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Chaim Abraham Gagin

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Chaim Abraham Gagin
image attributed to Chaim Abraham Gaguine
Personal life
Born1787
Constantinople, Ottoman Empire
Died23 May 1848(1848-05-23) (aged 60–61)
Jerusalem, Ottoman Empire
Religious life
ReligionJudaism
Jewish leader
PredecessorYehuda Navon
SuccessorYitzhak Kovo

Chaim Abraham Gagin (1787–1848) was Chief Rabbi of Ottoman Palestine from 1842 to 1848. He was a foremost posek, mekubal, author, and the head of the Tiferet Yerushalaim Yeshiva. One of his notable actions was saving the Samaritans from extermination.

Biography

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Born in Constantinople,[1] he was the grandson of the Jerusalem Kabbalist Shalom Sharabi.[2] Gagin was the first individual to hold both the positions of Hakham Bashi and Rishon Lezion simultaneously following their merger.[1] This appointment granted him formal recognition as the representative of the Jewish community to the government, endowing him with judicial, religious, and civic authorities.[1]

Regarded as one of the foremost poskim (Jewish legal decisors) of his era, Gagin also oversaw the Tiferet Yerushalaim Yeshiva.[1] Among his notable works is Sepher Hatakanoth Vehaskamoth, a compendium of Jewish religious rites and customs as practiced in the City of Jerusalem.[2][3] He was also the author of Chukei Chaim, a work addressing the debate on halukka, and Sefer Chaim MiYerushalaim, a collection of derashot.[1]

He supported the establishment of Rabbi Yisrael Bak's printing house in Jerusalem, where some of his books were printed.[1]

During the 1840s, the Samaritans faced persecution from Muslims who regarded them as "idol worshippers", forcing them to convert to Islam or face execution. The Samaritans asked Gagin to help them, and he wrote a document that the Samaritans are a "a branch of the children of Israel, who acknowledge the truthfulness of the Torah." This proclamation led Muslim authorities to recognize the Samaritans as a Jewish sect, saving them from persecution and extermination.[4][5][6]

Gagin was interred on the Mount of Olives.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g ברטל, ישראל. "הארץ ויהודיה". In בן-נאה, ירון; הלד דילהרוזה, מיכל (eds.). הישוב הישן הספרדי בארץ ישראל (in Hebrew). מכון בן-צבי לחקר קהילות ישראל במזרח של יד בן-צבי והאוניברסיטה העברית. p. 15. ISSN 1565-0774.
  2. ^ a b "Chaim Abraham Gagin. Sepher Hatakanoth Vehaskamoth". Kestenbaum & Co. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
  3. ^ Westreich, Elimelech (2012). "Jewish Judicial Autonomy in Nineteenth Century Jerusalem: Background, Jurisdiction, Structure". Jewish Law Association Studies. 22: 303. ISSN 0890-7552.
  4. ^ שור, נתן (2006). "השומרונים בתקופה הממלוכית, העות'מאנית ובמאה העשרים" [The Samaritans under Mamluk and Ottoman rule and during the 20th century]. In שטרן, אפרים; אשל, חנן (eds.). ספר השומרונים [Book of the Samaritans] (in Hebrew) (2 ed.). ירושלים: יד יצחק בן-צבי; רשות העתיקות; המנהל האזרחי ליהודה ושומרון - קצין מטה לארכאולוגיה. pp. 604–648. ISBN 965-217-202-2.
  5. ^ Gafni, Reuven (2022-01-19). "Two Minorities on the Brink: Jews and Samaritans in Nineteenth-Century Nablus". The Samaritans. Brill. pp. 129–136. doi:10.1163/9789004466913_014. ISBN 978-90-04-46691-3.
  6. ^ Isaac Ben-Zvi, "The Book of the Samaritans", 19353 Pp.36.
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