New Book Announcement

 Eliezer Brodt

 I am very happy to announce the publication of an important work which numerous people (myself included) have been eagerly waiting for quite some time, Professor Chaim Milikowsky of the Bar Ilan Talmud department’s critical edition of the Seder Olam. Professor Milikowsky began working on the Seder Olam over thirty years ago and completed his PhD dissertation ‘Seder Olam : A Rabbinic Chronography‘ in Yale University 1981 (550 pp.) with Professor Shnayer Zalman Leiman serving as his thesis advisor. This version included an English Translation of the Seder Olam. Since then Professor Milikowsky has authored numerous articles, many of which, amongst many other topics, are related to the Seder Olam.

This edition was just printed by the Yad Ben Zvi Press and is comprised of two large volumes. Volume one contains a two hundred and fourteen page general introduction about the Seder Olam, along with the one hundred and seven page critical, synopsis edition of the Seder Olam, based on numerous manuscripts and Genizah fragments. Volume two contains a seven hundred and eleven page(!) commentary, and is thoroughly indexed. This work is incredible on all fronts; in depth and breadth, touching upon anything related to the Seder Olam. It appears that literally every letter of this Tannaitic work has been dealt with. In addition to the scholarly acumen invested in the introduction and commentary, this work serves as an excellent model for preparing critical editions of works of Chazal.

For a Table of Contents or more information about purchasing this work, feel free to contact me at Eliezerbrodtatgmail.com. Copies of this work will be arriving at Biegeleisen shortly.

מאת: רב צעיר

הספר “מסורת התורה שבעל פה – יסודותיה, עקרונותיה והגדרותיה” שהוציא לאור לפני כשנה הרב פרופ’ שלמה זלמן הבלין, בהוצאת מכללת אורות-ישראל, עוסק בהיבטים שונים של אחד הנושאים שמעסיקים ביותר את חיי היהודי המאמין, התורה שבעל פה. הספר מכיל חמישה עשר פרקים, חמשה מתוכם רואים אור לראשונה בספר זה, והעשרה הנותרים ראו אור בכתבי עת שונים במהלך השנים. בתור לקט כזה, הספר אינו אחיד. ישנם פרקים הכתובים בצורה אינציקלופדית (כך למשל פרק י”א שהוא למעשה הערך “תלמוד בבלי” מהאנציקלופדיה העברית), וישנם פרקים המכילים חידושים מפליגים. ישנם פרקים בעלי אופי יותר בית-מדרשי, ישנם בעלי אופי יותר עממי, וישנם בעלי אופי מאד אקדמאי. ישנם פרקים עם ריבוי הפניות והערות שוליים וישנם עם מעט מאד. ככלל, המחבר משתדל לעסוק בכל מה שקשור להגדרת ולהבנת מהותה של התורה שבעל פה. אני מניח שכל מי שנושא התורה שבעל פה מעסיק אותו, בין אם זה בעל-בית שלומד דף יומי, או אברך שלומד בכולל או חוקר תלמוד באוניברסיטה, ימצא בספר זה דברים מרתקים. עוד חידוש שישנו בספר זה הוא שמצורף אליו תקליטור ובו כל הספר, זאת על מנת להקל על הלומד לחפש בספר וכדי לחסוך את הצורך בהכנת מפתח מפורט לספר. הספר הוא באורך כ600 עמודים ברוטו ונטו, כאמור, ללא מפתח וללא ביבליוגרפיה. אני מבקש להתייחס ולסקור שני נושאים משני פרקים מתוך הספר שאני מצאתי בהם חידוש. בפרק ד’ בספר, תחת הכותרת “להבנת יסודות דרכי הלימוד של חז”ל”, עוסק המחבר במדרש הידוע בתלמוד הבבלי מסכת מנחות (דף כט עמוד ב):

“אמר רב יהודה אמר רב: בשעה שעלה משה למרום, מצאו להקב”ה שיושב וקושר כתרים לאותיות, אמר לפניו: רבש”ע, מי מעכב על ידך? אמר לו: אדם אחד יש שעתיד להיות בסוף כמה דורות ועקיבא בן יוסף שמו, שעתיד לדרוש על כל קוץ וקוץ תילין תילין של הלכות.”

המחבר מעיר על כל שינויי הנוסח שישנם על טקסט סיפורי זה על פי כתבי יד, דפוסים ישנים וראשונים, לאחר מכן הוא נדרש לתוכן הסיפור:

“כגון שנטלו לתגו של דל”ת ועשאו רי”ש”

וכבר הזכרנו גם את “קוצו של יוד”, חלק מהגוף האות יו”ד. המחבר הולך עוד צעד בחידושו ואת הביטוי “קושר כתרים” מפרש המחבר בתור “ממליך”, הקב”ה “ממליך” את האותיות, מעניק חשיבות לכל אחת ואחת מהן. וכך מסביר הקב”ה למשה שעתיד לקום רבי עקיבא והוא ידרוש כל קוץ וקוץ, זאת אומרת יחפש משמעות לכל אות ואות. רבי עקיבא, בניגוד לשיטת רבי
ישמעאל שסבר שדברה תורה כלשון בני אדם, ראה צורך לדייק ולדרוש כל אות ואות, כפי שאנו מוצאים בגמרא במסכת סנהדרין (דף נא עמוד ב):

“אמר ליה רבי עקיבא: ישמעאל אחי (ויקרא כ”א) בת ובת אני דורש. – אמר ליה: וכי מפני שאתה דורש בת ובת נוציא זו לשריפה?”

המחבר מבסס את דבריו ומביא להם סימוכין ממחברים שונים ואף ממשיך ומבאר את המשך המדרש לאור דברים אלו. בפרק ו’, הרואה אור לראשונה בספר זה, תחת הכותרת “דרשת חז”ל על ‘לא תסור … ימין ושמאל'”, דן המחבר בסתירה בין מדרשי הלכה. הספרי על הפסוק “לא תסור מן הדבר אשר יגידו לך ימין ושמאל” (דברים יז יא), המובא גם ברש”י שם, כותב:

“על פי התורה אשר יורוך, על דברי תורה חייבים מיתה ואין חייבים מיתה על דברי סופרים. ועל המשפט אשר יאמרו לך תעשה, מצות עשה. לא תסור מן התורה אשר יגידו לך, מצות לא תעשה, ימין ושמאל, אפילו מראים בעיניך על ימין שהוא שמאל ועל שמאל שהוא ימין שמע להם סליק פיסקא”

בתלמוד הירושלמי (מסכת הוריות פרק א), לעומת זאת, מופיע דרשה הפוכה לחלוטין:

“יכול אם יאמרו לך על ימין שהיא שמאל ועל שמאל שהיא ימין תשמע להם ת”ל ללכת ימין ושמאל שיאמרו לך על ימין שהוא ימין ועל שמאל שהיא שמאל.”

המחבר מקשה ששתי הדרשות אינן מובנות: וכי המדרש בספרי אינו מקבל את זה שייתכן ובית הדין טועה? וכי הגמרא בירושלמי מעוניין שכל אחד יחליט לעצמו מתי לשמוע לבית הדין ומתי לא? לכן, מנסה המחבר לפשר בין שני המדרשים. לצורך זה מביא המחבר 8 (!) דרכים, ממחברים שונים, כיצד ניתן לפשר בין שני המדרשים. לאחר מכן מציע המחבר אפשרות תשיעית, משלו. לדבריו, הדרך לפשר בין שני המדרשים מונח במילה אחת הנראית לא במקומה בדברי הירושלמי. המילה “ללכת”. מילה זו, אינה מופיעה בפסוק שאותו לכאורה דורשים: “לא תסור מן הדבר אשר יגידו לך ימין ושמאל”, אך כן מופיעה משום מה בדברי הירושלמי: “ת”ל ללכת ימין ושמאל”. לכן מסיק המחבר, שהירושלמי בכלל דורש פסוק אחר מספר דברים (כח יד):

“ולא תסור מכל הדברים אשר אנכי מצוה אתכם היום ימין ושמאל ללכת אחרי אלהים אחרים לעבדם”

כלומר, הספרי מדבר על הוראות חכמים “הדבר אשר יגידו לך”, ואלו הירושלמי עוסק בפסוק המדבר אודות ציווי הקב”ה בתורה “אשר אנכי מצוה אתכם”. על הראשון אומרת הספרי שגם אם בית הדין טעה בהוראתו חייבים לשמוע לו. אך הירושלמי מסייג זאת, שזהו כל עוד בית הדין לא הורו לעבור על דבר המפורש בתורה, כי על דבר המפורש בתורה יש לשמוע לבית הדין רק אם יאמרו על ימין שהוא ימין ועל שמאל שהוא שמאל. לא ניתן, לדעתי, לומר שפתרון זה של המחבר חף מדוחק, שהרי גם בפסוק בפרק כח לא נאמר “ללכת ימין ושמאל”, אלא “ימין ושמאל ללכת וכו'”, אך הכיוון הוא בהחלט מחודש ומרענן. יש עוד הרבה פרטים ודיונים בספר עב כרס זה. נזכיר רק עוד דיון אחד שמצאתי בו עניין מיוחד. בנספח לפרק ח’ “היחס לשאלות נוסח בספרי חז”ל”, מנתח המחבר את מעמד הבחינה המתואר בספרו של חיים פוטוק “ההבטחה” (The Promise). לדבריו, מעמד הבחינה של גיבור הספר, המתואר שם, הוא למעשה תיאור בחינה בישיבה-אוניברסיטה בניו-יורק בפני הרב יוסף דב סולובייצ’יק, הרב ירוחם גורעליק וד”ר שמואל בלקין. בחן רב, המחבר מגלה לנו לאיזה סוגיא רומז חיים פוטוק והוא מנתח ומבקר את התשובות שענה הנבחן. יותר ממה שכתבתי בפניכם יש בספר זה. אוהבי ספר ומחקר תלמודי בודאי ימצאו בו דברים אהובים.

*ברצוני להודות לרב ד”ר משה רחימי שהמציא לי את הספר ולמו”ח פרופ’ דניאל י. לסקר שעבר על דברי.

Book
week 2013

By:
Eliezer Brodt

Book week just began in
Eretz Yisrael. As I have written in previous years every year in Israel, around
Shavous time, there is a period of about ten days called Shavuah Hasefer – Book
Week (see here, here here, here  here and here). Many of the companies
offer sales for the whole month. Shavuah HaSefer is a sale which takes
place all across the country in stores, malls and special places rented out
just for the sales. There are places where strictly “frum” seforim are sold and
other places have most of the secular publishing houses. Many publishing houses
release new titles specifically at this time. In my reviews I sometimes include
an older title if I just noticed the book. As I have written in the past, I do
not intend to include all the new books. Eventually some of these titles will
be the subject of their own reviews. I try to include titles of broad interest.
Some books I cannot provide much information about as I just glanced at them
quickly. Some books which I note, I can provide Table of contents if requested,
via e mail.

As this list shows
although book publishing in book form has dropped greatly worldwide, Academic
books on Jewish related topics are still coming out in full force.

I have also included
some academic books that came out this year but are not being sold at
book week.

Additionally this year I
am offering a service, for a small fee to help one purchase these titles (or
titles of previous years). For more information about this email me at
Eliezerbrodt-at-gmail.com. Part of the proceeds will be going to support the
efforts of the the Seforim Blog.

Bar Ilan University has many excellent
new titles this year.

Merkaz Zalman Shazar has some new titles.

This year at the Shazar
booth there are some otherwise hard to track down some books related to Poland
from Tel Aviv University available for some very reduced prices amongst the
titles of interest are;

א. החדר מחקרים תעודות פרקי ספרות וזכרונות עמנואל
אטקס ודוד אסף (עורכים)

ב. זיכרונות יחזקאל קוטיק דוד אסף (מהדיר) שני
חלקים

ג. פנקס פתוח, מרדכי נדב

ד. קרקא קזימייז קראקוב, אלחנן ריינר (עורך)

ה. בין זיכרון להכחשה, יואל רבא

ו.אלכסנדר גוטרמן, קהילות ורשה בין שתי מלחמות
העולם, אוטונומיה לאומית בכבלי החוק המציאות 1917-1939

ז. גל עד- כרך כג.

 The Bialik Institute
has many new titles, amongst them:

Machlelet Herzog has some new titles:

Magnes has many new
titles:

 Reuven Mass has some new titles worth mentioning:

Mechon
Ben Tzvi
has some new important titles:  

           

Kibutz Hamuchad has a few good titles
this year:

Shocken –JTS has special
sales on older titles:

A new face
at book week was Machlelet Efrata. Worth mentioning is:

Carmel Publishers has
some new titles:

Yeddiot Seforim has a few nice titles:

After being out of print
for years this classic is back in print.

Some Random Academic
stuff not at the book week:

Some older excellent
titles of Mercaz Shazar I thought worth mentioning:

Recent years have seen a breakthrough regarding the elusive identity of “Monsieur Chouchani,” the mysterious vagabond who in the capacity of mentor, exerted such an incredibly profound effect upon the Nobel-laureate novelist Elie Wiesel as well as the philosopher Emmanuel Levinas in the post-war, post-Holocaust years in France. I am referring to the identification of Chouchani as none other than Hillel Pearlman, an early student of Rav Kook in his short-lived Jaffa Yeshivah.[2]

Pivotal to the identification (which we shall not enter into here) is a letter that Rav Kook penned from exile in St. Gallen, Switzerland to two students of the Yeshivah. We offer the letter in English translation:

With the help of God

6 Tishri 5676 [i.e., 1915]

A good conclusion[3] to my beloved soul-friends, each man according to his blessing,[4] the dear “groom,” the Rabbi, sharp and encyclopedic, crowned with rare qualities and character traits, our teacher Rabbi Hillel, may his light shine; and the dear “groom,” exceptional in Torah and awe of heaven, modest and crowned with rare character traits, Mr. Meir, may his light shine.

Peace! Peace! Blessing with abundant love.

My dear friends, for too, too long I delayed the response to your dear letter. In your goodness you will give me the benefit of the doubt. Only as a result of the preoccupation brought on by the pain of exile and the heart’s longing produced by the general situation (God have mercy), were things put off.

Many thanks to you, our dear Mr. Meir, for your detailed letter, whereby you deigned in your goodness to write to us in detail the state of our family members in the Holy Land, especially the state of the girls, may they live.[5] May the Lord repay your kindness and gladden your soul with every manner of happiness and success, and may we together rejoice in the joy of the Land of Delight upon the holy soil, when the Lord will grant salvation to His world, His land and His inheritance, speedily, speedily, soon.

And you, my beloved Mr. Hillel, all power to you for your dear words, upright words pronounced with proper feeling and the longing of a pure heart. We are standing opposite a great and powerful vision previously unknown in human history. There is no doubt that changes of great value are hidden in the depths of this world vision. There is also no doubt that the hand of Israel through the spirit, the voice of Jacob,[6] must be revealed here. Far be it from us to treat as false all the deeds and events, the longing for general life, that we experienced the past years. As much as they are mixed with impurities; as much as they failed to assume their proper form, their living description, their true life—we see in them in the final analysis, correspondence to the holy vision, unmistakable signs that things are happening according to a higher plan. The hand of the Lord holds them, to pave a way for His people, weary from its multitudinous troubles, and also for His world, crouching under the weight of confused life.

It is certainly difficulty at this time to trace which is the way of the process, but in this respect we may be certain: The terrible wandering of such great and essential portions of our nation residing in Eastern Europe, where the spiritual life of Israel is concentrated, and the necessity of rebuilding physically and spiritually new communities, educational institutions and Torah academies—will bring numerous new results, certainly for good. From those new winds that have been blowing in our world for the past half-century and more, something is to be derived, if we can purify them, erecting them upon foundations of purity and holiness. The opinions and longing for spiritual and physical building of Israel; the mighty desire of building the Land and the Nation, despite external and internal obstacles; the visions tucked away in the hearts of numerous thinkers to uplift the horn of Israel and its spirit, to bind together the strength of life with the sanctity of the soul, the talent of understanding with the depth of faith, immediate implementation with longing for salvation—all these are things that will bear fruit, and the Master of Wars, blessed be He, will grow from all of them His salvation.[7]

One thing we know for certain, that we are invited to great projects: philosophic projects; literary and publicistic projects; practical and social projects; projects at the interior of eternal life and projects of temporal and secular life; projects that remain within the border of Israel; and projects that overflow and touch the streams of life of the world at large and their many relations with the world of Israel, which was, is, and will be a blessing to all the families of earth,[8] as the word of the Lord to our ancestor [Abraham] in antiquity.

My beloved, I request that you write to us whatever is [happening] to you, your situation in detail, whether in spiritual or material matters; whatever you imagine might interest us, whether of private or public affairs. For all I will be exceedingly grateful to you, with God’s help.

I am your fast friend, looking for your happiness and success, and your return together with all our scattered people to the holy soil in happiness and success. May the Lord bless you with all good and extend to you peace and blessing and a good conclusion, as is your wish and the wish of one who seeks your peace and good all the days, longing for the salvation of the Lord,

Abraham Isaac Ha[Kohen] K[ook][9]

In order to understand the contents of the letter, the better to grasp the identities of its two recipients, we must first acquaint ourselves with the circumstances in which it was written.

For one decade, from 1904 to 1914, Abraham Isaac Hakohen Kook served as Rabbi of the port city of Jaffa (precursor to Tel-Aviv). During those years in Jaffa he taught a select group of students in a yeshivah of his own making. (This yeshivah is not to be confused with the famous Yeshivah Merkaz Harav founded by Rav Kook in Jerusalem in the early 1920s.) In summer of 1914, Rav Kook set sail for Europe to attend the Knessiyah Gedolah or World Congress of the recently organized Agudath Israel movement. Due to the outbreak of World War One (on Tish’ah be-Av of that year), the conference was cancelled. Unable to return to Jaffa, Rav Kook remained stranded in Europe for the duration of the War, first in St. Gallen, Switzerland, where his needs were provided for by a sympathetic Mr. Abraham Kimhi, and later in London, where Rav Kook served as Rabbi of the Mahzikei Hadat synagogue in London’s East End.[10]

Much concerning the Jaffa yeshivah remains shrouded in mystery. No archive remains of this short-lived institution.[11] Thus we are pretty much left in the dark as to the curriculum,[12] enrollment, and even location. Fortunately, significant headway has been made in this direction in the recent article by Moshe Nahmani of the Yeshivat Hesder of Ramat Gan, “She’areha Ne’ulim—Yeshivat Harav Kuk be-Yaffo” (“Closed Gates—The Yeshivah of Rabbi Kook in Jaffa”).[13] Through painstaking research, the author was able to put together a list of students. Researchers had no difficulty identifying the “Hillel” of the letter as Hillel Pearlman. It was merely a case of “connecting the dots.”[14] But Nahmani was baffled by the “Meir” who is one of two co-addressees in our letter.[15]

I believe that I have solved the mystery of the missing Meir. In 1977, I was a visitor to the home of Rabbi Mayer Goldberg of Oakland, California. Rabbi Goldberg was a successful businessman (at that time in real estate) and a Jewish philanthropist, especially supportive of yeshivot or rabbinical academies. Rabbi Goldberg revealed to me that he had studied under Rabbi Kook in Jaffa.[16] He then went on to share with me a teaching of Rav Kook that I have since repeated on many an occasion. He said that before being exposed to Rav Kook’s teaching, the term “yir’at shamayim” (“fear of heaven”) had only a restrictive, narrowing connotation. Rav Kook explained the term in a totally different light. By the term “yir’at shamayim,” Rav Kook conveyed to his young listeners the vastness, the enormity, the infinitude of the universe.

Reading Moshe Nachmani’s article concerning Rav Kook’s yeshivah in Jaffa, and his bafflement as to the full identity of the student named simply “Meir,” I recalled my meeting with Rabbi Mayer Goldberg. I resolved that during my forthcoming visit to the East Bay area (as it has come to be known) I would meet with the late Rabbi’s children to learn from them more details of their father’s involvement with Rav Kook. What emerged from our discussion (conducted on February 14, 2013) is the following reconstruction of events.

Mayer Vevrick was born circa 1890 “near Kiev.”[17] At some time before World War One, Mayer boarded a ship from Odessa to Jaffa. In the words of his daughter Rachel Landes:

Once he arrived in Jaffa, he sought out the yeshiva of Rabbi Kook. Rabbi Avraham Kook was a world renowned scholar and it was there my father headed to study further. He became a “hasid,” a follower of the Rabbi, and thoroughly enjoyed his studies there. He lived in Rabbi Kook’s home.[18] He studied Talmud…with Rashi and the commentaries, for many hours a day with the other young men. These were the happiest days of his life, with uninterrupted Torah study, and the joy of learning with Rabbi Kook. Mayer adopted [Rabbi] Kook’s philosophy and was guided by it for the rest of his life.[19]

In World War One, Mayer left Jaffa for Egypt. There he was held by the British in an internment camp. Eventually, with some ingenuity, he was able to book passage on a boat to the United States.[20] Initially he resided on the East Coast. In Boston, he received a ketav semikha (writ of ordination) from Rabbi [Joseph M.] Jacobson. The semikha was written by Rabbi Jacobson on the spot in recognition of Mayer’s knowledge of Torah.[21] Later, Rabbi Mayer relocated to the West Coast, first to Washington State and finally to California.[22]

What becomes apparent from the letter of Rav Kook is that “Meir” remained in Jaffa after Rav Kook’s departure for Europe (followed almost immediately by the outbreak of World War One), and thus was in a position to give the Rav an update on the welfare of his daughters left behind in Jaffa. What also becomes apparent, is that in the Fall of 1915, “Meir” and his companion Hillel were no longer in the Land of Israel but somewhere else, for in his concluding remarks Rav Kook expresses the wish that they return to the Holy Land. This is consistent with Rabbi Goldberg’s biography, whereby he (along with countless other Jews of Erets Israel) was forced to flee the Holy Land at that time.[23]
This also coincides with the reconstructed biography of Hillel (Pearlman). Both students of Rav Kook, Hillel (Pearlman) and Meir (Goldberg) ended up in the United States in World War One. Whereas we are being told that Hillel (Pearlman) later left the United States for Europe and North Africa, reinventing himself as the mysterious “Monsieur Chouchani,” Mayer Goldberg remained in the United States.

Rabbi Mayer Goldberg passed away on September 25, 1992, a centenarian.[24] Shortly before his passing, Rabbi Goldberg had published in Jerusalem a collection of kabbalistic insights (culled from his marginalia in the books of his library), entitled Margaliyot shel Torah (Pearls of Torah). Much of the material in the book is attributed to the kabbalistic work Yalkut Reubeni.[25] My attention was riveted to an unattributed piece, which would appear to originate with Rabbi Mayer Goldberg himself:

In Exodus 2:12 we read that Moses slew the Egyptian (who was beating a Hebrew) and buried him in the sand. The Hebrew words are: “Vayyakh et ha-mitsri vayitmenehu ba-hol.”

Rabbi Goldberg observes that the word “ha-mitsri” (“the Egyptian”) has the same numerical value (gematria) as the word “Moshe” (“Moses”). In other words, Moses slew himself! The Rabbi then goes on to explain that what is truly conveyed by the verse, is that Moses slew the opinions of Egypt. Moses, growing up in the house of Pharaoh, had imbibed secular knowledge stripped of Godliness. So in other words, on a deeper level, what Moses was actually slaying was himself, or a part of himself that was thoroughly Egyptian in outlook. He then buried that secular learning devoid of Godliness “in the sand.” Here the Rabbi plays on the word “hol,”which may have another meaning beside “sand”: the secular. This is to say, Moses buried that tainted learning in the secular realm.[26]

Mayer Goldberg in youth:

Rabbi Mayer Goldberg in rabbinic attire: