CARD PLAYING TO HIDE JEWISH IDENTITY

by Art Benveniste

adapted from an article in HaLapid, Summer 1999

In his presentation to the 1999 SCJS Conference in Los Angeles, Seth Ward told of a woman from Northern New Mexico whom he had interviewed. She was describing the Crypto Jewish practices of her family and told about playing cards every September with her Grandmother. Playing cards was an annual ritual of the family that was somehow related to the Jewish High Holidays.

It reminded me of a story told by Rabbi Baruj Garzon of Spain: Several years ago the Jewish community of Spain wanted to buy some land in the Barcelona Area for a Jewish summer camp. Rabbi Garzon drove there from Madrid to negotiate with the landowner. It was late in September. A price was agreed on and the rabbi told the landowner that he would go back to Madrid to talk with the Board of Directors and they could sign the papers the following week. Back in Madrid that evening, Garzon received a call from the man in Barcelona. The landowner said that there were certain days the following week when he could not sign the papers. The rabbi wrote down the dates and went to bed. The next day he was about to put the dates on his calendar when he noticed that they coincided with the Jewish High Holidays. He called Barcelona and asked why the man could not sign on those dates. He was told that the man=s family had a  "strange@ calendar and that there were some days each year when they did not work or handle money. The rabbi asked what the family did on those days. He was told that they played cards. On checking the man=