This rich little volume, which substantively enhances our knowledge and appreciation of R. Moses Nahmanides, contains an introduction by Isadore Twersky and five original and learned articles by well-known scholars: David Berger, Brooklyn College ("Miracles and the Natural Order in Nahmanides"); Ezra Fleischer, The Hebrew University ("The 'Gerona School' of Hebrew Poetry"); Moshe Idel, The Hebrew University ("'We Have No Kabbalistic Tradition on This'"); Bezalel Safran, Harvard University ("Rabbi Azriel and Nahmanides: Two Views of the Fall of Man"); and Bernard Septimus, Harvard University ("'Open Rebuke and Concealed Love': Nahmanides and the Andalusian Tradition"). Ramban's attitude to aggadah, poetry, exegesis and rationalism, his coupling of genuine conservatism and powerful originality, his views on the nature of man, law of nature, miracles, history of kabbalah, dialectics of halakah, his relation to the Spanish intellectual-spiritual background, Proencal culture, and French Talmudism--these are some of the topics explored in these pages. In connection with these specific topics of Nahmanides research, some broader historical issues are also touched upon: continuities and differences between Islamic and Christian Spain; varieties of thirteenth-centurey kabbalah; preoccupations of medieval halakists; root problems of Scriptural exegesis; the re-orientation of Hebrew poetry in Christian Spain; the relation of philosophy and mysticism. Anyone interested in the luminous achievement and enduring influence of Ramban, probably the greatest figure in 13th century Jewish history, will turn to this volume.

A broad, systematic account of one of the most original and creative kabbalists, biblical interpreters, and Talmudic scholars the Jewish tradition has ever produced Rabbi Moses b. Nahman (1194–1270), known in English as Nahmanides, was the greatest Talmudic scholar of the thirteenth century and one of the deepest and most original biblical interpreters. Beyond his monumental scholastic achievements, Nahmanides was a distinguished kabbalist and mystic, and in his commentary on the Torah he dispensed esoteric kabbalistic teachings that he termed “By Way of Truth.” This broad, systematic account of Nahmanides’s thought explores his conception of halakhah and his approach to the central concerns of medieval Jewish thought, including notions of God, history, revelation, and the reasons for the commandments. The relationship between Nahmanides’s kabbalah and mysticism and the existential religious drive that nourishes them, as well as the legal and exoteric aspects of his thinking, are at the center of Moshe Halbertal’s portrayal of Nahmanides as a complex and transformative thinker.

This book is a collection of letters from a religious Jew in Israel to a Christian friend in Barcelona on life as an Orthodox Jew. Equal parts lighthearted and insightful, it's a thorough and entertaining introduction to the basic concepts of Judaism.

The Disputation of Barcelona (July 20-24, 1263) was a formal ordered medieval debate between representatives of Christianity and Judaism regarding whether or not Jesus was the Messiah. It was held at the royal palace of King James I of Aragon in the presence of the King, his court, and many prominent ecclesiastical dignitaries and knights, between Dominican Friar Pablo Christiani, a convert from Judaism to Christianity, and Rabbi Nahmanides (Moshe Ben Nachman, Ramban), a leading medieval Jewish scholar, philosopher, physician, kabbalist, and biblical commentator. During the Middle Ages, there were numerous ordered disputations between Christians and Jews. They were connected with burnings of the Talmud at the stake and violence against Jews. At Barcelona, Jews as well as Christians were given absolute freedom to speak their arguments how they wanted, making this unique among disputations.

In this detailed study, Nina Caputo examines conceptions of history and messianic redemption in the writings of the Catalonian rabbi and brilliant Talmudic scholar Nahmanides (1195-1270). An early exponent of kabbalah, Nahmanides was also a shrewd intermediary between the Jewish communities and the royal administration of Aragon. Most intellectual histories focus on Nahmanides in the fairly insular context of Jewish community dynamics, but this volume explores the largely unexamined history of encounters between Jewish and Christian interpretations of history and redemption, as well as the significant role played by Jews in the expansion of the Crown of Aragon during the thirteenth century. Caputo explains Nahmanides' distinctive understanding of the shape and meaning of historical time and change and reveals how his discourse frequently confronted Christian views of history and scripture, sometimes embracing Christians forms, but at other times directly refuting them. Nina Caputo's book is the first to situate Nahmanides in the full intellectual and religious context of thirteenth-century Catalonia. It makes an important contribution to the fields of Jewish studies as well as medieval and early modern history. "Nahmanides in Medieval Catalonia is a compelling illustration of meticulous scholarly attention, of subtle historical consciousness, rigorous rhetorical and literary sensibility, and true, wide-ranging synthetic ability--it uniquely draws from the entire corpus of Nahmanides' work in order to reframe conflicts and disputes, once again, as fertile and positive exchanges." --Gil Anidjar, Columbia University "Caputo has written a brilliant monograph on one of the most fascinating minds of the High Middle Ages. By aligning the intellectual and communal activities of Nahmanides within the context of both Jewish and medieval Spanish vernacular texts she brings academic rigor and interdisciplinary scholarship to throw new light on both communities at a critical moment in their development. Each chapter reveals the subtle ways that Nahmanides constructed intellectual and social frameworks for Jews to preserve their unique identity while sharing cultural and aesthetic norms of the Christian society that surrounded them." --Michael A. Signer, Abrams Professor of Jewish Thought and Culture, University of Notre Dame "This book offers a meticulous and thoughtful reading of the themes of history, prophecy, and progress in Nahmanides' exegetical, theological, and polemical works. It joins a growing body of scholarship that emphasizes the extent to which even tense and hostile Jewish-Christian confrontations were predicated upon shared cultural and intellectual approaches. It is sure to interest and engage scholars in the fields of Judaic studies, Iberian history, and biblical studies." --Sara Lipton, Stony Brook University

'A superb work of committed scholarship . . . a work full of interest to those already familiar with the material it contains, and compelling reading for those who are not. Maccoby has done a fine job in recapturing the intellectual and social drama of the confrontations.' Jonathan Sacks, Jewish Journal of Sociology Hyam Maccoby's now classic study focuses on the major Jewish—Christian disputations of medieval Europe: those of Paris (1240), Barcelona (1263), and Tortosa (1413-14).

Based on memoirs of former Cantonists and their contemporaries, describes the fate of Jewish servicemen in the Russian army during the rule of Nicholas I, before 1855. Discusses the introduction of the Cantonist system in 1827, the abduction of Jewish children, and the role played in this by Jewish community leaders. Dwells on the conversion of the Jewish conscripts to Christianity; in many cases the conversions were forced. Presents stories of some former Cantonists, adapted from memoirs published in Russian or Yiddish or found in manuscripts in archives.

Nachmanides was and still is a highly respected scholar. Yet despite his brilliance he had ideas that many modern Jews are unable to accept. He was the first person who contended that the Bible, Targum Onkelos, and the other Aramaic translations of the Bible contained mystical teachings. In this volume, Dr. Drazin reveals some unusual and generally unknown facts about the revered sage and demonstrates that his mystical notions and his stands on issues such as medicine, magic, astrology, divination, life after death, the land of Israel, women, angels, hell, demons, and even God are not the normative views of most modern Jews. This fresh look at one of Judaism's most venerated sages asks and answers provocative questions on the nature of Nachmanides' work and its role in Jewish thought.