From Judah Hadassi to Elijah Bashyatchi: Studies in Late Medieval Karaite Philosophy »

Daniel J. Lasker, Ph.D. (1976) in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, Brandeis University, is the Norbert Blechner Professor of Jewish Values at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva. His books include Jewish Philosophical Polemics Against Christianity in the Middle Ages (1977; second edition, 2007); and an edition and translation of Hasdai Crescas’ Refutation of the Christian Principles.

The present study is a pioneering account of the development of late medieval Karaite Jewish thought, challenging the oft-repeated assertion that Karaite thinkers remained loyal to Kalām, the dominant theological philosophy during the earlier Golden Age of Karaism. A careful reading of Karaite sources demonstrates that the watershed figure whose influence led to changes in Karaite thought was the Rabbanite Maimonides, whose attacks on the Kalām had revealed its scientific shortcomings.

This book discusses major Karaite thinkers from the twelfth to sixteenth centuries, as well as the central themes in their writings. It also outlines the impact of Karaism on the dominant Rabbanite Jews and their major thinkers, especially Maimonides. It should be of interest to all those who study medieval philosophy, intellectual history, Judaism and sectarianism.

Background

Ch. 1 Karaism and Karaite Philosophy 3

Ch. 2 Karaite Attitudes towards Religion and Science 15

Ch. 3 Karaite Philosophy in the Classical Period 29

Major Thinkers

Ch. 4 Judah Hadassi 41

Ch. 5 Aaron ben Joseph 60

Ch. 6 Aaron ben Elijah 69

Ch. 7 Elijah Bashyatchi 96

Contacts with Rabbanite Thinkers

Ch. 8 Karaites in Spain 125

Ch. 9 Judah Halevi and Karaism 141

Ch. 10 Maimonides and Karaism - Mutual Influences 155

Ch. 11 Karaism and the Jewish-Christian Debate 190

Topics

Ch. 12 The Theory of Compensation ('Iwad) in Rabbanite and Karaite Thought: Animal Sacrifices, Ritual Slaughter, and Circumcision 203

Ch. 13 The Prophecy of Abraham in Karaite Thought 217

Ch. 14 Jerusalem in Later Karaite Thought 229

Ch. 15 Afterlife and Eschatology 248

Into the Modern Period

Ch. 16 Into the Modern Period 263

Bibliography 273

Index 291