shawn, you can go into just about any major bookstore and find books on the Dead Sea Scrolls, which relate to a movement [i.e., the Essenes] that hasn’t existed for over 1000 years; but you can’t find a single book on Karaism, a movement that exists to this day.”
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Filed under Books, Karaite Jewish University, Karaite Korner, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, Talmud

January 28, 2013 · 6:00 am

This Above All: To Thine Own Self Be True

What if Pippi Longstocking Went Blonde?
(Source: http://www.getkooky.com.au/pippy-blonde-plaits-hair-wig-costumes-halloween-female)

Forget a Karaite Tipping Point, today I wonder whether Karaite Judaism will even survive another generation.

A rabbi affiliated with the Aish HaTorah movement once helped crystallize my thoughts on Jewish identity and continuity. He was speaking at a gathering of undergraduate brothers from Alpha Epsilon Pi, where I was the Director of Jewish Programming. The rabbi asked us how we would respond if one of our future daughters were to be teased for having red hair. Even though the attendees were (mostly) between 18-22 years old, we intuitively knew what to do. We’d tell her how her red hair made her unique. We’d find strong, red-headed role models. We’d make sure she knew that her red hair was beautiful. As the rabbi explained, “The answer is not to dye her hair.”

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Filed under Aish HaTorah, Alpha Epsilon Pi, JFNA General Assembly, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, New Moon, Secular Karaism, What is Karaite Judaism

December 20, 2012 · 6:00 am

Dead Sea Scrolls Go Live

“And we have heard from our teachers that the heretic Anan and his friends used to write down heresies and lies and hide them in the ground.
Then they would take them out and say: This is what we found in ancient books.” – Rabbi Moses Taku*

Dead Sea Scroll Excerpts of the Book of Psalms
Source: Library of Congress

To much fanfare, Google and the Israel Antiquities Authority announced this week that they have made the Dead Sea Scrolls accessible online. The Dead Sea Scrolls have some implications for research into the origins and theology of Karaite Judaism. The first modern discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls occurred in late 1940s; but, by all appearances, some of the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the ninth century. [Editor’s Note 12:49 p.m. (pacific): See the first comment below for a reference to an even earlier discovery.]

What is interesting, from a Karaite perspective, is the clear connection between some of the writings of the Dead Sea Scrolls and some of the writings of medieval Karaites. This similarity is what prompted Rabbi Moses Taku, a thirteenth century rabbi, to relate a Rabbinic view that Karaites of the eighth century wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls and buried them for the sole purpose of later supporting the antiquity of the Karaite movement. (Of course, history has proven this view to be nonsense.)
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Filed under Daniel Lasker, Dead Sea Scrolls, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, Karaite Studies: The State of the Field

December 4, 2012 · 6:00 am

Rejection, Rebellion and Revolt

“What is believed to be the Maccabees’ relics – kept in the Maccabees Shrine – is venerated in St. Andrew Church, Cologne, Germany.”
Image Source and Description: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maccabees

I’m not positive, but I’m pretty sure that David Suissa, President of the Jewish Journal, was paying a compliment to Karaite Jews when he recently referred to us as “rebellious” due to our rejection of the Talmud.

I’ve met Mr. Suissa on a few occasions (though he probably would not remember me) and several years back I actually heard him speak at a Shabbat dinner in a private home in Los Angeles. In every instance, he has shown himself to be a sincere individual and a dedicated Jew. I was, thus, particularly flattered when Mr. Suissa likened Karaites to rebels – especially around this time of year when most Jews throughout the world will soon begin the celebration of Hanukkah.

Hanukkah commemorates one of the most successful rebellions in the history of our people. The Maccabees, as they are commonly referred to, were the heroes and leaders of a rebellion against the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire. Because of the Maccabean Revolt, the Jewish people reclaimed The Temple and rededicated it to the God of Israel. The word Hanukkah is Hebrew for “dedication.”

But the connection between Karaites and the Maccabees is much deeper than my not-so-artful twist on the word “rebellious.”

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Filed under David Suissa, Hanukkah, Jewish Journal, Karaite Press, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, Maccabees, Pharisees, Sadducees, Shabbat Candles, The Temple

November 30, 2012 · 8:55 am

Karaite Studies: The State of the Field (Part II)

This is the second (and, for now, final) post related to the Karaite Studies: The State of the Field workshop held in Israel in early 2012.

In this post, we’re picking up where we left off by summarizing and annotating the second half of a question-and-answer session between Rabbi Moshe Firrouz, the Chief Rabbi of the Karaite Council of Sages, and various attendees at the workshop. Based on the number of views, the post on the first half of the question-and-answer session was a hit, and YouTube has a video of the entire session.

A little background is necessary before jumping into this post. A lot questions relate to ritual purity. Karaites generally concern themselves with ritual purity more so than Rabbanites because the traditional Karaite view is that one may not enter a holy place (such as, in the Karaite tradition, the sanctuary of a synagogue) while ritually impure. We’ll discuss this issue in more detail in a later post. Other topics in this post relate to Karaite butcher shops, mikvehs, fertility, and even the permissibility of pets.

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Filed under Crimea, Daniel Lasker, Fertility, Free Will, Full Prostration, Head Coverings, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, Marriages, Menstruation, Mikveh, Moetzet Hachamim (Council of Sages), Moshe Firrouz, Mourning, Pets, Prayer, Ritual Purity, Sacrifice, Secular Karaism, What is Karaite Judaism, Women in Karaism

November 28, 2012 · 6:00 am

Karaite Studies: The State of the Field (Part I)

One of my professed goals for starting A Blue Thread is to promote the study of Karaite Judaism at secular and religious institutions. This is the first in a series of posts related to a workshop, entitled Karaite Studies: The State of Field, that was held in Israel from February 27, 2012 – March 1, 2012.*

For today, I’ve created cliff notes and commentary (not to be confused with an oral law) for the first half of a question-and-answer session between Rabbi Moshe Firrouz, the Chief Rabbi of the Karaite Council of Sages (Hebrew: Moetzet HaHachamim), and various researchers and academics in attendance at the workshop. The topics covered in this post range from women in Karaite Judaism; Karaite Torah scrolls; rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem; and efforts of the Karaite community to maintain its halakha (religious interpretations), culture and traditions.

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Filed under Conferences & Workshops, Divorce & Get, Karaite Beit Din, Karaite Jews of America, Karaite Prayers & Melody, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, Karaite Scribes, Karaite Studies: The State of the Field, Moetzet Hachamim (Council of Sages), The Temple, What is Karaite Judaism, Women in Karaism

November 8, 2012 · 6:00 am

She Speaks With Authority

(Editor’s Note: This is the first of what I expect to be many posts relating to women in Karaite Judaism. It is my hope that one day soon this series will be authored by a woman or – better yet – a group of women. If you are a Jewish woman with sincere interest in contributing in this manner, please contact me at Shawn@abluethread.com.)

* * *

“When [a certain Karaite Jew] passed on to hell, he was survived by his accursed wife, whom [his adherents] used to address as al-Mu’allima and on whom they relied for authoritative tradition. They would ask each other what Mu’allima’s usage was, and they would follow suit.”
– Abraham Ibn Daud, Sefer ha-Qabbalah (English: The Book of Tradition)*
(12^th Century Spain)

Abraham ibn Daud was an ardent Rabbanite Jew living in Spain during the 12th Century and his brief rendition of the history of Karaites in Spain has always intrigued me. According to Ibn Daud, the Karaite Jews of Spain once had a female leader. The Karaite community referred to this leader as “the Teacher” (Arabic: al-Mu’allima) – which, interestingly, is one of the translations of the word “Rabbi” – and the Karaite community relied on her for authoritative tradition. For now, I’ll address just two of the many thoughts that come to mind.

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Filed under Books, Karaite Jews of America, Karaite Rabbanite Relations, Sefer ha-Qabbalah, The Book of Tradition, Women in Karaism