Jochanan ben Sakkai

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Jochanan ben Sakkai , image field on the large Knesset menorah

Jochanan ben Sakkai (* around 30 , † around 90 ; Hebrew יוחנן בן זכאי) was a first- generation Tannaite Jewish scholar , vice chairman of the Sanhedrin at the time of chairman Gamaliels the Elder, and lived in the 1st century AD .

Life

Rabbi Jochanan ben Sakkai, the leading Tannaite in the 1st century, is considered to be the founder of the Lehrhaus in Jawne and the initiator of the renewal of the Jewish faith after the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in the Jewish War in AD 70. The renewal made it possible for the religion to survive and created the basis of rabbinic Judaism . Besides Hillel's descendants, he was the only one who was given the honorary title of Rabban, our teacher . Other honorary titles from him are lamp of Israel , mighty pillar and mighty hammer .

According to rabbinical reports, he escaped from Jerusalem in the chaos of war in 1970. Allegedly he pretended to be dead and had two students carry him from the besieged Jerusalem. He was then able to obtain the establishment of an academy in Jawne from Emperor Vespasian . But it is possible that he was actually interned in Jabne. He later lived in Beror Chail at the gates of Jawnes.

According to rabbinical sources, he gathered a number of other scholars around Jawne. Together they set out to redefine the practice of Judaism: Forms of worship at home or in the synagogue were developed (such as the Seder , the eve and prelude to Passover ) to replace the temple cult.

Every Jewish community, whether in Judea or elsewhere, was ultimately autonomous. It is doubtful whether the Greek-speaking diaspora communities were even able to communicate with their fellow believers in Judea who spoke Aramaic or Hebrew .

The rabbinical tradition has turned the historical core into a founding legend. It is not even certain whether Jochanan belonged to Hillel's school or even to the Pharisees before 70. From an early age he was considered a mystic. According to Pirqe Abot, his five most important disciples were Eliezer ben Hyrcanus , Yehoshua ben Chananja , Jose the priest, Simeon ben Nataniel, and Eleazar ben Arach . But Chanina ben Dosa can also be considered a student.

Overall, only a few of his students from Jerusalem had followed him. Maybe they were against his escape from the besieged city. His opposition to the special position of priests and the fact that he did not come from the family of David and was not a priest himself seem to have been the reason for the distance between priests and his teaching house. Nevertheless, Jawne developed into the new center of rabbinic Judaism with Jochanan ben Sakkai as the spiritual leader. But he did not receive the title Nasi .

literature

  • Gedaljahu Alon: Jews, Judaism and the Classical World. Studies in Jewish History in the Times of the Second Temple and Talmud . Magnes Press, Jerusalem 1977.
  • Margaret Cohen: Quelques observations au sujet de la personnalité et du rôle historique de Raban Yohanan ben Zakkay . In: RHR , 187, 22-25 (1975).
  • Anthony J. Saldarini: Johanan ben Zakkai's Escape from Jerusalem. Origin and Development of a Rabbinic Story . In: JSJ , 6 : 189-204 (1975).
  • Peter Schäfer : The escape Johanan b. Zakkais from Jerusalem and the establishment of the “house of learning” in Jabne . In: ANRW , Vol. 19,2, 1979, pp. 43-101.
  • Stephen Wald: Johanan ben Zakkai . In: Encyclopaedia Judaica . Second edition. Volume 11, 2007, pp. 373-377.
  • M. Braunschweiger: The teachers of the Mishnah Your life and work , Morascha publishing house, Basel / Zurich, 3rd edition, 1993, (1st edition from 1889), page 186 ff.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ute Bohmeier: Exegetical methodology in Pirke de-Rabbi Elieser - Chapter 1-24 , Peter Lang GmbH, 2007, ISBN 978-3-631-57847-6 , p. 141
  2. ^ Lamentations of Rabba to Klgl 1,5; Babylonian Talmud Gittin 56ab; Avot de-Rabbi Nathan A4 ; Avot de-Rabbi Nathan B 6.
  3. ↑ Avot 2.10 .
personal data
SURNAME Jochanan ben Sakkai
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Yochanan ben Zakai, Johanan ben Sakai
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Jewish patriarch
DATE OF BIRTH 1st century
DATE OF DEATH 1st century