A litericalt Pal ish Periodical Coder
CLIFTON AVENUE - CINCINNATI 20, 01110
Friday, April 12, 1946
DETROIT JEWISH CHRONICLE and The Legal Chronicle
Page Five
Good Samaritans Still Carry on Ancient Passover Rites
Just as Prescribed by Biblical Law in Book of Exodus
While millions of Jews in
lands throughout the world this
week sit about their festive
boards, in observance of the tra-
ditional Seder, a small band of
men, women and children also
celebrate the ancient feast. They
don't carry on in the tradition
that Jews have known for so
niany centuries, but rather, in ac-
cordance with the rites and rit-
uals as observed by Moses and
the Israelites.
At the foot of Mount Gerizim,
near Nablus, the modern name
for ancient Shechem, there exists
a tiny colony of less than 150
souls. Although generally de-
scribed as Jews, their appearance
and demeanor distinguish them
sharply from others of The sup-
posedly same origin. These people
are the Samaritans, who are said
to have been settled in Palestine
by the Assyrians after their con-
quest of Israel in 722 B.C., and
who have taken over the rites
and rituals of the Israelites.
Much of the Passover that
Jews have observed since the
days of the Second Temple are
still unknown to the Samaritqns.
They know nothing of the use of
wine, of the charoseth, of eating
the Passover repast comfortably
from a well laden table. They
know nothing about the practice
of reclining at one's ease, or the
many other customs which came
into Judaism after the Samari-
tans had separated from the rest
of Jewry.
The usual theory has been that
the Samaritans are the descend-
ants of the alien people which
was settled upon the land by the
Assyrians after the Ten Tribes
were taken away into captivity.
The Samaritans accepted the re-
ligion of the Hebrews, a few of
whom had remained in the land
after the captivity. However,
modern historical research insists
that the present Samaritans are
not descendants of the pagan col-
onists settled in the Northern
Kingdom of Israel by the con-
querors of Samaria. Nor, are they
to be identified with Nehemiah's
opponents of the Persian period
when the Jews returned from
their exile in Babylonia. Actual-
ly, research authorities claim, the
Samaritans of today are really a
tiny remnant of an ancient and
great Jewish sect, still in exist-
ence, who were always strongly
religious, with faith in one God
and who strictly observed the
Torah.
The Samaritan religion is close-
ly akin to that of the Jews, the
chief difference being that the
cult of the former centers about
Gerizim, while that of the Jews
centers about Zion, and that the
Samaritan canon of the scrip-
tures is restricted to the Penta-
teuch or Five Books of Moses
and the Book of Joshua. The lat-
er writings, including the pro-
phets, the Psalms and other Bibli-
cal books, the Samaritans repu-
diate as uninspired.
In view of the similarity in
their beliefs and practices, it
seems strange that there has
existed the fiercest animosity be-
between the Jews and the Sama-
ritans, but it is the animosity that
invariably exists between an orig-
inal and a schism. The Samari-
tans and the other Jews became
blood enemies who despised one
another in the very same manner
as the Karaites and rabbinic
Jews hated each other in later
years.
Passover: Greetings!
To Our Many Friends and Patrons
The Samaritans maintain that
they are the remnants and de-
scendants of the once great tribe
of Ephraim, and that the split
between them and the Jews came
about through the maladministra-
tion of the priesthood by Eli's
sons. Followers of Judaism, as
we know it, are looked upon as
dissenters from the pure faith of
Israel, and the forming of a cen-
ter of worship in Jerusalem by
Judah is condemned on the
ground that the land of Ephraim,
with Shechem and its mountains,
figured in the earliest history of
the Hebrews; that here the first
Israelite altars were erected, and
that these were the specific parts
of the Land of Promise men-
tioned by Moses in the wilder-
ness.
our forefathers many centuries keys and cattle may be seen
browsing. The way soon becomes
ago.
so steep that beasts as well as
For some days prior to Pass-
pedestrians are forced to halt at
over, considerable time is spent
intervals for breath. Once up this
in arranging the camp on the
steep ascent, the ridge is gained.
slope of Mount Gerizim and the
Along it the path, now fairly
rebuilding of the Tanoor, or
level, leads to a slight depres-
ground oven, used in roasting the
sion, where suddenly one c"mes
sacrifice. The ascent to the camp
spot requires usually an hour, upon some forty or fifty white
Egyptian and Damascus tents, the
whether mounted or on foot. Na-
encamp-
blus is left behind by a path only veritable Israelite
leading up from its western sub- ment in the world.
It is a pity that these more
urbs, and passing the Samaritan
cemetery, an open field, its rocky modern tents are used instead of
and stone-strewn surface over- the primitive goat-hair ones of
grown with weeds on which don- the Bedouins, which would more
A Very Joyous Passover to All
It is this strange group, now
numbering a handful of souls,
which continues, to this day, to
observe Passover in a manner
which Jews ceased practicing
thousands of years ago. Today,
on the eve of Passover, their col-
ony is teeming with activity, as
they prepare to slaughter the
Pascal Lamb and carry out every
detail of the Passover service as
prescribed by the laws of Moses.
Theirs is a strange Judaism,
tinged even with a slight heathen-
ism such as that which influenced
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Passover, hallowed in its heritage of eternal hope, is the
To the Jewish people, each Passover is another stone in the
ancient walls . . . another reassurance that the structure of the
ages, reinforced by the undying faith of a people, will remain
strong whatever the stress may be.
Passover Greetings and Best Wishes to
All Our Jewish Friends and Patrons
May this Passover bring a renewal of faith, hope and cour-
age. May it bring everlasting peace and contentment to a war-
weary world and to the Jewish community a year of health and
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