[appleiphoneees]

Venice is a city of gentle lifestyles. Of fluttering pigeon wings and small tides on the canals - of Gondoliers waiting for sojourners - It’s a city of history and ancient trades and strutting princes of yesterdays - It’s a city of Jewish Ghetto life when the day began with knocks on the doors to beckon the early morning worshippers - It’s a city where Jews waited on the piers on their way to the forty day trip to Palestine. It’s synagogues with simple facades and a world of beauty inside of Baroque and Renaissance - it’s crowded Ghetto houses and the great scholar who pleaded that day to the Pope - in Latin, not to ban Talmudic learning - It’s a city of ghetto life - a city that still speaks today.

There is evidence of Jews in Venice as early as the 11th and 12th century. Venice at that time was a necessary stopover for merchants on their travels between east and west. They came from Germany, France, Greece and Turkey. The Jewish merchants set up small businesses during their short stopovers to the city as they traveled from one place to another. This was the beginning of the Jewish community which grew to about thirteen hundred people by the 12th century.

The Jews were forbidden to trade with Christians or to follow any profession other than medicine. They were also involved in banking, pawn broking and second-hand dealing. On the whole the Venetian government was protective of the lives and property of the Jews and regularly acted as a restraining force against physical violence. There were degrees of expulsion, 1527, 1565 and 1571, although none were actually carried out. While the Venetian government followed the papal instructions to burn Jewish books in 1533 it did not follow suit when the papacy embarked upon harsher policies against the Jews. For over two hundred and fifty years from 1513 until the end of the Venetian republic in 1797, the Venetian Senate always renewed the charter that authorized the residence of the Jews in the city.

On March 20th 1516 the Maggior Consiglio decreed that all Jews live in an area near San Girolamo, and by this law, the republic of Venice had created the first “ghetto,” so called because the area was the site of an abandoned foundry for casting iron, and the Venetian word for cast is “getar,” and the word “geto” was later corrupted to “ghetto.”
The separate quarter was known as the “Ghetto Nuovo,” and the area added in 1541 was called “Ghetto Vecchio,” the Old Ghetto, while the “Ghetto Nuovissiomo,” Newest Ghetto, the small northeastern section, was added in 1633.
What struck the visitor as he entered the ghetto was the great height of the buildings. The space of the Jewish quarter was rarely increased, thereby story upon story was added to the already rickety buildings. From a distance, it sometimes seemed as though the Jewish quarter towered above the city and not infrequently the buildings collapsed.

Jews were legally forbidden to hold real estate, and were unable to purchase the houses from the Christians. The Jewish garb was enforced from the age of 13 or 14 and upwards. It was in a form of a circle of yellow cloth which had to be sewn on the breast of the outer garment. Later on every Jew had to wear a yellow hat, and at the close of the 16th century the color was changed to red. By the year 1655 the Jewish population rose to 5,000.

In the Ghetto Nuovo were situated pawn broking establishments or loan banks which played such an important part in the history of the community catering to the crowds of needy Venetians. Up until the beginning of the 19th century, the banks remained a characteristic feature of the Ghetto.
The center of Ghetto life was the Scuola - (literally School) or synagogue which was one of the sights of the town and also frequently visited by curious Christians. The exterior was unpretentious for fear of exciting the Gentiles, however the inside was of fine proportions and design and exquisite in rococo detail such as could be found in no other country.

The Synagogue was the center of the life of the Venetian Jew. It was here that every morning, before the sunrise, the Ghetto would be aroused by the beadle - “Shomerim la-Boker” (Watcher for the Morning) who went round from house to house knocking on the doors.

The seven oldest Rabbis in the city formed the official court - they licensed the publishing of new works, and decided matrimonial and other religious questions.
In Venice, the sermons were especially cultivated. The scope of the sermons delivered in the Ghetto was remarkable. The Jews of Venice enjoyed a high respect for their eloquence, and Christians made a point of coming to hear the sermons delivered in the synagogue. During the city’s heyday, the audience of a gifted speaker often comprised the elite of the city, envoys, politicians, priests, even a visiting prince.

The religious life of each week reached its climax on the Sabbath day. On Friday afternoons, a change came over the Ghetto. The hurly-burly of the working days gradually decreased. The neighboring streets became crowded with red-hatted figures hastening home.

An hour before sunset, a trumpeter, especially engaged for the occasion, would blow a fanfare in the Ghetto Nuovo as a sign to the people to cease work.
At the same time the rabbis assembled together and went round the Ghetto to see that preparations were made for the day of rest -this they did several more times before the start of Sabbath.
All the shops were closed and shuttered. It was useless for any Gentile, however pressing his needs, to come to the Ghetto to raise monies. The laws of the city guaranteed that no Jews could be summoned to court.
Though it was forbidden for a Jew to have a Christian servant, for the purpose of kindling light, building the fire or performing other necessary labors prohibited to Jews on the Sabbath, an exception was made. This did not exist in any of the other papal states.

Despite the high walls that surrounded the Ghetto, there was never a feeling of isolation. There was a constant stream of visitors from many countries. The Ghetto was vibrant with life.

Externally the Venetian Synagogues do not present any features of particular merit or interest; probably it was thought better not to attract the attention of the Rulers of the Republic who had explicitly forbidden their construction in the town. They are severe buildings with noble but simple Renaissance motifs and we do not know the identity of the architects. We know only that Balassare Longhena was connected with the restoration of the Schola Spagnola.

However, the interiors are much more sumptuous, rich in carved wood and marble and much gilding which the artists used to embellish the interior. Some of the synagogues were owned by families renowned for the wealth and culture. The synagogues are valuable testimony to the life and culture of the Jewish ghetto, especially during the period of its grandeur.

Five synagogues situated within the ancient borders of the ghetto remain standing. They include The Scola Grande Tedesca, built by the Jews of German origin, known also as the Great German Synagogue (1528-29) in the Ghetto Nuovo, The Scola Canton Synagogue (1531-32) in a corner of the Ghetto Nuova, The Scola Levantine (Levantine Synagogue) built in 1538, the Scola Spagnola (Spanish Synagogue) 1555, the largest synagogue in Venice, and the Italian Synagogue built in 1575.

The Scola Grande Tedesca was built by the Askhenazi community around 1528-29 and is the oldest Venetian Synagogue. The synagogue was often restored over the centuries as can be seen from the excessive amount of gilding. Highlighting the temple are five interesting windows, three of which are walled up. There is a beautiful gilded Holy ark and bimah. The women’s gallery is an oval balcony. The Synagogue was restored between 1890-1910. On the doors of the Ark are inscribed the Ten Commandments, inlaid in Mother-of-pearl.

The Scola Canton Synagogue (1531-32) is named either after the family that had built it or after its position in the “canton” (Venetian -“corner”) of the Ghetto Square. It was enlarged and enriched in the centuries and is similar to the Scola Grande Tedesca as it also follows the Askhenazi style. Above the entrance portals one can read “year of the construction of the Holy Community Canton Synagogue 5292 (1532)." There are panels with Biblical scenes of Moses and the parting of the Red Sea.

The Scola Levantine (Levantine Synagogue;1538) was constructed by Jews who came from the Eastern Mediterranean. It is probably the only one that has kept nearly all of its original features. The synagogue was restored by Andrea Brustolon (1662-1732), the most famous wood sculptor working in Venice in that period. A particularly beautiful and impressive pulpit stands on a high base, finely worked in flower motifs and is a masterpiece of wood carving. Other motifs are designed on the round twisted columns, recalling those of King Solomon’s Temple There are Dutch chandeliers, brass candlesticks and beautiful silver lamps hanging round the Ark. The synagogue is still in use weekdays.

The Scola Spagnola (1555) also known as the Spanish Synagogue is the largest and best known of Venetian Synagogues. Here many Marrano fugitives had their first experience of real Judaism. Although it was started in 1555, it was entirely rebuilt one century later in 1635 or 1654 by Baldassare Longhena, architect of numerous Venetian palaces. The facade seems almost closed in by the neighboring houses. On the back wall there is a tablet with the names of the Jews deported form Venice in the years 1943-44, while numerous other tablets on the side walls commemorate many members of well-known Venetian families. An oval gallery for women is an outstanding feature which runs all around the hall. The Holy Ark is designed in classical baroque style and the bimah is composed of four Corinthian columns. The synagogue is now the official synagogue of the Venetian community. It was restored in 1838 and 1894.

The Italian Synagogue known also as the Scola Italiano was built in 1575 and is located in the Ghetto Nuovo. The Aron Ha-Kodesh (Holy Ark) dates from the early 1800’s, a gift of Beniamino di Consiglio. It is the last in the order of time of the Synagogues constructed under the Venetian Republic. It is clearly recognizable from the outside by the five big arched windows similar to those of the Scola Grande Tedesca. A small portal and very narrow stairs lead into the synagogue which is less ornate than the others due to the modest economic condition of the Italian community then. The Holy Ark is decorated with elegant wood ornaments. On the outside is a tablet as a memorial to the destruction at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem.
The Old Cemetery dates back to 1386 at San Nicolo on the Lido where a high hedge was grown around the area to discourage violation of the tombs. It is called “the “House of Life”, and here are buried all of the great figures of the Venetian Ghetto. A majority of the epitaphs are in Hebrew, others in Spanish and Portuguese. The tombs of the 17th century are the vertical ones. The inscriptions and decorations are in an excellent state of preservation. There are coats of arms corresponding to the titles many Jews received before being expelled from Spain in 1492.

In 1938, Mussolinis’ Fascist government racial laws promulgated affected all the Jewish communities of Italy (40,000) and the Venetian Jewish community of 1,200. Jews were forced from civil service, expelled from professional associations, and signs displayed in public facilities showed “Dogs and Jews prohibited.”

On July 25, 1943, the Fascists government fell and the German troops arrived in Italy on September 8, 1943. On September 16, of that year, Giuseppe Jona, president of the Jewish community of Venice, committed suicide rather than hand over the lists of the names of the Jewish community. On December 5, the Fascist guard organized a huge roundup of Jews in Venice where they were later deported to Germany. Elderly Jews were torn from their beds in the nursing home of Casa Israelitica di Riposa, as it is now called.
The chief Rabbi Adolfo Ottolenghi, after being turned back at the Swiss border, was deported and died in the death camps. Altogether 205 Jews were deported. After liberation in 1945, there were 1,050 Jews in the community. Today, there are roughly 600 Jews in Venice. Some Jews still live in the old neighborhood, the Campo di Ghetto Nuovo. The cultural life of the Jewish community has revived. There are annual seminars in the city which attract a large public. The past and the present is revived.

Venice was known for its many scholars, its community leaders and the outstanding Abtalion, the phenomenal scholar of Venice, who on that day some hundred years ago went on his mission to the Curia, the assembled court of Pope Gregory XIII to plead before all, the removal of that ban on Talmudic learning.
And though the heavy crimson drapes were drawn, and the ring on the pope’s finger twirled and twirled and shone from that little light that somehow seeped through the darkness, there came the Jewish Voice of Abtalion, in his brilliant speech in Latin, pleading before all, for his people, the Jewish Community of Venice.


http://www.doingzionism.org/resources/view.asp?id=1369