Our Great Sephardic Rabbis by: Ike Sultan
Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon (also known by his acronym the Rambam) was born in Cordoba, Spain in 1135 and died in Egypt in 1204. One of the greatest Torah scholars of all time; he was a rabbi, physician, and philosopher in Spain, Morocco and Egypt during the Middle Ages. He was the preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher. One of the central tenets of Rambam's philosophy is that it is impossible for the truths arrived at by human intellect (including philosophy) to contradict those revealed by God. Although many of his ideas met with the opposition of his contemporaries, Rambam was embraced by later Jewish thinkers. The fourteen-volume Mishneh Torah today retains canonical authority as a codification of Talmudic law.
Story:
Although as a child the Rambam was unusually talented, he lacked the motivation to study. His father was very upset by this behavior, and one day, in his frustration, sternly rebuked him. Moshe was deeply affected by his father's words. He fled from his home to the beis medrash, where he entreated Hashem to open his heart and to grant him the wisdom to study Torah. Then, on his own initiative, he approached the Ri Miga'ash and asked to be admitted to his yeshiva in Alisona. The Ri Miga'ash recognized Moshe's extraordinary talents, and accorded him special attention, predicting that Moshe ben Maimon was destined for greatness.
No comments:
Post a Comment