Elisha Ben Abuyah (spelled variously, including Elisha ben Avuya) was a Jewish heretic born in Jerusalem sometime before 70. At one time, the Rabbis were proud to recognize him as of their number, but later, when he adopted a heretical worldview, their opposition to him grew so intense that they even refrained from relating teachings in his name, and referred to him as "The Other One" (acher) (according to the practice to refrain from relating teachings in the name of a wicked person; see Yoma 38b). The Jewish Encyclopedia (1901-1906) writes that "It is almost impossible to derive from rabbinical sources a clear picture of his personality, and modern historians have differed greatly in their estimate of him. According to Grätz, he was a Karpotian Gnostic; according to Siegfried, a follower of Philo; according to Dubsch, a Christian; according to Smolenskin and Weiss, a victim of the inquisitor Akiba." Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people with around 15 million followers as of 2006 [1]. It is one of the first recorded monotheistic faiths and one of the oldest religious traditions still practiced today. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the Catholic or Orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... Jerusalem (Hebrew: Yerushalayim; Arabic: al-Quds; Greek Ιεροσόλυμα; Latin Aelia Capitolina) is an ancient Middle Eastern city on the watershed between the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea at an elevation of 650-840 meters. ... Centuries: 1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century Decades: 20s 30s 40s 50s 60s - 70s - 80s 90s 100s 110s 120s Years: 65 66 67 68 69 - 70 - 71 72 73 74 75 Events The building of the Colosseum starts (approximate date). ... Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbÄ«;; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbÄ«) in Judaism, means teacher, or more literally great one. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root-word RaV, which in biblical Hebrew means great or distinguished, (in knowledge). In the ancient Judean schools (and among Sefaradim today) the sages... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... The Jewish Encyclopedia was an encyclopedia originally published between 1901 and 1906 by Funk and Wagnalls. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as recounted in the New Testament. ...

In his recent book, The Sinner and the Amnesiac: The Rabbinic Invention of Elisha Ben Abuya and Eleazar Ben Arach, Alon Goshen-Gottstein argues that Rabbinic stories should be read as literature rather than as history:

They construct stories that are then integrated into larger ideologi­cally motivated literary units in such a way as to impart particular ideologi­cal messages. The sources do not necessarily relate the historical facts about the heroes but they do illustrate the cultural concerns that find expression in the stories told about them ... All this leads to the realization that the significant unit for presentation is not the life of the sage; it is the stories about sages. These stories are not formulated in an attempt to tell the life of the sage. They are told because the sage, as part of the collective culture, has some bearing on the common cultural concerns. Various anecdotes are coupled into a larger story cycle.

Rabbinic Judaism was based on vigorous and often contentious debates over the meaning of the Torah and other sacred texts. The challenge facing the Rabbis was to maintain the limits to which a sage could be wrong, without being considered a heretic. Elisha and Eleazar represent two extremes in attitudes towards the Torah; actual rabbis and their debates had to occur somewhere in between these two limits. Torah () is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. It is the central and most important document of Judaism revered by Jews through the ages. ...

Youth and Activity

Little is known of Elisha's youth and of his activity as a teacher of Jewish Law. He was the son of an esteemed and rich citizen of Jerusalem, and was trained for the career of a scholar. The only saying of his recorded in the Mishnah is his praise of education: "Learning in youth is like writing upon new paper, but learning in old age is like writing upon paper which has already been used" (Pirkei Avoth 4:20). Elisha was a student of Greek; as the Talmud expresses it, "Aher's tongue was never tired of singing Greek songs" (Jerusalem Megillah 1:9). The Talmud records that his study of Greek philosophy was one of the factors that led him to apostasy (Hagigah 15b, below). Bacher remarks that the similes which Elisha is reported to have used (Avoth d'Rabbi Nathan 24.) show that he was a man of the world, acquainted with wine, horses, and architecture. He must have acquired a reputation as an authority in questions of religious practise, since in Mo'ed Katan 20a one of his halakhic decisions is recorded - the only one in his name. The Babylonian Talmud asserts that Elisha, while a student in the beit ha-midrash, kept heretical books (sifre minim) hidden in his clothes. This statement is not found in the Jerusalem Talmud. The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ... Pirkei Avoth (Hebrew: Chapters of the Fathers, פרקי אבות ) or simply Avoth is a tractate of the Mishna composed of ethical maxims of the Rabbis of the Mishnaic period. ... The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions of Jewish law, ethics, customs, legends, and stories, which Jewish tradition considers authoritative. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Classical (or early) Greek philosophy focused on the role of reason and inquiry. ... Apostasy (from Greek αποστασία, a defection or revolt from a military commander, from απο, apo, away, apart, στασις, stasis, standing) is a term generally employed to describe the formal renunciation of ones religion, especially if the motive is deemed unworthy. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... A simile is a figure of speech in which the subject is compared to another subject. ... Wine is an alcoholic beverage produced by the fermentation of fruit, typically grapes though a number of other fruits are also quite popular - such as plum, elderberry and blackcurrant. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 For other uses, see Horse (disambiguation). ... The Parthenon on top of the Acropolis, Athens, Greece Architecture (from Latin, architectura and ultimately from Greek, αρχιτεκτων, a master builder, from αρχι- chief, leader and τεκτων, builder, carpenter) is the art and science of designing buildings and structures. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halakhot and Halachah) is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot) and later talmudic and rabbinic law as well as customs and traditions. ... The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions of Jewish law, ethics, customs, legends, and stories, which Jewish tradition considers authoritative. ... Beth midrash (or Beit Midrash or Bais Medrash or Bais Medrish) (plural battei midrash) literally means a House of Interpretation or Lecturing or Learning in Hebrew. ... The Jerusalem Talmud (In Hebrew Talmud Yerushalmi, in short known as the Yerushalmi), also known as the Palestinian Talmud, like its Babylonian counterpart (see Babylonian Talmud), is a collection of Rabbinic discussions elaborating on the Mishnah. ...

About: Elisha Ben Avuyah

My son Michael, asked I one day, what do you think of an association which has been formed in Israel calling itself Jews who don't believe in God? I replied as follows: The first of the Ten Commandments says “I am the Lord your god”; but it doesn't say you have to believe in Me. God is too great to force us to believe in Him. The situation becomes clear in the 2nd Commandment which says: You must not have another God beside me. In other words, not to believe in God is not a sin in the eyes of God, but to believe in other Gods - that is a sin. It appears that Aher at least did not adopt another religion and that we should clear him from committing an act that may not be regarded by the Almighty as a mortal sin.

The Four Who Entered Paradise

The oldest and most striking reference to the views of Elisha is found in the following baraita (Hagigah 14b; Jerusalem Talmud 2:1): Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... The Jerusalem Talmud (In Hebrew Talmud Yerushalmi, in short known as the Yerushalmi), also known as the Palestinian Talmud, like its Babylonian counterpart (see Babylonian Talmud), is a collection of Rabbinic discussions elaborating on the Mishnah. ...

"Four [sages] entered "pardes" —Ben 'Azzai, Ben Zoma, Aher, and Akiva. Ben 'Azzai gazed and died; Ben Zoma gazed and went insane; Aher entered and cut the root (became an apostate); Akiva entered, and exited in peace." Elisha Ben Abuyah (spelled variously, including Elisha ben Avuya) was a Jewish heretic born in Jerusalem sometime before 70. ... Rabbi Akiva (or Rebbi Akiva) is one of the most central and essential contributors to the early Oral Torah, mainly the Mishnah and the Midrash Halakha. ...

This baraita works through a pun. "Pardes," composed of the four consonants PRDS, is an acronym for the four rules for Biblical exegesis:

• "Peshat" = "simple;" the plain meaning of the text in its immediate context, understanding each word in terms of its common usage. According to Shabbat 63a, a verse never loses its simple meaning.
• "Remez" = "hint;" generalizing the meaning of a verse, so that it functions metaphorically or allegorically.
• "Drash" = "conceptual;" a more detailed exposition or interpretation of the peshat or remez (often by juxtaposing different verses to elicit new meanings), often to make a moral point.
• "Sod" = "hidden;" an esoteric or mystical reading of the text.

Thus, this baraita could be read to mean that these four sages together sought to achieve an absolute, perfect understanding of the Torah in all its complexity, on all its levels. Some kabbalists see these four methods as stages through which a mystic can use Biblical interpretation to fathom the depths of reality until one has a direct encounter with the divine truth. Torah () is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. It is the central and most important document of Judaism revered by Jews through the ages. ... This article is about the overall Jewish mysticisms tradition. ...

"Pardes" is also the Hebrew word for paradise. According to the Jewish Encyclopedia the journey of "the four," like the ascension of Enoch (in the pre-Christian books of Enoch) and of so many other pious men, is to be taken literally and not allegorically. "Entered the Garden of Eden" (another term for paradise) was a common expression (Derek Erez Zuta i.; Avoth d'Rabbi Nathan 25.) designating moment of ecstasy in which the sage beholds the interior of heaven. In the case of Elisha ben Abuya, however, the consequence of this experience was that he destroyed the plants of the heavenly garden. Paradise, by Jan Bruegel The word paradise is derived from the Avestan word pairidaeza (a walled enclosure), which is a compound of pairi- (around), a cognate of the Greek peri-, and -diz (to create, make), a cognate of the English dough. ... Enoch (חֲנוֹךְ Initiated; dedicated; disciplined, Standard Hebrew Ḥanoḫ, Tiberian Hebrew Ḥănôḵ) can refer to Two names in the Generations of Adam Enoch, one of the names in the Generations of Adam, described as an ancestor of Noah, who walked with God, and was... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Fall of Man by Lucas Cranach, a 16th century German depiction of Eden The Garden of Eden (from Hebrew Gan Ēden, גַּן עֵדֶן) is described by the Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man - Adam - and woman - Eve - lived after they were created by God. ... Religious ecstasy is a trance-like state characterized by expanded mental and spiritual awareness and is frequently accompanied by visions, hallucinations, and physical euphoria. ... Heaven is an afterlife concept found in many religions or spiritual philosophies. ...

The Talmud gives two different interpretations of this last phrase. The Babylonian Talmud says:

"What is the meaning of 'Aher cut the root'? Scripture refers to him (Ecclesiastes 5:5, Avodah Zarah 6) when it says: "Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin." What does this signify? In heaven Aher saw Metatron seated while he wrote down the merits of Israel. Whereupon Aher said: 'We have been taught to believe that no one sits in heaven, . . . or are there perhaps two supreme powers?' Then a heavenly voice was heard: '"Repent, O wayward children" (Jeremiah 3:14), with the exception of Aher.'" Ecclesiastes, Kohelet in Hebrew, is a book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Avodah Zarah (meaning idolatry - lit. ... Metatron (from Greek Meta+Tron meaning Beyond+Matrix. ... For jer, an alternate spelling for the reduced vowels in Common Slavic, see yer. ...

According to R. Tsadok HaKohen of Lublin, ben Abuya became a heretic because after having had a direct encounter with God, he believed he no longer needed to obey the law (this story may thus be a rebuke to Christian claims that grace relieves one of the obligation to obey the law).

Analysis of the Talmud's account

The dualism with which the Talmud charges him has led some scholars to see here Persian, Gnostic, or even Philonian dualism. The Jewish Encyclopedia says that "They forget that the reference here to Metatron—a specifically Babylonian idea, which would probably be unknown to Palestinian rabbis even five hundred years after Elisha—robs the passage of all historical worth. The story is of late origin, as is seen from the introductory words, which stand in no connection with the context, as they do in the parallel passage in the Jerusalem Talmud." However, the Jewish Encyclopedia's claim fails to account for the activity of sages who would regularly travel between Palestine and Babylonia to collect and transmit scholarly teachings. Furthermore, it should be noted that portions of the Book of Enoch discussing Metatron have been dated by pseudepigrapha scholar Hugh Odeberg to no later than first century CE or second century CE (well before the redaction of both the Jerusalem and the Babylonian Talmuds [1]), and yet no mention appears in the Jerusalem Talmud. (Some scholars have found the concept of Metatron suggested in texts dating to sometime before 70 CE [2]. These texts were extant at the time of Elisha ben Abuyah). This information would indicate that the account with Metatron is excluded from the Jerusalem Talmud despite the Jerusalem Talmud's awareness of the concept of Metatron. The Talmud (תלמוד) is a record of rabbinic discussions of Jewish law, ethics, customs, legends, and stories, which Jewish tradition considers authoritative. ... The Persian Empire was a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau. ... Babylon is the Greek variant of Akkadian Babilu (bāb-ilû, meaning Gateway of the god, translating Sumerian Kadingirra), an ancient city in Mesopotamia (modern Al Hillah, Iraq). ... The Jerusalem Talmud (In Hebrew Talmud Yerushalmi, in short known as the Yerushalmi), also known as the Palestinian Talmud, like its Babylonian counterpart (see Babylonian Talmud), is a collection of Rabbinic discussions elaborating on the Mishnah. ... Map of the British Mandate of Palestine. ... Babylonia, named for its capital city, Babylon, was an ancient state in the south part of Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Pseudepigrapha (from the Greek words pseudos = lie and epigrapho = write) is a text or a number of texts whose claimed authorship or authenticity is incorrect. ... The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 100. ... // Events Roman Empire governed by the Five Good Emperors (96–180) – Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius. ... Centuries: 1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century Decades: 20s 30s 40s 50s 60s - 70s - 80s 90s 100s 110s 120s Years: 65 66 67 68 69 - 70 - 71 72 73 74 75 Events The building of the Colosseum starts (approximate date). ... CE is an abbreviation which can have the following meanings: Capillary electrophoresis the CE mark is a stylized CE placed on products to signify conformance with European Union regulations. ...

The Babylonian Talmud makes no mention of Elisha's dualism; but it relates that in the critical period following the rebellion of Bar Kokba, Elisha visited the schools and attempted to entice the students from the study of the Torah, in order to direct their energies to some more practical occupation; and it is to him, therefore, that the verse "Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin" (Ecclesiastes 5:5) is to be applied. In connection with this the Biblical quotation is quite intelligible, as according to another haggadah (Shabbat 34b; Ecclesiates Rabbah 5:5) "flesh" here means children—spiritual children, pupils—whom Elisha killed with his mouth by luring them from the study of the Torah. Simon bar Kokhba was a Jewish military leader who led Bar Kokhbas revolt against the Romans in 132 CE, establishing an independent state of Israel which he ruled for three years as Nasi (prince, or president). His state was conquered by the Romans in 135 CE following a two... Torah () is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. It is the central and most important document of Judaism revered by Jews through the ages. ... Ecclesiastes, Qohelet in Hebrew, is a book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ... Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ...

The Jerusalem Talmud is also the authority for the statement that Elisha played the part of an informer during the Hadrianic persecutions, when the Jews were ordered to violate the laws of the Torah. As evidence of this it is related that when the Jews were ordered to do work on the Sabbath, they tried to perform it in a way which could be considered as not profaning the Sabbath. But Elisha betrayed the Pharisees to the Roman authorities. A bust of Hadrian. ... Shabbat (שבת shabbāt, rest Hebrew, or Shabbos in Ashkenazic pronunciation), is the weekly day of rest in Judaism. ... The Pharisees (from the Hebrew perushim, from parash, meaning to separate) were, depending on the time, a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews that flourished during the Second Temple Era (536 BCE–70 CE). ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ...

The Jewish Encyclopedia suggests that it is probable that Elisha had become a Sadducee. It bases this suggesstion on the fact that the Jerusalem Talmud mentions Elisha's betrayal of Pharisee Jews. The Jewish Encyclopedia thus suggests that the antipathy of Elisha was not directed against all forms of Jewish worship existing at that time, but only against Pharisaism, despite the fact the sages who redacted the Jerusalem Talmud were Pharisees and may have simply focused on the betrayal against their own community. The Jewish Encyclopedia also suggests that the reason given for Elisha's apostasy is characteristic of a Sadducee perspective. Elisha saw how a child had lost his life while simultaneously fulfilling two laws for the observance of which the Torah promised a "long life" (Deuteronomy 22:7), whereas another man who broke the same law was not hurt in the least. This encounter, as well as the frightful sufferings of the martyrs during the Hadrianic persecutions, led him to the conclusion that there was no reward for virtue in this life, contrary to his understanding of Deuteronomy (though the Pharisee sages understood this passage as referring to life and reward in the next world). Apparently, the Jewish Encuclopedia suggests that Elisha was a Sadducee, since belief that reward and punishment must occur on Earth and disbelief in an afterlife are part of Sadducee philosophy. However, his abandonment of Jewish practice after his troubling encounters seems to indicate that, whatever his earlier philosophy, Elisha abandoned any form of Jewish religion. The sect of the Sadducees (or Zadokites and other variants) - which may have originated as a political party - was founded in the 2nd century BC and ceased to exist sometime after the 1st century AD. Their rivals, the Pharisees, are said to have originated in the same time period, but... The Pharisees (from the Hebrew perushim, from parash, meaning to separate) were, depending on the time, a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews that flourished during the Second Temple Era (536 BCE–70 CE). ... Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible. ... Historically, a martyr is a person who dies for their convictions or religious faith, such as during the persecution of early Christians in the Roman Empire. ... The Pharisees (from the Hebrew perushim, from parash, meaning to separate) were, depending on the time, a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews that flourished during the Second Temple Era (536 BCE–70 CE). ...

The Jewish Encyclopedia clearly accepts the account of Jerusalem Talmud as based on reliable tradition, partly because the information therein is confirmed by the Babylonian Talmud (Kiddushin 39b). Just as clearly, the Jewish Encyclopedia rejects the Babylonian Talmud as a reliable source in this matter. Nashim (Women or Wives) is the third order of the Mishnah (also of the Tosefta and Talmud), containing the laws related to women and family life. ...

Elisha an "Epicurean"

The harsh treatment he received from the Pharisees was due to his having deserted their ranks at such a critical time. Quite in harmony with this supposition are the other sins laid to his charge; namely, that he rode in an ostentatious manner through the streets of Jerusalem on a Day of Atonement which fell upon a Sabbath, and that he was bold enough to overstep the "tehum" (the limits of the Sabbath-day journey). Both the Jerusalem and the Babylonian Talmuds agree here, and cite this as proof that Elisha turned from Pharisaism to heresy. It was just such non-observance of customs that excited the anger of Akiva (Sotah 27b). The Jewish Encyclopedia writes that the mention of the "Holy of Holies" in this passage is not an anachronism, as Grätz thinks, for while it is true that Eliezer and Joshua were present as the geonim par excellence at Elisha's circumcision—which must, therefore, have occurred after the death of Johanan ben Zakkai (80)—it is also true that the "Holy of Holies" is likewise mentioned in connection with Rabbi Akiva (Makkot, end); indeed, the use of this expression is due to the fact that the Rabbis held holiness to be inherent in the place, not in the building (Yevamot 6b). Yom Kippur (יום כיפור yom kippÅ«r) is the Jewish holiday of the Day of Atonement. ... Nashim (Women or Wives) is the third order of the Mishnah (also of the Tosefta and Talmud), containing the laws related to women and family life. ... The Tabernacle in the Wilderness The Most Holy Place also known as the Holiest of Holies is a location within the inner tabernacle of Moses. ... Geonim (also Gaonim) (גאונים) (Singular: Gaon [גאון] meaning Genius in Hebrew) were the rabbis who were the Jewish Talmudic sages who were the generally accepted leaders of the Jewish community in the early medieval era. ... It has been suggested that Circumcision advocacy be merged into this article or section. ... Yohanan ben Zakkai was a Jewish sage of the first century of the common era, and a primary contributor to the core text of rabbinic Judaism, the Mishnah. ... Events By place Roman Empire The Emperor Titus inaugurates the Flavian Amphitheatre with 100 days of games. ... Nezikin (Hebrew: סדר נזיקין, The Order of Damages) is the fourth order of Mishna (also the Tosefta and Talmud). ... Nashim (Women or Wives) is the third order of the Mishnah (also of the Tosefta and Talmud), containing the laws related to women and family life. ...

The same passage from the Jerusalem Talmud refers to Elisha as being alive when his pupil Rabbi Meir had become a renowned teacher. According to the assumption made above, he must have reached his seventieth year at that time. If Elisha were a Sadducee, the friendship constantly shown him by Rabbi Meïr could be understood. This friendship would have been impossible had Elisha been an apostate or a man of loose morals, as has been asserted. Sadducees and Pharisees, however, lived in friendly intercourse with one another (for example, Rabban Gamaliel with Sadducees; Eruvin 77b). Rabbi Meir was considered one of the greatest of the tannaim of the second generation. ... Moed (Festivals) is the second Order of the Mishnah (also the Tosefta and Talmud), Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. ...

For legends concerning Elisha see Johanan ben Nappaha; Rabbi Meir; compare also Gnosticism. Johanan ben Nappaha was a follower of Judah ha-Nasi, and believed it to be his duty to carry on the writing of the Jerusalem Talmud. ... Rabbi Meir was considered one of the greatest of the tannaim of the second generation. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

Jacob Gordin play

Jacob Gordin wrote a Yiddish play, Elisha Ben Abuyah; it was played unsuccessfully in New York City during Gordin's lifetime, and more successfully in numerous productions after his death; the title role was written for Jacob Adler, the only actor ever to play it. In the 1911 production after Gordin's death, the fallen woman Beata was played by Adler's wife Sara, Ben Abuyah's faithful friend Toivye Avyoini was played by Sigmund Mogulesko, and his daughter (who, in the play, runs away with a Roman soldier) by the Adlers' daughter Frances; in some of the last performances of the play, toward the end of Jacob Adler's career, the daughter was played by Frances younger, and eventually more famous, sister Stella. Jacob Gordin, circa 1895 Jacob Michailovitch Gordin (May 1, 1853–June 11, 1909), was a Ukrainian-born Russian Jewish playwright active in the early years of Yiddish theater. ... Yiddish (ייִדיש, Jiddisch) is a Germanic language spoken by about four million Jews throughout the world. ... Flag Seal Nickname: The Big Apple, The Capital of the World[1], Gotham Location Location in the state of New York Government Counties (Boroughs) Bronx (The Bronx) New York (Manhattan) Queens (Queens) Kings (Brooklyn) Richmond (Staten Island) Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Geographical characteristics Area    - City 1,214. ... Categories: People stubs | Jewish film and theatre | 1855 births | 1926 deaths ... 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... Sara Adler (1858–April 28, 1953) was a Ukrainian Jewish actress in Yiddish theater who made her career mainly in the United States. ... Sigmund Mogulesko (December 16, 1858 – February 4, 1914) — Yiddish: מאָגולסקאָ, זעליג, first name also sometimes given as Zigmund, Siegmund, Zelig, or Selig, last name sometimes spelled Mogulescu — was a singer, actor, and composer in the Yiddish theater, originally from Zlata Pole/Zlatapolia or Kalarash/Kaloraush, Bessarabia. ... Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was a Jewish-American actress, and for decades was regarded as Americas foremost acting teacher. ...

Gordin's Ben Abuyah is clearly a surrogate for Gordin himself, and to some extent for Adler: an unbeliever, but one who thinks of himself, unalterably, as a Jew, and who rejects Christianity even more firmly than Judaism, a man who behaves ethically and who dies haunted by a vision of "terrible Jewish suffering", condemned by the rabbis generally, but lauded as a great Jew by his disciple Rabbi Meir. [Adler, 1999, 254-255 (commentary)]

Milton Steinberg's As A Driven Leaf

Conservative Rabbi Milton Steinberg fictionalized the life of Elisha ben Abuyah in his controversial 1939 novel, As A Driven Leaf. Steinberg's novel wrestles with the 2nd century Jewish struggle to reconcile Rabbinic Judaism both culturally and philosophically with Greek Hellenistic society. In Elisha's struggle, Steinberg speculates about questions and events that may have driven such a man to apostacy, and addresses questions of Jewish self-determination in the Roman Empire, the Bar Kochba Revolt (132-135), and above all the interdependence of reason and faith. Although the novel draws on Talmudic tradition to create the framework for Elish's life, Steinberg himself wrote that his novel "springs from historical data without any effort at rigid conformity or literal confinement to them." (Steinberg, As A Driven Leaf, 480, ISBN 0874411033). Bar Kokhba’s revolt (132-135 CE) against the Roman Empire, also known as The Second Jewish-Roman War or The Second Jewish Revolt, was a second major rebellion by the Jews of Iudaea. ...

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain 1901-1906 Jewish Encyclopedia.
  • Ginzberg, Louis, "Elisha Ben Abuyah", Jewish Encyclopedia. That, in turn gives the following bibliography:
    • Grätz, Gnosticismus und Judenthum, pp. 56-71
    • P. Smolenski, Sämmtliche Werke, ii. 267-278
    • A. Jellinek, Elischa b. Abuja, Leipzig, 1847
    • I. H. Weiss, Dor, ii. 140-143
    • M. Dubsch, in He-Haluz, v. 66-72
    • Siegfried, Philo von Alexandrien, pp. 285-287
    • Bacher, Ag. Tan. i. 432-436
    • Hoffmann, Toledot Elischa b. Abuja, Vienna, 1880
    • S. Rubin, Yalk., Shelomoh, pp. 17-28, Krakow, 1896
    • M. Friedländer, Vorchristlich. Jüd. Gnosticismus, 1898, pp. 100 et seq.
    • Bäck, Elischa b. Abuja-Acher, Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1891. Compare also M. Letteris' Hebrew drama Ben Abuja, an adaptation of Goethe's Faust, Vienna, 1865;
    • B. Kaplan, in Open Court, Aug., 1902
• Adler, Jacob, A Life on the Stage: A Memoir, translated and with commentary by Lulla Rosenfeld, Knopf, New York, 1999, ISBN 0679413510. 254-255 (commentary).