Nachmanides: Spanish Scholar, Jewish Debater and Man of Big Questions

Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (Ramban) - known as Nachmanides - is one of Judaism's most brilliant minds ever. Born in Gerona, Spain in 1194, Nachmanides was an ingenious Talmudist, Kabbalist and Biblical commentator. His commentary to the Torah stands out as one of the most creative and insightful commentaries in print.

One of the outstanding features of Nachmanides' commentary was his willingness to openly tackle the at times morally questionable behavior of Biblical figures. This comes to expression most powerfully in the Book of Genesis, where the stories of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs often reflect behavior patterns that seem to go against a moral code of conduct.

In the saga of Abraham, Sarah and their maidservant Hagar, Nachmanides openly criticizes Sarah's behavior towards Hagar and her request of Abraham to expel her and Ishmael from their home: "Sarah our mother sinned in dealing harshly with her handmaid," says Nachmanides, "and Abraham, too, by allowing her to do so."

Nechama Leibowitz comments on Nachmanides' open critique of Sarah, remarking that "he could not find any excuses to condone Sarah's behavior, nor could he present any psychological explanations in extenuation of her deeds. No appraisal of Sarah's character could condone the sin of 'Sarah dealt harshly with her.'"

Nachmanides' refreshingly honest approach actually brought many people closer to the Torah and Judaism. Through his commentaries, he made people realize that our Patriarchs and Matriarchs were human beings like all other human beings, filled with the same complexities as any of us. They are not angels or superhuman, rather they are flesh and blood, just like we are. Confronting their imperfections makes them more relatable, not as heroes, but as people we look up to despite their flaws. 

In that same spirit, Nachmanides asks a major question about Joseph. In this week's Torah portion - Parashat Vayigash - Joseph's brother Judah delivers a long and moving speech before Joseph, whom he cannot yet identify as his brother. In Judah's mind, he is speaking to the Prince of Egypt. During this emotional speech, Judah says: "We have an old father and there is a child of his old age, the youngest...if I return to my father and the boy is not with us, he will die" (Genesis 44: 18, 30).

These heart wrenching words about the potential death of his father move Joseph to finally reveal himself to his brother, for immediately following Judah's speech, the Torah says: "Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants...his crying was so loud that the Egyptians could hear...and Joseph said to his brothers, 'I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?'"

Joseph was moved and broken by Judah's emotional plea, but Nachmanides has a question: 

"Joseph would indeed be regarded as having committed a great sin: bringing anguish to his father, leaving him for many days in the position of being bereft and mourning for Simeon and him. Even if it was his intention to cause his brothers minor anguish, how did he not have compassion for his elderly father? After Joseph stayed in Egypt for many years and became chief and overseer in the house of a great lord in Egypt, how was it possible that he did not send a single letter to his father to inform him of his whereabouts and comfort him, as Egypt is only about a six-day journey from Hebron? Even if it were a year’s journey, out of respect to his father, he should have notified him."

While in the case of Joseph, Nachmanides does attempt to answer this difficult question by saying that Joseph could not tamper with the pattern of dreams from his younger days, and that he was waiting until those dreams were fulfilled as prophecies, Nachmanides' question nonetheless remains with us as a powerful critique of Joseph, one that raises bigger questions for us to ponder: Did power go to his head? Did he forget his roots, his family, and his aging father? Nachmanides' question brings us closer to appreciating the complexity and truth of Joseph's human nature, bringing us to a closer understanding of the lessons we may learn from Joseph's experiences. No matter what positions of power, wealth or success we may achieve, we must always stay in touch with our loved ones, and remember our roots and from where we came. Family must always come first.

What's interesting is that while Nachmanide's immense body of Biblical, Talmudic and Kabbalistic knowledge are certainly his intellectual legacy, one of the defining human, face to face experiences in his life was his famous Disputation at Barcelona in 1263. Here he was challenged to defend Judaism in the public arena, against a former Jew now named Pablo Christiani, and in the presence of the King of Aragon. This was not his private study facing books and texts, but the public domain, facing people, and one specific opponent. In order to succeed in his task, Nachmanides had to know more than his arguments: he had to understand human nature. This was a live showdown. 

Nachmanides won the disputation, fully displaying his deep knowledge of Jewish texts, but also showing his prowess as a skilled debater who knew how to psychologically wear down his opponent and defeat him. Winning a debate is more than knowing the facts and "out knowing" what he knows. You have to understand your opponent as a person.

How did Nachmanides learn to do that? Perhaps it had something to do with his Biblical commentaries, where he always sought a deeper understanding of human nature, such as raising difficult questions about Abraham, Sarah and Joseph. These tough questions gave him a more profound understanding of human beings. By probing the deeper character of our Patriarchs and Matriarchs, including their faults, Nachmanides ultimately gained a better psychological understanding of human beings. This ultimately helped him defeat his opponent at Barcelona and bring public honor to the Torah and Judaism. 

Big questions, when asked with respect, sincerity and knowledge, can ultimately produce big results. 

Shabbat Shalom

Born on Hanukkah, Destined to Lead: Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim's Miraculous Hanukkah Teachings

Born on the first night of Hanukkah in the year 1895 in Baghdad, a young man named Yitzhak was given the middle name Nissim - Miracles - by his parents, because of the miraculous holiday during which he was born. Upon his arrival to the Land of Israel in the year 1925, the young boy - by now a renowned rabbinic scholar - decided to turn his middle name into his last name, and thus he was known for the rest of his life as Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim. 

One of the most creative and outstanding Sephardic leaders of the 20th century, Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim served as the Rishon L'Zion - the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel - from 1955-1973. He followed his mentor and teacher Rabbi Uziel in this prestigious position, and was considered one of the most active leaders in spreading the light of Torah to a wide variety of audiences. His teachings were inspirational, always with a unifying message, and filled with pride in the Jewish people and a deeply spiritual belief in God. 

Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim did not believe in terms like "religious, secular, Haredi, Modern Orthodox, Reform". These divisive labels went against everything he believed, and he spent his entire career as seeking to inspire and unify the Jewish people. In fact, his first mission as Chief Rabbi was to develop a relationship with the leaders of the Kibbutz movement in Israel, most of whom considered themselves "secular." That was irrelevant to Rabbi Nissim, whose goal was not to "make them religious," but to enrich their Kibbutz lives with traditional Jewish customs,  connect them to the Jewish traditions of their ancestors, and let them decide how all of this would fit into their Kibbutz life.

What follows below is my translation from Hebrew of a beautiful Hanukkah message Rabbi Nissim delivered in Israel, to a group of Jews who did not consider themselves "religious." He delivered it with love, because he loved every Jew:

Hanukkah represents our nation's historic desire for freedom and independence, both from a spiritual and national perspective. In every generation, enemies arose who sought to deny us these freedoms, and when the Hasmoneans decided to take up arms against the evil Greek rulers who denied our religious and national rights, they did so as a small band of freedom fighters who were numerically outnumbered by their enemies, yet the "few triumphed over the many." This victory was against all odds. What was the secret weapon that the Hasmoneans possessed that led to this unlikely victory over such a massive army?

From time immemorial, the Jewish people knew their identity, mission and purpose: to be a unique nation distinguished in their deep faith in God, and through observance of God's commandments, to be a light unto the nations and fill the world with positive light.

It is from this place of deep faith and purpose that the Hasmoneans took up arms. They knew what they were fighting for and why they were fighting. This was not a "war for the sake of warfare" or to assert military superiority, rather a war fought for the spiritual survival of a people, their ideas and their ideals. These were the true "secret weapons" of the Hasmoneans, and because of the purity of their motives, God helped them by showing them Divine wonders and miracles.

As it was with the Hasmoneans, so too is to today, in our State of Israel. These days of Hanukkah that we celebrate here together hold a deep and unique meaning for us. From the time when the miracle of Hanukkah miracle happened until today, our people endured a difficult and challenging diaspora, the "birth pangs of redemption." We stayed strong and maintained our faith in God, until with the grace of God we merited to see the restoration of a Jewish government in our land. Yet as it was with the Hasmoneans, so too it is today, that with our renewed independence in our sacred land, our enemies near and far continue to threaten to destroy us.

With deep faith in God, and in our mission as a Jewish nation, our modern army - the "great-grandchildren of the Hasmoneans" - went to battle and faced our enemies who sought our destruction. Their determination, along with God's help, brought about the victories we merited to see in our days, that helped reestablish and secure our nation's independence in our ancient homeland. We were all witness to the renewed miracle of Hanukkah in our days, and it is now upon us to be worthy of that miracle by carrying out our higher mission and purpose in the world. 

My dear brothers and sisters, you saw first hand the miracles that God brought for us against enemies much greater in number than us. You merited to witness the Hanukkah story again, in our generation. Use this as an opportunity to strengthen your spiritual connection to God and the beautiful traditions of the Torah. Doing so will give our victories here a deeper meaning and bigger purpose, to bring light into the world. That is our legacy, and that is our future -- all of us, together. 

Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim was born on Hanukkah in 1895 in Baghdad, and died on Tisha B'Av in 1981 in Jerusalem. Tisha B'Av is the anniversary of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, but our tradition teaches that it is also the day upon which the Mashiach (Messiah) will be born. From darkness and destruction, says the Talmud, light and salvation will emerge. 

Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim's journey on earth began on the day when the Hasmoneans rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem, and ended on the day when that Temple was destroyed - but also the day when its redeemer will rebuild it. How symbolic that - in the spirit of both days - he spent his entire life helping to "rebuild the Temple" - the modern-day Temple called the State of Israel. He did so by bringing the light of Torah to multitudes of Jews from various backgrounds and walks of life, inspiring them to connect to their heritage, to one another, and to God.

Per the middle name that became his last name - Nissim - his life as a Jew who came from Baghdad to Jerusalem, and persevered under difficult circumstances to teach Torah to so many Jews in the small, new, socially struggling and embattled Jewish state - was indeed miraculous.

On this Hanukkah, we remember with love Rabbi Yitzhak Nissim, a brilliant Sephardic leader and Chief Rabbi. We pray that the light of his teachings continue to illuminate our journey today, and for generations to come.

Shabbat Shalom, Hodesh Tov and Hanukkah Sameach.