Aaron ben Elijah

Aaron ben Elijah (Hebrew: אהרון בן אליהו האחרון‎ 1328/1329 – 1369)[1] is often considered to be the most prominent Karaite Jewish theologian.

[1] In 1354, while living in Constantinople, he composed his second major work, Gan Eden "Garden of Eden",[1][3] about the commandments of the Hebrew Bible and an attempt to defend the Karaite legal code[2] and in 1362 he wrote Keter Torah "Crown of the Torah",[1][3] a comprehensive commentary on the Hebrew Bible using a literal interpretation of the writings.

Nevertheless, he was a versatile compiler and eclectic, if not always original, philosopher who restored some prestige to the Karaite community, which had declined since it was forced to fend off the attacks of Saadia Gaon.

According to the younger Aaron, in the first chapters of Etz HaChayyim, the theology of the Kalam is the natural religion arrived at by Abraham through meditation and systematized by the Mosaic Law; while Greek philosophy, adopted by Christianity because of its hostility to Judaism, is a heterogeneous foreign product, harmful to the development of the Torah in its purity.

For example, the goal of the Sabbath is inculcating a belief in the Divine creation and guidance of the world; other festivals are intended to counteract the influences of paganism and fatalism.

[4] A critical edition, with valuable information and a summary of the one hundred and fourteen chapters in Hebrew by Caleb Afendopulo, and one in German by the editor, Franz Delitzsch, appeared in Leipzig, 1841.