Towards a Bibliography of Coronavirus-related Articles & Seforim written in the past month

Towards a Bibliography of Coronavirus-related Articles & Seforim written in the past month

Towards a Bibliography of Coronavirus-related Articles & Seforim written in the past month
By Eliezer Brodt

 

Many of us have been under lockdown for over a month – some of us for less, some for more. However, this has not silenced the ‘voice of the Torah’; all kinds of Shiurim & classes on a wide range of topics have been made available via various methods. Otzar Hachochmah has made their database available free of charge as have others. Others have chosen to spread Torah by putting digital pen to Digital paper. 

The truth is, like almost every other topic, it’s hard come up with something truly new;  plagues and the like have occurred numerous times throughout our long history. 

The famous bibliographer Avraham Ya’ari devoted a chapter of a book of his to Seforim which were written during plagues.[1]

During each of these times many discussions related to aspects of plagues and epidemics arose.[2] The sources range from descriptions of the situation, discussions of what one should do, i.e. stay put or run,[3] tefilot[4] and/or segulot[5] to Halachik rulings regarding observing various Halachos.[6] Right before Pesach, Machon Yerushalayim released a 300 page, digital work collecting hundreds of such sources (item #8).

In the most recent issue of the journal Ha-Ma’ayan (#233) released this past month my good friend R’ Moshe Dovid Chechik wrote an article titled “The Prohibition or the Obligation to Flee the city during an Epidemic” (item #1). Since, others have written about it [see below (#4&5)]. 

Much has been written about R’ Akiva Eiger and the 1831 Cholera outbreak (see below – R’ Elli Fisher and Dr. Eddie Reichman’s articles items 1,2 and 9). [See also Rabbi Pinni Dunner here]. I too am working on an article on the topic and hope to complete it IYH within the next few days.

This terrible time has already seen many Teshuvot written, especially in regard to Pesach. See especially bellow #11-15. Much has been written and will continue to be written about davening with a Minyan (see below #15, see also R’ Avishay Elbaum’s recent post [here]).

See below (Appendix Three for a Teshuvah I came across recently, about a wedding with less than 10 people for a minyan, published in Russia in 1928 in the Journal Yagdil Torah edited by Rav Zevin and R’ Abramsky.

All of the items mentioned in the Bibliography below are available from me free of charge – just e-mail me at eliezerbrodt@gmail.com.

English 

1. Rabbi Elli Fischer, Rov in a Time of Cholera (here).
2. Dr. Eddie Reichman, From Cholera to Coronavirus: Recurring Pandemics, Recurring Rabbinic Responses (here).
3. Dr. Eddie Reichman, Incensed by Coronavirus: Prayer and Ketoret in Times of Epidemic (here).
4. Rabbi Gil Student, Talmudic Advice on Epidemics (here).
5. Dr. Tamara Morsel-Eisenberg, “Is It Permitted to Flee the City?” (here).

Hebrew

  1.  ר’ משה דוד צ’צ’יק, האיסור או החובה לברוח מן העיר בשעת המגפה, כאן
  2.  ר’ מנחם מענדל רוזנפלד, זמן מגיפה: הורים ילדים ומפחדים, כאן
  3. [נאמנו מאד, עדויות גדולי ישראל על הליכותיהם ומנהגיהם בימי חולי ומגיפה, אשר נאספו ונלקטו מתוך כתביהם וחיבוריהם, מכון ירושלים, [ספר שלם, 300 עמודים
  4. [שמירת הסופר להינצל מחולי ומגפה מתורת החתם סופר [ספר שלם, קמא עמודים
  5. ר’ שמואל ויטל, סדר משמרה לזמן המגפה, מכתב יד, בההדרת ר’ ישראל זאב גוטמאן
  6.  [אוסף של31  תשובות של הרב צבי שכטר שליט”א [בעברית וחלקם גם באנלגיש
  7.  [פסקי קורונה מאת הרב צבי שכטר שליט”א [51 עמודים
  8.  [מנחת אשר, לקט שיעורים תשובות אגרות ומאמרים הנוגעים למגפת הקורונה מאת הרב אשר וייס שליט”א [100 עמודים
  9. קונטרס פסקי הלכות, בשאלות שהזמן גרמן, מתוך כתבי ר’ אברהם יחיאל סגל דויטש שליט”א
  10. ר’ צבי ריזמן, ‘צירוף למנין תפילה בציבור וברכת כהנים ב’בידוד בקורונה’
  11. [קובץ תורני מה טובו אהליך יעקב, גליון י [כל הקובץ] [585 עמודים] [עניני פסח וקורונה
  12. קישור לאוסף מאמרים על חג הפסח והמגיפות בהיסטוריה, בספרות בפיוט ובהגות.  המאמרים פרי עטם של חברי וחברות סגל הפקולטה למדעי היהדות באוניברסיטת בר-אילן, כאן
  13. [קובץ עץ חיים גליון לג [יש כמה מאמרים על קורונה

Appendix One:

In a post from a few years back I wrote about R’ Yaakov Zahalon (1630-1693), a graduate of medical college in Rome, became a doctor at the age of twenty-six, and for several years, was also a Rav and Baal Darshan in Rome. He was famous for his important medical work, Otzar Ha-Hayyim. I also wrote a little about the work (see here).

He was very involved in the famous plague in the ghetto of Rome in 1656, which he describes at length in his work, Otzar Ha-Hayyim. Here is the very interesting passage about it which has relevance today.

Appendix One:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appendix Two:

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appendix Three:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] Mechkerey Sefer, pp. 90-99. See also Marvin Heller, Further Studies in the making of the early Hebrew Book, pp.79-90. See these recent posts here & here.
[2] See for example about one in Italy 1630-1631: R’ Yehudah Aryeh Modena, The Autobiography of a Seventeenth Century Venetian Rabbi, pp. 134-136; Sefer Olam Hafukh, a History of the Plague in Padua in the Year 1631, by Abraham Catalano, Kovetz Al Yad 4 (XIV) (1946), pp. 65-101 (printed by Cecil Roth).
[3] See Asher Ziv, HaRama, pp. 112-116. See Appendix Two for an important chapter from the Mabit’s incredible work Beis Elokiym related to Plagues in Hashkafah. See also, R’ Raphael Mordechai Malchi, Medical Essays, (ed. M. Benayahu), pp, 139-140. See also his Grandson, R’ David De Silva, Pri Megaddim, [Zohar Amar, Ed.], pp. 71-74.
[4] Two weeks, ago Rabbi Guttman released online, a PDF of a manuscript of R’ Shmuel Vital of Seder Tefilos based on Kabbalah, to say during such times (item #11). See also #3, Dr. Eddie Reichman’s article on the topic.

[5] About Fasting, see Omer Ahituv, Fasting in Ashkenaz at the Beginning of the Seventeenth Century, MA thesis, Tel Aviv University 2019, (Heb.) pp. 70-74.
[6] See the very special work by H.J. Zimmels, Magicians, Theologians and Doctors, pp. 99-110, 228-233 who has an excellent collection of material on this.

In middle of a teshuvah about Pidyon Shivyoim the Shvut Yaakov wrote:

אבל עכשיו בעוה שנתרבה עלינו עול הגלות ועלילות שקרימשונאינו שמעלילין עלינו כאלו הדבר בא עי ישראל דוקא וכשהיה הדבר בשנת תעג ברוב מקומות שהיו שמה מבני עמינו היה סוגרים רחוב היהודים באין יוצא ואין בא ממש ובדוחק עפ שתדלנוגדול שהניחו להביא להם צרכי מזונותיהם ובאיזה מקומות הוצרכו לילך ולחבות עצמן ביערים ומערות וישראל שהיו בדרך ועל פני השדה היו ממש מופקרים למות ואשרי מי שלא חמאן בצער ודוחק גדול כזה ואין לך שבי גדול מזו דגרע מכולהן דכולהן איתנהו ביה על כן אין צריך לפנים דמצוה זו הוי ממש פדיון שבוים ואפשר דגדול ממנו ולא הוי שינוי מדעת הנותן כי אין שעת הדחק גדול מזו (שבות יעקב, ב, סיפד).

See also the excellent work, Julius Preuss, Biblical and Talmudic Medicine, (translated by Fred Rosner), pp. 151-160.

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53 thoughts on “Towards a Bibliography of Coronavirus-related Articles & Seforim written in the past month

  1. Thank you once again for a well researched and very informative article! A real Oneg Ruchni! Bracha vhatzlacha!

  2. Great round-up and thank you for sharing. One correction:

    “In middle of a teshuvah about Pidyon Shivyoim (sic!)…”

    The responsum of the SY is about whether or not it is permissible to take what was allocated by a muribund individual as ransom funds and divert them for the use of the needy during an epidemic.

    Be well!

  3. Thanks again for your excellent work! I would add R’ Hercshel Schechter, Shlit’a who has released numerous Teshuvos on Corona, accessible on yutorah.org.

    Thanks again.
    Dov Reifer

  4. הג”ר אשר ווייס גם הוציא קונטרס שלם “מנחת אשר – בתקופת קורונה”. וכן הג”ר שלמה אבינר הוציא קונטרס “כתר יתנו לך – קורונה בהשקפה ובהלכה”

  5. Amusing typo in Hebrew item 6. Also, see Seforim Chatter on Twitter for a number of contemporary response booklets on the plague, many with PDF links.

    1. “Analogish” – new Yeshivish term for arguments based on מה מצינו or מדמה מילתא למילתא.

  6. סליחה לא לראיתי שכבר רשמתם על הגר”א ווייס שליט”א ברשימה…

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