Asher ben Meshullam was a

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

ish theologian and

Talmudic The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

scholar who lived at Lunel in the second half of the 12th century CE.''Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion'', p.74 A renowned Talmudist, he was a son of the well-known

Meshullam ben Jacob Meshullam son of Jacob (or ''Meshullam HaKohen ben Ya'akov'') also known as ''Rabbeinu Meshullam hagodol'' (Rabbi Meshullem the great) was a Franco-Jewish Talmudist of the twelfth century CE.Heinrich Graetz History of the Jews - Page 113 He led a ...

, and a pupil of Joseph ibn Plat and the

Raavad Abraham ben David ( – 27 November 1198), also known by the abbreviation RABaD (for ''Rabbeinu'' Abraham ben David) Ravad or RABaD III, was a Provençal ḥakham, an important commentator on the Talmud, ''Sefer Halachot'' of Isaac Alfasi, and ...

. He shared Raavad's ascetic tendencies.

Benjamin of Tudela Benjamin of Tudela (), also known as Benjamin ben Jonah, was a medieval Jewish traveler who visited Europe, Asia, and Africa in the twelfth century. His vivid descriptions of western Asia preceded those of Marco Polo by a hundred years. With his ...

, in the first part of his "Travels," says that Asher lived in complete seclusion, wholly devoted to the study of the

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

, and that he never tasted meat. At the same time Asher was not hostile to

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

. Yehudah Ibn Tibbon, in a letter to Asher, praised his fondness for science, and in his testament exhorted his son to cultivate Asher's friendship.

Works

Asher was the author of several Talmudic works, including: * ''Hilkhot Yom Tov'', ("Rules for the

Holidays A holiday is a day or other period of time set aside for festivals or recreation. ''Public holidays'' are set by public authorities and vary by state or region. Religious holidays are set by religious organisations for their members and are often ...

") * ''Sefer haMatanot,'' ("The Book of Gifts") a work referring perhaps to the

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Modern tithes are normally voluntary and paid in money, cash, cheques or v ...

s payable to the

kohanim Kohen (, ; , ، Arabic كاهن , Kahen) is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. They are traditionally believed, and halakhically required, to be of direct patriline ...

. Neither of these writings seems to have been preserved. According to an entry in the manuscript of the small ''

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...

Aseret ha-Dibberot,'' Asher was its author, but the statement is not verifiable.

References

Its bibliography: *

Chaim Joseph David Azulai Haim Yosef David Azulai ben Yitzhak Zerachia (; 1724 – 1 March 1806), commonly known as the Hida (also spelled Chida, the acronym of his name, ), was a Jerusalem born rabbi, rabbinical scholar, a noted bibliophile, and a pioneer in the publica ...

, ''Shem ha-Gedolim'', ed. Wilna, p. 34; *

Heinrich Graetz Heinrich Graetz (; 31 October 1817 – 7 September 1891) was a German exegete and one of the first historians to write a comprehensive history of the Jewish people from a Jewish perspective. Born Tzvi Hirsch Graetz to a butcher family in Xions (no ...

, ''Geschichte der Juden'', 3d ed., vi. 203; * Henri Gross, ''Gallia Judaica'', pp. 280-281; *

Ernest Renan Joseph Ernest Renan (; ; 27 February 18232 October 1892) was a French Orientalist and Semitic scholar, writing on Semitic languages and civilizations, historian of religion, philologist, philosopher, biblical scholar, and critic. He wrote wo ...

and Adolphe Neubauer, ''Les Ecrivains Juifs Français'', pp. 468-469; * Yakov Reifmann, ''Toledot Rabbenu Zerahaya'', p. 48; *''Literaturblatt des Orients'', 1849, p. 481; *Heimann, Michael (1891) ''Or ha-Ḥayyim'', Frankfurt a. M.(in Hebrew), No. 552.K. L. G. {{DEFAULTSORT:Asher Ben Meshullam 12th-century French rabbis Provençal rabbis French Orthodox rabbis