Abraham (Vita) de Cologna (25 September 1755 – 24 March 1832) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

-born orator, politician, and religious leader. He is considered to have been one of the first

Chief Rabbis of France Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

, following David Sintzheim and preceding

Emmanuel Deutz Emmanuel Deutz (1763-1842) was a German-born French rabbi. Biography Emmanuel Deutz was born in 1763 in Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a po ...

Biography

As the

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...

, Abraham Vita de Cologna was elected as a deputy to the parliament of the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...

,Beer, Moses
Abraham (Vita) de Cologna
''

The Jewish Encyclopedia ''The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' is an English-language encyclopedia containing over 15,000 articles on th ...

'' (1906). which was ruled in personal union with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

under

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, and in 1806 he served as a member of the Assembly of Jewish Notables in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

.Morat, Yves & Gutmann, Micheline
Le Grand Rabbin Abraham Vita de Cologna (1754-1832)
Retrieved 4 March 2021. He was later named vice-president of the

Grand Sanhedrin The Grand Sanhedrin was a Jewish high court convened in Europe by Napoleon to give legal sanction to the principles expressed by an assembly of Jewish notables in answer to the twelve questions submitted to it by the government.Jew. Encyc. v. 468 ...

when it was established in 1807. In 1808 he became a member of the Central Consistory of France, and subsequently served as its president from 1812 to 1826. Having presided over the French Central Consistory, he is considered to have been the second

Chief Rabbi of France Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...

, David Sintzheim having been the first. He later served as a member of the

Consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church *Consistory ...

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

as well. His legacy includes a collection of sermons and essays authored by him.Kahn, ''Archives israélites'', 1840, p. 32.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cologna, Abraham Vita de 1755 births 1832 deaths Rabbis from Mantua 19th-century French rabbis French people of Italian descent French people of Italian-Jewish descent Chief rabbis of France

Biography

See also

References