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Rabbi Meir Moshe, Shiraz, Iran

Description

Shiraz
Renown as the city where many of the most famous works of Judeo-Persian poetry were written, Shiraz reflects the long history of Jewish culture in Iran. Shiraz's Jewish community may have existed as early as the tenth century, with a population of about 10,000 around the year 1162 (5). The greatest Judeo-Persian poet, Shahin-i Shirazi (or Mawlana Shahin), lived in Shiraz during the fourteenth century and composed many of his famous epics, including Musa-nama, Ardashir-nama, and Bereshit-nama. Much of this Judeo-Persian poetry and literature was written in the Persian language but with Hebrew characters; however, in Shiraz, many of the Jews spoke their own dialects called Jidi and Letra'i (6). Although Shiraz's Jewish community remained prominent through the nineteenth century, maintaining a population of around 3,000 until 1830, the community began to decline due to a number of forced conversions, and by 1850 the Jewish community had shrunk to 500. Despite the forced conversion of most of the Jewish community, many Jews continued to practice their religion in secret and during the 1850s nine synagogues still remained in Shiraz under Chief Rabbi Mulley Israel.

To support the Jewish community, an Alliance Israelite Universelle school was opened in Shiraz in 1904, though it closed in the 1960s. Similarly, a yeshivah, teacher's seminary, and schools run by Otzar Ha-Torah and ORT, as well as Kanun Javanan--the Iranian Jewish women's and young people's associations, grew throught the 1960s. However, the Jewish community in Shiraz also faced blood libels and false accusations which harmed their community. One of these such accusations occurred on October 30, 1910 when the Jewish quarter was accused of having ritually murdered a Muslim child, and resulted in the killing of 12 Jews, injuring of 50, and robbery and attacking of the entire quarter. Nonetheless, many Jews continued to call Shiraz home, and in 1979 the population still numbered about 8,000 (7). However, near the end of this century, many of the community's Jews began emigrating to Israel (8).  In April 2000, 13 Shirazi Jews were tried as Israeli spies, but were released in 2003. Most recently, the Jewish community in Shiraz has been numbered at about 5,000 and 15 active synagogues were recorded--perhaps suggesting the strong ties of Shirazi Jews to the city where so much of their culture was born (9).

Iran
The country of Iran includes a long history of Jewish communities which are defined by their adaptability, multiculturalism, and unique culture. The history of Iranian-Jews began about 2,700 years ago in 586 B.C.E. when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the First Temple in Jerusalem and the majority of Judea’s Jewish population was exiled to Babylonia (modern day Iran and Iraq) (10, 11). Iran’s ancient Jewish communities existed throughout the Medieval, Safavid, and Qajar eras, though little information is available about this time period. What information that does exist has come from the Cairo Geniza records and suggests that the Iranian Jewish communities of ancient times were likely quite large.

Throughout these centuries, the status of Iranian Jews oscillated as the community was often highly respected, but sometimes pressured into conversion. However, during the nineteenth century, Iran’s Jews faced the worst conditions they had yet seen—marked by marginalization, isolation, and economic decline. Many Jewish communities were destroyed during these years, and Iranian Jews were subject to new laws which regulated their freedoms and rights to inheritance. Ultimately, these new tensions resulted in the conversion of many Iranian Jews to Islam.

Yet, the twentieth century marked a great improvement in the status of Iranian Jews, as well as the growth of new pressures following the founding of the state of Israel. Under the Pahlavi monarchs Reza Shah and Muhammad Reza Shah, Jewish life in Iran improved immensely. The shahs’ focus on Westernization and creating ties with the United States and Israel resulted in new stability for the Iranian Jews. In fact, under Reza Shah, Jews were allowed to move out of the Jewish quarters of their cities and were granted improved social and economic statuses. Similarly, Iranian Jews saw monumental improvements during the White Revolution and “Golden Era” of Muhammad Reza Shah’s regime (12). During these years, Iranian Jews were guaranteed equal political, cultural, and religious rights as Muslim citizens, and the Iranian Jewish community numbered upwards of 100,000 (13).

However, the regime of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and the leaders who have succeeded him have been marked by increased anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist, and anti-Western sentiments. Khomeini’s regime was highly anti-Semitic, and Khomeini himself clearly stated that he believed Jews had infected Islamic society. Although members of the Jewish community were able to persuade Khomeini that Judaism was not the same as Zionism, many Iranian Jews began to flee the country during these years (14). Indeed, over 30,000 Jews emigrated to the United States (largely to communities in Beverly Hills, California and Great Neck, New York), 20,000 to Israel, and at least 10,000 to Europe. Though Iran has worked to guarantee the rights and representation of religious minorities, the number of Jews living in Iran has shrunk to under 10,000. Nonetheless, Iranian Jews—both abroad and at home—feel a strong connection to both their homeland and their home-religion. Many Jews within Iran report feeling conflicted between the politics of Iran and Israel, as evidenced by the number of Iranian Jews who still participate in protesting Israel on “Qods Day” and who themselves have fought in many wars on behalf of Iran. Indeed, Iranian Jewish communities are marked by their multifaceted and unique culture of community and religion (15).

Shiraz, Iran

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