Shabbatei Zvi
In the seventeenth century in the Ottoman controlled Levant was a manic-depressive Jewish mystic by the name of Shabbatei Zvi. The Jews had been persecuted throughout their history since they had been the nation-state of Israel.
Now in the diaspora they were persecuted as a minority in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Palestine was now controlled by the Ottomans.
In the town of Safed in Palestine had been a very prosperous and enlightened Jewish population, the leader of it's day, even over Jerusalem, which was impoverished. Ferdinand and Isabella had run out the last of the Moslems in 1492 and likewise with the Jews there, which had been the leaders of the Jewish world until then. Many of these went to Safed as it prospered spiritually, ecomically, and intellectually.
With the coming of the new economic and military powers of Europe, Safed began to diminish, with it's economic collapse coming suddenly and bluntly in the late sixteenth century, timed as a new movement of mystics came under the influence of Isaac Luria. Until him the mix of life and intellect and spiritual matters had a unique balance, very spiritual and practical at the same time. But with economic collapse that incurred and a tradition of hard times in their psyche, the Luria brand of mysticism took a definite outer realm manner. Though it was spiritually uplifting to tens of thousands, it lost all contact with the day to day of living in the world. It's head was in the clouds and feet following, i.e., not on the groud.
A disciple of this tradition was Shabbatei Zvi. His manic depressive psyche made for times of incredibly, almost hallucinary concepts of mysticism that attracted a huge following. His fits of deep, morbid, dark depressions made him unstable and contradictory. He began breaking many Jewish sacred traditions and would even say God's unutterable name in the Synagogue.
He was kicked out of Egypt and Palestine and in Turkey made an even greater impression. He proclaimed himself Messiah and that the world was coming to an end in 1666. He had been born on the anniversary of the destruction of the Jewish Temple and to him that also was a sign, not that it might have been interpreted that he was anything but that due to his dark birth date.
When the Ottoman authorities found out he was to be Messiah and also forecasting the downfall of the local Sultans and authorities, they arrested him and put him on trial. It had the makings of the Passion of Christ. But with one exception. His dark moods took over and instead of becoming a martyr and giving even more hope to the masses certain he was Messiah and savior for the Jews and that redemption was indeed coming on June 18, 1666, he was given the ultimatum of foresaking it all and converting to Islam.
And he did. He changed his name to Aziz Mehmet Effendi. They rewarded him by making him a Moslem scholar and gave him riches.
Many of his followers lost all hope, others defended him and said that this was just to join the oppressors for the sake of defeating them. Lowering himself to the depths to defeat them from within. But they still ruled when he died still a Moslem ten years later.
It makes you want to make a movie. Where are you Mehmet Gibson?
Now in the diaspora they were persecuted as a minority in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Palestine was now controlled by the Ottomans.
In the town of Safed in Palestine had been a very prosperous and enlightened Jewish population, the leader of it's day, even over Jerusalem, which was impoverished. Ferdinand and Isabella had run out the last of the Moslems in 1492 and likewise with the Jews there, which had been the leaders of the Jewish world until then. Many of these went to Safed as it prospered spiritually, ecomically, and intellectually.
With the coming of the new economic and military powers of Europe, Safed began to diminish, with it's economic collapse coming suddenly and bluntly in the late sixteenth century, timed as a new movement of mystics came under the influence of Isaac Luria. Until him the mix of life and intellect and spiritual matters had a unique balance, very spiritual and practical at the same time. But with economic collapse that incurred and a tradition of hard times in their psyche, the Luria brand of mysticism took a definite outer realm manner. Though it was spiritually uplifting to tens of thousands, it lost all contact with the day to day of living in the world. It's head was in the clouds and feet following, i.e., not on the groud.
A disciple of this tradition was Shabbatei Zvi. His manic depressive psyche made for times of incredibly, almost hallucinary concepts of mysticism that attracted a huge following. His fits of deep, morbid, dark depressions made him unstable and contradictory. He began breaking many Jewish sacred traditions and would even say God's unutterable name in the Synagogue.
He was kicked out of Egypt and Palestine and in Turkey made an even greater impression. He proclaimed himself Messiah and that the world was coming to an end in 1666. He had been born on the anniversary of the destruction of the Jewish Temple and to him that also was a sign, not that it might have been interpreted that he was anything but that due to his dark birth date.
When the Ottoman authorities found out he was to be Messiah and also forecasting the downfall of the local Sultans and authorities, they arrested him and put him on trial. It had the makings of the Passion of Christ. But with one exception. His dark moods took over and instead of becoming a martyr and giving even more hope to the masses certain he was Messiah and savior for the Jews and that redemption was indeed coming on June 18, 1666, he was given the ultimatum of foresaking it all and converting to Islam.
And he did. He changed his name to Aziz Mehmet Effendi. They rewarded him by making him a Moslem scholar and gave him riches.
Many of his followers lost all hope, others defended him and said that this was just to join the oppressors for the sake of defeating them. Lowering himself to the depths to defeat them from within. But they still ruled when he died still a Moslem ten years later.
It makes you want to make a movie. Where are you Mehmet Gibson?
posted by CottonSr @ 12:20 PM
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