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Category: History

Haftaros of Vayetze and Vayishlach – A Mistake Rectified

Haftaros of Vayetze and Vayishlach – A Mistake Rectified

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Haftaros of Vayetze and Vayishlach – A Mistake Rectified[1] By Eli Duker There had been one practice throughout the Jewish world concerning the Haftara of Vayishlach until the print revolution. The book of Ovadia is the Haftara listed in every Haftara list, including the one in the Rambam’s Seder HaTefillos in the Mishneh Torah, MS Ginsburg Moscow of the Machzor Vitry,[2] Etz Chaim (written in London on the eve of the Edict of Expulsion),[3] Abudarham,[4] and the list of Rabbi…

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Daf Yomi: Seforim on Masseches Taanis

Daf Yomi: Seforim on Masseches Taanis

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Daf Yomi: Seforim on Masseches Taanis By Eliezer Brodt Daf Yomi just started learning Masseches Taanis this week.  Earlier today I had a conversation with Rabbi Moshe Schwed of All Daf.  The purpose of the conversation was for me to briefly highlight some of the Rishonim and Achronim “out there” on this masechtah, adding some tidbits of interest about them. A nice amount of the conversation was devoted to discussing if Rashi on Taanis is by Rashi or not. We…

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How Dare You Translate Kabbalah!

How Dare You Translate Kabbalah!

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How Dare You Translate Kabbalah! by Avinoam Fraenkel Avinoam Fraenkel’s new book, Shomer Emunim: The Introduction to Kabbalah (Urim Publications, 2021), is a full facing page translation and expansive commentary on Shomer Emunim by R. Yosef Ergas, together with an extensive Kabbalah Overview systematically explaining key concepts of Lurianic Kabbalah in the context of a revolutionary framework of scientific understanding (see here). His previous two-volume Nefesh HaTzimtzum (Urim Publications, 2015), is a full facing page translation and expansive commentary on…

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Dr. Samuel Vita Della Volta (1772-1853): An Underappreciated Bibliophile and his Medical “Diploma”tic Journey

Dr. Samuel Vita Della Volta (1772-1853): An Underappreciated Bibliophile and his Medical “Diploma”tic Journey

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Dr. Samuel Vita Della Volta (1772-1853): An Underappreciated Bibliophile and his Medical “Diploma”tic Journey Rabbi Edward Reichman, MD I came upon the name Samuel Vita Della Volta through my usual historical pathway, the world of Jewish medical history, and my continued quest for medical diplomas of Jewish physicians from the premodern era. While the lion’s share of the diplomas I have identified come from the University of Padua,[1] there are some extant Jewish diplomas from other Italian universities, including Siena,…

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Shiur Announcement: Rabbi Yechiel Goldhaber in Brooklyn, 11/1/21 & 11/3/21

Shiur Announcement: Rabbi Yechiel Goldhaber in Brooklyn, 11/1/21 & 11/3/21

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Shiur Announcement: Rabbi Yechiel Goldhaber R’ Yechiel Goldhaber will be visiting the United States for a few weeks. The readership of the Seforim Blog is invited to a lecture by the noted author, Rav Yechiel Goldhaber whose respected research and scholarship is well-known to Seforim Blog readers. He will be giving a shiur tomorrow night, Monday, 11/1, at 7:30 PM. The address is at: Rabbi Rabinowitz 1454 54th Street This shiur will be in Yiddish Wednesday night, 11/3, he will…

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Rosh Hashana 23b – The Missing Map – Were We Deprived of a Map Drawn by Rashi?

Rosh Hashana 23b – The Missing Map – Were We Deprived of a Map Drawn by Rashi?

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Rosh Hashana 23b – The Missing Map – Were We Deprived of a Map Drawn by Rashi? Eli Genauer The Mishnah on Rosh Hashana 22b discusses the signal fires which were lit to inform the residents of Bavel of the Kiddush HaChodesh in Yerushalayim. מַתְנִי׳: בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה הָיוּ מַשִּׂיאִין מַשּׂוּאוֹת….. MISHNAH: Initially, after the court sanctified the new month they would light torches on the mountaintops, from one peak to another, to signal to the community in Babylonia that the month…

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