Gershom ben Judah

Gershom ben Judah (around 960 – 1028 or 1040) Rabbi

Gershom ben Judah is one of the most influential scholars of his time. Born in Metz, France, in around 960, he goes on to live in Mainz, where he opens a yeshiva that attracts a multitude of students from a wide variety of different regions. Together with Worms and Speyer, Mainz becomes a centre of culture and religion from which the Ashkenazic culture arises. His high reputation gives him the authority to pass decrees that are recognised as binding throughout the entire Ashkenazic area and that play a key role in life in this new home. Examples of such legislation include the divorce law, which regulates the rights of women in particular, the prohibition of polygamy and rules on the privacy of correspondence. The modern-day Jewish community still honours his memory by granting him the title “Light of the Exile”.