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Regarding Haftarah on Simchat Torah and the daily obligation to recite 100 blessings

Regarding Haftarah on Simchat Torah and the daily obligation to recite 100 blessings

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Regarding Haftarah on Simchat Torah and the daily obligation to recite 100 blessings Chaim Sunitsky It is well known that Simchat Torah is not mentioned anywhere in the two Talmuds or Midrashim[1]. In fact we have no proof that in the times of Talmud they used to finish the Torah cycle reading on Simchat Torah. The prevalent minhag in the land of Israel was to read the Torah not in one year but approximately in three[2]. In fact it seems…

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The American Yekkes

The American Yekkes

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The American Yekkes[1] By Yisrael Kashkin As I march around town grasping my Hirsch Siddur, I sometimes am asked, “Are you a Yekke?” to which I answer, “I am an American Yekke.”[2]  This statement draws puzzled looks as if I had said that I were an Algonquin Italian. “America is a Germanic country and my family has lived here for a century,” I say, attempting to explain but provoking usually even more puzzlement. For those who want to hear more,…

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The Meaning of the Word Hitpallel (התפלל)

The Meaning of the Word Hitpallel (התפלל)

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The Meaning of the Word Hitpallel (התפלל) By Mitchell First[1] MFirstAtty@aol.com It is clear from the many places that it appears in Tanakh that התפלל connotes praying. But what was the original meaning of this word? I was always taught that it meant something like “judge yourself.” Indeed, the standard ArtScroll Siddur (Siddur Kol Yaakov) includes the following in its introductory pages: “The Hebrew verb for praying is מתפלל; it is a reflexive word, meaning that the subject acts upon…

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אמירת פיוטי ‘אקדמות’ ו’יציב פתגם’ בחג השבועות

אמירת פיוטי ‘אקדמות’ ו’יציב פתגם’ בחג השבועות

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אמירת פיוטי ‘אקדמות’ ו’יציב פתגם’ בחג השבועות by Eliezer Brodt The following post tracing many aspects​ of the famous Piy​ut  Akdamot originally appeared in my recently completed doctorate פרשנות השלחן ערוך לאורח חיים ע”י חכמי פולין במאה הי”ז, חיבור לשם קבלת תואר דוקטור אוניברסיטת בר אילן, רמת גן תשע”ה  pp.341-353. This version is extensively updated with many corrections and additional information. The subject has been dealt with by many including here a few years back. אמירת הפיוטים ‘אקדמות’ ו’יציב פתגם’…

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Daily Birkat Cohanim in the Diaspora

Daily Birkat Cohanim in the Diaspora

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Daily Birkat Cohanim in the Diaspora * By Rabbi Daniel Sperber Question: May Cohanim outside the Land of Israel give the priestly blessing (Birkat Cohanim, or Nesiat Kapayim) on weekdays and on regular Shabbatot? Answer: The Torah explicitly requires the Cohanim to bless the people (Numbers 6:23), but does not tell us where or when they should do so. Rambam (Sefer ha-Mitzvot, Mitzvat Assei 26) who gives no details, but refers us to B. Megillah 24b, Taanit  2b, and Sotah…

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R. Yair Hayyim Bachrach as a Writer of Romance?, A Non-Jewish Song Made Holy, Love (and More) Before and After Marriage, and Memoirs that Maybe Tell Too Much

R. Yair Hayyim Bachrach as a Writer of Romance?, A Non-Jewish Song Made Holy, Love (and More) Before and After Marriage, and Memoirs that Maybe Tell Too Much

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R. Yair Hayyim Bachrach as a Writer of Romance?, A Non-Jewish Song Made Holy, Love (and More) Before and After Marriage, and Memoirs that Maybe Tell Too Much Marc B. Shapiro Continued from here There is an interesting responsum of R Yair Hayyim Bacharach, Havot Yair, no. 60, that deals with a man and woman who were in love and get married despite the strong opposition of the woman’s father. The story is quite romantic. It describes how during an epidemic in…

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