Rav Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel
(1880-1953) was a visionary rabbinic leader, a strong promoter of Jewish unity,
and the 20th century’s most authentic embodiment of the classic Sephardic
rabbinic tradition. His leadership was characterized, on the one hand, by a
burning desire to abolish divisions between Jews, yet at the same time he was
committed to promoting Sephardic Judaism. How did he reconcile these seemingly
conflicting agendas?
As the Haham Bashi
(Ottoman-appointed Chief Rabbi) of Jaffa-Tel Aviv (1911-1939), and then as the Rishon
L’Zion of the pre-state Yishuv (1939-1947) and of the State of
Israel (1948-1953), Rav Uziel was officially the “Sephardic Chief Rabbi of the
Land of Israel”. But despite holding an official title and position that seems
to have ethnic and particularistic overtones, Rav Uziel was an outspoken
proponent of Jewish unity. He passionately sought to abolish the traditional
ethnic divisions amongst Jews, especially in Israel. His push for Jewish unity
was persistent and thorough, and he articulated his vision of Jewish unity in
many forums, including public addresses, written position papers and halakhic
rulings. From his earliest moments as a young rabbinic leader, all the way
through to his famous “Spiritual Will to the Jewish People” written a few weeks
before his death in 1953, Rav Uziel advocated Jewish unity as an ideal
position.
If Rav Uziel so actively
sought Jewish unity as an ideal, then what was his understanding of his own
particular title and role as a Sephardic Chief Rabbi? What was Rav Uziel’s
definition of Sephardic Judaism within the context of a Jewish community that,
in his own view, should no longer express these ethnic divisions?
In order to answer this
question, it is helpful to begin in 1911 when, upon being appointed Haham
Bashi of Jaffa, Rav Uziel articulated a grand vision of unity for the
Jewish people:
“It is my tremendous desire to unify all of the divisions
that the diaspora tore us into, the separate communities of Sephardim,
Ashkenazim, Temanim (Yemenites), etc. This should not be a difficult task, for
unity is in our nature and our national character as a people. These divisions
amongst us are not natural. The particular linguistic and communal divisions
that exist amongst us were created due to our dispersion throughout the
diaspora. As we now return to our natural homeland, there is absolutely no
reason to continue living by these communal and linguistic divisions imported
from the diaspora. Instead, we will be one unified community. Should I succeed
in helping to quickly realize and fulfill this unity amongst us, great will be
my merit.”
This was Rav Uziel’s “I
have a dream” speech. Fully aware of the 1900 year history in which Jews lived
as separate and distinct communities throughout the diaspora — with different
rabbis, customs, languages, prayer rituals and halakhic rulings dividing them —
Rav Uziel nonetheless believes that unifying the Jewish people “should not be a
difficult task” because the divisions born in the diaspora are alien to the
essence of the Jewish people. He does not consider his desire to abolish the
diaspora’s divisions into Sephardim and Ashkenazim to be a new or radical idea
but a return to our true nature. He declares that unity “is in our national
character,” and by becoming “one unified community” we are returning to our
original essence as a people.
The most remarkable part
of this speech is the context in which it was delivered — an acceptance speech
upon becoming the Haham Bashi of Jaffa. As he accepted a title and
position traditionally associated with the Sephardic community in the Land of
Israel, Rav Uziel boldly declares that, as Haham Bashi, he will serve
the entire community and work tirelessly to abolish the divisions amongst all
Jews. Rav Uziel does not see his position as a Sephardic rabbi in the narrowly
ethnic sense, rather as a potentially unifying force within the Jewish world.
This being the case, what, if anything, did being a “Sephardic Rabbi” mean to
Rav Uziel?
In 1930, at a gathering
celebrating his 50th birthday, Rav Uziel addressed the apparent contradiction
between preaching unity while maintaining Sephardic Judaism. Responding to the
several friends who spoke his praises that night, Rav Uziel began by
re-affirming his passion for Jewish unity:
“In his address tonight, my friend and colleague Rabbi
Fishman touched upon the Sephardic and Ashkenazic elements within me. I have
already expressed on many occasions that I do not relate to any distinctions or
separations between Sephardim and Ashkenazim. It is not the countries of Spain
(Sepharad) or Germany (Ashkenaz) that gave us great Torah scholars, rather the
Torah itself—regardless of locale—that has inspired generation after generation
of Torah learning.
To my childhood friend, the honorable author A.
Elmaliach, I say: I love the concept of unity for our people, and my goal is to
see the elimination of the unnatural divisions amongst us that were created by
the diaspora. I absolutely hate divisiveness, and I sharply condemn and reject
all divisiveness masked as religion.”
These words bear a
striking resemblance to the vision Rav Uziel articulated in his inaugural
address as Haham Bashi of Jaffa in 1911. Except this time, in addition
to his well-known love for Jewish unity, Rav Uziel added some personal
reflections on Sephardic Judaism:
“However, hand in hand with my love for unity, I want to
draw the distinction between unity and self-belittlement. It is my goal to see
unity amongst us in the field of work and [my emphasis] in the field of
literary creations. Therefore, may it come to pass, that from the descendants
of the great rabbis from Spain, once again will emerge Poskim (halakhic
decisors) and Darshanim (homiletical preachers), Hokrim (philosophers) and Meshorerim
(poets), Parshanim (Biblical commentators) and Mekubalim (mystics/kabbalists).
This is my goal, and this is my prayer. It is from this ideological worldview
that I lent a hand to strengthen the World Federation of Sephardim, but from
the very first moment, I told them that their most important mission lies in
the areas of culture and Torah. More than once, I asked to create, under their
umbrella, a Beit Midrash L’Rabbanim (a Rabbinical School), because I believe
that Torah and higher intellectual education are the foundations for peace and
unity amongst us.”
In a bold expression of
his own identity, mission and purpose as a Sephardic rabbi, Rav Uziel
articulates an intellectual definition of Sephardic Judaism. He distinguishes
between “unity and self-belittlement” in order to ensure that unity does not
suppress the voices of his own Sephardic rabbinic forebears. Rav Uziel’s goal
of unity would not come at the expense of his own classic Sephardic tradition.
Rather than abolish Sephardic Judaism, he sought to redefine its purpose within
the larger context and goal of national revival and Jewish unity.
In Rav Uziel’s broad
vision, Sephardic Judaism would no longer reflect an ethnic definition but
instead would offer an intellectual-spiritual framework for the entire Jewish
people. To this end, Rav Uziel envisioned the establishment of a Sephardic Beit
Midrash that would revive the unique curriculum that characterized the yeshivot
and academies in Spain and, in turn, produce a new generation of Sephardic-style
but universally Jewish, “Poskim (halakhic decisors) and Darshanim (homiletical
preachers), Hokrim (philosophers) and Meshorerim (poets), Parshanim (Biblical
commentators) and Mekubalim (mystics/kabbalists).” This would be a “Sephardic”
Beit Midrash thanks to its approach to Torah study, not because of the ethnic
background of its students.
All Jews, irrespective of their ethnic origins, would be able to
study in such an academy, and its rabbinical graduates would serve the entire
Jewish community. Rav Uziel believed that the uniquely Sephardic
approach that was developed in Golden Age Andalusia, where yeshivot seamlessly
merged Talmudic scholarship, practical Halakhic decision-making, philosophical
inquiry, poetic creativity, Torah interpretation and mystical speculation, all
under one roof, could serve as an exemplary model and unifying force for the
Jewish people. Far from being mutually exclusive, Rav Uziel believed that
Jewish unity and the Sephardic intellectual tradition are complementary. He
specifically wanted to open a Sephardic Beit Midrash, because he
believed that its broad worldview would benefit the entire Jewish people and
serve as a foundation, “for peace and unity amongst us.”
In an address to a
Sephardic convention in 1939, Rav Uziel expressed why the term “Sephardic” was,
indeed, so honorable:
“To be Sephardic is honorable primarily because of the
type of Torah study, philosophical research and poetry that came from our
midst.”
The honor of Sephardic
Judaism derives from the intellectual-spiritual tradition that, historically
speaking, developed in the Sephardi world but that is open, in principle, to
all Jews.
Following his election as Rishon
L’Zion in 1939, Rav Uziel further explored the issue of what type of
yeshivot and Batei Midrash would be opened in the Zionist Yishuv. In
a lengthy article tracing the historical development of yeshivot and Batei
Midrash, Rav Uziel articulates some of the key historical differences
between Sephardic and Ashkenazic yeshivot. This is yet another expression of
his unique understanding of Sephardic Judaism:
“Yeshivot were divided into two centers of learning,
known by their general name of Sefarad (Spain) and Ashkenaz (Germany). This
division does not only reflect a geographic divide, rather it primarily
reflects a difference in curriculum and methodology.
The Sephardic Geonim (scholars) engaged in Talmudic study
and composed many works of Talmudic interpretation, but the primary purpose of
these works was to clearly explain Talmudic sections in depth, to link these
sections to other relevant sections within the Talmud, with the ultimate goal
of arriving at practical halakhic decisions. This is different than the yeshivot
of France and Ashkenaz, who limited their scope of Talmudic study to analysis
of the text.
Furthermore, the Sephardic rabbis widened the spectrum of
the yeshiva curriculum to include philosophical inquiry, as well as a wide
range of sciences and general knowledge that they studied from non-Torah
literature. The rabbis of France and Ashkenaz fenced themselves into the
exclusive world of Talmud and Midrash, fearing that the penetration of external
knowledge would create theological confusion amongst its students. For this
reason, they feared the study of Maimonides’ Guide for the Perplexed.”
Needless to say, Rav Uziel
studied, and wrote about, the Guide for the Perplexed.
In 1940, Rav Uziel
realized his dream and opened the yeshiva Sha’arei Zion in Jerusalem.
The curriculum reflected the broad-based Sephardic program he envisioned,
and in keeping with the non-ethnic character of the institution, the student
body was comprised of Ashkenazim and Sephardim alike. In fact (and perhaps to
make his point), the Rosh Yeshiva appointed to preside over the Sephardic
curriculum in Sha’arei Zion was Rav Eliezer Waldenberg, a young
Ashkenazi rabbinic scholar. Also known as the Tzitz Eliezer (the name of his
multi-volume responsa on Jewish law), Rav Waldenberg held particular expertise
in both Ashkenazi and Sephardi rabbinical literature. This, along with his
broad interest in medical issues and his tendency towards practical halakhic
rulings, made Rav Waldenberg an ideal reflection of Rav Uziel’s vision for the
yeshiva.
For slightly over a decade, Shaarei Zion succeeded in educating a
unique cadre of rabbis who served in Jewish communities all over the world.
These rabbis – Ashkenazim and Sephardim -- distinguished themselves as leaders
whose leadership and teachings reflected Rav Uziel’s newly re-defined Sephardi
worldview that was taught in the yeshiva’s daily curriculum.
In 1955, Sha’arei Zion unfortunately closed its doors. What lead to its
closure? In 1951, Rav Waldenberg accepted a prestigious appointment as a dayan (rabbinical judge) in Tel Aviv.
Two years later, after a long bought with diabetes, Rav Uziel passed away.
Although the yeshiva desperately tried to survive for another few years, the
loss of its visionary, and of the Rosh Yeshiva he selected, marked the demise
of Sha’arei Zion. Its closure not
only marked the end of an institution, but of Rav Uziel’s vision for a yeshiva
with a broad definition of “Torah study.” Future yeshivot in Israel, including
self-defined “Sephardi yeshivot,” adopted the “strictly Talmud” curriculum of
the classic Lithuanian yeshivot.
In a rapidly changing
Jewish world where ethnic differences take a back seat to fierce ideological
divisions, Rav Uziel’s teachings offer a refreshing approach to Jewish communal
life. As a Chief Rabbi who worked tirelessly for Jewish unity, and whose
teachings and way of life mirrored those of the Sephardic “Poskim, Darshanim,
Hokrim, Meshorerim, Parshanim and Mekubalim” that he sought to revive, Rav Uziel
represents a rabbinic ideal in which Jewish unity and Sephardic Judaism are not
mutually exclusive.
This unique blend of unity
and Sephardic Judaism came together in symbolic fashion during Rav Uziel’s
inaugural speech as Rishon L’Zion in 1939. Speaking his
characteristically poetic Hebrew and fully donned in the traditional
embroidered robe and turban of a Sephardic Chief Rabbi, Rav Uziel proudly
proclaimed: “my sacred mission is to unite, not to divide.”
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