R. Saadia Gaon

R. Saadia Gaon (882-942) was unquestionably one of the most important if not the most important medieval Jewish thinker. He dealt with biblical exegesis, philosophy, grammar, poetry, prayer, and Halakha, and in many of these fields he is considered an innovator and a trailblazer, paving new paths for his followers. Many of the sages who lived after him cited from his writings. He served as head of the Academy of Sūra, Babylon, but the impact of his works was felt in all generations who lived and followed. This study seeks to describe and analyze R. Saadia Gaon's life, his public enterprise, his works, and his influence on the generations after him.

Prof. Eliezer Schlossberg is a senior faculty member in the Department of Arabic at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. His main field of research is the Biblical exegesis in Judaeo-Arabic language in the Middle Ages. To date, he has published three books and more than 160 articles in these fields. He served as the head of the Department of Arabic for 10 years and six years as the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities.Prof. Eliezer Schlossberg is a senior faculty member in the Department of Arabic at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. His main field of research is the Biblical exegesis in Judaeo-Arabic language in the Middle Ages. To date, he has published three books and more than 160 articles in these fields. He served as the head of the Department of Arabic for 10 years and six years as the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities.

“This volume is recommended for collections with a strong and sophisticated emphasis upon Jewish philosophy and theology.”

— Shmuel Ben-Gad, AJL News & Reviews

“This book describes and analyzes Rabbi Saadia Gaon’s quest for the religious leadership of the Jewish world in the first half of the tenth century, which he pursued. Through his comprehensive literary work in the fields of interpretation, philosophy, language, poetry, and Halacha. This book discusses elegantly key areas in the work of Saadia Gaon, such as his interpretation of the books of the Bible and his dealings with the Arabic language and Muslim culture, beginning with borrowing of literary models, principles, and terms, and ending with a poignant religious polemic. In addition, Schlossberg deals with the practical ways in which Saadia sought to lead the Jewish people, using educational methods. Saadia emphasizes, according to Schlossberg, the challenges arising from life in exile while cultivating the constant expectation of imminent redemption. This is an extremely important book—a must for anybody interested in Jewish life in the Islamic world, including the Judeo-Arabic-rich culture.”

— Professor Benjamin Hary, New York University

“Eliezer Schlossberg's R. Saadia Gaon: A Leader of Generations is the first English monograph on this eminent and influential medieval thinker, since Henry Malter's Saadia Gaon: His Life and Works (Philadelphia, 1921). In this learned and graceful work, Schlossberg offers a significant call of attention to the intellectual breakthroughs and ingenious erudition of this founding medieval figure (born el-Fayyum, Egypt, 882, died Baghdad 942). Schlossberg achieves a fresh outlook on Saadia's enduring cultural imprint and sophistication, through six insightful thematic chapters relating to communal leadership, inter-religious polemic, education, scriptural translation, rhetoric, and history. Interwoven with a discerning overview of a century of modern scholarship, Schlossberg's captivating illustration of Saadia's innovations in an array of fields, written and published (to this very day!) in Hebrew, Arabic, and Judeo-Arabic, opens a window to a creative and revolutionary period of intellectual change and interchange, at the unique crossroad of medieval Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.”

— Meira Polliack, Professor of Bible, Joseph and Ceil Mazer Chair in Jewish Culture in Muslim Lands and Cairo Geniza Studies, Tel Aviv University

“Saadia Gaon is acknowledged as one of the leading Jewish thinkers in the premodern world. While his contributions to biblical exegesis and translation, legal hermeneutics and linguistic thought are largely known, Eliezer Schlossberg lays the main emphasis on Saadia’s public leadership as a ‘leader of generations.’ He begins with a biography of the Gaon and addresses in the following chapters key aspects of his thought. The monograph, which is a welcome addition to recent scholarship, succeeds convincingly to explain why Saadiah and his works continue to hold such fascination until today.”

— Ronny Vollandt, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität