ISRAEL

ISRAEL, family of rabbis, scholars, and emissaries in Jerusalem and Rhodes. MOSES (d. 1740) was an emissary of the Safed and Jerusalem communities from about 1680 to 1740. In 1710–13 he visited Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco on behalf of Safed and during his travels wrote several responsa. His return trip in 1714 took him to Rhodes where he was elected rabbi. In 1727 the Jews of Constantinople asked Moses to go on a mission in their behalf, and he spent five years in Italy, Holland, and France. While in Italy, he discussed halakhic issues with Jewish scholars there, such as R. Isaac lampronti and R. raphael meldola . On completion of his mission he returned to his rabbinical post at Rhodes and spent the last years of his life preparing his responsa for publication. (Part 1 appeared in 1734, part 2 in 1735, and part 3 posthumously in 1742, all in Constantinople under the title, Masat Moshe). In 1737 or 1738 Moses moved from Rhodes to Alexandria, Egypt, where he died. His exegetical writings were printed under the title of Appei Moshe (Leghorn, 1828). His son, ABRAHAM BEN MOSES (c. 1708–1785), served as rabbi in Canea, Crete, from 1743 to 1755. In 1751 he visited Western European countries, together with R. Mordecai Rubio, on behalf of Jerusalem. In Hamburg, he met R. jonathan eybeschuetz and gave him a letter justifying his stand on the amulets issue. He was later appointed rabbi of Alexandria, where he served until 1766; from there he moved to Leghorn, where he lived for six years, after which he became rabbi of Ancona. Here, in 1775, he welcomed R. Ḥayyim joseph david azulai . He left two sons, MOSES, who took his place as rabbi of Alexandria, and ḤAYYIM RAFAEL, who published his father's works: Imrot Tehorot (Leghorn, 1786), a book on Even ha-Ezer; and Beit Avraham (ibid., 1786), on the Ḥoshen Mishpat, to which was appended Ma'amar ha-Melekh, on the principle of dina de-malkhuta dina . ELIJAH BEN MOSES (c. 1710–1784), born in Jerusalem, grew up in Rhodes, returning to Jerusalem in 1744. In 1763 he went as an emissary to Western Europe, passing through Italy, France, and Holland. During the course of his mission he wrote many responsa. He returned to Rhodes, and in 1772 was appointed rabbi in Alexandria. Elijah was succeeded there by his son, JEDIDIAH SOLOMON who published his father's works: Kol Eliyahu (2 parts, Leghorn, 1792–1807), responsa; Ara de-Yisrael (ibid. 1806), religious laws, alphabetically arranged, printed with his derashot, Shenei Eliyahu; Mahaneh Yisrael (ibid., 1807); Kisse Eliyahu (Salonika, 1811), novellae on the Shulḥan Arukh; Aderet Eliyahu (Leghorn, 1828), on the Sefer Miẓvot Gadol of R. Moses of Coucy; and Ugat Eliyahu (ibid., 1830), responsa. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: Frumkin-Rivlin, 3 (1929), 29–31; S. Markus, Toledot ha-Rabbanim le-Mishpaḥat Israel-Rodos (1935); Rosanes, Togarmah, 5 (1938), 73–4; M.D. Gaon, Yehudei ha Mizraḥ be-Ereẓ Yisrael, 2 (1937), 294ff.; Yaari, in: Sinai, 25 (1949), 149–63; Yaari, Sheluḥei, index. (Avraham Yaari)