COHEN, MOSES BEN ELIEZER:

Moralist; lived in Germany, probably at Coblenz, in the second half of the fourteenth century. He was the author of an ethical work entitled "Sefer Ḥasidim" (Book of the Pious), written in 1473 and published by Schriftsetzer, Warsaw, 1866. This book, known also under the title "Sefer ha-Maskil" (Book of the Wise), gives a brief description of Jewish piety as understood at that time, and contains some valuable contributions to the history of Jewish culture. The author often quotes the "Ḥayye 'Olam" of Isaac Ḥasid and the works of Judah ha-Ḥasid.

Bibliography:
  • Zunz, in Hebr. Bibl. ix. 113;
  • Güdemann, Gesch. des Erziehungswesens . . . der Juden in Deutschland, pp. 212 et seq.
G. I. Br.
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