Text and photos by Mary L. Peachin
March, 2015 Vol. 19, No. 6
Arriving at Ashkenazi Synagogue near the Galata Tower in Istanbul’s Karaköy neighborhood of Beyoğlu, morning prayer was about to begin. The attendance numbered only nine men plus one youthful worshipper. The Jews were one person short of establishing the minyan required to perform their religious obligations. Women, who are required to worship from the balcony, are not counted as part of a minyan, so I was directed to the stairwell.
Worshippers wore arm-tefillin, or shel yad. Placed on the upper arm, a strap wrapped around the arm, hand and fingers held the small black leather boxes which contain parchment scrolls inscribed with Torah verses. Worn by observant Jews during weekday morning prayers, the Torah commands that they serve as a “sign” and “remembrance” that God brought Jewish children of Israel out of Egypt. Chanting prayers and daviting (bowing), their heads were covered with yamulkes skullcaps, their shoulders wrapped with tallis (shawls) twined with knotted fringe attached to each corner. The rabbi frequently touched the prayer box to his lips. At the conclusion of the service, the Rabbi asked if anyone had lost a family member. The men concluded their prayers by reciting the kiddish.
In the hills of Galata’s, Istanbul’s primary Jewish settlement, worship is discreet. Synagogues are not prominentally displayed. Those with a noticeable presence are fortified with maximum security. Turkish synagogue membership has dwindled as members pass away or migrate to other places.
Judaism has enjoyed a long and amicable history in Turkey dating back to the 500 B. C. archaeological discovery of a Sardes synagogue in the former capital of ancient Lydia in the Manisa-Salihli region. Constant invasion had led the Jews to flee to this northern Anatolia area.
It is theorized that when the Ottomans ruled the region, Sultan Orhan Gazi gave the Jewish community, in the capital city of Bursa, permission to build a synagogue. During the 1109 Spanish Inquisition, rulers Isabel and Ferninand expelled the country’s Jews.
Sultan Beyazit II, aware of Jewish skills, welcomed the exiled Jews to Turkey. In 1453, when Sultan Mehmet II conguered Istanbul, the Romaniot and Karai Jews had two small communities. By the 16th century, the Jewish population had grown to 300,000.
When the Turkish Republic was established in 1923, Jews began migrating to Israel and the United States. By the 1940’s, Turkey’s Jewish population had dropped to 20,000. Today, most of Istanbul’s Jews are Sephardic, belonging primarily to residents of Spanish and Portuguese descent.
Neve Salom Synagogue, currently the largest in Istanbul, opened in 1951. It has 550 members. In 1986, an act of terror killed twenty two worshippers during a Shabat (Friday evening) service. The rabbi was doused with gas and burned to death. No one took responsibility.
In 2003, Al Quaida unsuccessfully attempted to car bomb Neve Salom and Beth Israel (which is closed to public) synagogues. Those who were killed were innocent people on the street.
In order to visit today, advanced written permission is required along with a passport copy. Visitors must pass through security similar to those in airports. Entrances are fortified and visitors must pass between two air-locked doors.
Italyan Synagogue or Kal de los Frankos originally included a tea garden. It was built when a woman in the Castro family died. Funds were collected and the money was used to build the century old synagogue, now one of the poorest. Worshippers number about thirty for shabat, with three hundred attending high holiday services.
Etz Ahayim Synagogue, located in Ortaköy, has had the destructive misfortune of four fires dating back to 1703. Only a small area remains.
Istanbul, historically a place where Muslims, Christians, and Jews lived in harmony is losing its Jewish population. There are few young members. Not all synagogues have rabbis. The Chief Rabbi circulates among the different synagogues.
Our tour also included parts of a former Jewish neighborhood. In the 1870’s the Camondo family, Jewish financiers, built a winding stone staircase as a short cut from their home to the street below, one now lined with banks. His effort also provided a shortcut for his son to go to school. Sadly, the family would all die in the Nazi Auschwitz death camp.
Zulfaris Jewish Museum, located in Karaköy, is a museum that does not exhibit memories of the Holocaust. Instead, it portrays 700 years of amicable relationships between Turkey and the Jews. One of its exhibits is a letter from Albert Einstein requesting Turkey to save scientists during World War II.
While it is possible that during the 4th century Byzantine era, Jews lived with oppression. Middle Ages anti-semiticism originated from Blood libels, an accusation that Jews used the blood of Christian children to bake matzot.
The arrivals of the Jews in Turkey meant a change, one of freedom. Today, Turks have become brothers with Jews sharing a religion that has many similar traditions.
If you go:
Advance preparation is an absolute requirement. Expect a complete background check after submission of a copy of your passport. Contact www.backpackerstravel.net to make arrangements.