This week in Jewish history: When Egypt said all Jews are 'Zionists'

Cheshvan 21, 5334 (1573):

Yahrzeit of Rabbi David ibn Abi Zimra, known by the acronym of his name, Radbaz. Serving as the chief rabbi of Egypt, he later moved to Israel, where he taught Jewish mysticism to the Arizal, who went on to become the founder of modern Kabbalah. The Radbaz issued many important decisions in Jewish law, including the assertion that the Ethiopian community was certainly Jewish – a decision that gained practical application in the 20th century with the airlift of Ethiopian Jews to Israel.

Nov. 23, 1956:

A proclamation was signed and read aloud in mosques throughout Egypt declaring that “all Jews are Zionists and enemies of the state.” Thousands of Jews were ordered to leave the country and were allowed to take only one suitcase and a small sum of cash, after being forced to sign a declaration “donating” their property to the Egyptian government.

Nov. 24, 1632:

Birthday of Baruch Spinoza, the 17th-century Dutch rationalist philosopher of Portuguese origin who founded modern biblical criticism. Advocating a more secular humanist approach to religion, he was excommunicated from the Jewish community. Today he is considered one of Western civilization’s most important philosophers.

Nov. 25, 1940:

The British decided to deport all 1,771 “illegal” immigrants aboard the French steamer Patria to Mauritius. In order to head off the move, Hagana members decided to disable the ship. Unfortunately, the explosive charge was too large or the hull too weak, and the ship sank in the port of Haifa, drowning 257 people.

Nov. 26, 1949:

Birthday of Shlomo Artzi, who has been one of Israel’s most popular singers and songwriters for more than 30 years.

Describe to yourselves a beautiful world,Less sad than what it is now,And we walk there with sunshine in our pockets,And above the rooftops, the stars,And time moves with no fear.– “Teta’aru Lachem” (“Imagine for yourselves,” 2007)

Nov. 27, 1914:

The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (aka the Joint) was established as a merger of several organizations. It campaigned on behalf of Jews and distributed funds wherever Jews were in need, especially in Eastern Europe.

Nov. 28, 1908:

Birthday of Claude Lévi-Strauss, French anthropologist who has been called the “father of modern anthropology,” primarily for his development of the theory of structuralism – “the search for the underlying patterns of thought in all forms of human activity.” Lévi-Strauss contended that the “savage” mind had the same structures as the “civilized” mind and that human characteristics are the same everywhere.

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