Elliott Horowitz – Modern Amalekites From Adolf to Avigdor

Elliott Horowitz – Modern Amalekites From Adolf to Avigdor

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of Bar Ilan University and co-editor of Jewish Quarterly Review, described Isaiah Berlin on Meir Berlin (Bar-Ilan) and Saul Lieberman [see here]. This is his fourth contribution to the Seforim blog. We hope that you enjoy. Modern Amalekites: From Adolf to Avigdor by Elliott Horowitz Well before the outbreak of World War II the Nazi regime in Germany came to be associated by many Jews with Israel’s ancient arch-enemy, Amalek. Perhaps the first to do so was the noted historian…

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Daniel J. Lasker – Birkat Ha-Hammah 5769

Daniel J. Lasker – Birkat Ha-Hammah 5769

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Daniel J. Lasker is Norbert Blechner Professor of Jewish Values at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, and is chair of the Goldstein-Goren Department of Jewish Thought. His landmark work Jewish Philosophical Polemics against Christianity in the Middle Ages, originally published in 1977, was recently republished with a new introduction in 2007. This is Professor Lasker’s second post at the Seforim blog. His previous post about ve-ten tal u-matar li-verakha was entitled “December 6 Is Coming: Get Out the…

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Milah Books & Manuals

Milah Books & Manuals

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& Ish Sefer Much has been written on milah. Hebrew Books has over forty seforim on this topic. There are those books that discuss the various controversies, including abolishing milah in toto or specific parts of milah such as metzizah be-peh. Others focus on the philosophic and theological implications of milah. This post, however, will focus on two types of milah books, one what we will refer to as milah manuals and the second, books about milah. The former is…

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Review of Quntres

Review of Quntres

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First, a quick note regarding Prof. Haym Soloveitchik’s apparent position that anonymous critiques are inappropriate. It appears that his position overlooks at least one example of just that. As Dan Rabinowitz has pointed out in a prior post, R. Shmuel Aboab authored an ethical work which critiqued some of the perceived laxity of the day but did so anonymously. Turning to the new online journal Quntres: An Online Journal for the History, Culture, and Art of the Jewish Book. This…

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David Berger A Brief Response To Marc B. Shapiro

David Berger A Brief Response To Marc B. Shapiro

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In response to Prof. Marc B. Shapiro’s recent comments in, “Thoughts on Confrontation & Sundry Matters Part II,” Prof. David Berger, submitted the following response to readers of the Tradition-Seforim blog. For the recently-published paperback edition of his book on Lubavitch messianism, which follows the Hebrew translation of his book — see David Berger,HaRebbe Melekh HaMashiach, Sah’aruriyyat ha-Adishut, ve-ha-Iyyum al Emunat Yisrael (Jerusalem: Urim Publications, 2005) — and which includes a new introduction where he responds to earlier criticisms of…

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Message From Professor Haym Soloveitchik

Message From Professor Haym Soloveitchik

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It has come to my attention that a critique of my article “Halakhah, Hermeneutics and Martyrdom” published by the Jewish Quarterly Review has appeared in the Tradition Seforim blog in Fall of 2008. In principle, I do not respond to blogs, as this would place my time at the mercy of anyone who can type. However, I am preparing my articles for re-publication in 3 volumes by the Littman Library. The articles will be reproduced as originally published. However, I…

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Marc B. Shapiro: Thoughts on Confrontation & Sundry Matters Part I

Marc B. Shapiro: Thoughts on Confrontation & Sundry Matters Part I

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What follows is a continuation of this post.Some people are so set on showing the differences between Christianity and Judaism that in the process they end up distorting Judaism. Let me start with an example that for the last fifteen years must be considered a Jewish teaching. By Jewish teaching I mean a view that is taught in the observant community. This doesn’t mean that all or even most people will agree with it, anymore than they agree with the…

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Thoughts on Confrontation & Sundry Matters Part I

Thoughts on Confrontation & Sundry Matters Part I

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Rabbi Meir Soloveichik’s year-old essay, “No Friend in Jesus,” caused me to once again think about the Rav’s essay “Confrontation,” (available here) and how it should be understood. Before getting to that, let me note, for those who don’t know, that Soloveichik is emerging as one of the most interesting, if controversial writers, on interfaith matters. I don’t know if he picks the titles of his articles, but they are certainly catchy. In addition to “No Friend in Jesus,” I…

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Review of Ma'amar al Yishma'el

Review of Ma'amar al Yishma'el

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& Ish Sefer Solomon Ibn Aderet, Ma’amar al Yishma’el, Bezalel Naor ed., Spring Valley, NY, 2008, 178 pp. Bezalel Naor, Mitsvat Hashem Barah, Spring Valley, NY, 2008, 220 pp. R. Bezalel Naor, who has published a host of translations and explanations of R. Kook’s writings, as well as Post Sabbatian Sabbatianisms, discussing Sabbatean works, has published two works in a single volume. The first, Ma’amar al Yishma’el, is a critical edition of R. Solomon Ibn Aderet’s (Rashba) discussion of Islam….

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A Note on the Latin Dedication in the Rabbinic Bible of Venice 15

A Note on the Latin Dedication in the Rabbinic Bible of Venice 15

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In response to the recent post at the Seforim Blog about approbations of Hebrew books, a correction is in order concerning the footnote about the intent of the remarks of Felix Pratensis in his dedication of the Venice 1517 Rabbinic Bible to the Pope. In footnote 3 of the recent post, a conjecture was offered to explain Felix Pratensis’ remarks. In addition, Pratensis claims that this edition was unique as the prior editions “hav[e] almost as many errors as words…

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Some Observations Regarding Approbations for Hebrew Books

Some Observations Regarding Approbations for Hebrew Books

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Haskamot (rabbinical approbations) to Hebrew books have an very interesting history. There are a few different forms of haskamot, perhaps the most important form is that which granted the author and/or publisher a copyright. Typically, the haskamah would prohibit republishing the particular book for a period of ten or fifteen years, etc. In some instances, it was not only the particular book but any book in the field. For example, the haskamah to R. Yom Tov Lipmann Heller’s edition of…

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Snow: A Review of Ha-Noten Sheleg

Snow: A Review of Ha-Noten Sheleg

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Y. Meiselman, Ha-Noten Sheleg, Be-Inyanei ha-Sheleg veha-Kerach be-Halacha, Holon, 2001, 266 pp.With winter approaching, a review of a work devoted to the topic of snow is particularly appropriate. While everyone is familiar with R. Zevin’s discussion of the halachik use of snow in his Le-Or ha-Halacha, R. Zevin only took his discussion so far. Today, we now have a work that is entirely devoted to snow and halacha. This book, which is on Orach Hayyim and volumes on the other…

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Review: Macsanyuh Shel Torah

Review: Macsanyuh Shel Torah

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Me’achsanya Shel ha-Torah, Rabbi Moshe Hubner, ed., New York, 2008, 297 pp. As mentioned in the past, there is an austounding amount of seforim being published. One genre, that is bursting at the seams, is sefarim on Chumash. There are seforim printed from famous people; some are still with us, while others have been gone for many years. These seforim focus on all kinds of topics: mussar, machashavah, pshat, kabbalah, d’rush, and halachah. In truth, it is virtually impossible to…

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Eliezer Brodt: The Chanukah Omission

Eliezer Brodt: The Chanukah Omission

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Every Yom Tov we celebrate has different questions relating to it which become famous and are discussed from all different angles. Chanukah too has its share of famous questions. In this post I would like to deal with one such question which is famous but the answers are mostly not. The question is why is there no special Meshecta devoted to Chanukah as opposed to all other Yom Tovim . Over the years many answers have been given some based…

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The Name Machabee

The Name Machabee

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However, R. Y.S. Spiegel in an series of articles discussing ראשי תיבות analyzes this Hatam Sofer and points out that the Hatam Sofer’s understanding is predicated on a reading of מכבי and not מקבי. But, as Spiegel explains, מקבי has some support. And, as we will discuss below, the entire basis of the word is Greek it is especially difficult to use the word, irrespective of its spelling for much of anything. Before preceding further, we should briefly discuss where…

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