Sefardi Jews Judaism in Middle Ages 10th c.-16th c.

Geonic Period Geonim: Rabbinic leaders in Babylonia in the 7th - 10th c. – Talmudic academies – Same function as Sanhedrin – Sura, Pumbedita Arabization and islamization of the Middle East, Egypt, northern Africa, most of Spain  Besides hebrew and arameic, Jewish scholars start to use arabic, especially for scientific and philosophical treatises

Andalusia 10th c. – new center of the Jewish education – Flowering of Jewish philosophy, science and poetry

Shelomo Ibn Gabirol Mekor Hayyim „Origin of Life“ – written in arabic – Theory of emanation References to Sefer Jecira 11th c. Known as Avicebron or Avicebrol Neoplatonic philosophy  Influenced mainly Christian thinking – „Jewish Plato“

Shelomo Ibn Gabirol THE 16-YEAR-OLD POET I am the prince the song ‘s my slave I am the string all singers songmen tune my song’s a crown for kings for ministers a little crown am only sixteen years old but my heart holds wisdom like some poet 8o year old man INVITATION Come up to me at early dawn, Come up to me, for I am drawn, Beloved, by my spirit’s spell, To see the Sons of Israel. For thee, my darling, I will spread Within my court a golden bed, And I will set a table there And bread for thee I will prepare, For thee my goblet I will fill With juices that my vines distil: And thou shalt drink to heart’s delight, Of all my flavours day and night. The joy in thee I will evince With which a people greets its prince. O son of Jesse, holy stem, God’s servant, born of Bethlehem!

Azharot (based on Taryag, 613 commandements of the Torah); Shavuot

Almoravids 11th c. Berbers from north- west Africa came to help Andalusia against Christian king Alfonso VI from Castillia – Religious intolerance

Maimonides The greatest thinker of his time Born in Cordoba, 1135 His family had to fleed the country due to the invasion of Berber Almohads who took over the country after Almoravids Went to Egypt where he became a court physician of the sultan Saladdin Combines Jewish religious tradition with the teaching of Aristoteles Mishne Torah – a survey of the Jewish religious law

13th – 15th c. Christian rulers are taking over the Islamic Spain including the Jewish communities Toledo (Castile) – still an important centre of Jewish culture Intesive developement of the Jewish mysticism - kabbalah

Sefardi Jews 1492 – expulsion of Jews from Spain  – Sefardi (= Spanish in the biblical language) Jews went to Portugal, Italy, northern Africa and Turkey Sefardi Jews spoke hebrew and ladino (based on old Spanish) written in hebrew caracters Maranos = new Christians – converted Jews – Many in Spain and in Portugal (Jews expulsed already in 1497)

Jewish mysticism Kabbalah = mystical tradition - name since the 12th c. – Sefer Jecira – Book of Creation written in Middle East (Babylonia?), 7th c. 10 sefirot = ten basic spiritual ur- numbers Bahir (Book of the Brightness) – the 10 sefirot are formed by a spiritual light – These spheres are at the same time manifestations of different qualities of God – spiritual tree through which emanates the divine force that keeps the world in existence

Jewish Mysticism Zohar (Brightness) – About Rabbi Shimon ben Jochaj – rabbi Akiva´s follower, 2nd c. CE – who was hiding from Romans Safed – Galilee – A small town where settled many sefardi Jews – Uninterrupted tradition – Jicchak Luria, 16th c.

Jicchak Luria There was only an infinite God before the creation of the world. He started the creation by forming a relatively empty space within infinity where he created upper spiritual worlds. Our world is a mirroring of these worlds. Upper spiritual worlds are composed by the ten sefirot divided in three parts

Jicchak Luria The universe developed through a cosmical ur- catastrophe – divine light melted with the darkness, good with evil The meaning of the human existence is to help to renew the original order of the world – tikkun Every human thought and action plays a very important role in this process Gilgul – transmigration of souls