Manasseh ben Israel

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Manasseh ben Israel

Manasseh ben Israel 1604-57, Jewish scholar and communal leader, b. Portugal. Early in his life he settled in Amsterdam, where he became a rabbi and started (1627) the first Hebrew press there. He is best known for his efforts to obtain the readmission of Jews into England, where they had been forbidden to live since 1290; he managed to obtain Oliver Cromwell's unofficial assent for Jews to settle in London. His Conciliador, an elaborate discussion of hundreds of conflicting passages in the Old Testament, was intended to make Judaism more understandable and acceptable to the Christian world. He wrote in five languages.

Bibliography: See biography by C. Roth (1934); L. Wolf, Menasseh Ben Israel's Mission to Oliver Cromwell (1910).

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Manasseh ben Israel

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions | 1997 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions 1997, originally published by Oxford University Press 1997. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Manasseh ben Israel (1604–57). Jewish scholar. He founded the first Hebrew printing-press in Amsterdam. He himself was the author of several theological works, including Piedra Gloriosa which was illustrated with engravings by Rembrandt who also painted his portrait. He dedicated his Esperanca De Israel to the English Parliament in 1650 and was closely involved in the negotiations to readmit Jews to England in the Commonwealth period.

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JOHN BOWKER. "Manasseh ben Israel." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 25 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN BOWKER. "Manasseh ben Israel." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (December 25, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-ManassehbenIsrael.html

JOHN BOWKER. "Manasseh ben Israel." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved December 25, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-ManassehbenIsrael.html

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Rembrandt and the Jews.(Brief article)
Magazine article from: The Magazine Antiques; 11/1/2006

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	The Beirut Haggada Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 3/29/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...God has not left us, wrote Manasseh ben- Israel, referring to the Jewish nation...returned to pioneer the Land of Israel, Jewish existence in it is clouded...admit the Israelites? asked Manasseh ben-Israel rhetorically. A century ago...
	In the Sambatyon Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 2/15/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...rotation system. As for other tribes, Simon and half of Manasseh dwelled in Central Asia and were taxing 25 kingdoms...to the modern era. Seventeenth-century scholar Manasseh Ben-Israel claimed that the Sambatyon' s sand, even when kept...
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	On Jewish demographics Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 1/2/2004; ; 700+ words ; ...emergence of a largely non- Ashkenazi Israel had far-reaching consequences...which they had been consigned by Israel's founders. Soon enough, social...confidence is, as Dutch Jewish scholar Manasseh Ben-Israel observed in the 17th century...
	Dutch Treat: The Anne Frank House, museums devoted to Rembrandt and Van Gogh...it all goes a long way in explaining the ambrosia that is Amsterdam Newspaper article from: Jewish Exponent; 4/26/2001; ; 700+ words ; ...school groups a year from Holland, the United States and Israel, as well as many from Germany and other countries...his Jewish neighbors, including portraits of Rabbi Manasseh Ben Israel, one of Dutch Jewry's earliest leaders, and Ephraim...
	Gems break records Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 11/29/1995; ; 666 words ; ...Gerhard Richter (whose retrospective is currently at the Israel Museum) was set when his particularly fine Barn, a...8,000-$12,000), printed by Elijah Moab for Manasseh Ben Israel. Other rare books include a 17th-century Yiddish...
	UK Jews, queen mark 350th anniversary of community. Sacks: Were celebrating in a country that has led the world in tolerance Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 11/30/2006; ; 700+ words ; ...during the Tudor and Jacobean periods, there was no official community in England between 1290 and 1656, when Manasseh ben Israel, a Dutch Rabbi, petitioned Oliver Cromwell to allow Jews to return. Spanish and Portuguese Jews, who came from...
	Spinoza's leftovers Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 3/26/2004; ; 669 words ; ...Rembrandt disappears from the book early on and is brought back at its end, during the funeral of his friend Manasseh ben Israel; the author deems it reasonable to surmise that Rembrandt was in attendance. There's no evidence, but so what...
	Auction News Newspaper article from: Jerusalem Post; 12/20/1995; ; 700+ words ; ...Every lot sold, most above estimate. Star of the lots was a book of Minhagim printed in Amsterdam in 1654 for Manasseh ben Israel. Its top estimate was $12,000 but it was knocked down to a private buyer for $34,500. A 1794 Amsterdam manuscript...