Oxford Jewish Thought

One of the greatest rabbis of the medieval period in England was Rabbi Berachiah (Benedict) of Lincoln[1]. He was born in the first half of the 13^th century in Oxford to Rabbi Moses of London, son of Rabbi Yom Tov, and was brother of Rabbi Elijah Menachem of London, considered, according to Oxford historian Cecil Roth, the most illustrious English Jew of the Middle Ages[2]. This essay will look at the difficult life of Rabbi Berachiah of Lincoln, including the challenges of being Rabbi in Lincoln at the time of the Lincoln blood libel in 1255. I will then look at a selection of his teachings, through which I will present the family of Berachiah, including his distinguished father Moses of London and brother Elijah Menachem of… Read More »