Moses Pinheiro

Who is Moses Pinheiro?

Moses Pinheiro, an Italian Jew who lived at Livorno in the seventeenth century, was one of the most influential pupils and followers of Sabbatai Zevi.

He was held in high esteem on account of his religious and kabbalistic knowledge; and, as the brother-in-law of Joseph Ergas, the well-known anti-Sabbatean, he had great influence over the Jews of Leghorn, urging them to believe in Sabbatai. Even later, in 1667, when Shabbethai's apostasy was rumored, Pinheiro, in common with numerous other adherents of Zevi, still believed him to do be the messiah.

Pinheiro was the teacher of Abraham Miguel Cardoso, whom he initiated into the Kabbalah and into the mysteries of Sabbateanism.