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Book Review: Rav Aharon Lichtenstein’s Minchat Aviv

Book Review: Rav Aharon Lichtenstein’s Minchat Aviv

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Minchat Aviv: Studies in Talmudic Topics (Hebrew) HaRav Aharon Lichtenstein Editor: Rav Elyakim Krumbein Jerusalem: Maggid Books and Yeshivat Har Etzion, 2014 xvi + 659 pages; source and subject indexes Available here. A person must exert considerable effort before producing words of Torah and wisdom. Toiling in Torah can be compared to toil in working the land: one must plow and sow, irrigate and fertilize, hoe and aerate, develop and cultivate, harvest and gather. Only after one completes all these…

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New Book Announcement: Amudim be-Toldot ha-Sefer ha-Ivri (Volume Three)

New Book Announcement: Amudim be-Toldot ha-Sefer ha-Ivri (Volume Three)

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I am very happy to announce the recent publication of an important work, which will be of great interest to readers of the Seforim blog. The third volume of, Amudim be-Toldot ha-Sefer ha-Ivri by Professor Yaakov Shmuel Spiegel, of Bar-Ilan University’s Talmud department. As I have written in the past, Professor Spiegel is one of the most prolific writers in the Jewish academic scene, authoring of over 160 articles and 18 books (16 of those are publications for the first…

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The Creative Craftsman: Adorning The Torah, One Crown At A Time

The Creative Craftsman: Adorning The Torah, One Crown At A Time

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received her M.A. in Bible from the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies. Based in Chicago, she is a Judaic Studies teacher, tutor, writer, and lecturer and can be reached at oliviafried-at-gmail-dot-com. It’s not surprising that there are many overlooked biblical commentators. However, R’ Zalman Sorotzkin’s is one who ought to be rescued from relative obscurity. Sorotzkin’s biography and tumultuous history helped shape his unique outlook upon Tanakh. His vision and appreciation for cultural context allows readers access to…

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An Incident of “Pilegesh B’Givah” in 19th Century Germany

An Incident of “Pilegesh B’Givah” in 19th Century Germany

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I recently purchased an antique Hebrew book for less than the price of a dinner at a moderately priced restaurant. This particular edition is what some would call a “common” — meaning it is the 36th edition (the fourth edition of a revised version) of this book and it was printed in the mid-19th century. Generally, the market does not assign a high price for books like these, but they can be a treasure trove of knowledge and information. The…

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David Sassoon, Bibliophile Par Excellence

David Sassoon, Bibliophile Par Excellence

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The article below is an annotated version of an article that appeared in the Inyan Magazine of HaModia, dated July 16, 2014. Harav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski addressed him as “Hanaggid” (The Prince). The Michtav MeEliyahu (Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler) came to his home to privately tutor his only son. Named after his grandfather, the founder of the Sassoon dynasty, David Sassoon was an outstanding Talmid Chochom, whose tremendous collection of sefarim and manuscripts, on which he expended much time and money,…

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Book Review: The House of Twenty Thousand Books by Sasha Abramsky

Book Review: The House of Twenty Thousand Books by Sasha Abramsky

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For many Seforim blog readers, the name ‘Abramsky’ will instantly be associated with the personality of Rav Yechezkel Abramsky (1886-1976), the author of Hazon Yechezkel on the Tosefta. Born in Russia, imprisoned by the Soviets, released in the 1930’s after diplomatic intervention by the U.S. and Britain, he was for years the head of the London Beth Din before his retirement to Israel. But other readers will also know his son, Chimen (1916-2010), whose life followed a very different path,…

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Review of Outside the Bible: Ancient Jewish Writings Related to Scripture by Shaye J.D. Cohen

Review of Outside the Bible: Ancient Jewish Writings Related to Scripture by Shaye J.D. Cohen

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Shaye J. D. Cohen is the Littauer Professor of Hebrew Literature and Philosophy in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations of Harvard University. This is his first contribution to the Seforim blog. Outside the Bible: Ancient Jewish Writings Related to Scripture. Outside the Bible: Ancient Jewish Writings Related to Scripture. Edited by Louis H. Feldman, James L. Kugel, and Lawrence H. Schiffman. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, and Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2013. xxviii+3361. These three hefty volumes,…

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“Ask Rabbi Google”!! ??

“Ask Rabbi Google”!! ??

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When Rav Yisreal Gustman Zts”l eulogized Harav Moshe Feinstein Zts”l beside his grave at Har Menuchot he mourned the loss of the last real Talmid Hacham, i.e. the last Rav whose knew all of the Torah and Shas Poskim, Rishonim and Ahronim, Midrash and Aggadata, Mussar and Hashkafa. But to comfort the mourners and the holy Niftar, Rav Gustman said something new. He said that today although no individual is likely to approach Rav Moshe in his breadth of knowledge…

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Book review: Asaf Yedidya, Criticized Criticism – Orthodox Alternatives to Wissenschaft des Judentums 1873 – 1956

Book review: Asaf Yedidya, Criticized Criticism – Orthodox Alternatives to Wissenschaft des Judentums 1873 – 1956

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Criticized Criticism is a book which I think would greatly interest any reader of the Seforim Blog. It deals with the history of the Orthodox “alternatives” to secular Jewish Studies, as well as many important issues that religious Jewish Studies scholars face. In this, it fills a definitely felt lack in Jewish historiography. It follows a trend of recent works devoted to the history of specific aspects of Jewish Studies. The book is especially important since we do not yet…

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She’ot Hityahadut – Review Essay

She’ot Hityahadut – Review Essay

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פאני נוידא, שעות התייחדות – ספר תפילה ומוסר לנשות ישראל ולבנותיה לתפילה בציבור וביחידוּת ולכל הזדמנות בחיי אישה, מבוא: עליזה לביא, תרגום מגרמנית: קטיה מנור, הוצאת ידיעות אחרונות תשע”ד, 259 עמודים. Fanny Neuda, She’ot Hityahadut (שעות התייחדות), Hebrew edition, introduction by Aliza Lavie; translation of prayers by Katja Manor, Tel-Aviv: Yediot Aharonot, 2014, 259 pages By: Yael Levine The author holds a Ph.D. from the Talmud department at Bar Ilan University. She is the author of numerous articles related to…

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The Yeshivah and the Academy: How We Can Learn from One Another in Biblical Scholarship

The Yeshivah and the Academy: How We Can Learn from One Another in Biblical Scholarship

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’s latest book, Peshat Isn’t so Simple, has just been published. The Seforim Blog is happy to present this excerpt. The Yeshivah and the Academy: How We Can Learn from One Another in Biblical Scholarship I The study of Tanakh is an awesome undertaking, given its infinite depth. This chapter will explore the approaches of the yeshivah and the academy to Tanakh study. We will define the yeshivah broadly to include any traditional religious Jewish setting, be it the synagogue,…

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Book Excerpt: Turning Judaism Outward by Chaim Miller

Book Excerpt: Turning Judaism Outward by Chaim Miller

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’s Turning Judaism Outward, a comprehensive biography of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, has recently appeared. The Seforim Blog is happy to present this excerpt from pages 98-103 Some truly fascinating insights into Menachem Mendel’s inner life have surfaced recently in his correspondence with Rayatz, first published in 2010.73 The Sixth and future Seventh Rebbes were in very close contact during this period; between 1929 until 1932 alone, Rayatz penned some seventy-two letters to his son-in-law and daughter. In contrast to Reb…

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