Gamaliel
Gamaliel the Elder, or Rabbi Gamaliel I, was the grandson of the great Jewish teacher Hillel the Elder. He was a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the mid first century. He died nine years before the destruction of Jerusalem (63 C.E.).
As Rabban
Gamaliel I held a reputation of one of the greatest teachers in the annals of Judaism. The Mishnah (Sotah ix.15) pays tribute to this quality, "Since Rabban Gamaliel the Elder died, there has been no more reverence for the law, and purity and abstinence died out at the same time." While believing the law to be wholly inspired by God, he ruled that the sabbath laws should be interpreted realistically rather than rigorously. He also argued that the law should protect women during divorce and urged Jews to be kind towards Gentiles.
In the Talmud, Gamaliel bears the title "Rabban," a title given to the Nasi, or head of the Sanhedrin. A leading memer of the House of Hillel, the liberal branch of Pharisaic Judaism founder by his grandfather Hillel, he was the first of seven known members of that school who reportedly earned the title of Nasi. [1] In the Mishna Gamaliel is spoken of as the author of certain legal ordinances affecting the welfare of the community and regulating issues concerning conjugal rights. Among his rulings, Gamaliel decided that for the purposes of remarriage, a single witness could provide sufficient evidence of the death of a husband (Yevamot 16:7).
Gamaliel appears as the ruler of the Sandhedrin in three surviving epistles which he dictated to the secretary Johanan. (Sanh. ii.6; Sanh. 11b; Yer. Sanh. 18d; etc.). Two of these letters went to the inhabitants of Galilee and southern Palestine and deal with the question of tithes. The third letter was written for the Jews of the Diaspora, and gave notice of important changes in the official Jewish calendar.
He figures in two anecdotes as the religious advisor of Herod Agrippa I and his wife Cypris (Pesahim 88 ii). Few of his teachings have been preserved, in part because his opponents in the House of Shammai seem to have gained control of the Sandhedrin, taking a must stricter line on the crucial question of Jewish relations with the Gentiles. A coalition between the followers of Shammai and the Zealots led to the Jewish war against Rome beginning in 66 C.E., resulting in the deaths of thousands of Jews and the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem.
In teaching of Gamaliel he compares types of his students to varieties of Palestinian fish. (Aboth di R. Nathan, cb. xl.). In this arrangement Gamaliel enumerates the following kinds of pupils: 1) a diligent student who has no understanding; 2) a good student who also possesses understanding; 3) a pupil who has learned everything but does not know how to reply: and 4) a pupil who has learned everything and knows also how to reply. These correspond to the following varieties of fishes: 1) an unclean (ritually inedible) fish; 2) a clean fish; 3) a fish from the Jordan; 4) a fish from the great ocean (Mediterranean).
In Acts of the Apostles
In Acts of the Apostles Gamaliel is described as a Pharisee and celebrated scholar of the Mosaic Law. In Acts (5:34ff), citing past revolts based on the prophesied messiah such as Theudas and Judas of Galilee, Gamaliel advises his fellow-members of the Sanhedrin not to put to death Saint Peter and the Apostles for preaching the Gospel. His advice was acted upon, so great was his authority with his contemporaries. He is also treated as the originator of many legal ordinances; as the father of a son, whom he called Simeon, after his father's name, and of a daughter who married the priest Simon ben Nathanael. (22:3), It is also stated that he was the teacher of St. Paul. In Acts 22:3 Paul tells a crowd in Jerusalem, "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day."[2] But we are told nothing about the nature or the extent of the influence which he exercised upon the future apostle of the Gentiles. Shabbath 30b mentions a student of Gamaliel I who displayed "impudence in learning" a person some scholars identify as possibly referring to Paul. Other scholars, such as Helmut Koester, are doubtful that Paul studied under this famous rabbi.
As a Christian saint
Because of his sympathetic attitude to the early Christians, at an early date Christian ecclesiastical tradition has supposed that Gamaliel I embraced the Christian faith, and remained a member of the Sanhedrin for the purpose of secretly helping his fellow-Christians (compare Recognitions of Clement I.65,66). According to Photius, he was baptized by St. Peter and St. John, together with his son and with Nicodemus. His body was said to be preserved at Pisa, in Italy. Contemporary Jewish records, however, continue to list him first among the Sanhedrin; this would be highly unlikely if he had been a convert to Christianity.[3]
See also
List of names referring to El
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- ↑ Some dispute exists as to whether Gamaliel actually served as president of the Sandherdrin. However, his influence and reputation as a leading member of that body is beyond question.
- ↑ Various translations of Acts 22:3
- ↑ Cheyne and Black (1903). Encyclopedia Biblica. New York: Macmillan.
External sources
- The Jewish Encyclopedia on Gamaliel I
- Perspectives on Transformational Leadership in the Sanhedrin of Ancient Judaism
| Preceded by: Shimon ben Hillel |
Nasi 9 (Est.) - 50 |
Succeeded by: Shimon ben Gamliel |
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