R. Hershel Schachter, Gedolim, Rachel Morpurgo, and More

R. Hershel Schachter, Gedolim, Rachel Morpurgo, and More

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R. Hershel Schachter, Gedolim, Rachel Morpurgo, and More By Marc B. Shapiro 1. In listening to a recent shiur[1] on Daas Torah by R. Hershel Schachter, I found a number of noteworthy comments. In this shiur, which has been heard thousands of times, R. Schachter states, “If you have an outlook, if you have what I would consider a crooked, a krum outlook on Yom ha-Atzmaut, then your outlook on eruvin is also crooked. I can’t rely on anything that you say.” I find this…

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A Note on the הסכמות of the חפץ חיים

A Note on the הסכמות of the חפץ חיים

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A Note on the הסכמות  of the חפץ חיים By Shnayer Leiman All the comments to the previous posting (“A Note on R. Bezalel Alexandrov’s משכן בצלאל and its Prenumeranten”) are deeply appreciated. It’s what makes the Seforim Blog required reading for anyone interested in serious scholarship. I cannot possibly address all the comments. The references in the notes to the essay address some of the issues raised. To Yisrael Dubitsky’s important  comments, one should add that privately owned copies of the two parts…

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A Note on R. Bezalel Alexandrov’s משכן בצלאל and its Prenumeranten

A Note on R. Bezalel Alexandrov’s משכן בצלאל and its Prenumeranten

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A Note on R. Bezalel Alexandrov’s משכן בצלאל and its Prenumeranten By Shnayer Z. Leiman             Not much appears to be known about R. Bezalel Alexandrov (circa 1850-1930). Born in Grodno, he would ultimately come under the influence of the teachings of R. Yisrael Salanter (1809-1883), largely through the efforts of R. Yitzchak Blazer, i.e., R. Itzel Peterburger (1837-1907). R. Bezalel considered R. Itzel to be his primary teacher, especially during the period they both resided in Kovno. R. Bezalel was a close…

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Altering of Rabbinic Texts?, Shlomo Rechnitz and the Eighth Principle of Faith, R. Yair Hayyim Bacharach, the Ridbaz and “Chemistry,” and R. Yitzhak Barda

Altering of Rabbinic Texts?, Shlomo Rechnitz and the Eighth Principle of Faith, R. Yair Hayyim Bacharach, the Ridbaz and “Chemistry,” and R. Yitzhak Barda

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Altering of Rabbinic Texts?, Shlomo Rechnitz and the Eighth Principle of Faith, R. Yair Hayyim Bacharach, the Ridbaz and “Chemistry,” and R. Yitzhak Barda Marc B. Shapiro 1. People continue to send me examples of censorship and altering of texts. If I would discuss all of them, I would have no time for other matters, but I do intend to get to some of these examples. Let me also share an “updating” of a classic rabbinic text that I discovered…

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Blood Accusation in Ragusa (Today Dubrovnik, Croatia) 1622 – A bibliographical mistake

Blood Accusation in Ragusa (Today Dubrovnik, Croatia) 1622 – A bibliographical mistake

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Blood Accusation in Ragusa (Today Dubrovnik, Croatia) 1622 – A bibliographical mistake  Dan Yardeni, an engineer by profession (Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, 1963), is entrepreneur specializing in cutting edge materials and materials production processes. As a sideline, he researches problems in the history of Hebrew books printing and printers. He also contributes articles to the Culture and Literature sections of Haaretz and other Israeli newspapers. This is his second contribution to the Seforim Blog. במסגרת עבודה על פרשת…

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Strife Between Men

Strife Between Men

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Strife between Men By Rabbi Shnayor Burton This is an excerpt from his forthcoming book [אורות יעקב [דרושים נבחרים על חיי האבות, Oros Yaakov [selected essays on the forefathers].  This essay, entitled ריב בין אנשים (Strife between Men), deals with Lot and Avraham – their own changing relationship and the relationship of the nations descended from them. It demonstrates that the complex treatment of Amon and Moav, and Ruth’s role therein, are rooted in the Sodom narrative, Lot’s connection to…

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