Simply known as HaMeiri, this medieval Talmudist, who ranked along with Rambam and Ramban, was a model for how Rabbanites could have progressed, but has sadly been neglected within orthodox rabbanism.
Meiri was what I would label "Modern Orthodox". But unlike others, from Maimonides to Soloveichik, Meiri's ideas were so advanced, that even a Modernist of today would find him to be too radical. His commentary spanned the entire Talmud, and served as a counterweight to Rambam's fundamentalism and absolutist views on Rabbinical law. This is illustrated by a look at how several scholars viewed the status and permanence of rabbinic additions. For Maimonides, these became absolute, in some cases irreversible, and in others could only be abrogated by a sanhedrin bigger in numbers and wisdom than those who promulgated the laws - something impossible since the rabbis deny this will occur until the Messiah comes! A contemporary of Rambam, Rabbi Abraham ben David of Posquieres, took a middle position. He pointed out that one Mishnaic rabbi, annulled a rabbinic law, even though it was created by an earlier generation (and thus greater than he in rabbinic eschatology).
However, the brilliant Meiri did something which Karaite and Modern Orthodox would be proud of - he wrote that when the reason behind a rabbinic "fence" [by the way, in English slang, a "fence" has a criminal connotation - and perhaps not too removed from the rabbinic term] disappears, the law itself will also disappear, automatically!
This of course, is based on the presumption that the rabbis had good reason to make up these laws in the first place - but Meiri was born into a distinguished rabbinic family, and so his unique contribution to Judaism must be celebrated!
No comments:
Post a Comment