Communal Organization: Taxation, Discipline and Courts

 

Jewish Quarter of Lokšany, Czechia

Jewish Quarter of Lokšany, Czechia. By Czeva – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=110105150

The organized Jewish communal structures bore heavy responsibility for life within the Jewish enclaves. The role of government in medieval Europe was minimal, confined to protection from outside assault, maintenance of peace and order internally, and dispensing of justice. While protection from assault was a function the lay authorities of medieval western Christendom normally provided for their Jewish clients, maintenance of peace and order within the Jewish community and dispensing justice was normally delegated to the leadership of the Jewish community. For many reasons, medieval Jews welcomed these burdens.

The first obligation of the Jewish communal structures was the raising of funds with which to pay the taxes imposed by the non-Jewish authorities and that—at the same time—could be used for support of Jewish life as well. Taxation legislation was a regular feature of medieval Jewish communal life, as were rancorous disputes over the equity of the tax burden.

Key to maintenance of internal order within the Jewish communities of medieval western Christendom was the Jewish court system. With roots in biblical and talmudic traditions, the medieval Jewish court system was well grounded and deeply respected. Jews were regularly accorded the right to have their internal quarrels litigated by the Jewish courts, operating of course on the principles of talmudic law, and such recognition by the non-Jewish authorities was deeply appreciated. The Jewish court system constituted a sturdy foundation for medieval Jewish life in Europe.

Undermining in any way the taxation authority of the Jewish community or the power of the Jewish court system was a heinous offense in medieval Jewish communal life. Since there were Jews who occasionally had independent connections to non-Jewish rulers, exploiting those connections to the detriment of the organized Jewish community constituted a major danger, was deeply resented, and was harshly criticized.

Images

  1. Reaffirmation of the autonomy of the Jewish community of Speyer, 1333
  2. Seal-stamp for unleavened bread, 14 th century Catalonia
  3. Seal of the Jewish community of Regensburg, 1356

Primary Texts

  1. Communal Taxes, Early-Eleventh-Century Responsum
  2. Communal Taxes in of Italy, 1416-18 Communal Ordinance
  3. Communal Taxes in Castile, 1432 Communal Ordinance
  4. Communal Discipline, Responsum of Rashi
  5. Communal Discipline, 1170 Ordinance of R. Jacob Tam
  6. Jewish Courts, England, 1201 Royal Charter to Jews of England
  7. Jewish Courts, Castile, 1432 Communal Ordinance
  8. Sumptuary Laws, Italy, 1416-1418 Communal Ordinance
  9. Sumptuary Laws, Castile, 1432 Communal Ordinance

Secondary Literature

  1. S. W. Baron, The Jewish Community- Its History and Structure to the American Revolution (3 vols.; Philadelphia- Jewish Publication Society, 1942), 1-208-282.
  2. Y. Baer, “The Origins of Jewish Communal Organization in the Middle Ages,” Binah 1(1989)- 59-82.
  3. R. Chazan, “Medieval Jewish Political Institutions- The Foundations of Their Authority,” in The Quest for Utopia- Jewish Political Ideas and Institutions through the Ages, ed. Zvi Gitelman (Armonk, 1992), 67-79.
  4. Y. Assis, The Golden Age of Aragonese Jewry- Community and Society in the Crown of Aragon, 1213-1327 (London- The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization, 1997), 67-196.
  5. J. Katz, “Rabbinical Authority and Authorization in the Middle Ages,” in Studies in Medieval Jewish History and Literature 1 (1979)- 41-56.

Videos

  1. What were the responsibilities of the Jewish community organizations? Prof. Robert Chazan.

What do you want to know?

Ask our AI widget and get answers from this website

Create Account
Contact Us