Rabbi Tarfon
Rabbi Tarfon's tomb in Kadita ( Galilee )
Rabbi Tarfon (variant: Tarphon ; Hebrew: רבי טרפון; not identical with the tryphon mentioned by Justinus Martyr ; by Hieronymus to Isa 8:11: Telphon ) was an ancient Jewish scholar and belonged to the so-called 2nd generation of the Tannaites (approx 90-130 AD).
He was a companion of Akiba , Pharisee from a priestly family, at home in Lydda , teacher of Jehuda ben Ilai .
Rabbi Tarfon emphasized the importance of the objective fact over the merely subjective intention and always decided in favor of the priestly interests.
Among other things, the beautiful saying is ascribed to him: “It is not up to you to complete the work, but you are also not free to let go of it” ( Abot 2, 21).
Literature (selection)
- M. Freimann: The spokesmen of Judaism in the oldest controversies between Jews and Christians . In: Monthly for the History and Science of Judaism (MGWJ) , Volume 55, 1911
- LW Barnard: Justin Martyr, His Life and Thought . London 1967, p. 24 f.
- JD Gereboff: Rabbi Tarfon: The Tradition, the Man and Early Rabbinic Judaism . Missoula 1979
- Lawrence H. Schiffman: Texts and Traditions: A Source Reader for the Study of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism . Ktav, Hoboken, NJ, 1998
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Tarfon, rabbi |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Tarphone; רבי טרפון (Hebrew) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Jewish scholar |
| DATE OF BIRTH | at 90 |
| DATE OF DEATH | at 130 |