Rabbinic attitudes toward Manifestations of modernity and secularism within Nineteenth Century Sephardic Society

The following article discusses Sephardic society in the Ottoman Empire during the 19th century - a period of dramatic upheaval in many areas. Inter alia, these changes impacted Sephardic Jewry's reading habits and literary output. Alarmed by these developments, the conventional rabbinic establishment sought to wield its authority in an effort to safeguard and protect its congregants from what was perceived as a threat. Based on new sources - both printed and in manuscript form - this study sheds light on the traditional rabbis' reactions and responses to manifestations of modernity and secularism in general and examines the steps they took to oppose and penalize the individuals responsible for the new genres of Judeo-Spanish (Ladino) literature - including newspapers, fiction, and drama - in particular.