Minhagim

Custom and Practice in Jewish Life

Joseph Isaac Lifshitz, Naomi Feuchtwanger-Sarig, Simha Goldin, Jean Baumgarten, Hasia Diner, Joseph Isaac Lifshitz, Naomi Feuchtwanger-Sarig, Simha Goldin, Jean Baumgarten, Hasia Diner

• Publisher: De Gruyter
• Year: 2019
• eBook ISBN: 9783110386653
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Jewish Theology

Parallel to the Halakhic laws, the minhagim (customs) are dependent on local practices and the regional schools of sages and rabbis. The minhagim played a decisive role in the history of the Jewish communities and in the formation of traditions of religious rulings. They gave stability, continuity, and authority to the local institutions.

The impact of Jewish custom on daily life cannot be overestimated. Evolving spontaneously as an ascending process, it presents undercurrents that emanate from the folk, gradually bringing about changes that eventually become part of the legislative code. It further reflects influences of social, cultural, and mythological tendencies and local historical elements of every-day life of the period.

The aim of this volume is to examine the concept of minhag in the broadest sense of the word. Focusing on the relationship between various types of customs and their impact on every aspect of Jewish life, the volume studies the historical, anthropological, religious, and cultural development and function of rites and rituals in establishing the Jewish self-definition and the identity of the local communities that adhered to them. The volume's articles cover the subject of custom from three perspectives: an analysis of the theoretical and legal definition of custom, an analysis of the social and historical aspects of custom, and an anecdotal study of several particular customs.

Customs are a wonderful historical prism by which to examine fluctuations and changes in Jewish life.

Memory Preservation and Custom in the Modern Era

Tikkun ‘Shovavim’ in the Slonim Hasidut

Noga Bar Or-Bing

“Asceticism” is defined as “severe self-discipline and avoiding of all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons,”¹ and includes “torture, oppression and avoidance of serving the body’s essential needs.”² This broad definition includes various ascetic traditions (or austerities) found in Jewish pietism from its inception in medieval Ashkenaz, such as immersing oneself in freezing waters, rolling in snow, and deliberately abstaining from satisfying needs such as food, sleep, and others. Similarly, the definition allows for different motivations behind austerities, including social-political reasons, asceticism for purposes of atonement or for “rising” in the ladder of holiness, and serving God.³

In this article, I shall present the “tikkun teshuva” of Slonim Hasidism, especially as found in the teachings of the last admor (Hasidic leader) Reb Sholom Noach Berezovsky (1911 – 2000) and the use of asceticism to atone for the “breach of the covenant.”⁴

Slonim Hasidism, which originated in Lithuania, developed under the influences of both Hasidic and “Mitnagdic” (i. e., opposition to Hasidism) trends in its surroundings. Among other objections, the latter censured what appeared to be Hasidism’s sexual permissiveness in the guise of religious ecstasy. However, the fact is that severe sexual asceticism and self-denial were an integral part of Hasidism since the eighteenth century and have continued through the years in certain Hasidic courts to this very day.⁵ The fact that the Slonim community has held these forms of asceticism in the highest regard since the beginning of the twentieth century raises some interesting questions.

Sexuality is part of a broad system incorporating the body, the conscious mind, and unconscious psyche. As Foucault points out in his seminal work on sexuality,⁶ the modern Western world perceives man (and woman) as a being defined by his/her sexuality. Today, each haredi (ultra-Orthodox Jew) yeshiva student is expected to be celibate before matrimony, then marry and live with his wife in an intimate couple system determined by halakhic rules, which place strict limitations on permitted physical and sexual contact. Both before and throughout his marriage the yeshiva student faces challenges regarding his sexual urgings and life in a family and as a couple. The Slonim Rebbe (and many other rebbes as well) believed these daily challenges needed to be addressed. Even more than the instructions found in Gur and Toldot Aharon on the subject of “Keeping the Covenant,” the Slonim teachings appear in obscure and cryptic terms, more alluded to than defined, and include kabbalistic terms understood by only a few. Examples may be found in the Netivot Shalom which often speaks of “kedusha,” though it remains unclear what this term actually encompasses.

Most of the Hasidic rebbes do not present details on how one is to keep the covenant. But the Slonim Rebbe went to great lengths to describe how one must behave so as to prevent any breach thereof. In the Netivot Shalom, there is a strong tendency to encourage men against despair if they do indeed “fall into the sins of the breach” and to remind them that correction and atonement are always possible.

There is an obvious disparity between the abundant and explicit writings of the Slonim Rebbe regarding the immense importance he attaches to preventing any “breach of the covenant” and the virtually unspoken practical regulations and guidance. The Admors of Slonim did not detail the ideals of kedusha as did the Gur rebbes. As Brown claims,⁷ the Slonim leaders perceive this ideal as an “aspiration.” The obscurity of the writings, however, in no way indicates a lapse of perceived importance. The attention which the Rebbe gave to this topic, albeit in codes, challenges the researcher to understand their meaning, the objectives behind the usage of this form and the differences between the practical and the theory.

Kedusha in the Life of the Hasid

There are two main time periods relevant to the Hasidic man regarding kedusha: before matrimony and within marriage. The education regarding kedusha before marriage starts at a very early age and continues until the young man marries. Once married, the realm of kedusha expands, as implied in the verse, “Sanctify yourself in that which is allowed to you.”⁸ The Slonim rebbes perceived both these periods (pre- and post-matrimony) as great battlefields.

One might expect the time of adolescence, with its raging hormones and sexual drives, to be considered the most challenging. But the Slonim rebbes demanded more of their male followers regarding the sexual acts within marriage; precisely because sex in marriage is halakhically permitted it requires greater spiritual stringency and austerity.

In addition to the philosophical writings on the ethic of kedusha, one finds in the kabbala, and later in Hasidism, a theurgist component comprised of practical rules and regulations aimed at preventing sins against the Covenant. Many attempts have been made by researchers to present different types of asceticism. In kabbala and Hasidism, most of the austerities relate to the realm of the erotic-sexual, specifically, abstaining from the sexual act.⁹ The following sections relate only to Tikkun Shovavim, whose main purpose is to correct the breach of the covenant.

Shovavim

The tradition of Tikkun Shovavim, though in existence for more than 500 years, is still shrouded in mystery.¹⁰ Slonim Hasidism, which absorbed the kabbala, discerned forty specific days, starting from the weekly reading of Parashat Shemot (Exodus) until and including Mishpatim,¹¹ as particularly suitable for fasting and atoning for sins. Each week is devoted to a specific transgression such as impurity, disrespect towards father or mother, etc. The customs of these days include fasting, prayer, and purifying the body and spirit. I shall briefly describe the sources which influenced the Slonim tradition of Shovavim, based primarily on the works of Moshe Hallamish.

The Origins of Tikkun Shovavim

The exact date on which the tradition began is unknown. There are no references to Shovavim until the time of the Shelah HaKadosh (Rabbi Yishayahu Horovitz) and the Ari (Rabbi Isaac Luria) (sixteenth century). Most of the earliest references relegate observance of Shovavim to leap years only.¹² According to Hallamish, there was a widely held belief that miscarriages occur particularly during leap years and thus Shovavim served to protect pregnant women.¹³

The Shelah and the Ari enhanced the tradition of Shovavim. The Shelah ignored the issue of pregnant women. His explanation for Shovavim was that “The people of Israel must awaken in themselves greater degrees of teshuva (repentance).”¹⁴ He believed that the leap year resulted from the moon’s grumbling and complaining, which created a separation between itself and the sun, a flaw which affected humans. Thus, performing more good deeds, teshuva, prayer, charity, and study would silence the moon’s bickering. The Shelah referred to the eight weeks only during leap years and the purpose of the custom was teshuva in general.

The Ari takes a different approach. His is the first reference to Tikkun Shovavim not as general atonement but specifically for the purpose of repenting for sins of breaching the Covenant. Regarding the timing of these particular eight weeks and their relevance to sexual (mis)behaviors, the Ari relates to the Midrash which states that Adam sinned by being celibate from his wife for 130 years, resulting in his conceiving spirits and ghosts. This sin was rectified in the exile in Egypt. The period in which Jews read the weekly portions of the Torah describing Israel’s enslavement up to receiving the Torah is most appropriate for observing the tradition of Shovavim. He writes:

The forty days of Shovavim during which Jews around the world fast, from the Portion of Exodus through Mishpatim… is especially suitable for correction of the sins of spilling seed… and indeed these forty days can atone for this sin more so than any other time of the year.

We understand from this that the Ari believed the tradition should be upheld every year and not only during leap years.¹⁵ Hallamish claims that these instructions of the Ari found their way into the halakhic literature.

The Ari’s approach and reasoning for Shovavim influenced those who followed¹⁶ as well as the general outlook of the Hasidic world. Hasidism in general, and particularly Slonim Ha...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Details of the Contributors
• Introduction
• Customs and Material Culture in Antiquity
• Conservatism, Innovation and Custom in the Middle Ages
• Memory Preservation and Custom in the Modern Era
• Index of Subjects
• Index of Names
• Index of Places