A Letter from Algerian Rabbi David Askénazi to Rabbi Kook Advocating for the Use of the Organ in Synagogue Services

In 1934, David Askénazi, the chief rabbi of Oran, Algeria, responded to a decision by Abraham Kook, at the time chief rabbi of Mandatory Palestine, condemning the use of the organ in synagogue services in Oran. Transcending the typical European dichotomies between Orthodox and Reform, Askénazi’s let...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Abensour, Gabriel (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Brill 2023
In: Zutot
Year: 2023, Volume: 20, Issue: 1, Pages: 1-18
Further subjects:B Oran
B Organs
B Rabbi Kook
B Hybridity
B David Askénazi
B Algerian Jewry
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:In 1934, David Askénazi, the chief rabbi of Oran, Algeria, responded to a decision by Abraham Kook, at the time chief rabbi of Mandatory Palestine, condemning the use of the organ in synagogue services in Oran. Transcending the typical European dichotomies between Orthodox and Reform, Askénazi’s letter is above all a testimony to the religious and cultural hybridity of Algerian Jews during the colonial era. In a mere few pages, the rabbi developed a religious argument mixing elements of language and arguments typical of Maghrebian rabbis with positions common to liberal European Jews. Aware of the structure of power between the East and the West, Askénazi also criticized Kook’s interventionism in the affairs of his community. In light of what he denounced as a form of Jewish imperialism, Askénazi emphasized the agency of Sephardic rabbis and called for full recognition of their religious tradition.
ISSN:1875-0214
Contains:Enthalten in: Zutot
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/18750214-bja10035