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Ben Kafron

The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia

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One of the three disciples of Menahem ben Saruk (last third of tenth century) who defended the honor of their teacher against his critic, Dunash ben Labrat. Judah ben Sheshet, a disciple of Dunash, wrote a violent polemic against this controversial treatise of the disciples of Menahem, in which he mentions the authors of the treatise by name, and among them mentions Ben Kafron. Moses ibn Ezra also speaks of an Isaac ibn Kafron (Geiger, "Jüd. Zeitschrift," 1:238), who doubtless is identical with the Ben Kafron of Judah ben Sheshet's polemic. The name is derived from the Latin caper, goat; and Judah b. Sheshet continually and tauntingly alludes to this name of his opponent. For the polemic of Menahem's disciples, of which Ben Kafron was joint author, and which was printed by S. G. Stern at the same time as the refutation of Judah ben Sheshet ("Liber Responsionum," Vienna, 1870), see MENAHEM.