Rambam The Poet? Ovadya Hoffman Most readers are familiar with the general character and productivity of Maimonides, I will therefore keep the preamble to a minimum. The indelible legacy left by Maimonides is that of a legalist and thinker, not of a poet or a preacher. That’s not to say that Maimonides lacked the poetic skill. In fact, even from his purely legal works one can detect his elegant tongue and imaginative faculties, never mind the many missives, introductions and…
No, Achashverosh Never Served a Stable-Boy Yaakov Jaffe Writings about Purim from virtually every stripe make reference to a well-known myth that Achashverosh, King of Persia, rose to power from being a former stable-boy. A simple google search yields dozens of online results for this myth, some in passing and others expanded,[1] some academic[2] and others some more traditional;[3] some on blogs and others in books.[4] Yet, it seems that these references to Achashverosh the stable-boy are all rooted in…
The Physicians of the Rome Plague of 1656, Yaakov Zahalon and Hananiah Modigliano Reclaiming a Long-Lost Role and the Only Known Example of Father and Son Diplomas By Edward Reichman Ellen Wells of the Smithsonian Libraries wrote,[1] “The plague of Rome of 1656 was one of the best recorded medical events of the 17th century. It was referred to in most major political and ecclesiastical histories, in diplomatic correspondence and in personal memoirs. Books and pamphlets were issued in profusion….
Depression Angles By William Gewirtz Introduction: Depression angles measure the level of darkness or illumination prior to sunrise and, in a parallel fashion, after sunset. There are two halakhic disagreements that might appear to relate to the use of depression angles. First, there is a long-standing argument about what defines the transition from one day to the next and what is (merely) an indicator that the transition has occurred. Some consider the appearance of three stars as the basis of…
New volume of Mekhilta Journal Announcement By Eliezer Brodt מכילתא, כתב עת לתורה ולחכמה, ר‘ עדיאל ברויאר, יעקב ישראל סטל ומשה דוד צ‘צ‘יק (עורכים), גליון ב, כסלו תשפ“א, 323 עמודים Volume two of the new Journal Mekhilta just came out. Similar to the first issue it has an all-star lineup of writers on great topics. Copies of this volume are available for purchase through me (while the limited edition lasts) and will help support the efforts of the Seforim Blog….
“What if the Maharal of Prague Had Access to Leipzig 1 and Other Manuscripts?” On Shemos 23:19 – Rashi on ראשית בכורי אדמתך By Eli Genauer Summary: There is a statement in Rashi which appears in the overwhelming majority of early Rashi manuscripts, and in early printed editions. But because Gur Aryeh and others did not have access to these manuscripts, and because they felt that what Rashi said was incorrect, they ascribed the statement to a טעות סופר. Knowing…