Shimon Ben Lakish
Shimon ben Lakish (; ''Shim‘on bar Lakish'' or ''bar Lakisha''), better known by his nickname Reish Lakish (c. 200 — c. 275), was an amora who lived in the Roman province of Judaea in the third century. He was said to be born in Bosra, east of the Jordan River, around 200 CE, but lived most of his life in Sepphoris. Nothing is known of his ancestry except his father's name. He is something of an anomaly among the important people of Torah study as, according to the Babylonian Talmud, he was in his early youth a bandit and a gladiator. He was regarded as one of the most prominent amoraim of the second generation, the other being his brother-in-law and halakhic opponent, Johanan bar Nappaha. Biography His teachers According to the Talmud, Reish Lakish, like Yochanan, ascribed his knowledge of the Torah to his good fortune in having been privileged to see Judah haNasi. According to Halevy, he was a pupil of Judah II, grandson of Judah haNasi, in whose name he trans ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Amoraim
''Amoraim'' ( , singular ''Amora'' ; "those who say" or "those who speak over the people", or "spokesmen") refers to Jewish scholars of the period from about 200 to 500 CE, who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral Torah. They were primarily located in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. Their legal discussions and debates were eventually codified in the Gemara. The ''Amoraim'' followed the '' Tannaim'' in the sequence of ancient Jewish scholars. The ''Tannaim'' were direct transmitters of uncodified oral tradition; the ''Amoraim'' expounded upon and clarified the oral law after its initial codification. The Amoraic era The first Babylonian ''Amoraim'' were Abba Arikha, respectfully referred to as ''Rav'', and his contemporary and frequent debate partner, Shmuel. Among the earliest ''Amoraim'' in Israel were Johanan bar Nappaha and Shimon ben Lakish. Traditionally, the Amoraic period is reckoned as seven or eight generations (depending on where one begins and en ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hoshaiah Rabbah
Hoshaiah Rabbah or Hoshaʻyā Rabbā () was an amora of the first generation in Rabbinic Judaism and a compiler of baraitot explaining the Mishnah and the Tosefta. He is known from tractates of the Jerusalem Talmud. Biography He was closely associated with the successors of Judah ha-Nasi, as was his father, Hama, with Judah ha-Nasi himself. Hama lived in Sepphoris, the residence of Judah ha-Nasi and the seat of the patriarchs. Hoshaiah's yeshiva was located at Sepphoris for many years, where pupils crowded to hear his lectures. Johanan bar Nappaha, one of his greatest disciples, declared that Hoshaiah in his generation was like Rabbi Meir in his: even his colleagues could not always grasp the profundity of his arguments according to Eruvin 53a. And The esteem in which Hoshaiah was held by his pupils may be gauged by the statement that, even after Johanan had himself become a great scholar and a famous teacher and no longer needed Hoshaiah's instruction, he continued visitin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rabbi Assi
Assi II (Assa, Issi, Jesa, Josah, Jose, ) was a Jewish Talmudist of the 3rd and 4th centuries (third generation of amoraim) who lived in the Land of Israel. He is known by the name of Yessa in the Jerusalem Talmud. He should not be confused with Rav Assi, who belonged to first generation of ''amoraim'' in Babylonia. Biography He was one of the two Palestinian scholars known among their contemporary Jewish Talmudical scholars of Babylonian as "the judges of the Land of Israel" and as "the distinguished priests of the Land of Israel," the other being R. Ammi. Assi was born in Babylonia, where he attended the college of Samuel of Nehardea, but later emigrated in consequence of domestic trouble. On his arrival in Tiberias, Assi had an adventure with a ruffian, which ended disastrously for the latter. Assi was making his way toward the baths, when he was assaulted by a "scorner." He did not resent the assault, except by remarking, "That man's neck-band is too loose," and continued ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hiyya The Great
Hiyya, or Hiyya the Great, (ca. 180–230 CE; ) was one of the Chazal or Rabbinical Jewish sages in the Land of Israel during the transitional generation between the Tannaic and Amoraic eras. Active in Tiberias, Hiyya was the primary compiler of the Tosefta. His full name was Hiyya bar Abba, also the name of the third generation amora Hiyya bar Abba. He was a student of Judah ha-Nasi and the uncle and teacher of Abba Arikha. Biography In Babylonia Rabbi Hiyya was originally from the city of Kapri in Babylonia and was the son of Abba Karsala. He descended from the family of Shimei, a brother of King David. He passed the earlier part of his life in Babylonia, where he married a certain Judith. By her he had twin sons, Judah and Hezekiah (both of whom became renowned rabbis), and twin daughters, Pazi and Tavi.Yevamot 65b Hiyya was unhappy in his married life, for his wife was a shrew. This was so keenly felt by Hiyya that when asked by his nephew for a blessing he said: "Ma ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rabbi Yannai
Rabbi Yannai (or Rabbi Jannai; ) was an ''Amoraim, amora'' who lived in the 3rd century, and of the first generation of the ''Amoraim'' of the Land of Israel. Biography Genesis Rabbah says he is descended from Eli (biblical figure), Eli the priest. He was very wealthy; he is said to have planted four hundred vineyards (though they may have been small vineyards) and to have given an orchard to the public. His first residence was at Sepphoris, where he seems to have held a public office, since at the death of R. Judah ha-Nasi he gave an order that even Kohen, priests might attend Judah's funeral. Halevy, however, has concluded that Yannai always lived at 'Akbara, or 'Akbari, where he established a school (see below). He was a student of R. Judah haNasi, in whose name he transmitted several halakhic sayings. The best known of his senior fellow students was Hiyya the Great, who, as an assistant teacher in Rabbi's school, sometimes acted as Yannai's tutor. But several discussions betwee ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Genesis Rabbah
Genesis Rabbah (, also known as Bereshit Rabbah and abbreviated as GenR) is a religious text from Judaism's classical period, probably written between 300 and 500 CE with some later additions. It is an expository midrash comprising a collection of ancient rabbinical homiletical interpretations of the Book of Genesis, the first book of the Torah, whose authorship in tradition has been attributed to Hoshaiah Rabbah in the period of the Amoraim, flourishing in 3rd century Roman-ruled Syria Palaestina. The midrash forms an aggadic commentary on Genesis, in keeping with the midrashic exegesis of that age. In a continuous sequence, broken only toward the end, the Biblical text is expounded, verse for verse, often word for word. Only genealogic passages and passages that furnish no material for exposition (as the reiterated account of Abraham's servant in 24:35-48) are omitted. Name The name ''Genesis'' or ''Bereshit Rabbah'' for the text is attested in the ''Halakhot Genesis'', ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ulla (Talmudist)
Ulla (Hebrew: עוּלָּא) was a ''halakhist'' and '' Amora'' from the Land of Israel during the late 3rd and early 4th centuries CE known for his frequent travels to and from the centers of Jewish learning in contemporary Babylonia. Biography In his youth, Ulla studied under Rabbi Eleazar II, transmitting nine of his teacher's ''halakhic'' sayings. He was greatly respected for his learning, and during his visits to Babylonia, he seems to have been frequently invited by the ''Resh Galuta'' to deliver ''halakhic'' lectures. He traveled repeatedly to the Talmudic academies in Babylonia; on one of his journeys, he was in danger of assassination by one of his companions, saving his life only by condoning the murder of another. Ulla rendered important decisions regarding the benedictions and the calculation of the new moon and was accustomed to promulgate his rulings in Babylonia during his visits. He was very strict in his interpretation of religious law. On one occasion, when h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tiberias
Tiberias ( ; , ; ) is a city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Four Holy Cities, along with Jerusalem, Hebron, and Safed. In , it had a population of . Tiberias was founded around 20 CE by Herod Antipas and was named after Roman emperor Tiberius. It became a major political and religious hub of the Jews in the Land of Israel after the destruction of Jerusalem and the desolation of Judea during the Jewish–Roman wars. From the time of the second through the tenth centuries CE, Tiberias was the largest Jewish city in Galilee, and much of the Mishna and the Jerusalem Talmud were compiled there. Tiberias flourished during the Early Muslim period, when it served as the capital of Jund al-Urdunn and became a multi-cultural trading center.Hirschfeld, Y. (2007). Post-Roman Tiberias: between East and West. ''Post-Roman Towns, Trade and Settle ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hanina Bar Hama
Hanina bar Hama (died c. 250) () was a Jewish Talmudist, halakhist and aggadist frequently quoted in the Babylonian and the Jerusalem Talmud, and in the Midrashim. He is generally cited by the name R. Hanina, but sometimes with his patronymic (Hanina b. Hama), and occasionally with the cognomen "the Great". Biography Whether he was a Judean by birth and had only visited Babylonia, or whether he was a Babylonian immigrant in Judea, cannot be clearly established. In the only passage in which he mentions his arrival in Judea he refers also to his sons accompanying him, and from this some argue that Babylonia was his native land. It is certain, however, that he spent most of his life in Judea, where he attended for a time the lectures of Bar Kappara and Hiyya the Great and eventually joined the academy of Judah haNasi. Under Judah, he acquired great stores of practical and theoretical knowledge, and so developed his dialectical powers that once in the heat of debate with his ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yeshiva
A yeshiva (; ; 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 studied in parallel. The studying is usually done through daily '' shiurim'' (lectures or classes) as well as in study pairs called '' chavrusas'' ( Aramaic for 'friendship' or 'companionship'). '' Chavrusa''-style learning is one of the unique features of the yeshiva. In the United States and Israel, different levels of yeshiva education have different names. In the U.S., elementary-school students enroll in a '' cheder'', post- bar mitzvah-age students learn in a '' mesivta'', and undergraduate-level students learn in a '' beit midrash'' or '' yeshiva gedola'' (). In Israel, elementary-school students enroll in a Talmud Torah or '' cheder'', post-bar mitzvah-age students learn in a ''yeshiva ketana'' (), and high-school-age students learn in a ''yeshiva gedola''. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rabbi Yochanan
:''See Johanan (name) for more rabbis by this name''. Johanan bar Nappaha ( Yoḥanan bar Nafḥa or Napaḥa), also known simply as Rabbi Yochanan or Johanan bar Nafcha (180–279 CE), was a leading rabbi and second-generation '' Amora'' during the Talmudic era. Johanan's opinions are quoted widely across the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmuds. The compilation of the Jerusalem Talmud is generally ascribed to him. Name He is generally cited as "Johanan," but sometimes by his cognomen only, which he himself uses once; but he is never cited by both together. Opinions vary on whether "bar Nappaha" (literally "son f theblacksmith") derives from his father's profession, from the name of his ancestral region, or perhaps represents a physical or psychological quality. Biography Early years Johanan's early years were spent in Sepphoris in the Roman-ruled Galilee (then part of Syria Palaestina province). He traced his descent from the tribe of Joseph. His father, a blacksmith, died ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Binyamin Lau
Binyamin Tzvi (Benny) Lau, (; born 20 October 1961) is an Israeli rabbi, community leader, activist, author, and public speaker who lives in Jerusalem. He is the head of 929: Tanach B'yachad and headed the Kehillat Ramban synagogue in Jerusalem for 18 years. He is also the head of the "Human Rights and Judaism in Action Project" at the Israel Democracy Institute. Previously, he was the director of a number of programs at Beit Morasha in Jerusalem, including their Center for Judaism and Society, their Institute for Social Justice, and their Israel Institute for Conversion Policy. He is also a well-known writer, and makes frequent appearances in the media. Biography Lau was born in Tel Aviv to Naphtali Lau-Lavie, the older brother of former Chief Rabbi of Israel Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, and Joan (née Lunzer). He is a second great-grandson of the scholar Eliezer Liepman Philip Prins (1835–1915). Lau's mother, a sister of Jack Lunzer, was born in England to a prominent family k ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |