Speaking to an Empty Shul: Torah, Crisis, and the Jurisprudence of Religious Leadership

Speaking to an Empty Shul: Torah, Crisis, and the Jurisprudence of Religious Leadership

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There are many books that emerged from COVID; few will matter ten years from now. Rabbi Yehuda Halpert’s Speaking to an Empty Shul: Timeless Lessons from Unprecedented Times is one that will. At first glance, this is a familiar genre: a collection of derashot organized by the weekly parashah. But that description is incomplete. This is not merely a book of sermons; it is an extended exercise in applied Torah reasoning under conditions of radical uncertainty. Put differently, it is…

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The Seforim of R. Yaakov Koppel Schwartz

The Seforim of R. Yaakov Koppel Schwartz

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R. Yaakov Koppel Schwartz is one of the most fascinating talmidei hakhamim and writers among us. Unfortunately, his writings are not as well known as they deserve to be, and many of his works are not available on Otzar ha-Chochma. Born in Cluj (Klausenburg), Romania, R. Schwartz was still a boy when his family was able to make aliyah in 1951. They first settled in Safed and later moved to Bnei Brak. R. Schwartz initially studied in a Satmar yeshiva…

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Two Unforgettable Conversations with HaRav Dovid Feinstein, zt”l

Two Unforgettable Conversations with HaRav Dovid Feinstein, zt”l

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HaRav Dovid Feinstein, zt”l (1929 – 2020) Source: https://www.rebdovidfeinstein.com/ The 19th of Cheshvan 5787 (corresponding to Friday, October 30, 2026), will mark six years since the passing of HaRav Dovid Feinstein, zt”l. Over the last six years, numerous important articles have been written to memorialize him . In those compositions, the following attributes are emphasized: his complete mastery of all areas of Torah and Halacha, his willingness to share his vast Torah knowledge and wise counsel with all who sought…

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Ne‘ilah of Yom Kippurim: From Philology to Ethics and Theology

Ne‘ilah of Yom Kippurim: From Philology to Ethics and Theology

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The central element of the Yom Kippurim liturgy is the confessional, recited up to ten times. It begins “for the sin that I have committed before you.” The Ashkenazic liturgy then lists a plethora of ethical sins, whereas the Sefardic notes a religious sin or two. In contrast, Ne’ilah, the closing service of the day, appends an addendum that focuses on the dynamics of repentance, not the specifics of confession. The ethics and theology of the two-part addendum of Ne’ilah,…

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Lecture at Young Israel Beth El of Borough Park featuring Rabbi Dr. Eliezer Brodt

Lecture at Young Israel Beth El of Borough Park featuring Rabbi Dr. Eliezer Brodt

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Rabbi Dr. Eliezer Brodt is the Seforim Blog’s most frequent contributor, with more than 240 posts over the past two decades. He also hosts and appears on podcasts, available here and here. This is his second lecture at Young Israel Beth El; the first, on Kol HaTor and the Vilna Gaon, was this past February. The event details are: Topic: R’ Ephraim Zalman Margolies’ Mateh Ephraim: Chumros during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, & Chumros in General. Date: Thursday, September 17….

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Azariah’s Choice: Scribal Identity, Egypt, and the Jewish Cosmopolitan Temptation

Azariah’s Choice: Scribal Identity, Egypt, and the Jewish Cosmopolitan Temptation

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The chaotic aftermath of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE is depicted in Jeremiah chapters 40-44. The Babylonians installed Gedaliah ben Ahikam as governor over the remaining Judahite population, hoping to maintain some form of governance. However, Gedaliah’s political naïveté leads to his assassination by Ishmael ben Nethaniah, a royal scion with unclear motives who also murders many others and takes captives. Johanan ben Kareah and other military leaders seek Jeremiah’s divine guidance on whether to stay in…

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R’ Meir Simcha of Dvinsk: 100 Years Later, There Is Still More to Discover: Books, Articles, Speeches, & More

R’ Meir Simcha of Dvinsk: 100 Years Later, There Is Still More to Discover: Books, Articles, Speeches, & More

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Last week, on Monday, the fourth of Elul, was the 100th yahrzeit of R’ Meir Simcha of Dvinsk. R’ Meir Simcha is best known for his two works: the Meshech Chochmah on Chumash and Ohr Somayach on Rambam. In honor of this milestone, places around the world held shiurim and conferences exploring R’ Meir Simcha’s legacy. It is remarkable to see how much attention has been devoted to this giant of Torah. Yet even with all that has been written…

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The Vanishing Note: Devorah, Women Dayanim, and a Missing הערה‎ in Hilchos Dayyanus

The Vanishing Note: Devorah, Women Dayanim, and a Missing הערה‎ in Hilchos Dayyanus

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Whilst learning siman ז of Choshen Mishpat with my chavrusa, we found ourselves reading two different books. We were each using the Machon Yerushalayim edition of the Tur, we were on the same page, and we were looking at the same footnote — note ל״ב of the הגהות והערות. But my chavrusa’s note said almost nothing, and mine went on for some length. A comparison of title pages explained the discrepancy: I was working from the edition of תשנ”ג (1992/93),…

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Interview with the Authors of “The Science Behind the Mishnah”

Interview with the Authors of “The Science Behind the Mishnah”

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Chazal teach that at ten years old, one is ready to learn Mishnah—the entry point into Torah She B’al Peh. Yet this might create a misleading impression that Mishnah is somehow elementary—mere “child’s play.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Rebbi Yehudah HaNasi composed the Mishnah for the great Tana’im and Amora’im themselves, not just for children. Those who venture even slightly beneath the surface discover that truly understanding even basic peshat in a Mishnah requires a vast amount…

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על הלכות בעל קרי בסידור בית יעקב

על הלכות בעל קרי בסידור בית יעקב

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English abstract: Siddur Bet Ya‘akov (Warsaw, 1881) is based on R. Jacob Emden’s siddur Ammudé Shamayim Ve-sha‘are Shamayim (Altona, 1745–1748), but in fact it contains a large amount of new material from the printer, R. Moshe Shub, who effectively created an entirely new work. Among the added material is a section Seder Ba‘al Keri, which presents the approach that the ancient “Edict of Ezra”, that one whose body has emitted semen must immerse in a mikve before prayer, has never…

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R. Hayyim Soloveitchik’s Attitude Towards Girsaot: A Response to Dr. Marc Shapiro

R. Hayyim Soloveitchik’s Attitude Towards Girsaot: A Response to Dr. Marc Shapiro

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R. Hayyim Soloveitchik earned his towering stature in Jewish intellectual history for his revolutionary methodology of Talmudic analysis, but scholars have also noted another aspect of his insights, which is a disinterest, bordering on disregard, for textual veracity. In general, traditional Talmudists were not overly concerned with bibliographic issues and girsaot (textual variants), but even within this tradition R. Hayyim stands out as extreme. One of the most glaring, and by extension often quoted, examples of R. Hayyim using a…

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Wrestling with the Ketsot – Review of ‘New Heavens: The Ketsot ha-Hoshen and the Rise of Lamdanut’, by Noam Samet

Wrestling with the Ketsot – Review of ‘New Heavens: The Ketsot ha-Hoshen and the Rise of Lamdanut’, by Noam Samet

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“…We also studied the Ketsot ha-Hoshen… The book was expensive, and my brother obtained a copy for consultation and decided to transcribe it in his fine handwriting. Only after prolonged arguments with me did my brother agree that we should first study it, and after each sugya and topic decide what was worth copying. We maintained this method throughout the two years we spent at Telz. Day after day we worked through the Ketsot ha-Hoshen, the Netivot ha-Mishpat, the novellae…

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Breaching the Walls of History with Postscript

Breaching the Walls of History with Postscript

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This essay first appeared in the Jewish Review of Books (Spring 2026) and is republished here. Its postscript appeared in the magazine’s Substack newsletter, which you can subscribe to here. Last December, on the eighth day of Hanukkah, the American haredi newspaper of record Yated Ne’eman published a long, impassioned article titled “Ufortzu Chomos Migdolai Vetimu Kol Hashmanim,” by Rabbi Michoel Sorotzkin. The Hebrew title is from the fifth stanza of the famous Hanukkah standard Maoz tzur, which many of…

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Book Week 2026 & Year in Review: Hebrew Publishing is Alive and Well

Book Week 2026 & Year in Review: Hebrew Publishing is Alive and Well

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The following is a recap of the year in Hebrew Jewish publishing for 2026, highlighting unique and noteworthy titles while also marking the annual Book Week sales. As the list makes clear, despite the ongoing conflict and security challenges in Israel, Hebrew Jewish publishing has continued with remarkable vitality and productivity. This is a testament to the enduring commitment of authors, scholars, and publishers to the world of Jewish books and ideas. Among the highlights are critical academic editions of…

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Cherubim: Winged Celestial Beings on the Title-Pages of Early Hebrew Books

Cherubim: Winged Celestial Beings on the Title-Pages of Early Hebrew Books

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And having driven out the man, He stationed at the east of the Garden of Eden the Cherubim and the flame of the ever-turning sword, to guard the way to the Tree of Life (Genesis 3:24). You shall make two Cherubim of gold—hammered out shall you make them—from both ends of the cover. You shall make one cherub from the end at one side and one Cherub from the end at the other; from the cover shall you make the…

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