Gamaliel I.

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Gamaliel I.

Gamaliel I. or Rabban Gamaliel the Elder (Gamliel ha-Zaken) (Patriarch approx. 9 to approx. 50 AD ) ( רבן גמליאל הזקן ) was a Jewish patriarch and the most important personality of rabbinic Judaism around the middle of the first post christian century.

Live and act

Gamaliel was a grandson of Hillel , Tannait , father of Simeon ben Gamaliel , a Pharisee rabbi , prince of the Sanhedrin and, together with his son, the most important representative of the Hillel school. It is not certain whether he actually held this office. About him it says in the Mishnah (Sota 9:15):

"With the death of Rabban Gamaliël the old man, respect for the law ceased and purity and abstinence died."

The sayings of the fathers transmit statements from Gamaliel as well as from his son Simeon and Simon. From the first chapter (I., 16):

“Rabban Gamaliel said: Find a teacher, stay away from doubtful things , and do not get used to estimating tithes . His son Simon said: All my days I grew up among sages and have found nothing better for the body than silence. The main thing is not to research, but to do, and whoever talks a lot produces sin. "

The following quote from Gamaliel from the Proverbs of the Fathers (chapter 2, verse 2) was chosen by Samson Raphael Hirsch as the motto for his educational efforts:

"It is nice to study the Torah together with 'Derech Eretz', ie worldly occupation or worldly studies."

Gamaliel is generally respected and received positively in early Christianity. According to Christian tradition, he was the teacher of the apostle Paul (see Acts 22.3  EU ). After the capture of Peter and some apostles in Jerusalem, he made himself their lawyer and, with the argument that a human work would perish on its own, but a divine work would be indestructible, ensured that they were not stoned ( Acts 5 : 34-42  EU ). There is the apocryphal writing Gamaliel Gospel , which is named after him, but in which Gamaliel himself was in no way involved.

Abibas is considered his son .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Gamaliel means "reward from God"
  2. ↑ Haim Hillel Ben-Sasson : History of the Jewish People / From the Beginnings to the Present. CH Beck, 4th edition, Munich, 1995, p. 349
  3. ↑ Michael Krupp : The Talmud / An introduction to the basic script of Judaism with selected texts. Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 1995, p. 33
personal data
SURNAME Gamaliel I.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gamaliel the old
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Jewish patriarch
DATE OF BIRTH 1st century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH at 50