The Struggle for Provençal Halakhic Independence in the Thirteenth Century

This article deals with the attempt of the sages of Provence in the 13th century to defend their halakhic traditions against the Sefardi wave that theatened to inundate them. The first example is the custom of the Jews of Provence that a KOHEN (priest) may enter a cemetery to bury his dead relative, in contrast to the ruling of the Sefardi authorities. The second example is the custom of Jews of Provence to write not only the regular ketubah (marriage contract), but also an additional document, which they called “a Christian ketubah”, which contained a clause that if a woman was to die without children, the property would revert to her parents. This practice aroused the ire of R. Shelomo ben Abraham ben Adret (Rashba), who tried to change it.