Don Isaac Abravanel: Statesman and Philosopher
Don Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508) was a major historical figure during the waning of the Middle Ages. Statesman, diplomat, courtier, and financier, he was, at the same time, a scholar of encyclopedic learning, a philosopher, an exegete, a prolific author, a mystic, and an apocalyptist. In Abravanel, B. Netanyahu suggests, two long lines of tradition met and concluded: that of medieval Jewish statesmen and that of medieval Jewish philosophers. In what is both a biography and an exploration of...
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Don Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508) was a major historical figure during the waning of the Middle Ages. Statesman, diplomat, courtier, and financier, he was, at the same time, a scholar of encyclopedic learning, a philosopher, an exegete, a prolific author, a mystic, and an apocalyptist. In Abravanel, B. Netanyahu suggests, two long lines of tradition met and concluded: that of medieval Jewish statesmen and that of medieval Jewish philosophers. In what is both a biography arid an exploration of Abravanel's thought and influence, Netanyahu describes how Abravanel illuminated the grave crisis and profound transformation experienced by the Jewish people after the Spanish expulsion.
PrefacePt. 1Financier and StatesmanIPortugal: Happy Haven3IISpain: Land of Persecution33IIINaples: Scene of Trouble61IVVenice: The Last Refuge82Pt. 2Commentator and PhilosopherIWorld Outlook95IIView of History130IIIPolitical Concepts150IVMessianism195Appendices261Notes265Bibliography327Index337
\ From the Publisher"A basic reference and one which cannot be ignored by any responsible scholar in the fields of Spanish and Jewish studies. . . . It is one of those rare books which make interesting reading both for scholars and for the general reader interested in Judaism and its rich cultural and religious history."-Francisco Márquez, Harvard University\ "This is the study of the life and ideas of Don Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508), a major figure at the end of the Middle Ages and during the transformation of Judaism after the Spanish expulsion. The author traces Abravanel's tumultuous career as a financier and statesman in Portugal, Spain, Naples, and Venice and analyses his world outlook, view of history, poltical ideas, and mystical messianism."-W. Charles Heiser, S. J., Theology Digest, Fall 1999\ \ \
