Joseph ben Abraham
Encyclopedia
Joseph ben Abraham was a Karaite philosopher and theologian who flourished in Babylonia
or Persia in the first half of the eleventh century. He was the teacher of, among others, Jeshua ben Judah
(Abu al-Faraj Furkan ibn Asad). By way of euphemism he was surnamed "ha-Ro'eh" (= "the seer"), on account of his blindness
. This infirmity, however, did not prevent him from undertaking long journeys, probably as a Karaite missionary
. In the course of his travels he frequented the religio-philosophical schools of the Mu'tazili
, whose teachings he defended in his works. Of these the most important is the Muhtawi, translated from the Arabic into Hebrew, perhaps by Tobiah ben Moses, under the title Sefer ha-Ne'imot, or Zikron ha-Datot. It is divided into forty chapters, in which all the main principles of the Mu'tazili kalam
are applied to the Karaite dogma
s: the five principles of the unity of God
; the necessity of admitting atom
s and accidents; the existence of a Creator
; the necessity of admitting certain attributes and rejecting others; God's justice and its relation to free will
; reward and punishment; etc. The author often argues against the Christian
s, the Dualists
, the Magians, the Epicureans, and various other sects, with whose tenets he shows himself well acquainted. He cites the founders of the Mu'tazili sects of al-Jabaiyah and al-Bahshamiyyah, Abu Ali Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab al-Jabai, and his son Hashim Abd al-Salam, whose teachings he closely follows. The Muhtawi is still extant in manuscript, both in the Arabic original and in its Hebrew translation; the former in the David Kaufmann Library, the latter in the libraries of Leiden, Paris
, and St. Petersburg.
al subjects contained in the Muhtawi. In the fourteenth chapter the author criticizes the Shi'ur Qomah
, and refutes the theory of Benjamin ben Moses Nahawandi, who, holding God too sublime to concern Himself directly with the material world, believed that it was created by an angel acting as God's representative. From the similarity between some passages of the Mahkimat Peti and of the Emunot we-De'ot it may be inferred that Joseph knew Saadia
's work and often used it. The Mahkimat Peti (xxiii) is quoted, under its Arabic title Al-Mansuri, by Joseph ibn Tzaddik
in reference to God's sufficiency; ibn Tzaddik criticizes also the Mu'tazili theory adopted by Joseph ben Abraham (xxvii) concerning the reward reserved in the next world for animals and children in return for the sufferings inflicted upon them in this world ( 'Olam Katan, ed. Adolf Jellinek
, pp. 46, 70).
Joseph quotes in the Muhtawi and Al-Tamyiz the following works of his, which are no longer in existence: Sihat al-Istidlal bi-al-Shahd (Shahr) 'ala al-Ghaib, probably on the proofs of the existence of a Creator; Ahwal al-Fa'il; Al-Muhit, in Hebrew, Shefot ha-Shofeṭim; a writing on, perhaps against, Abu Ghalib Thabit; Melitzat Iqre al-Lubad (?); Al-Isti'anah; Al-Istibsar, on the precepts (Sefer ha-Mitzvot), a fragment of which, comprising the laws of inheritance and purity, is still extant (Brit. Mus. Or. 2567). The laws concerning the festivals were translated into Hebrew by Tobiah ben Moses, under the title Sefer ha-Mo'adim. They are divided into eight chapters, in which Joseph discusses the arguments used by Samuel ben Ḥofni
against the Karaites in regard to the neomenia
and the celebration of the Feast of the First Fruits
. Abraham Harkavy
supposes that these arguments were discussed also in another work of Joseph's entitled Kitab al-Hidayah. Joseph is supposed to have been the author also of: Tzidduk ha-Din, on eschatology
; She'elot u-Teshubot (Arabic, Mas'ail wa-Jawa'ib), containing thirteen philosophical questions addressed to Jewish and non-Jewish scholars; and Peri Tzaddiḳ, a chapter on theodicy
.
( 'arayot), he having been the first to protest against exaggerations of the scope of the hermeneutic rule of analogy (heḳesh) by which the successors of Anan
had prohibited intermarriage between the most distant relatives. His philosophical system was adopted by all his Karaite successors down to Aaron ben Elijah of Nicomedia, who, in his 'Etz Ḥayyim, cites him often. In this field, however, Joseph has no claim to originality, for he only reproduced the kalam of the Motazilites, and his main work, the Muhtawi but for the few Biblical quotations contained therein, might have been signed by any Moslem.
Joseph discussed only the general questions of monotheism
, which are the common ground of both Jews and Muslims, and carefully avoided those on which Jews and Muslims are divided, as, for instance, the question whether the Mosaic law has been abrogated. The value of his works lies only in the information they furnish concerning the Kalam of the Mu'tazili. It is probable that in representing the Karaite theologians as Mutakallamin (Moreh, lxxi), Maimonides
alluded to Joseph.
Babylonia
Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...
or Persia in the first half of the eleventh century. He was the teacher of, among others, Jeshua ben Judah
Jeshua ben Judah
Jeshua ben Judah was a Karaite scholar, exegete and philosopher, who lived in eleventh-century Iraq or at Jerusalem.He was pupil of Joseph ben Abraham ha-Ro'eh...
(Abu al-Faraj Furkan ibn Asad). By way of euphemism he was surnamed "ha-Ro'eh" (= "the seer"), on account of his blindness
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
. This infirmity, however, did not prevent him from undertaking long journeys, probably as a Karaite missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
. In the course of his travels he frequented the religio-philosophical schools of the Mu'tazili
Mu'tazili
' is an Islamic school of speculative theology that flourished in the cities of Basra and Baghdad, both in present-day Iraq, during the 8th–10th centuries. The adherents of the Mu'tazili school are best known for their having asserted that, because of the perfect unity and eternal nature of God,...
, whose teachings he defended in his works. Of these the most important is the Muhtawi, translated from the Arabic into Hebrew, perhaps by Tobiah ben Moses, under the title Sefer ha-Ne'imot, or Zikron ha-Datot. It is divided into forty chapters, in which all the main principles of the Mu'tazili kalam
Kalam
ʿIlm al-Kalām is the Islamic philosophical discipline of seeking theological principles through dialectic. Kalām in Islamic practice relates to the discipline of seeking theological knowledge through debate and argument. A scholar of kalām is referred to as a mutakallim...
are applied to the Karaite dogma
Dogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
s: the five principles of the unity of God
Monotheism
Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one and only one god. Monotheism is characteristic of the Baha'i Faith, Christianity, Druzism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Samaritanism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.While they profess the existence of only one deity, monotheistic religions may still...
; the necessity of admitting atom
Atom
The atom is a basic unit of matter that consists of a dense central nucleus surrounded by a cloud of negatively charged electrons. The atomic nucleus contains a mix of positively charged protons and electrically neutral neutrons...
s and accidents; the existence of a Creator
Creator deity
A creator deity is a deity responsible for the creation of the world . In monotheism, the single God is often also the creator deity, while polytheistic traditions may or may not have creator deities...
; the necessity of admitting certain attributes and rejecting others; God's justice and its relation to free will
Free will in theology
Free will in theology is an important part of the debate on free will in general. This article discusses the doctrine of free will as it has been, and is, interpreted within the various branches of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and Zoroastrianism...
; reward and punishment; etc. The author often argues against the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s, the Dualists
Dualism
Dualism denotes a state of two parts. The term 'dualism' was originally coined to denote co-eternal binary opposition, a meaning that is preserved in metaphysical and philosophical duality discourse but has been diluted in general or common usages. Dualism can refer to moral dualism, Dualism (from...
, the Magians, the Epicureans, and various other sects, with whose tenets he shows himself well acquainted. He cites the founders of the Mu'tazili sects of al-Jabaiyah and al-Bahshamiyyah, Abu Ali Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab al-Jabai, and his son Hashim Abd al-Salam, whose teachings he closely follows. The Muhtawi is still extant in manuscript, both in the Arabic original and in its Hebrew translation; the former in the David Kaufmann Library, the latter in the libraries of Leiden, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and St. Petersburg.
His Al-Tamyiz
Another extant work of his is Al-Tamyiz, called also Al-Mansuri (Brit. Mus. Or. No. 2568). It was translated into Hebrew, with some additions, by Tobiah ben Moses under the title Mahkimat Peti (Oxford, Leiden, Paris, St. Petersburg). It is divided into thirty-three chapters, and treats in abridged form all the non-polemicPolemic
A polemic is a variety of arguments or controversies made against one opinion, doctrine, or person. Other variations of argument are debate and discussion...
al subjects contained in the Muhtawi. In the fourteenth chapter the author criticizes the Shi'ur Qomah
Shi'ur Qomah
Shi’ur Qomah is a Midrashic text that is part of the Heichalot literature. It purports to record, in anthropomorphic terms, the secret names and precise measurements of God’s corporeal limbs and parts...
, and refutes the theory of Benjamin ben Moses Nahawandi, who, holding God too sublime to concern Himself directly with the material world, believed that it was created by an angel acting as God's representative. From the similarity between some passages of the Mahkimat Peti and of the Emunot we-De'ot it may be inferred that Joseph knew Saadia
Saadia
Saadia is a Jewish name and Arabic name. it can refer to several people:*Saadia Gaon - Ninth century rabbi, philosopher, and exegete of the Geonic period.*Saadia Afzaal - Pakistani journalist and television news anchor....
's work and often used it. The Mahkimat Peti (xxiii) is quoted, under its Arabic title Al-Mansuri, by Joseph ibn Tzaddik
Joseph ibn Tzaddik
Rabbi Joseph ben Jacob ibn Tzaddik was a Spanish rabbi, poet, and philosopher. A Talmudist of high repute, he was appointed in 1138 dayyan at Cordova, which office he held conjointly with Maimon, father of Maimonides, until his death. Joseph was also a highly gifted poet, as is attested by Alharizi...
in reference to God's sufficiency; ibn Tzaddik criticizes also the Mu'tazili theory adopted by Joseph ben Abraham (xxvii) concerning the reward reserved in the next world for animals and children in return for the sufferings inflicted upon them in this world ( 'Olam Katan, ed. Adolf Jellinek
Adolf Jellinek
----Adolf Jellinek |Drslavice]], nearby Uherské Hradiště, Moravia - December 28, 1893, Vienna) was an Austrian rabbi and scholar...
, pp. 46, 70).
Joseph quotes in the Muhtawi and Al-Tamyiz the following works of his, which are no longer in existence: Sihat al-Istidlal bi-al-Shahd (Shahr) 'ala al-Ghaib, probably on the proofs of the existence of a Creator; Ahwal al-Fa'il; Al-Muhit, in Hebrew, Shefot ha-Shofeṭim; a writing on, perhaps against, Abu Ghalib Thabit; Melitzat Iqre al-Lubad (?); Al-Isti'anah; Al-Istibsar, on the precepts (Sefer ha-Mitzvot), a fragment of which, comprising the laws of inheritance and purity, is still extant (Brit. Mus. Or. 2567). The laws concerning the festivals were translated into Hebrew by Tobiah ben Moses, under the title Sefer ha-Mo'adim. They are divided into eight chapters, in which Joseph discusses the arguments used by Samuel ben Ḥofni
Samuel ben Hofni
Samuel ben Hofni was the last gaon of Sura...
against the Karaites in regard to the neomenia
Neomenia
Neomenia is a genus of solenogaster, and the only genus in its family....
and the celebration of the Feast of the First Fruits
First Fruits
First Fruits are a religious offering of the first agricultural produce of the harvest. In classical Greek, Roman, Hebrew and Christian religions, the first fruits were offered to the temple or church. First Fruits were often a primary source of income to maintain the religious leaders and the...
. Abraham Harkavy
Abraham Harkavy
Avraam/Albert Yakovlevich Harkavy , or Avraham Eliyahu ben Yaakov Harkavy was a Russian-Jewish historian and orientalist.-Biography:...
supposes that these arguments were discussed also in another work of Joseph's entitled Kitab al-Hidayah. Joseph is supposed to have been the author also of: Tzidduk ha-Din, on eschatology
Eschatology
Eschatology is a part of theology, philosophy, and futurology concerned with what are believed to be the final events in history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world or the World to Come...
; She'elot u-Teshubot (Arabic, Mas'ail wa-Jawa'ib), containing thirteen philosophical questions addressed to Jewish and non-Jewish scholars; and Peri Tzaddiḳ, a chapter on theodicy
Theodicy
Theodicy is a theological and philosophical study which attempts to prove God's intrinsic or foundational nature of omnibenevolence , omniscience , and omnipotence . Theodicy is usually concerned with the God of the Abrahamic religions Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, due to the relevant...
.
Influence on Karaism
Joseph was considered one of the greatest authorities among the Karaites. To him was due the reform introduced in the laws of incestIncest
Incest is sexual intercourse between close relatives that is usually illegal in the jurisdiction where it takes place and/or is conventionally considered a taboo. The term may apply to sexual activities between: individuals of close "blood relationship"; members of the same household; step...
( 'arayot), he having been the first to protest against exaggerations of the scope of the hermeneutic rule of analogy (heḳesh) by which the successors of Anan
Anan
Anan may mean:Places:* Anan, Haute-Garonne, a commune in the Haute-Garonne département, in France* Anan, Nagano, a town located in Shimoina District, Nagano, Japan* Anan, Tokushima , a city in Tokushima, JapanPeople* Che Anan, king of Champa...
had prohibited intermarriage between the most distant relatives. His philosophical system was adopted by all his Karaite successors down to Aaron ben Elijah of Nicomedia, who, in his 'Etz Ḥayyim, cites him often. In this field, however, Joseph has no claim to originality, for he only reproduced the kalam of the Motazilites, and his main work, the Muhtawi but for the few Biblical quotations contained therein, might have been signed by any Moslem.
Joseph discussed only the general questions of monotheism
Monotheism
Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one and only one god. Monotheism is characteristic of the Baha'i Faith, Christianity, Druzism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Samaritanism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.While they profess the existence of only one deity, monotheistic religions may still...
, which are the common ground of both Jews and Muslims, and carefully avoided those on which Jews and Muslims are divided, as, for instance, the question whether the Mosaic law has been abrogated. The value of his works lies only in the information they furnish concerning the Kalam of the Mu'tazili. It is probable that in representing the Karaite theologians as Mutakallamin (Moreh, lxxi), Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
alluded to Joseph.