8 Cheshvan · Yahrzeit
Rabbeinu Yonah Gerondi
8 Cheshvan Yahrzeit of Rabbeinu Yonah bar Avraham Gerondi (Gerondi - from Girona) - author of "Shaarei Teshuva".
Yahrzeit - 8 Cheshvan
Resting place - Toledo, Spain
He was a cousin of the Ramban (Nachmanides), whose mother was the sister of Rabbeinu Yonah's father, and whose son Rabbi Shlomo was married to Rabbi Yonah's daughter.
In his youth he studied in the yeshivot of France, under the authors of the Tosafot.
A student of Rabbi Shlomo of Montpellier, Rabbi Yonah was one of the most active participants in the controversy stirred up by his teacher over the philosophical works of the Rambam.
The sages of Provence opposed the philosophical works of the Rambam, primarily his book "Moreh Nevuchim" (Guide for the Perplexed). In their view, the Rambam's approach contradicted tradition: he compared the Jewish worldview to the philosophy of Aristotle.
The sages of Provence were supported by leading authors of the Tosafot, as well as by the head of Spanish Jewry, the outstanding halachic authority from Toledo, Rabbi Meir Abulafia, the "Yad Rama." Rabbeinu Yonah also ardently supported his mentor's struggle.
In the year 4998 (1238), by the decision of a number of authoritative rabbis, scrolls of "Moreh Nevuchim" and some of the Rambam's other books were publicly burned in Paris and Montpellier.
These bonfires drew the attention of church authorities — and just three years later, scrolls of the Talmud were confiscated and publicly burned throughout France.