They are exemplary in their observance of the Sabbath, and the festivals, according to the strict letter of the law, as contained in the bible.
The celebrated traveler, Benjamin of Tudela, who made himself famous in the twelfth century, visited all the synagogues in the east, where he became acquainted with all the customs, manners, and ceremonies of the different parties. He relates that he met some Karaites at Damascus, in Syria, and in Egypt; that they all appear to have adopted one uniform mode of worship and religious practices; that they met with great encouragement in the Ottoman empire, owing to their unanimity of feeling in synagogue worship, and their general conduct in religious affairs. In Constantinople, where they are pretty numerous, they hold an equal position. It was here that Elijah ben Moses composed his astronomical tables for the capital of the Ottoman empire. It was here, also, that the learned Rabbi, Judah Alpoka, the noted Karaite, published his work, the "Gate of Judah," in which he deplores the unfortunate state of his sect, which, he says, had lost, by plunder and other persecution, about three hundred volumes of books, composed in Arabic by their doctors, and translated into Hebrew.
This historian further informs us, that this sect is to be found in Syria, and as far to the east as Nineveh, from which place, some years ago, one of the Karaites came to Frankfort, in Germany. He brought with him some books, which he valued at a very high price. He then visited Poland, Muscovy, and Lithuania, where many of them are residing at this day. This proves to us the folly of the vulgar notion, that this sect are extinct in the west. Doubtless, there are still many Karaites in these countries who trace their origin from the Tartars.
Our historian further informs us that, in the course of his travels, he met in Damascus two hundred Karaites, four hundred Samaritans, and about three thousand Pharisees, and that none of these sects would intermarry; and consequently, they remain to this day distinct and separate, so far as regards their religious intercourse and forms of worship. In all other respects, however, they are friendly with each other, and mix together in society as citizens of the world.
CHAPTER IX.[ToC]
Of the Synagogues among the Jews.
The term synagogue signifies simply an assemblage of persons, which name was applied to places or houses in which the people met for religious worship. Among the Israelites of old, the word synagogue was used in its primary sense; as when they speak of the great synagogue, or the court of the seventy elders, which was instituted in the days of Moses, the legislator, to superintend the political affairs of the nation. The number of seventy became, in later days, increased to one hundred and twenty.