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A Woman's Place Is In The Home

A Woman's Place Is In The Home

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The Sons of Korah declare:כָּל-כְּבוּדָּה בַת-מֶלֶךְ פְּנִימָה; מִמִּשְׁבְּצוֹת זָהָב לְבוּשָׁהּ. [And see here for various nineteenth and twentieth century references to our titular aphorism, and see this essay.] But is the verse indeed a normative injunction toward modesty, for women in general, or at least Jewish women in particular, as it is commonly understood? And if so, exactly what standard of behavior is being enjoined? Cultural Norms – Twelfth Century Egypt, Twentieth Century Jerusalem and Twenty First Century Kabul Rambam’s…

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Seforim for Sale, List III

Seforim for Sale, List III

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This is the third and (for now) the final list of out-of-print seforim (the two prior lists can be seen here and here). We have provided links for most of the books where a bit of information about the book can be gleaned. These books will only be available for a short bit longer. Most of the titles mentioned here are out-of-print and, for some of the listed titles, there are only a few copies available. For example, for-some of…

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Further Comments by Marc Shapiro

Further Comments by Marc Shapiro

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I had thought that this would be my last post of the current batch, but it turned out to be too long. So I have divided it into two parts. Here is part no. 1. The volumes Shomrei Mishmeret ha-Kodesh, by R. Natan Raphael Auerbach, have just appeared. Here is the cover. This book is devoted to the Auerbach family, which was one of the great rabbinic families in Germany. They were the “A” in what was known as the…

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The Golem of Prague in Recent Rabbinic Literature

The Golem of Prague in Recent Rabbinic Literature

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In a recent issue of המאור – a rabbinic journal of repute – an anonymous notice appeared on the Golem of Prague.1 Apparently, a rabbi in Brooklyn had publicly denied the authenticity of the Maharal’s Golem, claiming that R. Yudel Rosenberg (d. 1935) – in his נפלאות מהר”ל (Piotrkow, 1909) – was the first to suggest that the Maharal had created a Golem. According to the account in המאור, the rabbi based his claim, in part, on the fact that…

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Sefer HaNer on Mesechet Bava Kamma

Sefer HaNer on Mesechet Bava Kamma

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Not every important work written by a Rishon is blessed with popularity. While many texts were available throughout the generations and utilized to their utmost; others were relegated to obscurity, being published as recently as this century, or even this year. Nearly a month doesn’t pass without a “new” Rishon being made available to the public, and often enough in a critical edition. While each work must be evaluated on its own merit, as a whole, every commentary, every volume…

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Benefits of the Internet: Besamim Rosh and its History

Benefits of the Internet: Besamim Rosh and its History

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In a new series we wanted to highlight how much important material is now available online. This, first post, illustrates the proliferation of online materials with regard to the controversy surrounding the work Besamim Rosh (“BR”). [We must note at the outset that recently a program has been designed by Moshe Koppel which enables one, via various mathematical algorithims, to identify documents authored by the same author. We hope, using this program, to provide a future update that will show…

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More on Chaim Bloch

More on Chaim Bloch

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In a previous post I mentioned how the non-Jewish Austrian minister Leon Bilinski was descended from the rav of Posen, R. Samuel ben Moses Falkenfeld, the Beit Shmuel Aharon. More information about Bilinski’s Jewish roots is found in Chaim Bloch’s Ve-Da Mah she-Tashiv (New York, 1943), p. 74 n. 1. In general, I have found that when Bloch is reporting about other people’s biographies and history in general, he is very reliable. It is only when he is somehow involved…

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Seforim for Sale, List II

Seforim for Sale, List II

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This is the second list of out-of-print seforim. At the end of the list I provide suggestions, divided by subject matter. Additionally, where appropriate I have provided information about specific titles. Most of the titles mentioned here are out of print and, for some of the listed titles; there are only a few copies available. For example, for-some of the titles there are only two copies available for sale while others there are many more available. Thus, these books are…

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Marc Shapiro: R. Kook on Sacrifices & Other Assorted Comments

Marc Shapiro: R. Kook on Sacrifices & Other Assorted Comments

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1. At the beginning of my previous post (the Gurock review) I mentioned R. Solomon Isaac Scheinfeld (1860-1943). The source of the comment I quote is his Olam ha-Sheker (Milwaukee, 1936), p. 77.1 Scheinfeld was the unofficial chief rabbi in Milwaukee, arriving there in 1902 and serving until his death in 1943. Here is his picture. He had a traditional education, having studied for three years in the Kovno Kollel under R. Isaac Elhanan Spektor, from whom he received semikhah.2…

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Marc B. Shapiro – Review: Orthodox Jews in America

Marc B. Shapiro – Review: Orthodox Jews in America

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This is the first part of a four part post. It begins with a review I was asked to write that in the end was never published. The format of the review was not designed for the arcane stuff and numerous footnotes that are usual fare for the Seforim blog. Yet have no fear, these will return in parts 2-4. Jeffrey S. Gurock, Orthodox Jews in America (Indiana University Press: Bloomington and Indianapolis, 2009) Pretty much everyone has seen an…

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Bein hashemashot: A Reevaluation of the Texts Part II

Bein hashemashot: A Reevaluation of the Texts Part II

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This is the second of a sequence of posts (the first post can be found here), from a draft of a forthcoming monograph by Dr. William Gewirtz that addresses the period of bein hashemashot. Each post briefly summarizes about 20 pages of the monograph and contains 4 – 6 critical pages from that section as well. The monograph addresses the period of bein hashemashot, the most fundamental area of dispute in the area of zemanim. What is proposed is an…

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Some Observations Regarding the Mah Nishtannah

Some Observations Regarding the Mah Nishtannah

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1. It is well-known that the Mishnah in the tenth chapter of Pesachim includes a set of mah nishtannah. But if one opens a standard printed Babylonian Talmud (Pes. 116a), one sees four questions in the text of the Mishnah (matzah, maror, roast, and dipping), while if one opens a standard printed Jerusalem Talmud, one sees three (dipping, matzah and roast). Is this an instance of a disagreement between the text of the Mishnah preserved in Babylonia and the text…

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Seforim For Sale – List 1

Seforim For Sale – List 1

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We will be introducing a new feature to the seforim blog. From time to time we will be offering some hard-to-find seforim and academic books for very reasonable prices. Most of the titles mentioned here are out of print and, for some of the listed titles, there are only a few copies available. For example, for-some of the titles there are only 5 copies available for sale while others there are many more available. Thus, these books are on a…

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Kosher Tube: TV Series on the 13 Principles

Kosher Tube: TV Series on the 13 Principles

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My next post will, God willing, appear after Pesah (in three parts). In the meantime, I wanted to let readers know about the thirteen episodes of a show focusing on the Thirteen Principles. It is called Credo 13 and you can find it here. It appeared on Canadian television and “stars” myself, David Novak. Benjamin Hecht, Shalom Carmy, Eliezer Breitowitz, Mayer Schiller, and Leib Tropper. (If you can’t tolerate, or figure out, the game played by the girls in the…

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Kitniyot and Stimulants: Coffee and Marijuana on Passover

Kitniyot and Stimulants: Coffee and Marijuana on Passover

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One of the more interesting customs for Pesach in that of refraining from kitniyot. There is much discussion regarding the origins of this mysterious custom. That is, the exact time this custom began, as well as it initial rationale is cloaked in mystery. That is not to say that numerous reasons haven’t been offered, only that we probably will never know for certain why this was enacted. Moreover, what exactly is encompassed in this custom is similarly cloaked in mystery….

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