The treasure in the dull gray box

Archival boxes come in many sizes – large or small, rectangular or cylindrical, wide or narrow. They all have one thing in common – their dull gray color. Lined up as they are in the Rhode Island Jewish Historical Association’s archives, they present a professional, no-nonsense aspect commensurate with the information and photos stored within.

Tucked away on a top shelf is a tall archival box, the right size to hold a business ledger. It does indeed hold a ledger, but it has nothing to do with commerce or industry. It is a pinkas, a record book in Hebrew and Yiddish from a Providence synagogue named Kesher Israel. What distinguishes our pinkas from other minutes or record books is the tradition it represents and the beauty found on its pages.

According to an article in the Rhode Island Jewish Historical Notes, written by Beryl Segal, as far back as the Middle Ages, Jewish communities, charitable and religious organizations, craft guilds and even families kept pinkasim. A community pinkas might contain details of major events, such as a plague or great fire or deliverance from a calamity. An organization’s pinkas followed a specific order that included its purpose and bylaws.

Eastern European Jewish communities continued the tradition that began so long ago. The pinkasim preserved in historical archives have proven invaluable resources for the study of Jewish life in Spain, Italy, France and Germany, and in communities erased by persecution and war.

The title page of our pinkas reads:

RECORD BOOK OF THE SOCIETY

Mishnayes and Ain Yacov of the Synagogue

“Kesher Israel” of Providence

The year “And in his Law doth he meditate day and night”

1907 (5667)

What follows is the purpose and mission statement of the society, and the duties and responsibilities of membership in the society, and to each other, written in Hebrew and then in Yiddish. Included as well are the names of those serving as leaders, donors and donations, and a list of male members. A separate list names the female members. Memorials, once again in separate lists for men and women, are also included. Passages from Scripture are interspersed among the various sections.

The calligraphy of the Hebrew and most of the Yiddish sections was obviously the work of a scribe, identity unknown, as was customary. Each letter is carefully shaped, the lines of text carefully spaced. Unknown as well, is the artist whose talent graced the pages prefacing each new section in the pinkas. The colors of these decorations remain rich and bold even after the passage of time and despite the quality (or lack thereof) of the paper. The scribe and the artist worked not for renown, but for the greater good.

Although David Adelman searched public records and city directories for the years 1907-1923, he could find no mention of Kesher Israel Synagogue. We can surmise its location was in the North End since people named on the various lists in the pinkas were residents of that section of Providence. How long Kesher Israel existed, we do not know, but at some point it merged with another congregation.

The pinkas was gifted to RIJHA in 1954 through the good offices of Henry Brill, president of the former Temple Beth David, in Providence, and was translated by their Rabbi George Schwartz.

We are grateful for the beautiful pinkas, this wonderful window into a bygone era and a tradition frozen in time.

GERALDINE S. FOSTER is a past president of the Rhode Island Jewish Historical Association. To comment about this or any Rhode Island Jewish Historical Association article, email info@rijha.org.