Joshua Segre

The Italian dayan (religious judge) Joshua Segre was probably born in Casale Monferrato, Italy. In 1735/6, he settled in Scandiano, where he was employed to tutor small children. However, his attempts to pretend that he was a full teacher who had received his education at the Mantua yeshiva ended in a quarrel with the rabbis of Reggio Emilia. Segre tended to engage in polemics: when he was twenty-three, he wrote a polemic against Christianity, Asham taluy (Pending Guilt Offering). In it, among other claims, he argued that there were errors in Jerome’s translation of the Old Testament. However, Segre’s knowledge of Latin was not extensive, and his work was criticized. Segre also wrote commentaries on the Bible, kabbalah, halakhah, and Psalms, as well as a Hebrew grammar and an Italian translation of the main prayers, some in verse form. All these remain in manuscript. His Kol omrim hodu (The Voice of Those Who Cry: Give Thanks; 1740) commemorates the inauguration of the rebuilt synagogue in Scandiano.