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Rabbi Yaakov Beirav's attempt to
re-establish a Sanhedrin in 1538
Rabbi Yakov Berav , know as
the Mahari Beirav, was born at Moqueda near Toledo, Spain, in 1474;
died at Safed April 3, 1546. Rabbi Yakov Beirav was a pupil of Rabbi
Yitzchak Avoav. When he fled from Spain to Tlemcen, then the
chief town of the Barbary states, the Jewish community there,
consisting of 5,000 families, chose him for their Rabbi, even though he
was only eighteen years old (Levi ibn Chaviv, "Responsa," p. 298b).
Evidence of the great respect they paid him is afforded by the
following lines of Rabbi Abraham Gavison in 'Omer ha-Shikchah:
"Say not that the lamp of the Law no longer burns in Israel! Yakov
Beirav has come back—once more he sojourns among us! " It is
not known
how long Rabbi Yakov Beirav remained in Algeria; but before 1522 he was
in Jerusalem. There, however, the social conditions were so oppressive
that he did not stay long, but went with his pupils to Egypt (Palestine
letter, dated 1522, in Luncz, "Jerusalem," iii. 98). Some years later
(1527) Rabbi Yakov Beirav, now fairly well-to-do, resided in Damascus
(Levi ibn Chaviv, "Responsa," p. 117a); in 1533 he became Rabbi at
Cairo (ib. 33a); and several years after he seems to have finally
settled in Safed, which then contained the largest and most learned
Jewish community in Eretz Yisroel.
After the Spanish expulsion, many Jews remained in Spain, practicing
their Judaism in secret, while publicly appearing to be Christians.
Thousands of these Marrano Jews eventually escaped to areas where they
could practice their religion with relative freedom, yet they were
haunted by the sins they had committed in previous years. Many were
concerned that they would never escape their more serious sins, many of
which carried the punishment of kareis. Although they had become true baalei
tshuvah, they lived in fear of their ultimate day of judgment when
they would have to give a reckoning for their actions and face the
serious consequences. As chief Rabbi of Safed, Rabbi Yakov Beirav came
up with an original solution to the problem. He proposed the creation
of Jewish courts that would carry out the punishment of malkos,
lashes, which releases someone from the punishment of kareis (Mishnah
Makos 23a). There was one serious problem with this proposal. In order
to create Jewish courts that can exact these punishments, one must have
dayanim who have received a special semicha that can be traced
to Moshe Rabbeinu. Since this semicha had terminated over a thousand
years before, the Rabbi Yakov Beirav needed a different approach.
Ordination of 1538 CE
The Rambam taught (Hilchos
Sanhedrin 4:11,12, written around 1180 CE) that if the sages in Eretz
Yisroel would agree to somech (ordain) one of themselves, they could do
so, and that the man of their choice could then ordain others. For a
year, Rabbi Yakov Beirav discussed the halachic issues of
re-establishment institution of semicha with the scholars of Safed.
After much discussion the scholars at Safed came to the conclusion that
Rambam's view was correct, and that there was a pressing need to
re-establish the Sanhedrin. In 1538 twenty-five Rabbis met in an
assembly at Safed and ordained Rabbi Yakov Beirav, giving him the right
to ordain others who would then form a Sanhedrin. After sending a
delegation to Jerusalem, Rabbi Yakov Beirav expounded on Shabbat before
all the scholars of Safed the halachic basis of the re-establishment of
semicha and its implications, with an intent to dispel any remaining
doubts. On hearing of this event, approximately two hundred scholars,
most of the scholars in Eretz
Yisroel, also expressed their consent. Rabbi Yakov Beirav then
ordained a few other Rabbis, including the chief Rabbi of Jerusalem
(the Mahralbach), Rabbi Yoseph Karo, Rabbi Moshe of Trani, Rabbi
Yosef Sagis,
Rabbi Yoshiyahu Pinto, Rabbi
Abraham
Shalom and Rabbi Israel de Curial. Rabbi Yoseph Karo later ordained Rabbi Moses Alsheich, and
Alsheich ordained Rabbi Hayyim Vital around 1590.
Rabbi Yoshiyahu Pinto was
the grandson of Rabbi Yaakov Beirav. Nicknamed
Riaf, was a Syrian rabbi from Damascus, Syria. He was born in 1565 and
died in 1648 at the age of 83. As a disciple of Rabbi Yaakov Abulafia,
he was ordained with the semicha ordination, received from his
grandfather. Rabbi Yoshiyahu was appointed Chief Rabbi of Aleppo and
Damascus after the death of Rabbi Chaim Vital in 1620. Rabbi Vital's
son, Rabbi Shmuel Vital, married Rabbi Pinto's daughter. He wanted to
settle in Safed and traveled there in 1625, but due to family pressures
he returned to Syria to lead the many Jews who lived there. In 1643, he
wrote the commentary on Ein Yaakov, which was titled Meor Einayim. He
also wrote a Torah commentary Kessef Nivchar, as well as 15 essays
explaining difficult passages of the Talmud and verses of the Torah.
Dispute with the Mahralbach
To obtain the good-will of the
scholars of Jerusalem, Rabbi Yakov Beirav sent Rabbi Shlomo Chazan to
inform them of the reinstitution of semicha and to obtain their
approval. He extended semicha to the chief Rabbi at Jerusalem, Levi ben
Yakov ibn Chaviv, the Mahralbach (Ralbach). Since the latter had for
many years been a personal opponent of Rabbi Yakov Beirav, and the two
had had disputes in regard to Rabbinical decisions and approbations,
Rabbi Yakov Beirav's semicha was probably an attempt to show that he
placed unity above personal interests. Moreover, the terms in which
Rabbi Yakov Beirav officially announced Mahralbach's semicha were
kindly ones. Rabbi Yakov Beirav, it seems, did not expect opposition
from the Mahralbach. The Mahralbach however rejected the semicha. He
considered it an insult to his dignity and to the dignity of Jerusalem
that so important a change should be effected without consultation of
the scholars of Jerusalem. He did not content himself with an oral
protest, but sent a communication to the scholars of Safed. Rabbi Moshe
deCastro of Jerusalem also expressed doubts over the applicability of
semicha. Because of this opposition some of the scholars of Safed also
began to entertain doubts. Rabbi Yakov Beirav again assembled the
scholars of Safed, and reviewed the halachic basis for re-establishment
of semicha. Rabbi Yosef Karo and others sent a treatise "Maaseh Beis
Din" to the scholars of Jerusalem explaining the basis for semicha
and protesting their opposition to its re-establishment. In the course
of time, the Mahralbach put his objections to Rabbi Yakov Beirav's
semicha in writing, involving additional scholars in the dispute. In
response Rabbi Yakov Beirav composed and distributed "Iggeret
Hasemicha" to settle any halachic doubts. The dispute lasted for a
year. In general the scholars outside of Eretz Yisroel did not get
involved at this stage in the dispute, with the exception of the Radbaz.
The Mahralbach's objections
The Mahralbach's objections
centered around the following points (Shealos v'teshuvos leRalbach):
1. The re-establishment of semicha will cause the speeding up of
redemption, which is not permitted. The geula is not dependant on any
action on our part and there is nothing for us to do but wait. Moshiach
must be ordained from someone already ordained. He writes "and if you
[Rabbi Yakov Beirav] want to create a situation where this is possible,
know that it is impossible because Eliyahu, who was carried up in a
chariot of fire, is the one who must ordain Moshiach.
2. The Rambam’s closing words, “This matter requires a
final decision�
shows that he was not fully decided on this halacha. The Ramban (Sefer
Hamitzvos, Aseh 153) disagrees with the Rambam, contending that
semicha can not be reinstituted until Moshiach arrives. Thus, since the
Rambam was uncertain and the Ramban was certain, the halacha follows
the Ramban.
3. Lastly that the role of Sanhedrin had to be complete, not just
limited to malkos. According to a simple interpretation of Rambam (Hilchos
Kiddush Hachodesh 5:2) the calendar change should happen
immediately on the formation of the Sanhedrin, and Rabbi Yakov Beirav's
sanhedrin could misuse this power.
4. Even if we assume that the Rambam meant this ruling to be
definitive, the sages of Safed had not fulfilled the procedure
correctly since the sages of Jerusalem were not present. The
Maharalbach insisted that the scholars of Jerusalem must be involved in
the active debate and that all must agree. Even if someone holds that a
majority of gedolim is sufficient, the minority must be aware of the
debate and participate in it.
Rabbi Yakov Beirav's explanation
Rabbi Yakov Beirav countered
with the following points (Iggeret Hasemicha):
1. First, that
the re-establishment semicha is not interfering with the process of
redemption, rather it is simply the fulfillment of a positive mitzvah.
Rabbi Yakov Beirav based himself on the Rambam's interpretation of
(Isaiah 1:26) "And I will restore your judges as at first... Afterwards
you will be called a City of Righteousness [and Zion shall be
redeemed...]" that the Sanhedrin would be re-established before the
coming of Moshiach and the geula; and besides "the order of the
redemption is hidden even from them [Torah scholars]".
2. The Rambam's closing words “This matter requires a final
decision�
refer to a previous halachic matter, not semicha. (Rabbi Yosef Karo
later concludes in his commentary the Beis Yosef, Choshen Mishpat 295,
that the view of the Rambam is indeed definitive halacha).
3. Concerning the calendar, Rabbi Yakov Beirav held that the calendar
would be left as it is. (The Chazon Ish reconciles the Rambam and the
Maharalbach by saying that the calendar will be changed some time
between the formation of the big Sanhedrin and the coming of the
Messiah).
4. Rabbi Yakov Beirav maintained that the most learned scholars of
Eretz Yisroel lived in Safed and that was sufficient; that in halacha
the word kol means the "main part". (It is interesting to note that the
Maharalbach did not differ with Rabbi Yakov Beirav on this point, only
he objected that kol must include the scholars of Jerusalem. He did not
claim that every scholar in all of Eretz Yisroel should be present in
the assembly).
The debate deteriorates
Although the Mahralbach's tone
was moderate, one could read between the lines that at issue was not
just the re-establishment of semicha, but the honor of the scholars of
Jerusalem and the honor of the scholars of Safed. An illustration of
this is afforded by remarks made by the Mahralbach. The Mahralbach
could have rested with his opinion that the Rambam was undecided in
this matter and the Ramban conclusive, yet he discussed at length that
that leaving out the scholars of Jerusalem not only invalidated the
assembly in Safed, but even a second assembly to include the scholars
of Jerusalem would not help. Once the scholars of Safed had ordained
the Mahari Beirav, they now had a bias in their ruling (noge’ah
b’din)
that invalidated any ruling of theirs on the subject. The Mahralbach
also hinted that Rabbi Yakov Beirav was not worthy to transmit semicha
for neglecting the scholars of Jerusalem, albeit the greater level of
learning in Safed at the time. In answer to the Mahralbach's
observation, that a sacred semicha must not proceed from learning
alone, but from holiness also, Rabbi Yakov Beirav replied: "I never
changed my name: in the midst of want and despair I went in God's way"
(Mahralbach, "Responsa," p. 298b); thereby alluding to the fact that,
when a youth, the Mahralbach had lived for a year in Portugal as a
Christian under an assumed name. The strife between Rabbi Yakov Beirav
and Rabbi Ibn Chaviv deteriorated, and this had a bad effect on the
plan. In addition Rabbi Yakov Beirav's life was endangered. The semicha
had been represented to the Turkish authorities as the first step
toward the restoration of the Jewish state. Since the Turkish officials
would have showed him no mercy and used any opportunity to seize his
estate, Rabbi Yakov Beirav was forced to flee to Egypt. Though each
moment's delay might have cost him his life, he tarried long enough to
ordain four Rabbis, so that during his absence they might continue to
exercise the function of ordination. In the mean time Rabbi Ibn
Chaviv's following increased; and when Rabbi Yakov Beirav returned, he
found his plan to be hopeless. He passed away a few years later without
seeing resolution to the dispute.
The Shulchan Aruch
It is known that Rabbi Yosef
Karo and Rabbi Moses of Trani were two of the four men ordained by
Rabbi Yakov Beirav. The other two are assumed to be Rabbi Abraham
Shalom and Rabbi Israel de Curial. After weighing the objections of
Mahralbach, Rabbi Yosef Karo chose to be part of the Mahari Beirav's
attempt to reinstate the Sanhedrin in his time. This is the source for the acronym MaRaN,
which stands for the words Masa'im
Rabanan Nismach. The scholars of Eretz
Yisroel never criticized Rabbi Yosef Karo for this decision. Though
there were arguments over many years about the authority of the
Shulchan Aruch until it became universally accepted, yet no where does
one criticize Rabbi Yosef Karo for the fact that he received semicha
from Rabbi Yakov Beirav and trasmitted it onward. Rabbi Yosef Karo is
known to have used his semicha to ordain Rabbi Moses Alsheich, who in
turn, ordained Rabbi Chaim Vital. Thus semicha can be traced for four
generations. Rabbi Yosef Karo, in his commentary the Beis Yosef (Choshen
Mishpat 295), answered the objections of the Mahralbach by
recording as definitive halacha the Rambam's opinion that semicha can
be renewed by consensus.
The Current Attempt
While Rabbi Yakov Beirav and
Rabbi Yosef Karo laid an excellent halachic foundation for
understanding the Rambam. The current attempt to re-establish the
Jewish Sanhedrin has tried to learn from these events and avoid some of
the pitfalls. In this case, a massive publicity campaign of 50,000
copies of a detailed flier were distributed among 10,000 Jewish centers
in Israel, outlining that a vote of a first samukh was going to be
held, along with contact information of the Va'ad ha-Mekhonen
la-Sanhedrin, so that the scholars of Eretz Yisroel should be aware
that an election was going to take place. The election itself involved
hundreds of Rabbonim and Torah scholars in person and by written
letter, finally selecting a samukh from among the rabbonim of
the Eidas Hareidi. In addition, to avoid disagreements over who
was worthy to sit on the Sanhedrin, a Beis din of 71 was immediately
formed. It was formed with the best scholars available, with the public
announcement every one of them has agreed to step aside the moment a
more deserving candidate should step forward. Lastly, the Nasi has
indicated that the Beis din would wait until the best scholars
of Eretz Yisroel were represented on the Beis din before
beginning to fully function halachically as the Sanhedrin of old. Until
then the Beis din would be referred to as the nascent
Sanhedrin or the developing Sanhedrin, or simply the Beis din of
71. Any authority it had would be only according to the most lenient
opinion (that semicha and reasonable scholarship alone are sufficient
for halachic authority).
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