Episode 126: Gedalia Moshe Gordon, a Student in the Vatican, Returns in Teshuvah

00:00 We are now telling a very interesting story. Rabbi Moishe, the grandfather of the Alter Rebbe, the founder of Chabad Chassidus, was in Rome, at the Vatican. He was waiting for a public debate with one of the cardinals. In the meantime, he discovered a Jew among the Vatican’s students and tried to make contact with him through the cardinal in charge of its library. At first, the cardinal refused Moishe’s request to arrange a meeting with the young Jewish man. He knew the Church was plotting to catch him in its net, and he feared the Vatican’s spies, who watched everything its officials did, no matter how senior they were. They watched the young Jewish man especially closely. Still, the cardinal gave Moishe important details about his daily routine. It turned out that he still went to the synagogue once a day to pray, so he had not completely severed his ties with Judaism. He also went to a Jewish inn every day for a meal. Moishe concluded that he had two opportunities to meet him without attracting particular attention: at the synagogue or at the inn. After careful thought, Moishe decided the inn was the better place and began taking his meals there. The opportunity came on Shabbos. Moishe was sitting at the table, eating his Shabbos meal. The young man came in, washed his hands, and sat down at the table. Suddenly he noticed Moishe sitting there. He had heard Moishe at the debate. He immediately got up, approached him with great excitement, and said, “Ever since I heard you speak before the cardinals, your words have stayed with me. They raised serious doubts in my mind about the truth of Christianity. I had long conversations about it with my teacher, but he could not restore my

02:39 faith in it. I asked him to arrange a meeting with you so I could work through the questions that had come up. But he told me you had already left Rome.” The young man’s innocence was plain to see. Moishe advised him not to tell his Catholic instructor about their meeting at all, and proposed that from then on they meet secretly to talk and discuss matters of faith. That was exactly what the young man wanted. At their first meeting, he told Moishe that he came from Vilna and that his name was Gedalia Moshe Gordon. The details he shared about his life told an interesting story of a thirst for Torah and, in a different sphere, for the sciences. Gedalia Moshe’s father was a great Torah scholar and a physician in Vilna. He had studied medicine in Padua, Italy, where he had gone at the expense of a well-known Vilna benefactor. He had already become renowned in Vilna. He treated poor patients without charge. This is Gedalia Moshe’s father we are talking about. He was never seen sitting idle and devoted all his time to study. As a typical Vilna Jew, the learned physician initially opposed Kabbalah. But in Padua, besides training in medicine, he came to know the city’s leading Torah scholars and studied Torah from them. Through them he gained an appreciation of, an interest in, and some knowledge of Kabbalah. When he returned to Vilna, he continued studying Kabbalah and taught it to his sons, including Gedalia Moshe. Gedalia Moshe himself was more drawn to the study of medicine and the sciences. After studying a great deal of Torah, his desire to pursue science grew, and he decided to seek out a center of learning where he could satisfy his thirst for knowledge. He especially wanted to devote himself to learning different languages, and for that purpose decided to travel to Venice. In Venice he studied theology. Later, on his teachers’ advice, he went to Rome to continue his studies at the Vatican. There he began to fall under the influence of his Catholic teachers, and as a result developed a leaning toward Christianity. The senior priests at the Vatican hoped he would soon fall into their net like ripe fruit and convert

05:26 to Christianity. But his meeting with Moishe now showed that he was still far from that point. His doubts and inner struggles came to the surface and proved impossible to brush aside, as the priests had hoped. At that meeting, Gedalia Moshe also told interesting stories about various people on the Vatican campus, among both the students and the lecturers. To Rabbi Moishe’s surprise, he learned from Gedalia Moshe that there were many Jews in both groups. Gedalia Moshe also told him the names of several senior Vatican lecturers, leading members of the clergy who were Jewish converts to Christianity. On the other hand, some had only the faintest connection to Judaism but were not yet Christians, because they had not gone so far as to convert. One of these was Professor Lambran[?], an assimilated Jew from France who was nevertheless far from Christianity. Lambran[?] was Gedalia Moshe’s mathematics teacher and had played a major part in planting doubts about Judaism in the young man’s mind. Added to the influence of his Catholic teachers, some of whom were fanatical converts, this had started Gedalia Moshe down the slope toward Christianity. So this was the right moment for Rabbi Moishe to take Gedalia Moshe under his influence. Gedalia Moshe Gordon held Rabbi Moishe in very high regard, and Rabbi Moishe was able to show him, through reasoned arguments and extensive knowledge, that the true answers to all questions of faith were to be found in the Torah. Before long, Gedalia Moshe was firmly connected to Judaism again. On Rabbi Moishe’s advice, to escape the net the priests had spread for him, Gedalia Moshe moved out of the student residence and went to live with a Jewish family in Rome, coming to the academy only for lectures. At the time, Gedalia Moshe was taking two courses at once: one in the exact sciences—mathematics and astronomy—

08:02 and the other in philosophy and the development of religions. The scientific department, where the assimilated Jew Lambran[?] also taught, was headed by a Catholic scientist who respected Judaism and knew Tanach. Gedalia Moshe made enormous progress in this course and was soon set to complete it with high honors. The second course was taught exclusively by priests, who were among the most influential people at the Vatican. As long as the clergy thought they could win Gedalia Moshe over to the Church, they drew him close, advanced him, and showed him affection and esteem. But as soon as they saw that he was growing stronger in his Jewish faith—and especially when, following his conversations with Rabbi Moishe, he began forcefully and skillfully rebutting all their arguments against Judaism—they began treating him with hatred and contempt, persecuting him and restricting his activities. Gedalia Moshe began to feel unwanted, especially in that department of the papal academy. His long conversations with Rabbi Moishe eased his distress over this. They were a source of encouragement and strength for him, and he became more and more convinced of Judaism’s eternal truth. Throughout this time, Rabbi Moishe was waiting for word that his debate with the cardinals would resume. Gedalia Moshe used the time to talk with him, and meanwhile completed both courses he had been taking. He quickly finished the science course with great distinction and received its highest degree, but in the course on religions he was rejected outright. Not only was he denied the degree he had hoped for, but he was also criticized for showing stubbornness and blindness toward what they called the true religion. This made him angry and bitter, but in the end he contented himself with the degree and honors he had received in the science course. Meanwhile, his bond with Rabbi Moishe continued to grow stronger, and he began bringing other Jewish students from the papal academy to meet Moishe. Most of these students, who had come from different countries

10:30 They were estranged from Judaism and therefore susceptible to the influence of the Catholic priests. The Pontifical Academy at the Vatican attracted many young Jews, most of them highly accomplished scholars, because at the time they had no other opportunity to enter universities or institutions of higher learning. The Vatican welcomed Jewish students with open arms and charged no tuition, hoping to win them over to Christianity. In any event, dozens of young Jews were studying at the Vatican then. Gedalia Moshe stood out above all the others and drew the most attention because of his extraordinary talents. He was the pride and joy of all the young Jews studying there. So when Gedalia Moshe returned wholeheartedly to the Torah of Moshe and to Judaism, it influenced the other Jewish students to draw closer and closer to authentic Judaism and become more involved in Jewish matters. It reached the point where the Jewish students at the Vatican began holding meetings at which they openly discussed bringing Jews who were distant and estranged back to Judaism. Gedalia Moshe, with all his degrees and honors, was now entirely under Rabbi Moishe’s influence. His sole aspiration in life was to inspire the estranged students to become warmer, better Jews. Rabbi Moishe followed these developments with great interest and was deeply moved. He felt he had played a part in these positive changes, and he was very happy about it. To him, this was his reward for his long stay in Rome. Then, one day, the notice Rabbi Moishe, the former head of the Poznań community, had spoken of arrived from the Vatican: it set a date for the renewed disputation between him and the cardinals. The disputation that had been interrupted, as we recall, was to resume under different conditions from the previous time. For example, instead of the thirty cardinals who had faced him before, this time there would be only three. But Rabbi Moishe pointed out further irregularities that still remained and put the two sides on an unequal footing. He announced that under no circumstances would he agree to hold the disputation

12:57 in the papal palace, in the room known as the Hall of Statues. He reminded them that, at the start of the previous disputation, he had stipulated that there be no statues or images in the room during the debate, and that the priests remove the crosses they wore. The priests had agreed then, yet now they were announcing that the disputation would take place in the Hall of Statues. He could not take part in such a disputation. This angered the cardinals. “Such insolence!” some of them shouted. They demanded that Rabbi Moishe be punished so that he would learn to treat the Church with respect. Some demanded that the disputation be canceled altogether and that Rabbi Moishe be blamed. In the end, though, after considering the matter, the priests agreed to accommodate Rabbi Moishe, and the disputation was moved to one of the rooms in the Vatican Library. Rabbi Moishe then raised further points of inequality. First, the disputation was scheduled to begin on Friday. Rabbi Moishe argued that on that day it could last only a short time, since he needed to prepare for Shabbos well in advance. Another issue was, once again, who would speak first. One of the cardinals hurried to begin speaking about the need for the disputation, to prove to the whole world that the Jews were blind and mistaken in clinging to their ancient faith. Rabbi Moishe objected to the Christian side opening the disputation. He argued that the Jewish faith had the prior right to present its case. Once again, the priests debated among themselves whether to accommodate Rabbi Moishe. The hard-line priests argued that the disputation should be declared canceled through the Jew’s fault, giving the Christian side a victory by default. Some demanded that Rabbi Moishe be severely punished for his brazen demands. This time, too, the moderates prevailed, and the priests agreed to Rabbi Moishe’s demands. The public disputation therefore opened with Rabbi Moishe’s remarks. He spoke for three hours straight, delivering an eloquent, carefully reasoned address demonstrating the truth and superiority

15:03 of Judaism over Christianity. Many of the Christians present grudgingly admitted that it was a brilliant and persuasive speech. Rabbi Moishe made an especially strong impression on the Jewish lecturers and students at the Vatican Academy. Most of them were under the Church’s influence or completely estranged from Judaism, and many were caught between the two. Rabbi Moishe’s influence on the young Jews, as on Gedalia Moshe Gordon, continued to grow. This gave him mixed feelings. On the one hand, Rabbi Moishe’s heart ached that he had been forced to debate Christians who hated the Jews, and he feared that defeating them might only intensify their desire for revenge. On the other hand, those painful feelings were offset by his joy and satisfaction at having influenced the Jews at the Pontifical Academy, who as a result were drawing closer to Judaism, Torah and mitzvos. Gedalia Moshe Gordon of Vilna, who had already been on the verge of converting to Christianity before returning to Judaism, became the leader of all the young Jews at the Vatican. With his extensive knowledge, he breathed new Jewish life into them. The young people’s parents, most of them assimilated Jews from various countries, were surprised to receive letters from their children suddenly filled with a fresh spirit of Judaism. The parents were astonished. How was it that their children’s Jewish commitment had grown stronger precisely at the Vatican? Some parents understood and welcomed it, but others were displeased by the unexpected change. Among the latter was a thoroughly assimilated family from Sweden. They were completely estranged from Judaism; the only step they had not taken was formally converting to Christianity, and they had not had the courage to do that. They had sent their son to the Vatican hoping that at least he would convert. Then, suddenly, letters arrived from him announcing that he had returned to Torah and mitzvos—and that he was happy about it. His parents were stunned by what they saw as a disaster that had befallen them. His father sent him a long letter in which

17:19 he rebuked him for the madness that had seized him. Among other things, the father pointed out the serious harm his new conduct was causing him and his family, and the danger in which he was placing himself. The son did not leave the letter unanswered. Politely but firmly, he rejected all his father’s arguments. He noted that the Torah indeed obligated him to honor his father and mother whatever their circumstances, but that he was not obligated to listen to them on matters contrary to the Torah. At the end of the letter, the son advised his parents to sell their property and move to Amsterdam in the Netherlands, where Jewish life was thriving at the time. He himself, a medical student, would come there after completing his studies, since he had no intention of returning to an assimilated Sweden rife with hatred of Jews. His parents were not persuaded, but the son did as he had written. After completing his studies and qualifying as a doctor, he traveled to Amsterdam and settled there. He married the daughter of one of the city’s leading citizens, a learned and wealthy Jew, and became known as a good doctor and a G-d-fearing man. Years later, his parents also moved to Amsterdam and began living a life of Torah and mitzvos. Another student, named Antony Yasinovsky, came from an assimilated family in Warsaw, Poland. His parents were so far removed from Judaism that they had not had their son circumcised. Even so, they had not yet had the courage to convert to Christianity. Their plan was for their son to settle in Italy after completing his studies in the natural sciences and convert there. They would then move to Italy too and convert after him. Antony was among the young men who returned to Judaism. He underwent a bris and began living a Jewish life. For a long time, he did not tell his parents, waiting until he had finished his studies. After receiving his degree, he suddenly informed his stunned parents that he had undergone a bris and that his Jewish name was Avraham. In the same letter, he also told them that he did indeed intend to

19:29 To return to Poland, but not to Warsaw—to Krakow, which was then a city of Torah and fear of Heaven. His parents were thunderstruck. They tried to dissuade him from his new path, but Avraham Yasinovsky carried out his plan. He settled in Krakow as an observant Jew, was appointed a professor at Prince Radziwill’s academy, and married a woman from one of the city’s distinguished families. Rabbi Moshe felt that his mission in Rome was complete. He intended to use the rest of his time there to buy fine goods, take them to London, and develop his business there. Meanwhile, Rabbi Moshe learned that after the Pope heard about his victory over the cardinals, he had ordered the publication of a book that would explain at length, and persuasively, Christianity’s supposed superiority over Judaism, while refuting every argument Rabbi Moshe had raised in his debate with the cardinals. This gave Rabbi Moshe the idea that Jews should publish a detailed work demonstrating the eternal truth of Judaism, so he canceled his plan to travel to London. Instead, he went to Mantua, Italy, which was then a major center of Jewish life, and together with the city’s leading Torah scholars prepared the book for publication. Gedalya Moshe Gordon of Vilna also wrote an explanatory booklet containing proofs of the truth and eternal nature of Judaism. Gedalya Moshe held the title of professor and, following various offers he received, remained in Rome.