Draft:Gezerot hashmad
Gezerot hashmad (גזרות השמד, gzerot hashmad, gzeyres shmad in Yiddish[1]), is a Hebrew phrase translated into English as evil decrees or decrees of destruction or persecution. The term refers to a concept in Jewish history, Jewish studies and the religious law and theology of Judaism, which describes government-issued antisemitic or persecutory legal edicts, particularly those that prohibit the practice of Judaism.[2][3] It appears in Jewish religious martyrological prayers and the Rosh Hashanah prayer service, the story of Haman on Purim, and the story of Hannukah and Antiochus IV Epiphanes.[4][5][6][7][8] In the middle ages, it was used for the Gzerot Tatnu, the Rhineland massacres, and for the Khmelnitsky massacres, Gzeyres Takh Vetat.[9][10] It can also be used in the modern day to refer to Nazism.[11] It can also be used to refer to the Bar Kochba rebellion.[12] A related term is Gezeirat Malkhut, a decree of the kingdom or empire, used in reference to the Romans and Masada.[13] From its usage during the Crusades, which were started by Papal decrees, and the edicts of expulsion in the Middle Ages in Europe, it grew to become associated with any major massacre, disaster or pogrom that severely impacted Jewish communities.[citation needed]
Gezerot in general, or gezerah singular, meaning an enactment, prohibition or a restriction, weren't always evil, and some were issued by rabbis.[14][15]
See also
[edit]- Iggeret hashmad, Maimonides Letter on Persecution[16]
References
[edit]- ↑ "gezeyres shmad | Jewish English Lexicon". jel.jewish-languages.org. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ Bettany, George Thomas (1892). A Sketch of the History of Judaism and Christianity in the Light Light of Modern Research and Criticism. Ward, Lock. p. 130.
- ↑ Glenn, Mendel G. (1929). Jewish Tales and Legends: Supplementary Readings to the Torah. p. 270.
- ↑ Abelow, Samuel Philip (1937). History of Brooklyn Jewry. Scheba publishing Company. p. 334.
- ↑ Graetz, Heinrich (1926). Popular History of the Jews. Hebrew Publishing Company. p. 129.
- ↑ Klein, Frederick L. "The Blogs: Rosh Hashanah 5785: Destroying the Evil Decrees". Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ האתר, צוות (2010-02-11). "03. Evil Decrees and Rebellion". Peninei Halakha. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ "Discourse 35: "And the Jews took upon themselves..." - וקבל היהודים את אשר החלו לעשות". Chabad. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ Bronstein, Judith (2019). "Reviving Forgotten Jewish Heroes". The Jewish Quarterly Review. 109 (4): 631–649. ISSN 0021-6682. JSTOR 26900171.
- ↑ "Gzeyres Takh Vetat". The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ Terry, Michael (2013-12-02). Reader's Guide to Judaism. Routledge. p. 265. ISBN 978-1-135-94150-5.
- ↑ Shuman, Josh (2024-01-23). "Are there ways of hiding a mezuzah in times of danger?". The Schechter Institutes. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ Spero, Shubert; Rabinowitz, Louis (1971). "The Defenders of Masada". Tradition: A Journal of Orthodox Jewish Thought. 12 (2): 136–139. ISSN 0041-0608. JSTOR 23257390.
- ↑ "GEZERAH - JewishEncyclopedia.com". www.jewishencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ "gezerah | Jewish English Lexicon". jel.jewish-languages.org. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
- ↑ Soloveitchik, Haym, ed. (2014), "Maimonides' Iggeret ha-Shemad: Law and Rhetoric", Collected Essays: Volume II, Littman Library of Jewish Civilization, Liverpool University Press, pp. 288–330, doi:10.3828/liverpool/9781904113980.003.0014 (inactive 26 December 2025), ISBN 978-1-904113-98-0, retrieved 2025-12-26
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