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The Maimonidean Legacy in the East: A Study of Father and Son

Abstract: In the aftermath of Maimonides’ death in 1204, competing efforts to define and redefine the Maimonidean legacy were instrumental in shaping a number of Jewish intellectual and spiritual movements in the thirteenth century and beyond. The present paper looks at the immediate context of this legacy in Maimonides’ Egypt through the controversial career of his son and communal successor, Abraham (1186-1237). Rather than compare the philosophical or mystical tendencies of father and son, this paper looks at their record of religious leadership by comparing their handling of three disputed liturgical customs. While their divergent approaches to communal leadership is evident in each case, Abraham consistently compared his own controversial synagogue reforms with what he considered to be his father’s earlier failed efforts at reform. In the most intriguing example, Abraham appealed to his father’s legacy even when openly diverging from the latter’s stated positions, such as in his effort to incorporate pietist and devotional reforms into synagogue life.