Gamaliel

Gamaliel I Known as "the Elder" (1st cent. CE), president-patriarch (nasi) of the Sanhedrin, grandson of Hillel. He and his descendant-successors were distinguished by the honorific title Rabban ("our master") in place of the usual Rabbi ("my master") applied to talmudic sages.

As a contemporary of King Agrippa I, he was consulted by him (and his queen) on halakhic problems. As the supreme halakhic authority, he issued from the Temple precincts proclamations to the communities in Erets Israel and in the Diaspora concerning tithing problems and the leap year (Sanh. 11b). The right of the Sanhedrin to regulate the Jewish Calendar was at the heart of its authority, and Gamaliel issued a number of regulations (see Takkanah) to assure the examination of witnesses who had seen the New Moon, thus enabling the court to proclaim the beginning of another month.

Of particular importance are his regulations affecting Marriage (Divorce) law (Git. 4:2-3). To protect the divorcee, he introduced a number of restrictions with regard to the issuance of a letter of divorce (get). The biblical rules of evidence to establish the death of a husband were relaxed in order to free the wife from the shackled status of an Agunah (Yev. 16:7).

Gamaliel adopted a humane attitude to gentiles, who were to be given equal charitable treatment with Jews: in material support, visiting their sick, eulogizing and burying their dead, and comforting their mourners. They should not be discriminated against when gathering their due in the fields (Lev. 23:22).

Even in his attitude to the emerging Judeo-Christian sect he showed tolerance and adopted a "wait and see" policy when Peter and other Apostles were brought before the Sanhedrin. The New Testament calls him "a teacher of the law held in high regard by all the people" (Acts 5:34).

No Aggadic-Midrashic statements are reported in his name, but he gave some sound advice to his students: provide yourself with a teacher; rid yourself of doubt; and when giving tithe do not do so by approximation (Avot 1:16).

Simeon Ben Gamaliel I succeeded his father Gamaliel I as nasi of the Sanhedrin and was active during the last few decades before 70 Ce (Shab. 15a). Like his father, he issued proclamations to the Jewish communities inside and outside Erets Israel informing them of the Sanhedrin's decision to intercalate a month in leap years and instructing them about their tithing duties (sanh. 11a).

Simeon's modesty is evident in his saying: "All my days I have grown up among the Sages, and I have found no better way than silence; not learning but doing is the chief thing; and too many words cause sin" (avot 1:18). When ecstatically rejoicing at the Water-Drawing Festival at the Temple, he could juggle with eight lighted torches.

Josephus refers in glowing terms to the role played by Simeon in the rebellion against Roman rule (66 CE). Simeon joined the revolutionary council directing the war against Rome. When the Zealots progressively established their disastrous dictatorship over Jerusalem and the Temple, he spoke out forcefully (though in vain) against them.

Gamaliel II (of Yavneh, mid-1st cent. CE; d. before 132 CE), a son of Simeon ben Gamaliel I, was also nasi of the Sanhedrin. He presided over the national-religious restoration after the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, a work begun by Johanan Ben Zakkai. He maintained the authority of the Sanhedrin-Academy of Yavneh by making it the rallying point for a galaxy of scholars. Under his guidance, the community of sages, often at variance with each other, produced a body of theological, legal, ritual, and ethical teachings which, under his grandson Judah Ha-Nasi, formed the basis of the Mishnah. Gamaliel's opinions are quoted in this code about 70 times. Only a man of strong character, besides great intellectual powers, and a deeply religious, saintly spirit could have accomplished his tasks. However, it involved him in many conflicts. In one clash with Joshua Ben ḥananiah, Gamaliel overstepped the line by humiliating the elderly scholar. This led to a revolt in which it was decided to depose the authoritarian president and replace him, but he was eventually reinstated. There remained a tension between him and the Sanhedrin as to their respective authority, but he succeeded in assuring the primacy of his office in such matters as leap years and the ordination of rabbis (Sanh. 11a; TJ Sanh. 1:19a).

In addition to his duties as President of the High Court and Academy, Gamaliel was the leader of the nation. His frequent hazardous sea journeys to Rome at the head of delegations reveal him as the political spokesman of his people vis à-vis the Roman government, particularly Emperor Domitian. Tradition reports many disputations between Gamaliel and highly placed Romans, "philosophers," and heretics on theological, biblical, and rabbinical problems.

There was hardly an area of Jewish practice and faith in which Gamaliel did not intervene. He standardized the Amidah and made its recital obligatory (Ber. 4:3; 28b), and included in it a blessing (or rather curse) against heretics (Minim), probably Judeo-Christians, who thus would be prevented from leading or joining public prayer, together with other "enemies of the people" such as informers or apostates. He also declared the Evening Prayer obligatory. He sought to strengthen the observance of festivals, and tried to assure the continued observance of offerings and tithes to priests and Levites and the laws of ritual purity, originally connected to the Temple and Jerusalem. The final Bible canon may also be due to the work of Gamaliel and his Sanhedrin at Yavneh.

Simeon ben Gamaliel II (2nd cent. CE), son of Gamaliel II, head of the Sanhedrin. When he became nasi, the Sanhedrin had moved to Usha (RH 32a). His opinions are quoted frequently in tannaitic texts---one hundred times in the Mishnah, where they are accepted, with three exceptions, as authoritative (Ket. 78a). He warned against imposing restrictions which the public would find hard to bear (AZ 36a) and that local customs had to be respected (Ket. 6:4).

Simeon's dicta are very much concerned with peace. The world, he said, rests on three pillars: Law, Truth, and Peace (Avot 1:18). Law has to serve peace, and arbitration is therefore preferable to apodictic judgment (Sanh. 5b). Peace begins in the home and ends in the nation.

1. Son of Pedahzur, and a leader of the tribe of Manasseh.

2. Also known as Gamaliel I or the Elder, an outstanding Pharisee scholar and teacher (Paul was one of his pupils, Acts 22:3), known for his tolerance and wisdom. He introduced several reforms designed to adapt Jewish law to the economic and political conditions of the time. His tolerance is in evidence in the story in Acts 5:33-40, where he tried to prevent the persecution of the early Christians and warned the Sanhedrin that these people would not be overthrown if their belief came from God, although adding that "if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing" (Acts 5:38). The later Christian legend that Gamaliel was a secret Christian probably has its origin in this story. Later tradition also placed his burial with that of Stephen at Caphar Gamala (Beit Jimal).

Concordance
GAMALIEL 1: Num 1:10; 2:20; 7:54, 59; 10:23
GAMALIEL 2: Acts 5:34; 22:3

Rabbinical Eras
Zugot Tannaim Amoraim Savoraim Geonim Rishonim Acharonim

This article is about Gamaliel the Elder. For other individuals and uses see Gamaliel (disambiguation)

Gamaliel the Elder (gəmā'lēəl), or Rabbi Gamaliel I, was a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the mid first century. He was the grandson of the great Jewish teacher Hillel the Elder, and died twenty years before the destruction of the second temple in Jerusalem. He fathered a son, whom he called Simeon, after his father's name^[1], and a daughter, whose daughter (i.e., Gamaliel's granddaughter) married a priest named Simon ben Nathanael^[2]. The name Gamaliel is the Greek form of the Hebrew name meaning reward of God.

In the Christian tradition, Gamaliel is celebrated as a Pharisee doctor of Jewish Law, who was the teacher of Paul the Apostle^[3]; the author of the Book of Acts portrays Gamaliel with great respect^[4].

Contents 1 As Rabban 2 Influence on the Christian Apostles 3 As a Christian 4 Film portrayals 5 See also 6 References 7 External sources

As Rabban

In the Talmud, seven leaders of Hillel's school of thought, of which Gamaliel was the first, are given the title Rabban^[5] (master), a rabbinic title given to the Head of the Sanhedrin; although it is not doubted that Gamaliel genuinely held a senior position, whether he actually held this highest position has been disputed.^[1] Gamaliel holds a reputation in the Mishnah for being one of the greatest teachers in all the annals of Judaism:

Since Rabban Gamaliel the Elder died, there has been no more reverence for the law, and purity and piety died out at the same time^[6]

Gamaliel's authority on questions of religious law is suggested by two Mishnaic anecdotes, in which the king and queen ask for his advice about rituals^[7]; the identity of the king and queen in question is not given, but is generally thought to either be King Herod Agrippa I and his wife Cypris, or King Herod Agrippa II and his sister Berenice.^[1]

However, as classical rabbinical literature always contrasts the school of Hillel to that of Shammai, and only presents the collective opinions of each of these opposing schools of thought - without mentioning the individual nuances and opinions of the rabbis within them - these texts do not portray Gamaliel as being knowledgeable about the Jewish scriptures, nor do they portray him as a teacher^[1]. For this reason, Gamaliel is not listed as part of the chain of individuals who perpetuated the Mishnaic tradition^[8]; instead, the chain is listed as passing directly from Hillel to Johanan ben Zakkai.

Nevertheless, the Mishnah still mentions Gamaliel's authorship of a few legal ordinances on the subjects of community welfare and conjugal rights. He argued that the law should protect women during divorce, and that, for the purpose of re-marriage, a single witness was sufficient evidence for the death of a husband^[9]. The Mishnah also contains a saying it attributes to 'Gamaliel', though it is vague in this case about which particular 'Gamaliel' it means; the saying itself concerns religious scruples:

Obtain a teacher for yourself, keep yourself [on religious questions] far from doubt, and only infrequently give a tithe using general valuation^[10].

Various pieces of classical rabbinic literature additionally mention that Gamaliel sent out three epistles, designed as notifications of new religious rulings, and which portray Gamaliel as the head of the Jewish body for religious-law^{[11][12][13][14]}. Two of these three were sent, respectively, to the inhabitants of Galilee and the Darom (southern Judea), and were on the subject of the Levite Tithe. The third epistle was sent to the Jews of the Diaspora, and argued for the introduction of an intercalary month.

Since the Hillel school of thought is presented collectively, there are very few other teachings which are clearly identifiable as Gamaliel's; there is only a somewhat cryptic dictum, comparing his students to classes of fish:

A ritually impure fish: one who has memorised everything by study, but has no understanding, and is the son of poor parents

A ritually pure fish: one who has learnt and understood everything, and is the son of rich parents

A fish from the Jordan River: one who has learnt everything, but doesn't know how to respond

A fish from the Mediterranean: one who has learnt everything, and knows how to respond

Influence on the Christian Apostles

The author of Acts of the Apostles introduces Gamaliel as a Pharisee and celebrated scholar of the Mosaic Law^[15]. In this passage, Saint Peter and the other apostles are described as being prosecuted by the Sanhedrin for continuing to preach the Gospel, despite the Jewish authorities having previously prohibited it; the passage describes Gamaliel as presenting an argument against killing the apostles, reminding the Sanhedrin about previous revolts, which had been based on beliefs that individuals such as Theudas and Judas of Galilee were the prophesied messiah, and which had collapsed quickly after the deaths of those individuals. According to Acts, his authority with his contemporaries was so great that they accepted his advice, regardless of how unwelcome it was; Gamaliel's concluding argument to them had been that:

if [the Gospel] be of men, it will come to naught, but if it be of God, ye will not be able to overthrow it; lest perhaps ye be found even to fight against God^[16].

The Book of Acts later goes on to describe Paul of Tarsus recounting that he was educated at the feet of Gamaliel about Jewish religious law^[17], although no details are given about which teachings Paul adopted from Gamaliel - and hence how much Gamaliel influenced aspects of Christianity. However, there is no other record of Gamaliel ever having taught in public^[1], although the Talmud does describe Gamaliel as teaching a student who displayed impudence in learning, which a few scholars identify as a possible reference to Paul^[18]. Helmut Koester, Professor of Divinity and of Ecclesiastical History at Harvard University, is doubtful that Paul studied under this famous rabbi, arguing that there is a marked contrast in the tolerance that Gamaliel is said to have expressed about Christianity, in contrast to the "murderous rage" against Christians that Paul is described as having prior to his conversion^[19].

As a Christian

Saint Stephen Mourned by Saints Gamaliel and Nicodemus, follower of Carlo Saraceni, c. 1615, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Ecclesiastical tradition maintains that Gamaliel had embraced the Christian faith. His tolerant attitude toward the Early Christians is explained by this. According to Photius, he was baptized by Saint Peter and Saint John, together with his son and with Nicodemus; the Clementine Literature, suggested that he maintained secrecy about the conversion, and continued to be a member of the Sanhedrin, for the purpose of covertly assisting his fellow-Christians^[20]. The Roman Catholic church views him as a Saint, and listed him in the Roman Martyrology; it is said that in the 5th century, by a miracle, his body had been discovered, and taken to Pisa Cathedral^[21].

The Jewish account maintains that he remained a Pharisee until his death. There is little historical evidence concerning Gamaliel's religious persuasion later in his life, so after 1956^[22] he stopped being listed in the Roman martyrology. However, not appearing in the martyrology does not mean that he is no longer considered a saint by the Church; once someone is canonized (considered a saint in heaven) they cannot become "un-canonized." Contemporary Jewish records continue to list him first among the Sanhedrin^[23] but it is of note that he is not listed in the chain of transmission of the oral tradition which may indicate that he was suspected of adhering to another oral tradition, that of the Christians.

Film portrayals

Gamaliel has been portrayed in several made-for-television films and miniseries by actors such as Jose Ferrer, John Houseman, and Franco Nero. ^[24]

See also

Rabbis of the Mishnah : Chronology & Hierarchy v • d • e

Teacher→Student             Father→Son                                                                                                                       Hillel   Shammai                                                                                       Gamaliel the Elder               Johanan b. Zakai                                                                                                 R. Gamaliel   Jose the Galilean   Eliezer b. Hyrcanus   Joshua b. Hananiah   Eleazar b. Arach   Eleazar b. Azariah                                                                         Elisha b. Abuyah       Akiva   Ishmael b. Elisha   Tarfon                                                                                         Nathan   Meir   Judah b. Ilai   Jose b. Halafta   Shimon b. Yohai                                                                                             Judah haNasi   Hiyya   Oshiah

Preceded by Shammai

Nasi c. 30–50

Succeeded by Shimon ben Gamliel

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References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} The Jewish Encyclopedia article on Gamliel I by Solomon Schechter and Wilhelm Bacher.
2. ^ 'Abodah Zarah 3:10
3. ^ "Gamaliel." Catholic Encyclopedia. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06374b.htm
4. ^ Acts 5:34
5. ^ Shabbat 15a
6. ^ Sotah 15:18
7. ^ Pesahim 88:2
8. ^ Pirkei Abot 1-2
9. ^ Yebamot 16:7
10. ^ Pirkei Abot 1:16
11. ^ Sanhedrin (Tosefta) 2:6
12. ^ Sanhedrin 11b
13. ^ Sanhedrin (Jerusalem Talmud only) 18d
14. ^ Ma'aser Sheni (Jerusalem Talmud only) 56c
15. ^ Acts 5:34-40
16. ^ Acts 5:39
17. ^ Acts 22:3
18. ^ Shabbat 30b
19. ^ Acts 8:1-3
20. ^ Recognitions of Clement 1:65-66
21. ^ Catholic Encyclopedia, Gamaliel the Elder
22. ^ Roman Martyrology for August 3
23. ^ Cheyne and Black (1903). Encyclopedia Biblica. New York: Macmillan. 
24. ^ "Gamaliel (Character)". Imdb.com. http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0036698/. Retrieved 2008-11-06. 

External sources

• The Jewish Encyclopedia on Gamaliel I
• Perspectives on Transformational Leadership in the Sanhedrin of Ancient Judaism

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