Abstract
Religious visibility is a modern concept dealing with the issue of minorities. This study seeks to examine the visibility of the Jewish minority in Iran, answering the questions: Did the Iranian Jews tend to be more visible in the society and wish to become more recognizable, especially after the 1979 Iranian Revolution? How did they accept Iranian culture, identity, traditions, and life in an adapted coexistence? Based on a qualitative method, six elements were found and studied through the concepts of assimilation, multiculturalism, and recognition: not a feeling of marginalization and being a minority, religious support, neighboring Muslims, freedom to perform religious duties, formation of parties and associations, and actions for social recognition. In conclusion, the Jews who voluntarily live in Iran have a special Iranian-Islamic identity and have been influenced by the dominant culture. They are recognized in the Constitution and to some extent enjoy citizenship rights. Additionally, though they possess a peaceful life alongside others, and they are socially recognized, but they feel a different eye on them from the government and the majority, which makes them feel marginalized. So, they are careful in their relationships with others. This behavior is more prevalent among Jews than other minorities, because their population is very small and so they have to be more cautious.
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Notes
- 1.
We will discuss this in the next sections.
- 2.
In the case of religious freedom this concept is connected to knowledge, against religious or sacred ignorance which is connected to intolerance (see Hasannia 2021).
- 3.
The Secretariat of Monotheistic Religions has provided the space for the unity between religions. This organization was first established in Isfahan, in which a group of experts and thinkers from four divine religions, that is, Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism, are gathered in a favorable atmosphere. While believing in the teachings of religions, away from undesirable religious and ethnic prejudices, to elevate the qualitative and quantitative level of spiritual and moral culture of monotheistic religions, especially the youth, to expand the spirit of spirituality and cooperation in society, to confront atheistic thoughts and to resolve the crisis of spirituality among the influential classes, they gather together, think, and find solutions (see Nikbakht 2012: 55).
- 4.
Kalimi, the word used to refer to the Jews of Iran in modern Persian usage. The word “kalimi” derives from the Arabic root klm meaning to address, to speak, but the appellation in this context is derived directly from the specific epithet given to the prophet Moses as Kalim-Allāh, as indicated in the Qurʾān: wa kallama Allāhu Musā taklim “And to Moses God spoke directly/face-to-face” (Q.4.164). Jews in the Qurʾān itself are referred to both as Yahud and as Banu-Esrāʾil (Netzar 2012).
- 5.
Personal status means the characteristics that determine the personal and legal status and identity of the individual in his/her family and society (Katouzian 1992, 2: 4). In legal analysis, personal status is used in two senses: general and specific. Its general meaning includes status and competence, and the specific meaning refers only to status (Emami 1992, 4: 99).
- 6.
“Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians among Iranians are the only recognized religious minorities and they are free to perform their religious rites and ceremonies within the framework of law and to act in accordance with their own canon in matters of personal law and religious education.”
- 7.
“The representatives must take the following oath at the first session of the Parliament and affix their signatures to its text:
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful In the presence of the Glorious Quran, I swear by God, the Exalted and Almighty, and undertake by my honor as a human being, to protect Islam, to guard the achievements of the Islamic Revolution of the Iranian people and the foundations of the Islamic Republic, to preserve, as a just trustee, the trust entrusted to me by the people; to observe honesty and piety in fulfilling my duties as a representative, to remain always committed to the independence and honor of the country, to safeguarding the nation’s rights and serving the people, to defending the Constitution, and to keep in mind, in my speech, writing and while expressing my views, the independence of the country, the freedom of the people, and the security of their interests.
Members belonging to religious minorities will swear by their own scriptures while taking this oath. Members absent from the first session will take the oath at the first session they attend.
- 8.
لا إِکْراهَ فِی الدِّینِ قَدْ تَبَیَّنَ الرُّشْدُ مِنَ الْغَیِّ».. «
- 9.
. لَا یَنْهَاکُمُ اللَّهُ عَنِ الَّذِینَ لَمْ یُقَاتِلُوکُمْ فِى الدِّینِ وَلَمْ یُخْرِجُوکُم مِّن دِیَارِکُمْ أَن تَبَرُّوهُمْ وَتُقْسِطُواْ إِلَیْهِمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ یُحِبُّ الْمُقْسِطِینَ * إِنَّمَا یَنْهَاکُمُ اللَّهُ عَنِ الَّذِینَ قَاتَلُوکُمْ فِى الدِّینِ وَأَخْرَجُوکُم مِّن دِیَارِکُمْ وَظَاهَرُواْ عَلَى إِخْرَاجِکُمْ أَن تَوَلَّوْهُمْ وَمَن یَتَوَلَّهُمْ فَأُوْلَئِکَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ».«
- 10.
« وَلَا تُجَادِلُواْ أَهْلَ الْکِتَابِ إِلَّا بِالَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ».«
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Hasannia, A., Fazeli, Z., Fazeli, M.R. (2023). Iranian Jews’ Tendency to Religious Visibility and Adapted Coexistence. In: Hosseini, S.B. (eds) Ethnic Religious Minorities in Iran. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1633-5_6
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