Maimonides

Maimonides (1135-1204), Jewish philosopher and physician, born in Córdoba, Spain. He was also known as Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, or, from the initials of his name, Rambam. Following the capture of Córdoba in 1148 by the Almohads, who imposed Islam on Christians and Jews alike, Maimonides's family decided to emigrate. After years of wandering they finally settled in Cairo. There Maimonides eventually became the chief rabbi of Cairo and physician to Saladin, sultan of Egypt and Syria.

The contributions of Maimonides to the development of Judaism earned him the title “second Moses.” His greatest work in the field of Jewish law is the Mishneh Torah arranged in 14 books and written in Hebrew (1170-80), which he continued to revise until his death. In addition he formulated the Thirteen Articles of Faith, one of several creeds to which many Orthodox Jews still adhere. He is regarded also as the outstanding Jewish philosopher of the Middle Ages. In the Guide for the Perplexed, written in Arabic (circa 1190), Maimonides sought to harmonize faith and reason by reconciling the tenets of rabbinic Judaism with the rationalism of Aristotelian philosophy in its modified Arabic form, which includes elements of Neoplatonism. This work, in which he considers the nature of God and creation, free will, and the problem of good and evil, profoundly influenced such Christian philosophers as St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Albertus Magnus. His use of an allegorical method of biblical interpretation, which minimized anthropomorphism, was opposed for several centuries by many Orthodox rabbis; but the issues involved have lost their relevancy in modern times. Maimonides's fame as a physician equaled his fame as a philosopher and authority on Judaic law. He also produced writings on astronomy, logic, and mathematics.