Felix Pratensis

Felix Pratensis (Felice da Prato) (died 1539 in Rome) was an Italian Sephardic Jewish scholar who converted to the Catholic Church. He is known for his collaboration with the Flemish printer Daniel Bomberg on the first printed Hebrew Biblia Rabbinica ^{[1] [2]} (Veneta) of 1517/8.

He received an education and acquired three languages. In 1518, he converted to Christianity. Having become an Augustinian friar, he devoted himself to proselytizing, especially to Jews.

Before his conversion, Felix published a Latin translation of the Psalms entitled Psalterium ex Hebræo ad Verbum Translatum, Venice, 1515.

References

• Wolf, Bibl. Hebr. i. 918, iii. 935;
• Moritz Steinschneider, Cat. Bodl. col. 2111
• Hermann Vogelstein  [ Wikidata ] and Paul Rieger, Geschichte der Juden in Rom, ii. 37

Notes

1. Mikra'ot Gedolot .
2. From 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia, :

   It contains the Pentateuch with Onḳelos and Rashi, the Former and Later Prophets with Targum Jonathan and Ḳimḥi's comments (the anti-Christian passages omitted); Psalms with Targum and Ḳimḥi; Proverbs with the commentary known as "Ḳaw we-Naḳi"; Job with the commentaries of Naḥmanides and Abraham Farrisol; the Five Scrolls with the commentary of Levi b. Gerson; Ezra and Chronicles with the commentaries of Rashi and Simon ha-Darshan. To these were added the Jerusalem Targum to the Pentateuch; Targum Sheni to Esther; the variant readings of Ben Asher and Ben Naphtali; the thirteen "articles of faith" of Maimonides; the 613 precepts according to Aaron Jacob Ḥasan; and a table of the parashiyot and Hafṭarot according to the Spanish and German rites. This edition is the first in which Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles are divided into two books, and Nehemiah is separated from Ezra. It is the first also to indicate in the margin the numbers of the chapters in Hebrew letters (Ginsburg, "Introduction," p. 26). The ḳeri consonants are also given in the margin.

External links

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain :  Singer, Isidore; et al., eds. (1901–1906). "Felix Pratensis". The Jewish Encyclopedia . New York: Funk & Wagnalls.
•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain :  Singer, Isidore; et al., eds. (1901–1906). ""Bible Editions"". The Jewish Encyclopedia . New York: Funk & Wagnalls.
• Zangari, Rosalba (1996). "FELICE da Prato". Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Volume 46: Feducci–Ferrerio (in Italian). Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. ISBN   978-8-81200032-6.