The St. Thomas Split

An actor reads from a letter:

To the Board of Representatives of the Hebrew Congregation BVS and GH, St. Thomas, 14th of March, 1867: The undersigned beg most respectfully to inform the Honorable Presidency that they cease to be, from this day, members of the Hebrew Congregation in this island, and that it is their intention to establish a new congregation, which will be conducted on the Reform principles as observed by the British Jews, London. Most respectfully signed, Jacob Lindo and 13 others.

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Host Aaron Henne: Welcome to The Dybbukast, the show in which we ask: What do poems, plays, and other creative texts from throughout history tell us about the times in which they were written, and what do they reveal about the forces still at play in our contemporary societies? 

I'm Aaron Henne, artistic director of theatre dybbuk. In this episode, presented in collaboration with the Mervis Chair, Borns Jewish Studies Program, Indiana University Bloomington, we investigate when, in the late 1860s, as a result of differences of opinion on a variety of matters, some members of the Hebrew Congregation of St. Thomas split off and started their own separate organization. Throughout the episode, you will hear actors read a series of letters written by representatives from both sides of the conflict, as well as other correspondence and reports featured in the newspapers of the time.

And now, Season Two, Episode Four: “The St. Thomas Split.”

First, we begin by hearing from Dr. Laura Leibman, Professor of English and Humanities at Reed College, who shares about the history of Jews in the Caribbean and the waves of migration related to that history.

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Dr. Laura Leibman: Before the latter part of the 19th century, there's really three big waves of Jewish migration. The first one are people who don't even necessarily know they're Jews, who are descendants of forced converts, who come to the Spanish and Portuguese colonies. The second wave are people who now are able to live openly as Jews, who maybe were also from Iberia but went first to the Netherlands and Hamburg and London, and those people are coming to the colonies who are also Sephardic, and instead of going to the Spanish colonies, they're coming to the British and Dutch colonies, either in the Caribbean or in North America. The third wave that we get is this group of people who, starting in the 1840s, are really coming more from what we would now call Germany. And those are Ashkenazi Jews. It's not as if we didn't have Ashkenazi immigrants before that. We certainly do, but it's really that Sephardic Jews are the people in charge of the synagogues. Then, starting in the 1840s, Ashkenazi Jews really take over the vast majority of them.

One of the things that makes Jewish life in the colonies sort of a sweet spot for Jews and why they might want to go there is that in specific colonies, particularly those run by the Dutch and British, Jews will often have more freedoms than they do back in Europe. And that's really an attempt by the colonial powers to try and get Jews, who they see as these important network agents, in order to be interested in settling in their colonies. They're often not having huge plantations, but instead are involved in trade. So they're bringing in large amounts of goods to the islands and picking up whatever crops are being produced on the islands, and then redistributing those around the Atlantic world.

Aaron: Now we will hear from Dr. Judah Cohen, the Lou and Sybil Mervis Professor of Jewish Culture and Professor of Musicology and Jewish Studies at Indiana University. He begins by discussing the history of Jewish life on St. Thomas.

Dr. Judah Cohen: St. Thomas had this moment at the end of the 18th century, where, because the Danes wanted to invite people into their economy just at a time that there were a number of upheavals across the Caribbean — things like difficult situations in Curaçao, things like the French or Haitian Revolution over in Saint-Domingue — Jews ended up finding this place as a free port and establishing institutions that were similar to the ones that they had left earlier. So, St. Thomas really begins as what I describe as a secondary Jewish community in the Caribbean. They get started as two institutions, one as a synagogue and the other as a burial society, which was called Gemilut Hasadim. A Jewish community often establishes a burial society first because, even though they need to gather to pray, what is inevitable is that members of their congregation will die and need to be buried. So Gemilut Hasadim really becomes the first organization established on St. Thomas. And then, later on in 1796, Bracha ve Shalom is established — “blessing and peace” — which takes its name, or reflects its name, from other synagogues in the area as well. The two of them ultimately merged to get this very long name, Bracha ve Shalom u Gemilut Hasadim. And then, as a population, they set down a combination of bylaws. They start to grow over time as St. Thomas also begins to grow as a port. By the 1820s, they have themselves a really decent looking synagogue.

Actor 2: St. Thomas Tidende, Wednesday, 23rd July, 1823, Israelitish Temple: The whole has met the approbation of the connoisseurs and of the immense concourse of inhabitants of all persuasions who were present at the consecration of this new temple. The influence of this enlightened age was remarkable in this family reunion. The presence of the clergy of different persuasions who joined in the embellishment of the ceremony contributed thereto.

Judah: Jews had an open relationship with the rest of the population. Jews would go into churches during Sundays in order to be a part of that world. And non-Jews would come into the synagogue on Saturdays in order to observe their rituals. This is what we did, this is what you did. As we move forward in time, the 1830s or so really begins to see a kind of a prime period for the community on St. Thomas. It begins to be seen as a primary place for Jewish identity to really take root. It sits alongside other communities like those in Jamaica. There are several in Jamaica that are doing quite well, and Curaçao, which remains the largest community at the time. And thus, there is this very interesting interaction between all of these populations.

Laura: Jews during this time period tended to have connections with other Jews in other ports. And this is what connects back to that early group of Jews that go to the Spanish colonies — that people tend to have family connections regardless of who's the governmental power controlling a particular island. So, unlike the people in St. Thomas who would have connections with whoever was in charge of the government, Jews on the island would have connections with what's going on in British islands, and what's going on in Dutch islands, and what's going on in the Spanish American colonies, and what's going on in Iberia and what's going on in London. They just have much better networks because of the places that they originally came from, and because they tend to marry people within their own group. So during this early time period, we often see Jews in one port marrying off their children to somebody in another port in order to make sure that they have trading partners there.

Judah: In the 1840s, outside preachers start to come to St. Thomas and assume the role of the rabbi. That is to say, the synagogue hires them in a rabbinic status. At the same time, by doing this, St. Thomas gains connections to Europe, and, among the connections they gained to Europe, are connections associated with Reform, with changes that are taking place in Europe, and changes that will then affect the way that the St. Thomas population operates. So, in the 1840s, there are two preachers that come to the island. Both of whom create waves in interesting and different ways. One of them, whose name is Benjamin Cohen Carillon, comes from the Netherlands and has a kind of a German-style Reform that goes along with it. The German Reform, at least as Benjamin Cohen Carillon saw it, was one where rabbinic writings such as the Talmud were to be largely discarded, where theology would instead focus on biblical writings; a kind of return to the roots as the case would be.

Actor 3: “The Talmud, that book full of beauty, but also full of nonsense, was the only standard of the Israelites; and surrounded by the wall, which the Rabbins have built around the everlasting Citadel, the inestimable word of God, they forgot the Citadel itself, and thought only upon the surrounding wall.” - Spirit of Reform Among the Israelites, by B.C. Carillon.

Judah: That didn't necessarily sit very well with many of the folks on St. Thomas, although some were willing to try it. It led though to a schism within the congregation. That schism then opened up all kinds of very difficult situations between two populations, one of which wanted these reforms and wanted to modernize, another side of which wanted to stay with some sense of tradition. They wanted to do what they had been doing for a long time. This led eventually to Carillon leaving the congregation under an acrimonious circumstance.

Actor 2: St. Thomas Tidende, Wednesday, 2nd October, 1844: Whatever may have been the party excitement in the outset of this ever to be deplored schism, we sincerely hope the feelings of those concerned will, in future, assume a more rational and peaceable character, and that all parties may evince a disposition to bury in oblivion those feelings of acrimony and rancor with which they commenced the unfortunate affair. We noticed that Reverend B.C. Carillon embarks on board the steamer Forth on his way to Kingston, Jamaica. We heartily wish the Reverend Gentlemen a pleasant and prosperous voyage and, particularly, a speedy and happy reunion with his family.

Judah: A new preacher, whose name was Moses N. Nathan, coming from England, from London, was there for a couple of years to essentially try and heal the rift in that congregation. Moses Nathan really reflected a different kind of Reform, a Reform that was associated with the West London synagogue’s approach to Reform, which was somewhat more conservative and was able to really quite effectively link populations that identified as Sephardic and populations that identified as Ashkenazic. Thus, the congregation again found itself together in the late 1840s or so. By the 1860s then, the synagogue had grown once again. They had built an additional building. They were thinking about expanding. And likewise, they were also thinking about where new to go. This is what leads us into the controversies that were associated with the 1860s, and into a time that both reflected the St. Thomas Jewish population at its height, and also, in some ways, at its greatest diversity.

Synagogues often saw themselves as the center of Jewish life. As a result, they also felt that they could receive dues or they could compel all Jews in the area to pay dues on a regular basis. That, of course, contributed to the life of the congregation and to its ability to operate. In 1865, there were a couple of people who decided that they really no longer wanted to contribute to the synagogue, and, in many ways, had to justify their lack of contribution. There is an individual, his name is Morris B. Simmonds. After the congregation tells him that he needs to pay his dues, he responds and says, I'm sorry, I'm just not really interested, essentially. The synagogue gets rather upset about this and tries to appeal to not just Simmonds but also to the government as well, to say that everybody on the island who identifies as Jewish needs to contribute to the synagogue. M. B. Simmonds claims that he is not actually Jewish. He has left Judaism and therefore he doesn't need to contribute to the synagogue.

Actor 4: To the Honorable Presidency for St. Thomas and St. John’s, 31st October, 1865: Respecting Mr. Simmonds’ declaration to the sheriff that he is no more a Jew, this board does not feel itself authorized to admit such a declaration. For if every individual member of the congregation were, by such a simple formality, freed of his obligations, that result might lead to serious consequences. As we apprehend that other members might avail themselves of a similar plea to evade the payment of their taxes, this board therefore respectfully requests the Honorable Presidency to consider the subject and favor us with a reply at the Presidency's earliest convenience, particularly on the point whether a simple notification to the representatives and also a declaration as made by Mr. Simmonds to the sheriff suffice to release a member of our congregation from his obligations. Very respectfully, Hebrew Congregation BVS and GH Board of Representatives.

Judah: In the Danish colonies, there was a very clear religious establishment. That is, the Lutheran Church — the Danish Lutheran Church — was the church of record. It was the, essentially, national church. But as a result of that, those that didn't profess Lutheranism needed to profess something else. Simmonds responds by saying, not only am I no longer Jewish, but I profess a different religion. He claims that he is a Unitarian, which therefore is, or becomes, this kind of idea of what it would mean to not profess Judaism, but to profess a kind of nominative form of Christianity. The synagogue, of course, is kind of stuck there. And so they could try to compel Simmonds to continue to pay his dues, but the government essentially makes it clear that he could live as a Unitarian and therefore remain as a part of what might be considered a very, very small Unitarian population on St. Thomas. That opens up one could say almost some fissures in the idea of what identity was like on St. Thomas, what religious identity was like. That's what eventually leads to a major split in the Jewish community on St. Thomas.

Typically when you see a congregation splitting, and especially a small congregation splitting, there are a number of different layers that are involved. One could often start with the theological or liturgical layer. That is to say, there is a particular set of prayers, there is a particular way that one does things that then seems like it is violated in some way or another.

Actor 5: 20th February, 5627, 1867. David Cardoze Jr., Esquire, President of the congregation: Sir, I have to bring under your notice that of the representatives the following circumstance, constituting a violation of the synagogue laws, as set forth in section 20, page 14. Mr. Elias Wolff informed me yesterday in presence of Joseph Levy, that Mr. Jacob Lindo Sr. officiated at the house of the widow Mrs. D’Azevedo on Monday the 18th by saying the customary Hashkabah. Such deliberate violations of the law, and defiance of the constituted authorities, should be at once repressed, or else further irregularities will be the consequence; and I therefore lose no time in laying these facts before you that action must be taken by the Board. I am, Sir, most respectfully your obedient servant, M.N. Nathan, Minister of Congregation.

Judah: A second level typically is more of a social level; in this case, the idea that, in fact, there are already existing places of difference within a congregation itself. They could be ethnically based. They could be based on background. It can be seen aesthetically — the way that one incorporates aesthetics into prayer; that there are different ideas as to how to accomplish that. It could be age based. That is, there is one generation that sees that it feels like it's doing things in a particular way, and a second generation or a younger generation that feels that changes should be made. That can lead to a set of allies and a set of opponents.

Actor 1: 21st of February, 1867. To the Board of Representatives of the Hebrew Congregation BVS and GH: Gentlemen, your communication of this date I have just received, and, in reply, have only to state I shall continue to act in the same manner as I have at the residence of the widow R. C. D’Azevedo, whenever requested to do so, in defiance of the threats held out, and, as such, I think that your informant would have acted more prudent than to raise without cause the feelings of discontentment of one of the oldest members of the congregation. I am, Gentlemen, yours very respectfully, Jacob Lindo.

Actor 4: Sir, your discourteous letter of this day's date is received, and we merely acknowledge it to warn you against any repetition of acts similar to what has already made you amenable to the penalties of the synagogue laws, which, in such a case, will most assuredly be enforced against you. We are, Sir, yours respectfully, Hebrew Congregation BVS and GH Board of Representatives.

Actor 1: I merely acknowledged the receipt of your communication to acquaint you that I intend to continue reading the evening prayers at the residence of the widow D’Azevedo, and will do so this evening. As such, you are at full liberty to enforce the penalty for my so doing, if in your power, and without making use of your out-of-the-way expression, “discourteous”. I am, Gentlemen, your obedient servant, Jacob Lindo.

Judah: And then, at base, there is also a kind of a legal concern too; that is, people will resort to law or to governing legal documents as the basis for separation as well, using them to point out where violations have occurred. For example —

Actor 1: 26th of February, 1867. Gentlemen, we, the undersigned members and taxpayers of the above named congregation, beg leave to bring under your notice that section 35 of the bylaws is violated by the minister and request you to give all attention possible to our complaint, which runs thus: According to the above number, we understand that the minister is bound to preach on every Sabbath and holy days and which he does not. Instead of the minister being present in the synagogue on Saturday evenings to perform the duties of his office, as he ought to, he has been seen by many of the congregants attending to the collection of deposits at the savings bank during the hours of divine service. As we are desirous of seeing these abuses corrected and the articles of the bylaws properly carried out, we respectfully request you to give this matter your serious consideration. We are, Gentlemen, yours respectfully, Jacob Lindo and 13 others.

Actor 4: Gentlemen, at a special meeting of this board held on the third Instant, adjourned from the 27th Ultimo, it was resolved that this board, after having heard the Reverend Mr. Nathan’s vindication from the charges brought against him, unanimously agrees that the Reverend Gentleman has fulfilled all the duties of his office to the entire satisfaction of this board and considers him entirely exonerated from said charges, he having in no way infringed the bylaws by which this congregation is governed. Respectfully, Hebrew Congregation BVS and GH Board of Representatives.

Actor 1: Gentlemen, we beg to notify you that in conformity with the communication which we addressed this day to the Honorable Presidency, we cease to be members of the above named congregation. Respectfully, Jacob Lindo and 13 others.

Judah: Now, there was a tension there. If the Danish colonial government would only recognize one Jewish religious body and the Jewish population was so heterogeneous, how did this end up working? Well, after the split, the Jewish population in Bracha ve Shalom u Gemilut Hasadim made a claim that they could be the only synagogue on the island.

Actor 4: 1st April, 1867. Excellency, this board begs to notify to Your Excellency that under date of 14th March AC, a communication was received, signed by 14 members of this congregation, notifying to this board that they ceased to be members of this congregation. As the signers of this communication did not state that they were no longer Jews — the only point which, in accordance with the Honorable Presidency’s letter to this board of the 27th December, 1866, could give them the power of withdrawing — no notice was taken. Your Excellency will, in reference to the bylaws, find that section 1 states that only one synagogue is permitted in the island to which all professing Israelites must contribute, and furthermore, in section 20, that no assembly for divine worship is allowed out of the synagogue unless the acting president is informed of same and gives his consent thereto. Most respectfully, Hebrew Congregation BVS and GH Board of Representatives.

Judah: You have the synagogue, Bracha ve Shalom u Gemilut Hasadim, versus, if you will, the Hebrew Reformed Congregation. At the time, there was not necessarily a uniform way to describe Reform. Thus, the term “Reformed” became the way that the split-off congregation named itself.

Actor 1: 1st of April, 1867. In continuation of their letter of the 14th, the undersigned want the honor to inform the Honorable Presidency that they have, in virtue of the Colonial Law section 71, established a Reformed Hebrew Congregation on the island under the name Beth Elohim, House of God, to be conducted according to the ritual of the Reformed British Jews of London. Most respectfully signed, Jacob Lindo, Vice-President, and 13 others.

Judah: Now there are two different forms of Jewish religion and Jewish identity; in a sense, making a forceful argument to the Danish colonial government that Judaism was no longer a unitary religion. The Danish colonial government was kind of stuck in between all of these things, trying to figure out how to maintain the peace, how not to disrupt the community or not to create any further problems.

Ultimately, they kind of decided to split the difference there and say, well, all right, there is this other congregation that we can work with here. They both can be Jewish congregations, and we’ll let these two co-exist for the time being. What becomes really interesting here is while they’d attempted to coexist, there were other forces that made it hard for them to stay separated. Among them, there was, in 1867, rather shortly after the separation, a massive hurricane, followed by an earthquake, followed by a tidal wave.

Actor 6: December 13, 1867. Dear Sir and Friend, on Monday afternoon, November 18, at quarter to three o’clock, we were visited by the earthquake. The loud rumbling of the earth and the severity of the shocks soon emptied every store and building of its occupants, as it appeared that no edifice could withstand the test of another moment's shaking. The worst is that after the first shocks of earthquake, a spectacle presented itself that none who had the misfortune to behold it can ever forget. No sooner had the shocks ceased than an ocean of water calculated 50 feet high of snowy whiteness, and forming one wave, was seen at the southwest, beyond our harbor, majestically and steadily rolling onward toward us, foretelling in its every movement that it must engulf all things encountered by it. Our harbor being narrow, it happily broke against the two hills that formed the entrance. Otherwise, an inevitable inundation of the whole town must have been our fate. But that part of the wave that entered the harbor leaves a melancholy reminiscence for many, for it swept six feet high into our principal commercial street and no store but has had 6 to 6½ feet of water within it. The loss may be easily imagined.

Judah: This is something that you just can't make up; that after these two congregations end up kind of digging in and determining that they're going to exist and that they're going to present their form of Judaism, regardless of what the other one does, suddenly you have these forces of nature that cause all kinds of upheaval on the island.

Actor 6: For 15 days, we were afraid to go into our stores. Numbers of our inhabitants were encamped on the hills under tents. On the 12th, no shocks were felt, and we began to congratulate ourselves that we had seen an end to our miseries when, at 10 o'clock of the very same day, another very severe shock was felt. And again, consternation spread in our midst. Every store was closed, and everyone began again to prepare for the worst, which some croakers are predicting to come.

Judah: As a result, the island spirals downward into a kind of an economic depression or economic difficulties.

Actor 6: In property and merchandise destroyed, it is impossible to make a correct estimate, but it is not less than 50 millions of dollars. Among such great destruction, it is pleasant to state that the Reform house of worship did not receive the slightest injury. Offenses were forgiven. Hands which have for years been refused, were outstretched in solemn and sincere shaking. Enemies embraced each other. Friend and foe all met and implored God to receive them and to have pity and mercy on us. May you never know what it is. May you never be in the state of mind which we were for a fortnight. I must now conclude with the best wishes for your happiness. I remain, Dear Sir, yours, A.D. de Youngh.

Judah: People leave the island because they can't really operate there or there are, if you will, greener pastures elsewhere. And similarly, the rabbis that are running these congregations, or at least the religious authorities that run these congregations, also leave because, of course, when you're the spiritual leader of a congregation in the midst of a dispute, it doesn't feel very good. So all of these things end up combining to a point where, in fact, the Jewish population becomes reduced and the ability for these two synagogues to exist on their own becomes harder and harder. Thus, ultimately, the two of them largely recognize that they can't exist on their own. And that's the point when the different factions come together, they create a new set of bylaws, and they decide to move forward as a single congregation once again. From the time that the synagogues ostensibly come together, there are two community members that are running the St. Thomas synagogue.

Neither of them has ordination. Neither of them is recognized as a rabbi. They learn the position, they take a sense of leadership. In some cases, it's a little bit of an awkward process, you know, and so on. But what also becomes interesting is that, in retrospect, these two figures are also granted a kind of a rabbinical status.

Over the course of time, the synagogue has become connected to the United States, both economically and culturally, not to mention religiously. The US acquired the Danish West Indies in 1917.

Actor 7: New York Times, “Danish West Indies Turned Over To U.S.,” Washington, March 31st. When Secretary of State Lansing today handed to Constantin Brun, the Danish minister, 25 million dollars, the group of islands known as the Danish West Indies passed formally and officially into the possession of the United States.

Laura: Caribbean Jews who once were the vast majority of American Jews migrate to the United States. We tend to just think about there was the Caribbean, and then somehow it stopped being as important, and then there was the United States and New York took off. But, really, that migration northward is a very important part of the Caribbean-ization or the Creole-ization of U.S. congregations.

Judah: So, the synagogue begins to connect with Sephardic congregations in the 1920s, ‘30s and ‘40s. Eventually the Sephardic population begins to die off or leave. People start to come down in the 1950s that are connected with the rise of the tourist industry. They tend to be more associated with liberal Judaism, Reform Judaism. And so, by the 1960s, the congregation becomes an official congregation of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations – Reform Judaism. It also sees itself as connected with this long history and presents this long history as a core part of its identity. Thus, it's a space where occasionally you will find destination weddings or destination bar mitzvahs. But even so, there is this clear sense that we're talking about a local population that is maintaining its Jewish identity in now the 21st century.

Laura: One of the islands that I work on in Barbados, the community today, they hold services in this early Sephardic synagogue. And the structure of it is completely Portuguese-esque, in terms of the Portuguese Jewish community. But the congregation themselves are often a large part Ashkenazi.

It’s those later Ashkenazi Jews and that community that have poured a huge amount of money into creating the synagogue, creating a museum, creating an interpretive center, really making sure that generations going forward know about that long history, including the early Sephardic history, which they may not be genealogically tied to, but emotionally are very much the guardians of.

Judah: In the last few years, we have seen a Chabad Lubavitch appear on the island. So there's also now some negotiation here as well. Now this doesn't come necessarily as a split like it did in the 1860s, but nonetheless, you do still see two kind of centers of Jewish gravity that continue to co-exist, one of them in the center of town and one of them up on what is still described by some as Synagogue Hill. Perhaps, some days, there may be a sense that there are two populations that really seem not so compatible with each other. And on other days, there will be this sense that these two populations are working closely together, depending upon what the conditions are, and, of course, what the issues are that the island is facing at any given time. Even though there may be two different forms of practice, ultimately, when it comes down to it, there's also one peoplehood.

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Aaron: Thank you for listening to this episode of The Dybbukast, “The St. Thomas Split.” Featured in this episode were actors Joshua Wolf Coleman, Perry Daniel, Joe Jordan, Julie Lockhart, Clay Steakley, Jonathan CK Williams, and Mark McClain Wilson. Thank you to Dr. Laura Leibman and Dr. Judah Cohen for sharing their insights. Judah's book, Through The Sands of Time: A History of the Jewish Community of St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands served as a primary resource for this episode, and it's definitely worth checking out if you wish to know more. A book Laura served as a co-editor on, Jews In The Americas, 1776 - 1826, overlaps with the topics we discussed in this episode, and would also serve as a great source for more information. Our theme music is composed by Michael Skloff and produced by Sam K.S. Story editing is led by Julie Lockhart with support from me, Aaron Henne. The series is edited by Mark McClain Wilson.

Please visit us at theatredybbuk.org where you will find links to a wide variety of materials, which expand upon the episode’s explorations. And if you want to know more about theatre dybbuk’s work in general, please sign up for our mailing list on that same website on the contact page.

This season of The Dybbukast is generously supported by a grant from Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah. New episodes are available every second Friday of the month. This episode was presented in collaboration with the Mervis Chair, Borns Jewish Studies Program, Indiana University Bloomington. The Dybbukast is produced by theatre dybbuk.

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Actor 2: St. Thomas Tidende, 29th August, 1869. The usual service was held at the synagogue of our Jewish fellow citizens, adhering to the Portuguese form of service, on Saturday, 28th current. At an appointed time, a discourse in English was delivered by Belgian council, Mr. Alfred Nones K.L., and which was worthy of attention. His subject was the late marriage of the Crown Prince of Denmark to the Crown Princess of Sweden. And, as the theme is a happy one, the speaker dwelt on it in glowing language. It is with pleasure we learned that the deputy of the Hebrew Reformed congregation was at the synagogue on the above occasion. We hope it will tend to cement that kind of feeling, which we would rejoice to see between the two Mosaic congregations. For although they seek Heaven through different roads, there is much in common between them.