Kartanje u Jevreja i borba protiv njega

Abstract

Nadrabin dr Mavro Frankfurter u članku o fenomenu kartanja kod Jevreja opisuje nastanak ove igre. Kartanje smatra porokom i navodi primere nekih poznatih istorijskih ličnosti koje su bile pod njegovim uticajem. Ni Jevreji takođe nisu bili iznimka. Opisujući istorijat ove pojave dr Franfurter podseća da u starom Izraelu nisu poznavali hazardne i veštačke igre. Tek u doba Mišne spominju se igre na sreću: igranje na dasci, utakmice sa golubovima i drugim životinjama. Ta vrsta igara smatrana je nemoralnom a dobitak iz takve igre pljačkom. Kockanje, koje se često spominje u Talmudu, preuzeli su Jevreji od Grka. Kod Jevreja je najviše bilo rašireno igranje šaha. Juda Halevi, filozof religije i pesnik, navodno je bio strastveni šahista, a Abraham ibn Ezra, veliki komentator Biblije, pisao je ode u slavu šaha. Prema dr Frankfurteru kartanje predstavlja dalji razvitak šaha. Verovatno su kartanje u Italiju uveli Arapi, koji su podsticaj za pronalazak karata dobili iz Indije. Jevreji su bili posrednici između arapskog sveta i Evrope, pa se može pretpostaviti da su bili posrednici i u prenošenju karata. Kartanje se odmah raširilo među italijanskim Jevrejima, jer ga već 1320. godine spominje veliki jevrejski satiričar Kalonymos. Karte su se iz Italije vrlo brzo raširile po svim tadašnjim kulturnim zemljama i za kratko vreme Jevreji počinju da se bave proizvodnjom karata. Pošto je i hrišćane i Jevreje obuzela strast za kartanjem rabini su pokušavali da se suprotstavljaju tom društvenom poroku, ali sa malo uspeha. Rabini su bili nemoćni protiv te zaraze, upozoravali su u svojim moralnim spisima na štetne posledice igre i strogo osuđivali taj porok. Bili su zato prinuđeni da se bore raznim sredstvima - prvo su upotrebljavali blaže mere, a zatim oštrije. Opštine su često izdavale "Tekanot" (odredbe) protiv kartanja. Iako su rabini pretili kaznama čak i anatemom, teško su mogli da se bore protiv vladajuće kulture.

Senior rabbi Dr Mavro Frankfurter describes the origin of this game in an article about the phenomenon of playing cards among Jews. He considers carding a vice and cites examples of some famous historical figures who were under his influence. The Jews were no exception. Describing the history of this phenomenon, Dr Franfurter reminds us that gambling and artificial games were not known in ancient Israel. Only in the time of the Mishnah are games of chance mentioned: board games, games with pigeons and other animals. This type of game was considered immoral and the gain from such a game was a robbery. Gambling, which is often mentioned in the Talmud, was taken over by the Jews from the Greeks. Among the Jews, chess was the most widespread. Judas Halavi, a philosopher of religion and a poet, was reportedly a passionate chess player, and Abraham ibn Ezra, a great commentator on the Bible, wrote an ode to the glory of chess. According to Dr Frankfurter, playing cards represents a further development of chess. It is probable that card-playing was introduced to Italy by the Arabs, who received the impulse for the invention of playing cards from India. The Jews were intermediaries between the Arab world and Europe, so it can be assumed that they were also intermediaries in the transfer of playing cards. Card games immediately spread among Italian Jews, as it was mentioned as early as 1320 by the great Jewish satirist Kalonymos. The playing cards spread very quickly from Italy to all the cultural countries of that time, and in a short time, the Jews began to produce them. As both Christians and Jews became obsessed with playing cards, the rabbis tried to oppose this social vice, but with little success. The rabbis were powerless against that contamination, they warned in their moral writings about the harmful consequences of the game and strongly condemned that vice. They were therefore forced to fight by various means - first, they used milder measures and then sharper ones. Communities often issued "Tekanot" (decree) against card games. Although the rabbis threatened punishment even with anathema, they could hardly fight the ruling culture.