Rabbi Gershom ben Judah

Rabbi Gershom ben Judah, often referred to as Rabbenu Gershom Meor HaGolah (the Light of the Exile), was a seminal Jewish scholar and community leader in medieval Germany. Born around 960 in Metz, he later moved to Mainz where he established a famous Talmudic academy. Rabbenu Gershom is renowned for his influential decrees (takanot) which included the prohibition of polygamy among Ashkenazi Jews, the regulation of divorce, and rules concerning the privacy of correspondence. His work and ethical guidelines have had a lasting impact on Jewish communal life and halachic (Jewish legal) standards.

Books

Rabbenu Gershom Meor HaGolah