For centuries, Jews took the Mishnah’s instruction literally:

 “Pray for the stability of the government…” (Pirkei Avot 3:2)

 “Pray for the stability of the government…” (Pirkei Avot 3:2)

Across Europe, communities recited a special prayer for the ruling monarch, Ha-Noten Teshuah (“He Who grants salvation to kings…”). Originating in 11th-century Germany, its purpose was survival: a public demonstration of loyalty to secure the safety of a vulnerable Jewish community.

By the 17th century, this prayer—in various forms—had spread to almost every Jewish prayer book across the globe. But beneath its widespread adoption was a dark irony.

For generations, oppressed Jews in the Russian Empire stood in their synagogues and outwardly prayed for the health and success of the very Czars who persecuted them.

A........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)