Was Reish Lakish a Gladiator?

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Published: Dec 15, 2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14232/suc.2021.2.119-127
Keywords:
gladiators, Talmud, Reish Lakish, Resh Lakish, the Roman Games, Simon ben Lakish, Gittin

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Haggai Olshanetsky
Bar Ilan University
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1110-7781

Abstract

It is often mentioned that Reish Lakish (Shim’on ben Lakish), one of the most important rabbis in the land of Israel during the 3rd century AD, had been a gladiator before he became a rabbi. They all base their opinion on one legend in the Babylonian Talmud, and especially one sentence in it. The current article wishes to revisit this issue and to prove that there is no concrete basis for this assumption.

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How to Cite
Olshanetsky, H. (2021). Was Reish Lakish a Gladiator?. Sapiens Ubique Civis, 2, 119–127. https://doi.org/10.14232/suc.2021.2.119-127
Issue
Vol. 2 (2021): Sapiens ubique civis II
Section
Articles
Author Biography

Haggai Olshanetsky, Bar Ilan University

Haggai Olshanetsky is writing a doctorate on Jewish soldiers in the Hellenistic and Roman armies under Professor Dueck in the Department for Classical Studies at Bar Ilan University. From the same university, he holds two master degrees, one from the General History Department and another from the Land of Israel and Archaeology Department.