ثيقة شرعيّة: T-S 20.125

Recto

1. Proceedings that took place in our presence, we, the permanent court in Fustat,

2. Egypt, appointed by the high court of (his) ho(nor), gr(eatness, and) ho(liness) [our] ma(ster)

3. and teacher, our lord Mevorakh Sagacious Leader, S[a]ge of the Ye[shiva],

4. Grand Counsel, Prince of Princes (sar ha-sarim), Nagid of Nagids, Strength of

5. the Whole House of Israel—may his splendor be exalted and his honor be increased, son of (his) h(onor), g(reatness, and) h(oliness)

6. (our) mas(ter) and tea(cher) Saadya the physician who was the pious one of his generation

7. (7-8)—may his repose be honored. Whereas there came to our attention the state of affairs in our esteemed and beloved communi[ty] in al-Maḥalla—

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9.  may God bless them and keep them, help them, guard them, and plant among the[m]

10. love, fraternity, peace, and friendship and remove from their [mids]t enmity,

11. jealousy, hatred, and contention, and protect them with His abundant mercy

12. and lovingkindness, as follows: the community has become split and a breach has occurred among its members;

13. most of them have become idle on Sabbaths and holidays,

14. sitting most of the time in the streets and shops or in the shade of sycamores on thos[e] days

15. and, thereby, spurning the synagogues; this has come to pass due to the absence of someone to guide them

16. toward what is proper and away from what is not

17. and someone to supervise their disputes and litigations and remind the[m]

18. of what is forbidden and permitted; the words of the Torah and the commandments have ceased to be heard.

19. And whereas there appeared before us a number of our coreligionists reporting

20. this, stating among other things that it had all come to pass upon the departure of

21. (his) h(onor), g(reatness, and) h(oliness) (our) ma(ster) and t(eacher) Joseph ha-Levi the ḥaver, etc., from their midst and that the latter used

22. to prevent people from engaging in this sort of thing, and that some members of the community there

23. had resolved, in accordance with what they believed to be right [and] out of convictio[n],

24. not to associate with him either in gatherings or in the synagogue. . . .

25. His Excellency our lord—may [his splen]dor be exalted—was distressed

26. by the fact that this had been going on for two years to date. A letter was therefore written to them informing them how

27. His High Excellency has suffered on account of the breach that has occurred.

28. He left the matter unattended all this time, hoping that things would return to

29. normal, that truth would show itself on its own, that the pursuit of passions would cease,

30. and that the correct path would be sought and be established among them—may God protect their honor. He indicated

31. (31-32) how he felt and the cause of the aforementioned resolution, hoping that what religious law and truth demand would be put into practice. However, none of this was carried out. When there appeared (in court)

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33. a certain person who reported that disorder still persisted in that pl[ace] as well as in the othe[r]

34. places, and that this was on account of the removal of the hand of the above-mentione[d] person, whereas we ha[d n]o one

35. to assist us by going there to close the breach except

36. the above-mentioned ḥaver, and whereas he is anxious to uphold the words of our God and strives

37. to exhort others to fulfill the commandments, and whereas this matter can be left unattended

38. no longer, especially given the agitation of our informant,

39. we, therefore, summoned him (Joseph) and exhorted him to improve his character and informed him

40. whence came his difficulties with the people who

41. (41-v., l. 1) stated that they would not associate with him, namely, [poor g]overnment (on his part) and insufficient regard for the consequences thereof. Thereupon we made him agree to c[onduct] the affairs

Verso

1. (see v., l. 1 above)

2. of the communities properly and in upright manner, to administer with good government,

3. to cease using coercive control where coercion through the use of force is improper,

4. to win the hearts of old and young alike, as is proper,

5. to stop currying favor with some people at the expense of others, and to govern the communities,

6. young and old members alike, with good administration and forbearance.

7. An exception was made concerning those religious matters that require the fixing

8. of dues and punishments, there being no sha[m]e in this. Whenever

9. presented with a difficult matter [of this sort] in a case under litigation, he shall act prudently

10. and solicit the opinion of His Excellency our lord—may his splendor be exalted. Thereupon he (Joseph) obligated

11. himself to us concerning that which we had agreed upon and guaranteed that he would fulfill it.

12. (12-13) Accordingly we judges, ordained by His Excellency our lord, by our agreement and the agreement of the elders sitting with us, decided

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14. (14-15) to reinstate him over al-Maḥalla and the other districts of the countryside, in his former capacity as one ordained by His Excellency our lord. We considered this to be

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16. our duty from the point of view of religion and government,

17. and because a matter affecting so many communities and congregations cannot be left unattended

18. on account of a few people who say: "We have resolved not

19. [to assoc]iate with him." If, on the other hand, they [pre]fer taking the initiative

20. in this matter and doing what is demanded, that would be worthy of them.

21. Likewise, if they decide to do [the] right thing on their own, taking cognizance of the fact that His Excellency our lord

22. —may his splendor be exalted— has shown ample indulgence toward them, and return to that which is worthy

23. of them regarding conscientious attendance at the synagogues, performing

24. good deeds, and multiplying charitable acts, how much more deserving would they be.

25. But if—by God—they do not do this but rather deem it appropriate to (continue)

26. sitting in the[ir hou]ses . . . God willing, that is up to them. It is necessary

27. that they be aware of the current state of affairs and of what the world faces

28. (line mostly effaced)

29. (through) a[c]ts of chanty, elimination of inner resentments, mutua[l] forgiveness,

30. shedding of grudges, pursuit of the paths of repentance and by returning to

31. the Creator—may His praise be exalted—and begging His forgiveness. Then He in His Mercy will take pity

32. and have compassion upon us and upon you and upon all His people the House of Israel and will speed the coming

33. of the herald of peace, the bearer of glad tidings, the herald of salvation [in] our [day]s and in yours.

34. It is, therefore, your duty—may God protect you—to respect him, support him,

35. accept his commands and prohibitions with a pleasant countenance, and act toward him

36. in your usual kind way, so that, in turn, we will receive a letter from him thanking you, thereby increasing

37. our own gratitude toward you. Thus may it be His will.

Upside down on bottom of verso

We the court say