- Yaakov ben Moshe Levi Moelin
Jacob b. Moses Moelin ( _he. יעקב בן משה מולין; c. 1365 – 1427) was a
Talmud ist and "posek " (authority on Jewish law) best known for his codification of the customs ("minhag im") of the German Jews. He is also known as "Maharil" - the Hebrewacronym for "Our Teacher, theRabbi , YaakovLevi " - as well as "Mahari Segal" or "Mahari Moelin". Maharil's "Minhagim", was as a source of law for "HaMapah",Moses Isserles ’ component of the "Shulkhan Arukh ".Biography
"Maharil" was the son and pupil of Moshe Levi Moelin,
Rabbi ofMainz , and a pupil of R. Shalom b. Isaac ofWiener Neustadt . At a young age, Moelin was recognized as a budding scholar. In 1387, he succeeded his father as Rabbi of Mainz. He established ayeshiva in Mainz which attracted many students. One of his most noteworthy students wasJacob Weil . Moelin lived through the mass slaughter of Jews in Austria in 1420 and theHussite wars in 1421, which brought suffering to the Jews ofBavaria and theRhine ; see History of the Jews in Germany. "Maharil" played an important role in rebuilding these communities. He died and was buried in Worms.Moelin composed piyuttim for the Synagogue. He was also a notable
Hazzan who famously ruled that traditional melodies should not be tampered with. Some traditional melodies attributed to him were still in use in Pre-WWII Mainz. He appears also to have been familiar with the study of astronomy.Works
"Maharil's" best known work is "Minhagei Maharil", also known as "Sefer ha-Maharil" or simply the "Minahgim". It contains a detailed description of religious observances and rites, at home and in the
synagogue , and thus provides an authoritative outline of the "minhag im" of the German Jews. It also contains sermons and textual comments. It was compiled by Moelin's student, Zalman of St. Goar, and was first published - with various additions - atSabbioneta , in 1556 and frequently thereafter. It had a great influence on the Jews ofCentral Europe and was largely responsible for the importance attached to "minhag " in these communities. This book is frequently quoted in the codes and commentaries - includingMoshe Isserles who cites "Maharil" frequently in the "Shulkhan Arukh " - and has become a valuable source for later scholars.Another pupil of Moelin, Eleazer b. Jacob, collected some of Moelin's responsa these were published in Venice in 1549. Many more of Moelin's responsa remained in manuscript. These were collected and edited by Rabbi Yitzhak Satz, and, published in 1977 under the title "SHuT Maharil heChadashot" ("New Responsa of Yaakov Molin").
Recently, the German esoteric scholar Georg Dehn has argued that the MaHaRIL was also the author of
The Book of Abramelin which he wrote under the pseudonym of Abraham von Worms. (ref Georg Dehn, "The Book of Abramelin: A New Translation", transl. by Steven Guth, Ibis Publishing, 2006)External links and references
* [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=716&letter=M&search=maharil#2442 Jacob ben Moses Mölln (MaHaRIL)] , jewishencyclopedia.com
* [http://www.yarzheit.com/worms.htm Reb Yaakov HaLevi ben Moshe Moellin (the Maharil)] , yarzheit.com
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