[Avodah] characterizing our era

[Eli Turkel]

<< We're using era in two different ways. I'm thinking more like the line
between ge'onim and rishonim. It had no characterizing text, but did
happen at a cultural rupture.

And what looks to us like a broad transition era looks like a line
with a few centuries hindsight. Rav tanna hu upalig. The mishnah was
a kind of line, but there was blurriness around it. >>

In fact the line between rishonim and achronim is quite blurry. Some have
considered the writing of the Tur as a dividing line though most would see
Ritva, Ran and even Rivash as rishonim. Abarbanel is at the time of the
expulksion from Spain and might be a transition era. I seem to recall a
Radvaz (1479-1573) that says that his era cant disagree with early rishonim
but can disagree with later rishonim (divided by the Tur). Note that Rav
Yosef Karo  (1488 – 1575) was a younger contemporary of the Radvaz (that
sat on the same bet din in Safed. It is not clear that the Shulchan Arukh
was the division to the next era.

However, in Eastern Europe the era of achronim started much earlier.
Thus, for example the Maharil who most would consider an achron lived 1365
– 1427, The Ran lived  a little earlier 1290–1376 and the Maharil was a
younger contemporary of the Rivash  (1328–1408)  and the Nimukei Yosef
(dates uncertain).

Whether achronim can disagree with rishonim is more a matter of practice
than halacha, e.g. Gra and Shaagas Aryeh

Disclaimer: all dates are approximate


As to the claim that present gedolim are not on the level of those who grew
up before the Holocaust, I completely agree. However, we can't know if this
is a long term trend and what the reasons for this are
-- 
Eli Turkel
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