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Abraham Abele Gombiner () (c. 1635 – 5 October 1682), known as the Magen Avraham, born in
Gąbin Gąbin is a small town in Płock County, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,065 inhabitants as of December 2021. The Warsaw radio mast, which stood near Gąbin, was the tallest structure in the world until its collapse in 1991. History Gąb ...
(Gombin),
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
, was a
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 ...
,
Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
ist and a leading religious authority in the
Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...
ish community of
Kalisz (The oldest city of Poland) , image_skyline = , image_caption = ''Top:'' Town Hall, Former "Calisia" Piano Factory''Middle:'' Courthouse, "Gołębnik" tenement''Bottom:'' Aerial view of the Kalisz Old Town , image_flag = POL Kalisz flag.svg ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
during the seventeenth century. His full name is Avraham Abele ben Chaim HaLevi from the town of Gombin. There are texts that list his family name as Kalisz after the city of his residence. After his parents were killed in the
Chmielnicki massacres The Khmelnytsky Uprising,; in Ukraine known as Khmelʹnychchyna or uk, повстання Богдана Хмельницького; lt, Chmelnickio sukilimas; Belarusian: Паўстанне Багдана Хмяльніцкага; russian: ...
of 1648, he moved to live and study with his relative in
Leszno Leszno (german: Lissa, 1800–1918 ''Lissa in Posen'') is a historic city in western Poland, within the Greater Poland Voivodeship. It is the seventh-largest city in the province with an estimated population of 62,200, as of 2021. Previously, it ...
, Jacob Isaac Gombiner. From there he moved to
Kalisz (The oldest city of Poland) , image_skyline = , image_caption = ''Top:'' Town Hall, Former "Calisia" Piano Factory''Middle:'' Courthouse, "Gołębnik" tenement''Bottom:'' Aerial view of the Kalisz Old Town , image_flag = POL Kalisz flag.svg ...
where he was appointed as
Rosh Yeshiva Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primar ...
and judge in the tribunal of Rabbi Israel Spira (who was a son of Rabbi
Nathan Nata Spira Nathan Nata Spira ( he, ; 1585 – 20 July 1633) was a Polish rabbi and kabbalist, who served as Chief Rabbi of Kraków. A student of Meir Lublin, Spira played an important role in spreading Isaac Luria's teachings throughout Poland. ...
). He is known to scholars of
Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...
for his ''Magen Avraham'' commentary on the ''
Orach Chayim Orach Chayim, (''manner/way of life'') is a section of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of Halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim. This section addresses aspects of Jewish law pertinent to the Hebrew calendar (be it the daily, weekly, monthly, or ...
'' section of Rabbi
Joseph Karo Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, also spelled Yosef Caro, or Qaro ( he, יוסף קארו; 1488 – March 24, 1575, 13 Nisan 5335 Anno mundi, A.M.), was the author of the last great codification of Jewish law, the ''Beit Yosef (book), Beit Yosef'', and it ...
's ''
Shulchan Aruch The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
'', which he began writing in 1665 and finished in 1671. His brother Yehudah traveled in 1673 to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
to print the work, but did not have the needed funds, and died on the journey. It was not published until 1692 by
Shabbethai Bass Shabbethai ben Joseph Bass (1641–1718) ( he, שבתי בן יוסף; also known by the family-name Strom), born at Kalisz, was the founder of Jewish bibliography, and author of the ''Siftei Chachamim'' supercommentary on Rashi's commentary on the ...
in
Dyhernfurth Brzeg Dolny (german: Dyhernfurth) is a town in Wołów County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship in south-western Poland. It is located north-west of Wrocław on the Oder River, and is the site of a large chemical plant complex, PCC Rokita SA. As of ...
after Rabbi Gombiner's death. His son Chaim wrote in the preface to the work that his father was frequently sick and suffered pain and discomfort.


Works

His most important work was ''Magen Avraham'', a commentary on
Shulchan Aruch The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
,
Orach Hayyim Orach Chayim, (''manner/way of life'') is a section of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of Halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim. This section addresses aspects of Jewish law pertinent to the Hebrew calendar (be it the daily, weekly, monthly, or ...
. It is not to be confused with works by the same title by Abraham Farissol and Avraham the magid of Trisk. He also wrote ''Zayit Ra'anan'', a commentary on the popular
midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''.
he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...
ic collection ''
Yalkut Shimoni The ''Yalkut Shimoni'' ( he, ילקוט שמעוני), or simply ''Yalkut'', is an aggadic compilation on the books of the Hebrew Bible. It is a compilation of older interpretations and explanations of Biblical passages, arranged according to the ...
''. He also authored a commentary to the works of the
Tosefta The Tosefta (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...
on the section of
Nezikin ''Nezikin'' ( he, נזיקין ''Neziqin'', "Damages") or ''Seder Nezikin'' (, "The Order of Damages") is the fourth Order of the Mishna (also the Tosefta and Talmud). It deals largely with Jewish criminal and civil law and the Jewish court sy ...
in the
Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
, published by his grandson together with the work by R. Abraham's son-in-law Moshe Yekutiel Kaufman, ''Lehem Hapanim'' (1732). He wrote a commentary on the Torah entitled ''Shemen Sason'', but much of it has been lost.


Magen Avraham


Debate over name of the book

Gombiner's son Chaim named the book ''Magen Avraham'', using his father's name in the title. His father's students mentioned to him that they asked his father how he will name his book and he answered ''Ner Yisrael'' ("Lamp of Israel") (abbreviation: נר יפה של רבי אברהם הלוי) . Apparently, because of humility he did not want to integrate his name in the book. However, his son wanted to perpetuate his father's name in the title by linking it to the commentary of the ''
Taz Taz or TAZ may refer to: Geography *Taz (river), a river in western Siberia, Russia *Taz Estuary, the estuary of the river Taz in Russia People * Taz people, an ethnic group in Russia ** Taz language, a form of Northeastern Mandarin spoken by ...
'' - ''Magen David'', so he published his father's work under the title ''Magen Avraham''.
Aaron Worms Aaron Worms was a chief rabbi of Metz and a Talmudist; the son of Abraham Aberle, he was born July 7, 1754, in Geislautern, a small village near Völklingen (some say Kaiserslautern); died at Metz, May 2, 1836. Biography Worms came from a family ...
criticized him for titling the book with a traditional title for God and referencing the closing of the first blessing in the
Amidah The ''Amidah Amuhduh'' ( he, תפילת העמידה, ''Tefilat HaAmidah'', 'The Standing Prayer'), also called the ''Shemoneh Esreh'' ( 'eighteen'), is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. Observant Jews recite the ''Amidah'' at each o ...
. However, Chaim Michael states that there is no basis for his critique and its all empty talk.


''Halakhah'', ''minhag'', custom

Gombiner's innovative approach to commenting on the ''
Shulchan Aruch The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
'' was to incorporate the customs of his contemporary Poland. The work is terse and difficult and needed explanation by later commentators. His lasting effect on
halakha ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...
h was the incorporation of the
Kabbalistic Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
customs of
Safed Safed (known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardi Hebrew, Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation, Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), i ...
, especially those found in Rabbi
Isaiah Horowitz Isaiah or Yeshayahu ben Avraham Ha-Levi Horowitz ( he, ישעיה בן אברהם הלוי הורוויץ), (c. 1555 – March 24, 1630), also known as the ''Shelah HaKaddosh'' ( "the holy ''Shelah''") after the title of his best-known work, was ...
's ''Shene Luhot Haberit''. He taught that customs should be respected. In the case of the blessing of "giving strength to the weary" he writes that one does not undo an old custom, and believed that opponents like Rabbi Yosef Karo likely repented of changing ''
minhag ''Minhag'' ( he, מנהג "custom", classical pl. מנהגות, modern pl. , ''minhagim'') is an accepted tradition or group of traditions in Judaism. A related concept, ''Nusach (Jewish custom), Nusach'' (), refers to the traditional order and fo ...
'' at the end of his life. Dealing with the widespread practice of hiring gentiles to work for the community on the
Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...
, he wrote, "they allow themselves to hire a Gentile under contract to remove the garbage from the streets, and the Gentile does the work on the Sabbath." He assumed that a prior rabbi had approved the action "and we must conclude that a great rabbi handed down this ruling" for the sake of the community. Regarding the universal practice of not giving people who claim to be Kohanim priority in many cases (such as not taking food first) he said it is most likely because modern-day Kohanim do not have any proper proof of their pedigree. He taught that '' aliyot'' should be given based on events in congregants' lives, such as marriage, birth and death, rather than always giving it to the scholars. He taught that "women are exempt from counting the ''omer'', since it is a positive time-bound commandment". Nonetheless, they have already made it obligatory upon themselves." He held that one child can count for a
minyan In Judaism, a ''minyan'' ( he, מניין \ מִנְיָן ''mīnyān'' , lit. (noun) ''count, number''; pl. ''mīnyānīm'' ) is the quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain religious obligations. In more traditional streams of Jud ...
for the
Torah reading Torah reading (; ') is a Judaism, Jewish religion, religious tradition that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Sefer Torah, Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the scroll (or scrolls) fro ...
. Some modern rabbis wish to extrapolate from this opinion to include counting women for a minyan in a
Partnership Minyan Partnership minyan (pl. partnership minyanim) is a religious Jewish prayer group that seeks to maximize women's participation in services within the confines of Jewish law as understood by Orthodox Judaism. This includes enabling women to lead par ...
, while others disagree. This controversial point is discussed in recent
responsa ''Responsa'' (plural of Latin , 'answer') comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them. In the modern era, the term is used to describe decisions and rulings made by scholars i ...
.Rabbi
Yehuda Henkin Rabbi Yehuda Herzl Henkin (1945 – 23 December 2020), author of the responsa ''Benei Vanim'', was a modern orthodox posek. Early life and education Yehuda Henkin was born in Pennsylvania in 1945 and raised in New Haven, Connecticut. His fat ...
, ''Bnei Banim'' II, Chap. 10; and Rabbi
Mendel Shapiro Mendel Shapiro is a Jerusalem lawyer and Modern Orthodox Rabbi. He is the author of a halakhic analysis arguing that women could be called to read from the Torah in prayer services with men on Shabbat under certain conditions. His minority viewpo ...

"Qeri’at ha-Torah by Women: A Halakhic Analysis"
(Edah 1:2, 2001) (pdf)
While usually giving his imprimatur to local customs, in the case of the custom to donate firecrackers and fireworks to the synagogue in honour of
Simchat Torah Simchat Torah or Simhat Torah (, lit., "Rejoicing with/of the Torah", Ashkenazi: ''Simchas Torah'') is a Jewish holiday that celebrates and marks the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, and the beginning of a new cycle. Simch ...
, Rabbi Gombiner believed it proof of the effect of allowing boorish commoners to celebrate a scholars' holiday.


Influence

The ''Magen Avraham'' was the subject of a commentary by Samuel Neta HaLevi of Kolin, entitled ''Mahatsit ha-shekel'', and another by David Solomon Eibenschutz, entitled ''Levushei Serad''. R.
Yechiel Michel Epstein Yechiel Michel ha-Levi Epstein ( he, יחיאל מיכל הלוי אפשטיין) (24 January 1829 – 25 March 1908), often called "the ''Aruch haShulchan''" after his magnum opus, Aruch HaShulchan, was a Rabbi and ''Posek'' (authority in Jewi ...
’s
Aruch HaShulchan ''Arukh HaShulchan'' (Hebrew: עָרוּךְ הַשֻּׁלְחָן r, arguably, עָרֹךְ הַשֻּׁלְחָן; see ''Title'' below is a work of halacha written by Yechiel Michel Epstein (1829–1908). The work attempts to be a clear, orga ...
and R.
Yisrael Meir Kagan Rabbi Yisrael Meir ha-Kohen Kagan (January 26, 1838 – September 15, 1933), known popularly as the Chofetz Chaim, after his book on lashon hara, who was also well known for the Mishna Berurah, his book on ritual law, was an influential Lithuan ...
’s
Mishnah Berurah The ''Mishnah Berurah'' ( he, משנה ברורה "Clear Teaching") is a work of ''halakha'' (Jewish law) by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan (Poland, 1838–1933, also known as ''Chofetz Chaim''). It is a commentary on ''Orach Chayim'', the first section ...
relied on Gombiner for their acceptance of
Kabbalistic Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
practices. There is a major dispute in the 17-18th century as to how to figure Rabbinic hours of the day. One approach (that of Gombiner, in his ''Magen Avraham'') reckons the day from dawn until nightfall. The other approach (that of the
Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( he , ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman'') known as the Vilna Gaon (Yiddish: דער װילנער גאון ''Der Vilner Gaon'', pl, Gaon z Wilna, lt, Vilniaus Gaonas) or Elijah of ...
) reckons the day from sunrise to sunset. For rituals, which are prescribed in the morning, Magen Avraham's calculations will always be earlier than that of the Vilna Gaon. For rituals, which are prescribed in the afternoon or evening, Magen Avraham's calculations will always be later than that of the Vilna Gaon.


Notable Descendants

* Rabbi
Chaim Pinchas Lubinsky Rabbi Chaim Pinchas Lubinsky (August 1, 1915November 28, 1985) was the mashgiach of the yeshiva in Bergen Belsen and the Chief Rabbi of Hanover from 1946 to 1949. Early life and ancestry Rabbi Chaim Pinchas Lubinsky was born in Blaszki, Poland on ...
* Shlomo Zemach


Bibliography

*Jacob, Katz ''The "Shabbes Goy": A Study in Halakhic Flexibility'' Jewish Publication Society, 1989 *Chayyim Tchernowitz, ''Toldot Haposkim'' 3: 164-172. *J. Wrescher, Introduction to ''Shemen Sason'' (2000).


References


External links


Jewish Encyclopedia entryhis work on Tosefte, Amsterdam 1732biography by Mordechai Margulies (in Hebrew)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gombiner, Avraham 1635 births 1682 deaths 17th-century Polish rabbis People from Kalisz Authors of books on Jewish law People from Gąbin