Language:
French
Year of publication:
2019
Titel der Quelle:
Revue des Etudes Juives
Angaben zur Quelle:
178,1-2 (2019) 101-132
Keywords:
Ben Gigi, Eliyahu
;
Manuscripts, Hebrew
;
Jews History
;
Idolatry
;
World War, 1914-1918
;
Responsa 20th century
Abstract:
At the inauguration in Tlemcen (Algeria) of a monument to commemorate those who died in the First World War, several rabbis and members of the community refused to attend the event, because the monument was a statue of a soldier bearing arms. Rabbi Élie Benguigui was asked whether the "halakha" permitted participation in the ceremony and whether it was allowed to leave the statue unaltered. In a "tešubha" published in this article (from a manuscript belonging to the author), he replied that despite the categorical prohibitions codified in "halakha", he recommended relying on the more lenient view expressed by R. Ašer ben Yeḥiel, and he permitted both attending the ceremony and leaving the monument intact. This suggests that in order to rule on specific cases, an analysis of the Talmudic sources is required while established authorities may be bypassed. The prohibitions concerning sculptures reveal two opposing views and we note a much more tolerant attitude among rabbis living in Christian countries than those in Moslem lands. Finally, it will be noted that the rabbis known as "native" had from that time adopted the French patriotism that prevailed among the Jews of Metropolitan France.
DOI:
10.2143/REJ.178.1.3286069
URL:
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