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Chapter 1. HASIDIC: a Jewish sect of mystics that began in Poland in the 18 th century. They stress joyful worship of a God believed to be present in everything. .
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HASIDIC: a Jewish sect of mystics that began in Poland in the 18th century. They stress joyful worship of a God believed to be present in everything. They called him Moishe the Beadle, as if his entire life he had never had a surname. He was the jack-of-all trades in a Hasidichouse of prayer, a shtibl. The Jews of Sighet…
He sang, or rather he chanted, and the few snatches I caught here and there spoke of divine suffering, of the Shekhinah in Exile, where, according to Kabbalah, it awaits its redemption linked to that of man. KABBALAH: a Jewish philosophy based on a mystical interpretation of the Scriptures
I was almost thirteen and deeply observant. By day I studied Talmud and by night I would run to the synagogue to weep over the destruction of the Temple. TALMUD: a book of detailed interpretation of Jewish scriptures; the writings that make up Jewish law
One day I asked my father to find me a master who could guide me in my studies of Kabbalah. “You are too young for that. Maimonides tells us that one must be thirty before venturing into the world of mysticism, a world fraught with peril.” MAIMONIDES: a 12th century Spanish rabbi and one of the most revered of Jewish philosophers
The train with the deportees had crossed the Hungarian border and, once in Polish territory, had been taken over by the Gestapo. GESTAPO: the secret police force of the German Nazis
And thus my elders concerned themselves with all manner of things – strategy, diplomacy, politics, andZionism– but not with their own fate. ZIONISM: a movement during this time to create a Jewish state or country of their own
In those days it was still possible to buy emigrationcertificates to Palestine. I had asked my father to sell everything, to liquidate everything, and to leave. p.8. EMIGRATION: the act of leaving one country or region to settle in another
The officers were billeted in private homes, even in Jewish homes. Their attitude toward their hosts was distant but polite. BILLETED: temporary lodging of military personnel in private homes or buildings
On the seventh day of Passover, the curtain finally rose: the Germans arrested the leaders of the Jewish community. PASSOVER: a Jewish holiday celebrating the deliverance of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt
From that moment on, everything happened very quickly. The race toward death had begun. First edict: Jews were prohibited from leaving their residences for three days, under penalty of death (p. 10). EDICT: an official public announcement or order given by an authority, such as the government or military
Water! There was water close by inside the houses, the back-yards, but it was forbidden to break rank. “Water, Mother, I am thirsty!” Some of the Jewish police surreptitiously went to fill a few jugs (p. 16). Surreptitious- (adj) Performed, made, or acquired by secret, clandestine, or stealthy means.
