Shimon ben Tsemach Duran

Shimon ben Tsemach Duran , also Tzemach Duran (born 1361 ; died 1444 ) ( Hebrew : שמעון בן צמח דוראן ), acronym RaSCHBaTS (רשב"ץ) or the TaSCHBeTS (התשב"ץ) was an influential rabbi , student of philosophy , astronomy , Math and medicine . He also worked as a doctor in Palma for several years . He is considered the great posek of the 15th century; his writings on the halacha have been quoted in large numbers and received positively for many centuries.

Life

Family of Shimon ben Tsemach Duran

Shimon ben Tsemach was born in 1361 in the month of Adar on the Jewish calendar. Various sources suggest his birthplace either in Barcelona or on Mallorca. He was a student of Ephraim Vidal and Jonah de Maestre , who was a rabbi in Saragossa or Calatayud , and whose daughter Bongoda he married.

After the persecution of Jews on the Balearic Islands from 1391, he fled Spain with his father and sister. In 1394 he drafted rules for the Jewish community in Algiers together with the Algerian rabbi Isaak ben Sheschet (known as RiVaSCH) . After the resignation of RiVaSCH, Shimon himself became a rabbi of Algiers in 1407 and held this office until his death. In contrast to his predecessor, he refused confirmation of his appointment by the regent. Since he lost all of his fortune in the Palma massacre, he was paid for his work by his community, although he was initially reluctant to do so.

Works

Shimon wrote commentaries on numerous tracts of the Mishnah , the Talmud, and on works by Isaac Alfasi . He dealt with various religious dogmas , as well as the rites of Algiers. In his responsa he showed knowledge of the halachic literature. In contrast, his work Magen Avot is more related to theological-philosophical content and at the same time to profane issues . His theological and philosophical erudition, just like his knowledge of profane issues, is a hallmark of his work Magen Avot . He shows the same knowledge in his writings against Hasdai Crescas , in which he defends Maimonides . In his commentary on the Pentateuch , in which he took the opportunity to polemic against Levi ben Gershon , and in his commentary on Job, he did the same. In his commentary on the Pirke Avot , he showed extensive historical knowledge.

He also wrote extensively both religious and profane poetry.

Web links

Duran. In: Isidore Singer (Ed.): Jewish Encyclopedia . Funk and Wagnalls, New York 1901-1906.
Seth (Avi) Kadish, The Book of Abraham: Rabbi Shimon ben Ẓemaḥ Duran and the School of Rabbenu Nissim Gerondi Dissertation, University of Haifa, 2006.

Individual evidence

↑ See Joel Katan (ed.): Sefer ha-Tashbets. Shimʿon bar Tsemaḥ Duran. Jerusalem, 1998 and the different information from older representations cited in the introduction on p. 20.
↑ Matthis Kantor: Codex Judaica. Chronological index of Jewish history, covering 5,764 years of Biblical, Talmudic and post-Talmudic history. Zichron Press, New York 2005, p. 206.

personal data
SURNAME	Duran, Shimon ben Tsemach
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Duran, Tzemach; שמעון בן צמח דוראן; Rashbats
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	medieval Jewish scholar and rabbi
DATE OF BIRTH	1361
DATE OF DEATH	1444

[1] See Joel Katan (ed.): Sefer ha-Tashbets. Shimʿon bar Tsemaḥ Duran. Jerusalem, 1998 and the different information from older representations cited in the introduction on p. 20.

[2] Matthis Kantor: Codex Judaica. Chronological index of Jewish history, covering 5,764 years of Biblical, Talmudic and post-Talmudic history. Zichron Press, New York 2005, p. 206.