[Avodah] [Areivim] Ramban and Ibn Ezra

[Yitzhak Grossman]

On Fri, 20 Mar 2009 07:57:08 -0400 someone asked on Areivim (redirected
here at Moderator request) about Ramban's purportedly considering Ibn
Ezra an Am Ha'Arez with respect to Talmudic learning:

I don't know about Ramban, but Maharshal (Introduction to Yam Shel
Shelomoh, Bava Kama) does *initially* say pretty much that:

"... the scholar Ibn Ezra, who was not a "ba'al Talmuda" ... and he was
impertinent ("hisris") in many places toward the sages of the Torah and
the Talmud, either from lack of care or lack of knowledge"

But this is immediately followed by a partial retraction:

"His honor remains in its place, for he was a great scholar, and we
don't criticize the lion, since we don't follow his commentary, neither
to obligate nor to exempt, neither to prohibit nor to permit.  For he
has written ("asah") many times against the Halachah, even against the
sages of the Mishneh, and innumerable times against the Talmudic
Amoraim.  And in truth I have heard it said about him, that thus would
he announce, and publicize to the masses, that he did not wish to show
deference, but to explain until the point that his intellect would
reach, without the tradition, as he has hinted in several places in his
commentary to the Torah, "if not for the tradition I would have said
etc. ..." But still, his words are not correct in my eyes, and in my
opinion, "kevar nasan alav es ha'din", for he he has given assistance
to the Minim and Zeddukim, and to those of lax ("kalei") faith, and I
have seen this myself ("va'ani ha'gever asher ra'ah ani ami")"

Yitzhak
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Yitzhak
--
Bein Din Ledin - http://bdl.freehostia.com
A discussion of Hoshen Mishpat, Even Ha'Ezer and other matters