Science and Religion in Ashkenaz. Berechiah ben Natronai ha-Naqdan and his Predecessors

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F61989592%3A15210%2F19%3A73599464" target="_blank" >RIV/61989592:15210/19:73599464 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1484/M.BEHE-EB.5.117465" target="_blank" >http://dx.doi.org/10.1484/M.BEHE-EB.5.117465</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1484/M.BEHE-EB.5.117465" target="_blank" >10.1484/M.BEHE-EB.5.117465</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Science and Religion in Ashkenaz. Berechiah ben Natronai ha-Naqdan and his Predecessors

Original language description

Studying natural sciences and paraphrasing a particular Latin scientific text, namely, Adelard of Bath’s Questions on Nature, Berechiah articulated his trust in an intellectual project and a particular text. His trust certainly did not rely on a well-established tradition of Northern French Jews. The dominant rabbinic tradition did not value or encourage the study of natural sciences, learning anything from Christians, and reading Latin books, even though none of the aforementioned activities were categorically forbidden by religious authorities. Berechiah was probably encouraged by earlier Hebrew scientific literature that had been received in Ashkenaz prior to his birth: the Hebrew medical encyclopaedia Book of Remedies attributed to Asaf (eighth to tenth centuries) and the Sefer Hakhmoni by Shabbatai Donnolo (Southern Italy, around 982 CE). The personality of Abraham Ibn Ezra, his teaching activities in Normandy and England during the 1150s and 1160s, and his biblical commentaries and other works also prepared the local Jewish audience to take an interest in scientific themes and texts. Moreover, a new interest in natural history emerged within the context of rabbinic culture itself during the twelfth century. The most important example is Rabbenu Tam’s novel classification of clean and unclean birds. In the Appendix it is argued that Berechiah was influenced by Macrobius independently of Adelard. It is suggested that a Christian mentor explained both the wording and the content of Adelard’s work to Berechiah, and since he was familiar with Macrobius’ works too, he transmitted some of Macrobius’ ideas to Berechiah too, even if they were not mentioned in Adelard’s text.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

C - Chapter in a specialist book

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

60301 - Philosophy, History and Philosophy of science and technology

Project

<a href="/en/project/GA14-19686S" target="_blank" >GA14-19686S: Hebrew and Latin literary exchanges in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period: Berekhiah ben Natronay ha-Nakdan and his reception</a><br>

Continuities

P - Projekt vyzkumu a vyvoje financovany z verejnych zdroju (s odkazem do CEP)

Publication year

2019

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Book/collection name

Berechiah ben Natronai ha-Naqdan’s Works and Their Reception L’oeuvre de Berechiah ben Natronai ha-Naqdan et sa réception

ISBN

978-2-503-58365-5

Number of pages of the result

32

Pages from-to

87-118

Number of pages of the book

254

Publisher name

Brepols Publishers

Place of publication

Turnhout

UT code for WoS chapter

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