Meir ben Isaac Katzenellenbogen (c. 1482 – 12 January 1565) (also, Meir of Padua, or Maharam Padua, he, מאיר בן יצחק קצנלנבויגן) was a German rabbi born in
Katzenelnbogen
Katzenelnbogen () is the name of a castle and small town in the district of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Katzenelnbogen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Aar-Einrich.
History
Katzenelnboge ...
.
Biography
Meïr ben Isaac, who was often called after his native town, was the founder of the Katzenellenbogen family. After studying at
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
under the well-known
casuist
In ethics, casuistry ( ) is a process of reasoning that seeks to resolve moral problems by extracting or extending theoretical rules from a particular case, and reapplying those rules to new instances. This method occurs in applied ethics and ju ...
Jacob Pollak
Rabbi Jacob Pollak (other common spelling Yaakov Pollack), son of Rabbi Joseph, was the founder of the Polish method of halakhic and Talmudic study known as the Pilpul.
Biography
He was born about 1460 or 1470 in Poland, and died at Lublin in ...
, he went to
Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
and entered the ''
yeshiva
A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...
'' of
Judah Minz
Judah ben Eliezer ha-Levi Minz (c. 1405 – 1508), also known as Mahari Minz, was the most prominent Italian rabbi of his time. As his surname suggests, he immigrated around 1462 from Mainz to Italy. He officiated as rabbi of Padua for forty-seven ...
, whose granddaughter, Hannah, he afterwards married. He succeeded his father-in-law,
Abraham Minz, in the chief rabbinate of Padua, which office he held until his death on 12 January 1565 (epitaph below). He was the father of
Samuel Judah Katzenellenbogen
Samuel Judah Katzenellenbogen (1521 – 25 March 1597) was an Italian Rabbi, the son of Rabbi Meir Katzenellenbogen.
Biography
He was distinguished even in his youth for his scholarship and his oratorical gifts. He was associated, both as rabb ...
.
Meïr was also nominal rabbi of
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
, where he went several times a year, but he had his fixed residence at
Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
. Meïr was considered by his contemporaries a great authority on
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 ...
ic and
rabbinical
Rabbinic Judaism ( he, יהדות רבנית, Yahadut Rabanit), also called Rabbinism, Rabbinicism, or Judaism espoused by the Rabbanites, has been the mainstream form of Judaism since the 6th century CE, after the codification of the Babylonian ...
matters, and many rabbis consulted him, among them:
Moses Alashkar Moses ben Isaac Alashkar (1466–1542) () was a rabbi who lived in Egypt, but subsequently resided in Jerusalem.
Moses Alashkar was prominent among contemporaneous rabbis, and his opinions were held in esteem throughout the Levant, and even in Ita ...
,
Obadiah Sforno
Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno (Obadja Sforno, Hebrew: עובדיה ספורנו) was an Italian rabbi, Jewish commentaries on the Bible, Biblical commentator, philosopher and physician. A member of the Sforno (family), Sforno family, he was born in Ce ...
, and his relative
Moses Isserles
). He is not to be confused with Meir Abulafia, known as "Ramah" ( he, רמ״ה, italic=no, links=no), nor with Menahem Azariah da Fano, known as "Rema MiPano" ( he, רמ״ע מפאנו, italic=no, links=no).
Rabbi Moses Isserles ( he, משה ...
(who addressed him as "rabbi of Venice"). It may be seen from his ''responsa'' (ninety in number, published by himself, with those of
Judah Minz
Judah ben Eliezer ha-Levi Minz (c. 1405 – 1508), also known as Mahari Minz, was the most prominent Italian rabbi of his time. As his surname suggests, he immigrated around 1462 from Mainz to Italy. He officiated as rabbi of Padua for forty-seven ...
, under the title of ''She'elot u-Teshubot'', Venice, 1553), as well as from those of Isserles, that he was disposed to be liberal in his decisions. Another indication of his leaning toward liberalism was his use in his ''responsa'' (Nos. 38, 49, 72) of the civil names of the months, a thing not done by other rabbis of his time.
Joseph ben Mordechai Gershon
Joseph ben Mordechai Gershon HaKohen Ka"tz (1510 in Cracow – 1591) was a kohen by birth, a rabbi and Talmudist, who began his studies in the Talmud at an early age, and became the dean (rosh yeshivah) at a yeshiva founded for him by his fath ...
says (''
She'erit Yosef'', No. 1) that Meïr, in one of his ''responsa'', told him not to rely at that time on his opinion, because he could not verify his decision by the Talmud, all the copies of which had been burned. This burning is mentioned by
David Gans (''Ẓemaḥ Dawid'', p. 56, Warsaw, 1890) and by
Heilprin
Heilprin ( he, היילפרין) is a Jewish surname with many variants.
Origins
Some people with the name derive it from the town of Heilbronn, Germany. "Heilbronn" means "healing well".
Besides the numerous Heilbrons, Heilbronners, Heilpruns, ...
(''Seder haDorot'', i.245, ed. Maskileison) as having occurred in 1553 or 1554 under
Pope Julius III
Pope Julius III ( la, Iulius PP. III; it, Giulio III; 10 September 1487 – 23 March 1555), born Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 February 1550 to his death in March 155 ...
, at the instigation of certain baptized Jews. Meïr states also (''Responsa'', No. 78) that in
Candia the ''
hafṭarah
The ''haftara'' or (in Ashkenazic pronunciation) ''haftorah'' (alt. ''haftarah, haphtara'', he, הפטרה) "parting," "taking leave", (plural form: ''haftarot'' or ''haftoros'') is a series of selections from the books of ''Nevi'im'' ("Prop ...
'' for
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day's ...
Minḥah
Mincha ( he, מִנחַה, pronounced as ; sometimes spelled ''Minchah'' or ''Minḥa'') is the afternoon prayer service in Judaism.
Etymology
The name ''Mincha'', meaning "present", is derived from the meal offering that accompanied each sacrif ...
was, with the exception of the first three verses, read in
Greek (comp.
Zunz Zunz ( he, צוּנְץ, yi, צונץ) is a Yiddish surname:
* (1874–1939), Belgian pharmacologist
* Sir Gerhard Jack Zunz (1923–2018), British civil engineer
* Leopold Zunz (Yom Tov Lipmann Tzuntz) (1794–1886), German Reform rabbi an ...
, ''G.V.'' p. 413, note). In ''Responsum'' No. 86 he speaks of the plague that raged at Venice, but without indicating the year. Many of his ''responsa'' are to be found in the collection of Isserles. Meïr added to the edition of his ''responsa'' his father-in-law's ''Seder Giṭṭin wa-Ḥaliẓah'', and a detailed index. He edited also
Maimonides
Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...
' ''Yad'', with some commentaries, to which he added notes of his own (Venice, 1550; see Isserles).
Cecil Roth, ''History of the Jews in Venice'', page 256. In 1549 Katezenellenbogen became embroiled in a dispute over the publication of a printed edition of Maimonides' ''Mishneh Torah''. Since Jews could not own printing presses at that time, presses were owned by Venetian noblemen and operated by Jews under the patronage of the non-Jewish owner. Rabbi Katzenellenbogen edited a printed edition of the ''Mishneh Torah'' to be published by the Bragadini press. That work was soon pirated by the rival Giustiniani press. Rabbi Katzenellenbogen appealed to his relative Moses Isserles, who replied that the Giustiniani edition violated the prohibition on ''Hasogas gevul'', interfering with another person's livelihood. The Giustiniani parties denounced the rival publishers to the non-Jewish censors, leading to a massive burning of volumes of the Talmud and other Jewish works in the
Venetian Republic
The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...
.
Katzenellenbogen was the author of ninety
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 ...
published under the title, ''She'eilot U'teshuvot''.
Katzenellenbogen's epitaph reads:
Three centuries after his death, the 10th day of the Jewish month of
Shevat
Shevat (Hebrew: שְׁבָט, Standard ''Šəvaṭ'', Tiberian ''Šeḇāṭ''; from Akkadian ''Šabātu'') is the fifth month of the civil year starting in Tishre (or Tishri) and the eleventh month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calend ...
became widely recognized as a significant date by
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Judaism, Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory ...
. It is the anniversary of the passing of Rabbi
Shalom Sharabi
Sar Shalom Sharabi ( he, שר שלום מזרחי דידיע שרעבי), also known as the Rashash, the Shemesh or Ribbi Shalom Mizraḥi deyedi`a Sharabi (1720–1777), was a Yemenite Rabbi, Halachist, Chazzan and Kabbalist. In later life, ...
(1777), known as "the Rashash" and considered the father of all contemporary
Sephardic
Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), ...
kabbalists
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "receiver"). The defin ...
, the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe,
Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn (1950) and the date upon which the seventh Rebbe,
Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Menachem Mendel Schneerson (Modern Hebrew: מנחם מענדל שניאורסון; old-fashioned spelling: מנחם מענדל שניאורסאהן; April 5, 1902 OS – June 12, 1994; AM 11 Nissan 5662 – 3 Tammuz 5754), known to man ...
, formally accepted the leadership of
Chabad
Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (), is an Orthodox Jewish Hasidic dynasty. Chabad is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, particularly for its outreach activities. It is one of the largest Hasidic group ...
(1951).
His wife Hannah's epitaph reads:
Some notable descendants
Rabbi Katzenellenbogen had many notable descendants.
*
Herbert L. Anderson
Herbert Lawrence Anderson (May 24, 1914 – July 16, 1988) was an American nuclear physicist who was Professor of Physics at the University of Chicago.
He contributed to the Manhattan Project. He was also a member of the team which made the firs ...
*
Meir Bar-Ilan
Meir Bar-Ilan (; – ) was an
Orthodox rabbi, author, and Religious Zionist activist, who served as leader of the Mizrachi movement in the United States and Mandatory Palestine. Bar-Ilan University, founded in 1955, was named in his honour. ...
*
Max Beloff, Baron Beloff
Max Beloff, Baron Beloff, (2 July 1913 – 22 March 1999) was a British historian and Conservative peer. From 1974 to 1979 he was principal of the University College of Buckingham, now the University of Buckingham.
Early life
Beloff was born ...
*
Martin Buber
*
Baron Henry DeWorms
*
Felix Gilbert
Felix Gilbert (May 21, 1905 – February 14, 1991) was a German-born American historian of early modern and modern Europe.
Gilbert was born in Baden-Baden, Germany, to a middle-class Jewish family, and part of the Mendelssohn Bartholdy clan. In t ...
*
David Halberstam
David Halberstam (April 10, 1934 April 23, 2007) was an American writer, journalist, and historian, known for his work on the Vietnam War, politics, history, the Civil Rights Movement, business, media, American culture, Korean War, and later ...
*
Abraham Joshua Heschel
*
Eyran Katsenelenbogen
*
John Katzenellenbogen
John Albert Katzenellenbogen (born May 10, 1944) is an American Professor of Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He studies the development of novel agents for the treatment of hormone-responsive and non-responsive breast ...
*
Julius Klein
Julius Klein (1901–1984) was an American journalist, spy, business executive and United States Army general.
Early life
Klein was born in Chicago in 1901. His parents were Austrian Jewish immigrants to the U.S. who relocated to Berlin durin ...
*
Jean Longuet
Jean-Laurent-Frederick Longuet (5 October 1876 – 11 September 1938) was a French socialist politician and journalist. He was Karl Marx's grandson.
Early years
Jean, often called 'Johnny' as a boy by his family, was born in London on October 5 ...
*
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...
*
Benjamin Mazar
Benjamin Mazar ( he, בנימין מזר; born Binyamin Zeev Maisler, June 28, 1906 – September 9, 1995) was a pioneering Israeli historian, recognized as the "dean" of biblical archaeologists. He shared the national passion for the archaeology ...
*
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...
*
Baron Guy de Rothschild
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...
*
Helena Rubinstein
*
Howard F. Sachs
*
Max Schur
Max Schur (26 September 1897 – 12 October 1969) was a physician and friend of Sigmund Freud. He assisted Freud in euthanasia. Ernest Jones considered that "Schur was a perfect choice for a doctor... his considerateness, his untiring patience, a ...
*
Ephraim Avigdor Speiser
Ephraim Avigdor Speiser (January 24, 1902 – June 15, 1965) was a Polish-born American Assyriologist. He discovered the ancient site of Tepe Gawra in 1927 and supervised its excavation between 1931 and 1938.
Speiser was married to Sue Gimbel ...
*
DeWitt Stetten Jr.
Dewitt Stetten Jr. (May 31, 1909 – August 28, 1990) was an American biochemist. Stetten was dean of the medical school of Rutgers University, president of the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences, and a member of the Nati ...
*
Otto Warburg Otto Warburg may refer to:
*Otto Warburg (botanist) (1859–1938), German botanist
*Otto Heinrich Warburg
Otto Heinrich Warburg (, ; 8 October 1883 – 1 August 1970), son of physicist Emil Warburg, was a German physiologist, medical doctor, and ...
*
Baron George Weidenfeld
*
Basil Wigoder
*
Andrew Denton
Andrew Christopher Denton (born 4 May 1960) is an Australian television producer, comedian, Gold Logie-nominated television presenter and former radio host, and was the host of the ABC's weekly television interview program ''Enough Rope'' and ...
['' Who Do You Think You Are?'', series 6, episode 1, 9 July 2014]
*
Chanoch Dov Padwa
Rabbi Chanoch Dov Padwa (17 August 1908 – 16 August 2000) was a world-renowned Orthodox Jewish posek, Talmudist and rabbinic leader.
Early years
Chanoch Dov Padwa was born on 17 August 1908 (20 Av 5668 in the Hebrew calendar) in Busk, a smal ...
*
Catherine Yronwode
Catherine Anna Yronwode (née Manfredi; May 12, 1947) is an American writer, editor, graphic designer, typesetter, and publisher with an extensive career in the comic book industry. She is also a practitioner of folk magic.
Early life
Catherine A ...
*
Franz Reizenstein
*
Chaim Halberstam
Bibliography
*
Azulai, ''Shem ha-Gedolim'', i
*Eisenstadt-Wiener, ''Da'at Ḳedoshim'', p. 82
*Fränkel, in ''Orient. Lit.'' vii.609–613
*
Fürst
' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German word for a ruler and is also a princely title. ' were, since the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ruled over states of ...
, ''Bibl. Jud.'' ii.179
*Ghirondi, in ''Kerem. Ḥemed'', iii.93 et seq.
*Rosenstein, Neil. ''The Unbroken Chain'', C.I.S. Publishers, The Computer Center for Jewish Genealogy, Elizabeth, New Jersey, 1990. . (Rosenstein is a descendent, too)
*
Steinschneider, ''Cat. Bodl.'' col. 1702
*
M. Straschun
Mattityahu Strashun ( he, מתתיהו שטראשון, also spelled Strassen; October 1, 1817 – December 13, 1885) was a Lithuanian Talmudist, Midrashic scholar, book collector, communal leader, and philanthropist. He amassed a significant privat ...
, in Fuenn's ''Ḳiryah Ne'emanah'', pp. 321 et seq.
*Zipser, in ''Orient. Lit.'' ix.367
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Katzenellenbogen, Meir Ben Isaac
1482 births
1565 deaths
16th-century Italian rabbis
German Ashkenazi Jews
Italian Ashkenazi Jews
Italian people of German descent