[Page 19]

Characteristics of Bendery Jews

As I previously mentioned, I see the Jews of Bendery as a unique part of the general Jewish population of Bessarabia. Our Jewish brethren came to settle in our town from many parts of Russia. They lived harmoniously with the locals, sometimes next door to them. The special image of Bendery was formed by its topography and scenery. The Dniester on one side with its characteristic scenery, the villages with their green fields, the fortress in the middle of a square, the army camp outside town. The 55^th Podolian Regiment (Cossack Junta) was also located in town. All these, without doubt, left their imprint on the economic and social life in Bendery.

There were two streams within the Jewish community in Bendery- the Hassidim and the Enlightened. They were both valuable and influenced the development of Jewish society, especially the youths.

Even Hassidism in Bendery was different. There was no opposition to the intellectuals involved in developing national movements and European culture. There had been such opposition in other Jewish centers in Russia and Eastern Europe. At the end of the previous century there had been an inner crisis in the intellectual development of Jews in Russia. It did not touch the intellectuals in Bendery who sought ways to obtain secular knowledge without losing Jewish values. They wanted a modern life within Jewish tradition. In those days national revival, founding of a homeland and living productively had a great socialist meaning for people. These aspirations went hand in hand with the plans of the Russian intelligentsia and its best youths to renounce Tsarist oppression and to change the image of “Mother Russia”. The agitation in the Russian intelligentsia greatly influenced the Jewish intellectuals and their youths.

Heders and Religious Teachers

Zionism was the mainstay of thought among the intelligentsia. Parents started to look for ways of integrating the prevalent secular education with Jewish national ideas. A Jewish child began his education in a Heder at the age of three. He continued until his Bar Mitzvah. Subjects taught were: Torah with Rashi and some Mishna and Gmara. In Kindergarten a Jewish child learned the Aleph-Bet, Torah and Rashi. He was educated in ways of the Torah and was taught to follow its commandments. He had to learn the morning prayer of Mode Ani by heart. For any negligence, forgetfulness or rudeness, the children were punished physically (at least a pinch on the cheek, if not a hit by a rod). A worse punishment – embarrassing and isolating- was being made to stand in the corner.

The Rabbi's Synagogue

Another early childhood educator in town was Shlomo the Melamed. He was short and good-hearted. His students were fortunate since he seldom used corporal punishment. His assistant brought lunch for the children from their homes. The children were in Heder from morning till evening. It was easier for their mothers. Of course, the assistant had to first sample the food. His other task was in winter to carry the younger children over the thick mud on the streets. He would accompany rows of children home after school. The teacher waited until the last child was carried across by the assistant.

A third teacher was Avraham the Tobacco Sniffer. It seems he liked to sniff a great deal of tobacco. He started as an assistant and was promoted to the position of teacher. His fees were low and poor families sent their children to him. His Heder also served as a dovecote and the children were entertained as well as educated.

Children attended Heder in the period between Succoth till Passover. After that the teachers spent their time chasing parents to convince them to entrust their children to them.

When a male child was born the teachers would bring the children to visit the mother (usually at home). They were taught to pray loudly the Shema wishing for the good health of the baby. On the eve of the Brit, as thanks, they would receive candies in paper bags. The children were very happy. Some were not too shy to ask for candy for their younger siblings who were at home.

From Kindergarten the child went to a teacher of Torah and Rashi. In town there were four such teachers. Baruch Kolker was a tall, skinny man, religious and kind; Yoel Dobserer was also kind and knowledgeable; Eli Gamburger was strict and dressed differently upon his return from America. His students had to work hard and in addition to Torah and Rashi also learned some Hebrew including grammar. Parents who wanted their children to try different approaches sent them to him. Yankel Linevsky was a scholar, somewhat enlightened, who taught reading of the Torah in addition to Hebrew and grammar.

In these Heders the children spent whole days from morning to night. In the winter they returned home carrying a container with a lit candle. As they walked on the street they created much noise and screamed constantly. Often a child would arrive home missing one boot stuck in the mud.

Hanukkah and Tu B'Shvat were special holidays for the Heder students. At Hanukkah there was playing with dreidls and anticipating Hanukkah gelt from parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. The children spoke only of this during the eight days of the holiday. Every child wanted to boast that he was richer than his friends. This sometimes caused fights between good friends.

Tu B'Shvat was different. On that day all the children brought fruit growing in Eretz Israel. Usually it was carobs, sometimes figs and raisins and occasionally almonds. The teacher and students sat around the table and said “Shehecheyanu”. He told them stories about Eretz Israel- as much as he knew. It was proof that every Jewish heart yearned for Eretz Israel and that even fruit growing there would evoke longings for Zion and Jerusalem.

The teachers had a custom of visiting students' homes on Shabbat afternoon in order to test their knowledge and to show the parents how much the children had achieved. The student was warned on Friday afternoon about the impending visit. He had to study hard in order not to fail. Friday and Shabbat became two days of trepidation and unrest until the child overcame the ordeal.

When a student reached Bar Mitzvah age he would transfer to a special tutor who taught Gmara. There were two in town: Pinhas Dayan, a great scholar and Leib Sunis, the ritual slaughterer. Usually, the Hassidim and clergy sent their children to these two.

National Spirit in a Traditional Education

The awakening of national aspirations and Zionist activities began to affect the Jews in Bessarabia, especially in Bendery. They searched for modern education appropriate for the times. They wanted traditional Jewish knowledge integrated with national aspirations and modern scholarship.

There were two such Heders in town. Studies were conducted in Hebrew, including written grammar, in addition to the study of Torah and Prophets. This was still the mainstay of the new trend. The two teachers who began this new wave were themselves true lovers of Zion and quite active in Zionist circles. One teacher, Baruch Holdonka, was one of the principal orators of the movement. He was a wonderful person, well-versed in Torah. He was also an enthusiastic follower of Theodore Herzl and devoted to the Zionist movement. On Shabbat during prayers he was surrounded by Zionists and students from the Russian schools. He held discussions with them on current matters in the Jewish community. I remember how he concentrated on “At the Crossroads” by Ahad Haam. He brought to synagogue copies of the newspaper “Hatzfira” (The Siren) and other Hebrew publications. He read aloud, translated and explained important articles. His listeners enjoyed following the serial story “A Guest for Shabbat” by Nahum Sokolov in “Hatzfira”. He was also a delegate to various Zionist congresses.

His students benefitted from Zionist teachings. Their parents wished to integrate basic traditional Jewish values with modern studies. No wonder that the students at the Science High School were the first to arrive at the Heder every afternoon as soon as they finished their secular studies.

The second teacher of this genre was Avremel Kreitzman. He also taught Hebrew language and grammar in addition to religious studies. In contrast to Holdonka, he continued the custom of visiting homes on Shabbat to show parents what their children had achieved. He also attracted many students from the Russian schools who wanted to learn Torah and Hebrew. He hired an assistant – Haim Glass. Glass came to Bendery from Poland where he was a Yeshiva student in his youth. He then became a Labor Zionist. Glass was adored by his students. His caring and worrying about educating the youths occupied him constantly and he believed in the new trend. I was one of his students in Kreitzman`s Heder. Our Hebrew texts were: “A New Path”, “Language of Our People”, works by Steinberg and “Young Plants” by A.Z. Rabinovitch.

“Reformed Heder” – Avremel Kreitzman, Baruch Kolker, Haim Glass and their Students

There were also evening Hebrew classes for girls who studied in the Russian schools. They were administered by Projensky and Postelnik (from Poland). They were the first to open Hebrew kindergartens- Tarbut. There Jewish children first heard Hebrew songs and watched plays in Hebrew.

The first junior high school was opened in town by Mr. Rynewman, a scholarly Jewish teacher. It served as the first school for Jewish girls whose parents did not want them to study in Russian schools. The curriculum was based on that of the Russian schools run by the government. In addition, there was Yiddish reading and writing. The school was closed on Shabbat and this fact made it easier for parents to send their daughters. The girls acquired a general Russian education as well as Jewish knowledge. The girls who graduated from the school were accepted into the fifth and final grade of the government high schools.

The preparation in this school was so excellent that it earned a very good reputation within government pedagogic circles. (A small number of these girls are still with us to this day.) This junior high school run by Mr. Rynewman and his daughters was closed in 1908. The school must be remembered as one of the catalysts for the pursuit of education among the Jews of Bendery.

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Updated 10 Nov 2009 by LA