The Rabbi Who Tricked Stalin
Page 32
Rabbi Aaron became even more famous then before in Minsk, due to his remarkable outstanding against the regime’s forces. He had known that Gepau would search him and find the time to revenge.
‘This is a destructive period,’ he thought, ‘when the last hope of Jewish religion to survive has been lost. It seems like God has decided to force me remain in this ruthless atheistic State. Maybe by that - He has sent me a sign, that I should wait for Messiah. It makes me feel more desparate than ever, that I won’t be able to bring my own redempion and end my suffer. If nothing marvellous happens- to get me out of here. . .If that is what had been decreed by the Almighty, then I should soon marry Natalya. Yes, she has advanced in learning the principal religion duties. In our next Sabbath meeting in the public park, I shall propose to her. By that I’ll follow Prophet Jeremiah’s sentence: “Build your homes and sit there(in Babylon, in his days), buy vinyards and eat their fruits”. Together with her – is better for me. . . And I should very soon - that he’ll get a stepmother. She will live with us...We shall strengthen each other - and stand together against new threatenings by the vile regime .’
Rabbi Aaron used to meet Natalya in the Park of Minsk- mainly on Saturdays’ spring and summer, when the weather was well. They had an arrangement with Blooma to take care of the boy two hours in the holy day, after she had recently become to know about Natalya’s study of religion priciples.
The Rabbi waited for Natalya at that day, and she came late. That made him nervous, because sometimes she would be called unexpectedly to help a kid - in case of emergency, such as a suicide in a troubled family.
She arrived and explained that Gepau raid had detained her twenty minutes. They checked a row of about ten Jews, at a road barrier. . . Now she was sitting next to Rabbi Aaron on a public bench, and a good wind was blowing. While weak voices of children playing not far were heard, Natalya listened to Rabbi Aaron telling her about his work in the two previous days at the Gallery. No Jews appeared in the reported list that he had provided to Gepau. It seemed like the community members have stopped going out.
“And I’ve heard,” he added, “that after the synagogue’s rally - some Yevrey-Section people have been fired from their posts. The Party blamed them as being a part of the Jewish rebel, though they had never been religious...”
Natalya listened to the news that Rabbi Aaron had brought, and stretched her hand to her new bag. She took out of it a glass-bottle with some liquid, and offered the Rabbi to drink it.
“It is a self-made apples juice, “ she said, “I’ve added to it a spoon of sugar.” He began drinking, and said:
“It has a taste, that reminds me my childhood in summer time.”
“I hardly recollect my childhood. I did not have good days then. My parents were quarrelling, and divorced. But…everything moves in this world, and quickly passes by. Like the dim silver noon-moon, that we see now above us.”
“God has made the planets and their moves,” said Aaron, looking at the moon while taking Natalya’s palm in his, “which are very complicated. By that- He shows His wisdom to the whole universe.”
Natalya kissed Rabbi Aaron’s lips, feeling the tickling of his beard. They were silent for a while.
“You snatch my words - by love making, Natalya. I have to tell you something important…”
“Tell me! ” she said.
“I have overcome my doubts, and. . .I propose marriage to you. We are going to be officially married.” She kissed him again and again, with wet eyes.
“So, you take your time on tuesday - to walk with me to the communists’ marriage Registration Office. In the evening we will celebrate also a modest Jewish wedding. Let’s do it privately in my house. People will gather in the small courtyard. We’ll invite some friends.”
“I thought,” she said, “that you had not yet been satisfied with my tempo of studying the religion duties. Sabbath candles and Kosher keeping and some prayers and blesses- are not enough: so you have told me only last month.”
They were kissing again, till a woman with a kid’s wagon passed thereby and rolled her eyes.
“Now I am sure,” said the Rabbi, “that you have learned from me almost all the matters, that a Jewish woman should know. In normal time you would have gone to the ‘Mikve’- the ritual immersion house, that once had been linked to our synagogue.. .”
“But now – everything is confiscated.” she asked., “So what should I do, my Rabbi?”
“You’ll be be obliged to walk to the small pool nearby. My Esther had found her death there. At first I thought I won’t tell you about that. But I don’t believe in a ‘bad luck’ date or an ‘ominous place. . .You will just purify your body there, and say the immerser’s prayer with Rabbi Noteh’s wife, who knows the procedure.”
“I’ll be only afraid of catching cold there,” she said with a smile.
“You’ve to shave out your hairs. That immersion is a few seconds symbolic ceremony, as stated in Torah.”
Natalya nodded with solemn face. ‘I see on her eyes’, he reflected, ‘that she suffers from these ceremonies. Maybe she thinks that I behave to her capriciously or rudely, but she won’t tell me: Firstly- I was very egotistic - to agree that we’d lie like a husband and wife for months, while we had not been yet officially married. Now I tell her to cut her hair, and from now on – wrap her head with a kerchief.’
“God!” he called, and she listened to his prayer, “You will forgive us both, that we have to register ourselves in a communist office. But the ‘civil marriage magistrate’ won’t kill us. We’ll sign their ridiculous document, and then make the marriage canopy in my courtyard.”
“Well,” said Natalya, “all that seems funny, but we’ll do it.”
“Afterward we will call ten of of our Jewish friends and acquaintances,” said Rabbi Aaron, “and have a modest Jewish religious wedding ceremony…I’ll bring the ‘crying fiddler’ Klezmer Hershel Yontef.”
“This marriage, “ she said, “will bring us condolence.”
“Oh, Our Father in the sky!” prayed Rabbi Aaron, raising his hands, “O’Father, Eibershter(=the Overall Ruller, in Yiddish) Please save us. Bring an end to our troubles. Amen.”
Natalya repeated: ‘Amen’.
“I still have to bring our happy message to my son. And to Blooma.”
Inside his soul Rabbi Aaron Hittin was filled with bitternes. ‘I sinned to God,’ he reflectd, ‘by my surrender to a sexual temptation. I had been seduced by Natalya. I am an adulterer. Had we been in ordinary days, and had I been a true, religious and honest man- I should have waited. And I should have asked from her first man – Elya - a letter of divorce(‘Get’ in the Talmud’s terminology). I had known that I would not marry a virgin… But now I hope that God will forgive our big sins. He knows, that I was so dazzled by this woman, but she was worthy of that. She confused and blinded me, yes. The fault is mine. However- I’ll never regret it, and God will judge me in this world and in the coming one…’
Next day he walked to Elya’s office, to let him also know about his intention to get married. He bit his tongue and swallowd his saliva before speaking to him.
‘Reb Elya,” said Aaron, quite delightfully, as he entered his office, “I have come to inform you of something …”
“Borisov has told me: you get married. Congratulations. To you - and to your sweetheart. Send her my best wishes.”
“We will have a modest celebration in my home,” said Rabbi Aaron, “after registering in the Regime’s Wedding Office… I have really come to inform you and. . .”
“Not for inviting me, I hope. I can understand you, trying to overcome the horror of my sister’s tragedy, but I …I wish you good luck, Rabbi.“
After the small religious wedding ceremony, Natalya had packed her few personal belongings in her old suitcase and handbag. She left the room she had rented, and moved to Aaron’s hut. The boy’s bed was placed in
the narrow ‘half room’ that was used for a few years as a terrace for hanging laundry in winter.
But Rabbi Aaron could not be calmed, until he had sent a new postcard to Stalin. He knew that the chance it would reach him was very small, but who knows?…Again – the letter had returned. This time Antonov called Rabbi Aaron to his office, and told him:
“Couldn’t you understand what have told you years ago? Take responsibility, you’re a married man now. The atmosphere in Russia is dense - for showing any favour to a Jew like yourself. Why should we allow a married man and his wife and son leave us? Are you kidding the regime? You saw, that we had tried to avoid much quarrelling with your aggressive people. Now you’ve got courage again to write to our leader? We had retreated from our intention to confiscate the synagogues – for changing them to screen fornicative movies. You think we are weaker now than before”?
“It’s not only the synsgogues,” answewred Rabbi Aaron, “you know that you have negated all our religious rights – since Lenin has passed away.”
“Instead of thanking us for the last events,” said Antonov, “you re-try your old tactics?…Wait a couple of years. Nothing will happen, if your fantastic wish is postponed. Patience is the most important word in Russian.”
CHAPTER 33