Courage and faith: Saint Soulika

Same as Muslim community, the Jews venerated many Saints and each of them has his own story. One of the well-known saints in Morocco, visited by Muslims and Jews too is the holy lady Sol- Lalla Soulika, Sol Ha Tzadikkah- buried in the Jewish cemetery of Fes. Sol Hachuel was Born in 1817 in Tangier, her father was a merchant and a Talmudist -Talmud studier- he raised his daughter as a devoted Jewish. Sol or Soulika had a stunning beauty, she was the incarnation of Venus, a perfect gorgeous young lady. Jewesses and Muslims envied her. She had a friend, a Muslim friend, and a neighbor, who claimed that she converted Sol to Islam. No one knows if it’s out of envy or something else but the Muslim girl proclaimed it and the trial of Sol started. She denied this conversion, she refused to be Muslim even the Pacha of Tangier promised her protection and wealth, she stood as a heroine and refused to leave the religion of her ancestors. The Pacha imprisoned her, tortured her, and sent her to Fes where the final judgment will be spoken. The council of the Jewish community in Fès tried to convince her to convert and save herself, save her people but she refused, even the prince who fell in love with her tried his best to convince her but it was all wasted. Sol, who was 17 years old, believed in Islam and didn’t want to convert or deny it. She was decapitated in a public square in Fes in 1834. The Jewish community paid to have her body buried according to Moises Law. Since then, she became the Tzadikkah Soulika, the heroine who didn’t renounce her religion and died because of that.