Samson Morpurgo ben Joshua Moses (1681 – 12 April 1740) was an Italian rabbi, physician, and liturgist. Morpurgo was born in

Gradisca d'Isonzo Gradisca d'Isonzo ( fur, Gardiscja or ''Gardiscje'', sl, Gradišče ob Soči, archaic german: Gradis am Sontig) is a town and ''comune'' of the Province of Gorizia in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, north-eastern Italy. The lawyer, linguist, philologist Ph ...

, close to Gorizia. When a boy of seven he was taken by his father to

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 received his elementary education. He then studied in the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from B ...

, and graduated as doctor of medicine. In 1704 Morpurgo published in Venice his "'Eẓ ha-Da'at," a philosophical commentary on

Jedaiah Bedersi Jedaiah ben Abraham Bedersi (c. 1270 – c. 1340) ( he, ) was a Jewish poet, physician, and philosopher; born at Béziers (hence his surname Bedersi). His Occitan name was En Bonet, which probably corresponds to the Hebrew name Tobiah;compar ...

's "Beḥinat ha-'Olam." At the end of this work was printed a satire upon the cabalists by Jacob Frances, on account of which Morpurgo was persecuted by the rabbis of Padua. At the same time he devoted himself to the study of 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 ...

'' and rabbinics, and in 1709 he obtained a rabbi's diploma from Leon Briel, chief rabbi 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 ...

(Preface to Morpurgo's "Shemesh Ẓedaḳah"). Soon afterward he was associated in the rabbinate of Ancona with Joseph Fiametta, whose son-in-law he subsequently became. After Fiametta's death (1721) Morpurgo was sole rabbi of Ancona; and he continued in office till his death. Morpurgo enjoyed much consideration as a distinguished rabbi; his objections to certain rabbinical decrees are to be found in

Giovanni Bernardo De Rossi Giovanni Bernardo De Rossi (October 25, 1742 in Castelnuovo Nigra, Piedmont – March 23, 1831 in Parma) was an Italian Christian Hebraist. He studied in Ivrea and Turin. In October 1769, he was appointed professor of Oriental languages at the Uni ...

, "Bibliotheca Antichristiana," p. 63; and an approbation of his, of 1716, was inserted by

Isaac Lampronti Isaac Lampronti (February 3, 1679 – November 16, 1756) was an Italian rabbi and physician, best known as author of the rabbinic encyclopedia ''Paħad Yitzħak''. Lampronti was born at Ferrara. His great-grandfather, Samuel Lampronti, had emigrat ...

in his "Paḥad Yiẓaḳ," i. 35b, s.v. . He corresponded with Abraham Segre and

Moses Ḥagiz Moses Hagiz (1671 – c. 1750) (Hebrew: משה חגיז) was a Talmudic scholar, rabbi and writer born in Jerusalem during the time of the Old Yishuv. He was also one of the most prominent and influential Jewish leaders in 17th-century Amsterdam. D ...

concerning Moses Ḥayyim Luzzatto (see "Kerem Ḥemed," iii. 149). Morpurgo proved a skilful physician during an epidemic of influenza at Ancona in 1730; and in recognition of his services he was presented with a testimonial by

Pope Benedict XIV Pope Benedict XIV ( la, Benedictus XIV; it, Benedetto XIV; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758.Antipope ...

, who was

Archbishop of Ancona In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

. He died at

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic S ...

. Morpurgo left a number of ''

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 ...

'' on the four parts of the

Shulḥan 'Aruk 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 I ...

, which were published, with notes and preface, by his son Moses Ḥayyim Shabbethai (Venice, 1743). He was also the author of a prayer beginning "Anna ha-El ha-Gadol ha-Gibbor weha-Nora," to be recited by persons visiting the cemetery.

References

Eliakim Carmoly Eliakim Carmoly (5 August 1802 in Soultz-Haut-Rhin, France – 15 February 1875 in Frankfurt) was a French scholar. He was born at Soultz-Haut-Rhin, then in the French department of Haut-Rhin. His real name was ''Goschel David Behr'' (or ''Ba ...

, in ''Revue Orientale'', ii. 473; *

Julius Fürst Julius Fürst (; 12 May 1805, Żerków, South Prussia – 9 February 1873, Leipzig), born Joseph Alsari, was a Jewish German orientalist and the son of noted maggid, teacher, and Hebrew grammarian Jacob Alsari. Fürst was a distinguished schola ...

, Bibl. Jud. ii. 391; *

Marco Mortara Marco Mortara (born at Viadana, 7 May 1815; died at Mantua, 2 February 1894) was an Italian rabbi and scholar. Having graduated from the rabbinical college of Padua in 1836, he was called as rabbi to Mantua in 1842, and occupied this position unti ...

, ''Indice'', p. 42; *

, ''Dizionario'', ii. 64; *

Moritz Steinschneider Moritz Steinschneider (30 March 1816, Prostějov, Moravia, Austrian Empire – 24 January 1907, Berlin) was a Moravian bibliographer and Orientalist. He received his early instruction in Hebrew from his father, Jacob Steinschneider ( 1782; ...

, Cat. Bodl. col. 2637; *

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 ...

, Literaturgesch. p. 448; *idem, in Liebermann, Deutscher Volkskalender, 1853, p. 68

External links

Source

Signature of Samson Morpurgo (Rare Books of the Shimeon Brisman Collection in Jewish Studies, Washington University)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morpurgo, Samson 1671 births 1740 deaths 18th-century Italian rabbis University of Padua alumni 18th-century Jewish physicians Rabbis from Ancona