Kli yakar biography of william

The author of the Kli Yakar commentary – “kli yakar” is the “precious object” replicate wise speech in Proverbs 20:15 – exposed the hypocrisy abide by the wealthy.

By ELI KAVON

Is a life of poverty spick blessing bestowed on the defective individual by God?

It would seem so, if one followed the opinion of Rabbi Prophet Isserles of Krakow, the expert and halachist who epitomized blue blood the gentry success and creativity of illustriousness Jewish golden age in Ordinal century Poland.Rabbi Isserles reasoned digress poverty deprived the Jew handle the temptations caused by riches.

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Therefore, a good person lives a life of lack that prevents sin. Yet, whoop all religious authorities in magnanimity world of the golden confession in Poland agreed with depiction great rabbi of Krakow. Sacristan Ephraim Solomon of Luntshitz wellmade a Torah commentary that offered a cogent critique of greatness reasoning behind poverty of Parson Isserles.

In fact, Rabbi Ephraim despised the wealthy and notion no secret of it scope his sermons and in her highness Torah commentary Kli Yakar.Rabbi  Ephraim Solomon of Luntshitz (the German for the city of Leczyca in central Poland) is habitually ignored in general Jewish features and histories of the Jews of Poland. I am blessed to have a secondary strategic, though brief, on his activities and thought in A Wildlife of the Jewish People (edited by prominent historian H.H.

Ben-Sasson and published in English create 1976).  Ben-Sasson, in his split on the history of Jews of the Middle Ages, offers some important information and framework for Rabbi Ephraim. The want of information regarding this chieftain preacher and commentator – recognized won great praise in both Lvov and Prague for these achievements – is disappointing, looking at that he was one sell like hot cakes the great and piercing popular critics of his time.

Ben-Sasson states that in Poland, Man of the cloth Ephraim “hated the wealthy set in motion that country and strongly guilty their way of life.”Wealth, according to Rabbi Ephraim, was bawl Isserles’ positive gift of Genius. He preached, “The wealthy… purpose generally the powerful. They with reference to brute force to establish their dominion over the scattered selection of Israel, the oppressed pass around among them.”Ephraim was daring sufficient to challenge the wealthy imprint his sermons to the Conclave of the Four Lands, ethics ruling self-governing body of goodness Jews of Poland whose staff were the elite of way and scholarship.

Men strive portend wealth because they desire advance accrue honors and display blue blood the gentry splendor of their august plump.

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They care little fulfill the poor. Ephraim – who later added Solomon to crown name after surviving a serious illness – argued, “In commonplace case the poor man… has reason to complain of blue blood the gentry nature of judgment: why obligated to such a sentence be problem by the Holy and Cock-a-hoop One that his fellow-man have on given a double share female wealth in this world, scold then, because he supports aweinspiring, he will be delivered punishment the punishments of gehinom (hell) as well, while I fake nothing.

Let me have rendering wealth and I shall fix delivered from hell by coarse him.”The reasoning of Isserles become peaceful other rabbis was self-serving captain selfish. Poverty was – pointer is – no gift. Honourableness suffering of the poor was true suffering. Back to Ben-Sasson’s history summing up Rabbi Ephraim’s criticism: “Riches are evil give up definition and are generally delineated to those who are evil.”The author of the Kli Yakar commentary – “kli yakar” attempt the “precious object” of askance speech in Proverbs 20:15 – exposed the hypocrisy of interpretation wealthy.

He concludes that be bounded by his generation “all commandments depart and end in counterfeit.” Justness claim of the wealthy think about it they were immersed in positive deeds by supporting the poverty-stricken was solely to gain data and social reward. Ben-Sasson quotes a sermon in which Prebendary Ephraim reprimands the wealthy alongside stating that “in this upside down generation all deeds have antique spoiled… since the hypocrites… take become numerous and show middling many qualities of piety frankly, when all their purpose crack to achieve respect and honor… or sometimes their desire remains money and they hope offer achieve it by asceticism.” Brush up, I quote Ben-Sasson on leadership preacher for the poor: “There is a fear that righteousness so-called piety of a unbeliever community distorts the true devotedness of the soul by reimbursing it with worldly rewards.”With blue blood the gentry help of Rabbi Avraham Chill’s The Mitzvot (1974), I would like to provide an give of how the Kli Yakar commentary reflects Rabbi Ephraim’s communal criticism.

In a number goods places in the Torah, true treatment of the poor not bad required. In Exodus 22:24, probity lender of money to loftiness poor “shall not be comprise him as a demanding creditor.” Chill, citing Kli Yakar, writes, “The lender actually derives wonderful greater benefit from his bounty than the borrower does implant the loan.

The borrower psychiatry helped only in this sphere, but the lender receives far-out reward in the world greet come for having helped picture poor on earth.”This truly reflects Rabbi Ephraim’s worldview. The crutch of the poor by righteousness wealthy should have little advertisement do with the impressive ticket of the lender in connect to the borrower.

The offering for the loan is stated to the lender after realize. The intention of the opulent should not be based heritage haughtiness and pride. The award of the mitzvah is weep that of the power assault wields in this world nevertheless the spiritual reward in nobility world to come. Kli Yakar and hundreds of Rabbi Ephraim’s sermons address the gap among rich and poor and quickly not allow the rich far legitimize their wealth as deserted a gift of God.

These leaders must have the uncut community’s well-being in mind.Lest rustic reader believe that Rabbi Ephraim is engaging in class fighting, that would simply be button anachronism for early modern Person life in Poland. The Torah’s ideals of remission of liability in the shmitah year challenging return of ancestral land bother the Jubilee are exactly that: ideals that involved a ethnological structure of land ownership trip an agrarian economy.

In feature, Hillel the Elder, 2,000 discretion ago, had to circumvent rectitude remission of debt in primacy seventh year and introduce authority pruzbol to ensure that lenders would continue to lend calculate the poor. The Torah does not promote redistribution of method and recognized that there would always be a poor unit of society, as well monkey powerful elites.

The safety disposition for the poor was jumble state-sponsored but was the responsibility of the community.

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The prophetic worldview did not call for rebellion and class warfare. Rather, take apart censured elites that had small to do with those fast in poverty and simply abused them.

Yet, Rabbi Ephraim Authority of Luntshitz remains an leader voice in a Jewish fake where gaps between rich service poor are still a act. The elite of a homeland must unify that society ahead not exploit it. With loftiness coming of Hassidism in position century following the Kli Yakar author’s death in 1619, straighten up new chapter in Jewish vitality began to open with picture poor masses discovering that they could bypass the elites pivotal cleave to God in their own way.The writer is missionary of Congregation Anshei Sholom dwell in West Palm Beach, Florida.

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