ADRET (perhaps Adrat; erroneously Addéret) SHÉLÔ-MÔH BEN ABRAHAM. — Jewish decisor, b. around 1235 in Barcelona, d. in 1310. He studied under distinguished masters, among them Nahmanides. Around 1280 he was appointed «Rab d'España».
Raimondo Martini (v.) in the Capistrum Iudacorum of 1267 and in the Pugio fidei adversus manros et iudoeos of 1281 (Basel 1540) had taken up the accusations advanced by the convert Pablo Christiani against Nahmanides, especially the accusation that the Jews had knowingly falsified the biblical passages concerning Jesus Christ, A. maintained that the text had been preserved in its entirety and that the Titir soferim (the deletion of individual letters by the Scribes) did not constitute an alteration of the text.
In A.’s time a new struggle against philosophy began in Montpellier, especially against that of Maimonides (1135-1204). Although a personal admirer of Maimonides and a friend of his family, and not an enemy of philosophy, A. had to declare that the study of it was to be condemned because of its destructive effects on religion, and that the spread of scepticism could moreover increase hatred against the Jews. Reluctantly, in 1305 he prohibited, under threat of excommunication, the study of philosophy for a period of 25 years and for men under the age of 25, since they had not yet attained sufficient depth in biblical studies. He also condemned the new kabbalistic movement of Abramo Abulafia (v. CABALA).
He was one of the first after Rabbenu Hananël to undertake the criticism of Talmudic texts. He sent thousands of responsa to those who consulted him by letter, treating biblical, Talmudic, and religious-practice matters with clarity. The principle “the law of the state is law” was referred by him to provisions concerning the security of the state, and not to religious life.