Moses Maimonides, the Great Jewish Philosopher
The Rambam’s Commentary on Judaism Lives On
Nov 12, 2009
Early Life and Training of the Rambam
Various sources cite different birth dates for Maimonides, while most scholars agree with recent research that states Maimonides was born in Cordoba, Spain in 1138, not the more frequently cited 1135. He was educated by his father, a Jewish judge. Maimonides studied at the University of Al Karaouine, where he composed his commentary on the Mishnah Torah, a comprehensive code of Jewish law. Eventually settling in Cairo, he became court physician to two Egyptian royal advisors and chief rabbi of the city's Jewish community.
Eight Levels of Charity According to Maimonides
Maimonides details his eight levels of charity in the Mishnah Torah, Laws of Charity, 10:7-14. Each level is greater than the next, with the greatest level involving an endowment that will allow a person to support himself, while the lowest level is to give unwillingly to charity. The levels, from greatest to least:
- To support someone in need by endowing him with a gift or loan, entering into a partnership with him, or finding work for him, in order to give him the tools or resources he needs to no longer be dependent on others.
- To give to the poor anonymously, and without knowing who you are giving to. “For this is performing a mitzvah solely for the sake of Heaven.”
- To know the identity of who will receive your charity, but without them knowing your identity.
- To not know to whom one gives, but the recipient knows the identity of their benefactor.
- To give to the poor person directly into his hand, but before being asked.
- To give to the poor person after being asked.
- To give inadequately, but gladly and with a smile.
- To give unwillingly.
Maimonides’ 13 Principles of Faith
Maimonides detailed what he believed everyone who followed the Jewish faith must accept to call themselves Jews. The 13 principles included such beliefs as the existence of God; that God is eternal and incorporeal; and that God’s law was given on Mount Sinai. When first proposed, the Rambam’s articles of faith evoked criticism by some rabbis, but were mostly ignored by the larger Jewish community for the next few centuries. In time, however, these principles became widely held. Today, Orthodox Judaism holds these beliefs to be obligatory, and the principles are still recited in synagogues.
Maimonides’ Death and His Successor
Maimonides died in 1204 in Fostat, and was buried in the Galilean city of Tiberias, Israel. His epitaph is a popular medieval saying that states, “From Moshe [Moses from the Torah] to Moshe [Maimonides] there was none like Moshe.” His son Avraham, was also a great scholar, and at the age of eighteen, succeeded Maimonides as Nagid (head of the Egyptian Jewish community). He also took up his father's role as court physician.
Fame and Lasting Impact
Maimonides is considered one of the foremost rabbinic authorities in Jewish history and his ideas have been embraced by both Jews and non-Jews. Arguably his most famous work is the Guide for the Perplexed, which he completed in his later years in 1190. In it, Maimonides tried to reconcile faith and reason. He was against the death penalty, and stated: “It is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death.”
Maimonides remains the most widely debated Jewish thinker among modern scholars. He has been adopted as a symbol and an intellectual hero by almost all major Jewish movements. In 1953, Maimonides was honored on an official Israeli postage stamp. Many hospitals and schools bear his name, such as ones in cities such as Brooklyn, N.Y., San Francisco and Montreal.
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