Jewish History
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Abarbanel
Who was Abarbanel? Rabbi Yitzchak Abarbanel was born in Lisbon, Portugal in 1437. As a young man he became minister of the Treasury to Alfonso, King of Portugal. On Alfonso’s death in 1481 he moved to Spain and was given…
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Ramban
Who was the Ramban? Rabbi Mosheh ben Nachman (Ramban) was born in Gerona, Catalonia in 1194. In 1263 he was ordered to participate in a debate with the convert Pablo Christiani in Barcelona. Because of his success in this debate…
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Rashbam
Who was the Rashbam? Rabbi Shemuel ben Meir (Rashbam), a grandson of Rashi, was born in France in the early 1080’s and died around 1160(?). He wrote commentaries and novellae (tosafos) on the Talmud as well as commentaries on most…
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Ben-Zion Halberstam
Who was Rav Ben-Zion Halberstam? Rav Bn-Zion Halberstam, the "Bobover Rebbe," was a great-grandson of Rav Chaim Halberstam, the "Sanzer Rav." Rav Ben-Zion was one of the major leaders in Galicia (southern Poland), and was at once a chassidic rebbe,…
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The Garden of Eden
Where is the Garden of Eden? Originally the Garden was “in the East” (Gen.2:8), but since Adam and Eve were expelled from it, it’s no longer accessible from this world. The Talmud says that Eden was much bigger than the…
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Eve and the Snake
Why did the serpent tempt Eve? The Torah tells us (Gen. 3:1) that the serpent was unusually intelligent ("cunning"); perhaps it resented the fact that Adam and Eve were appointed as rulers over all the other forms of life (Gen.…
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The Sadducees and Pharisees
What happened to the Sadducees and Pharisees? The Sadducees did not survive as a distinguishable group. The Pharisees were the ancestors of today’s Jews.
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Sarah Giving Birth at 90
How could Sarah have had a baby at the age of 90? Abraham and Sarah themselves couldn’t believe that she could have a child in her 90’s (Gen. 17:17; 18:12-13). Her case was an exception to the natural order of…
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Rabbi Yitzchak Abohav
Who was Rabbi Yitzchak Abohav? There were several Spanish Rabbis named Yitzchak Abohav. The best known, who lived around 1400-1450, wrote the popular work Menoras Ha-Maor, a collection of Talmudic and Midrashic passages on ethical topics.