Rambam The Poet?
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…
The Chanukah Omission
…according to the Sefer Hakrisus. According to the Sefer Hakrisus, even had Rabbeinu Hakadosh not wanted to include the story of Chanukah for some reason, it was not only his…
Tzevi Hirsch of Nadworna’s Sefer Alpha Beta
…context. [13] Gries, pp. 120-21; Ya’akov Shemu’el Shpiegel, Amudim be-Toldot ha-Sefer ha-Iṿri: hadar ha-meḥaber: be-Sha’ari ha-Defus (Jerusalem, 2014), pp. 25-26 [Hebrew]. [14] Gries, p. 21. [15] In a private correspondence,…
A Review of Beis Havaad by Eliezer Brodt
…Yaakov Shmuel Spiegel, Amudim b’Toldot Sefer HaIvri, Haghot u’Maghim, pp. 279-85.] There are at least three articles discussing exactly how one should edit seforim. Each of these articles contribute different,…
The Anonymous Author of Tikkunei Zohar and Ra‘ya Mehemna: An Antinomian or a Radical Maimonidean?
…Ya‘akov Spiegel, ‘Ammudim be-Toledot ha-Sefer ha-‘Ivri, vol. 2 (Ramat Gan: Bar Ilan, 2005), p. 442; and lately, Hayyim Eliezer Ashkenazi, “Heker ve-‘Iyun be-Sifrei Rishonim (4),” Yeshurun, vol. 40 (Nisan 5779),…
Rabbis &: History A Review of the Koreh HaDorot, Ahavat Shalom ed
…any sefer or name is mentioned)! Finally, the edition also has a retyped set, making the sefer more readable and clearly marking paragraph and topic breaks. They were also kind…
Review of Rav Zvi Hirsch Grodzinsky’s Taharas Yisroel
…for someone studying either Maseches Niddah or Shulchan Aruch (although Rav Grodzinsky’s own sefer does mostly follow the organization of the Tur). Without this index, the sefer would be much…
On the History of the Custom to Announce Upcoming Fasts in the Synagogue on the Shabbat Preceding the Fasts
…of Toledo, Spain, authored an Arabic work known as Sefer Mitzvot Zemaniyot around the beginning of the 14th Century. It was translated into Hebrew not long after his death by…
The Pros and Cons of Making Noise When Haman’s Name is Mentioned: A historical perspective (updated)
…Midrash saying that one should erase Amalek from wood and stones.[9] The Sefer HaAsufot cites another Midrash (which we don’t have) to show that the children banged on the wall…
Book announcement: New edition of Avudraham and other works, R. Greensweig, etc.
…sefer about Tefilah and Yom Tovim – this the work for him. The notes in the Or Hasefer edition impressed numerous experts and Talmedei Chachomim. However almost no one knew…
Simchat ha-Nefesh: An Important But Often Ignored Work on German Jewish Customs
…this sefer, a point we will return to later! (הסכמה למהודרא פירדא תפז); the חתם סופר also spoke very highly of the sefer, (הסכמה של ר’ שמעון סופר למהדורת פאקש…
Book Week 2011
…a period of about ten days called Shavuah Hasefer – Book Week (see here, here and here). Shavuah HaSefer is a sale which takes place all across the country in…
The Enigma of Abraham Rosenberg, R. Yitzchak Scheiner, Mordecai Kaplan, and Prof. Marvin Fox
…Spiegel who gives two examples of Lieberman being a bit unconventional in some of his writings. In his book Amudim be-Toldot ha-Sefer ha-Ivri: Be-Sha’arei ha-Defus,[3] Spiegel notes that in the…
Legacy Auction, agunot, censorship, and other notable items
…with this at length in his Shem hagedolim if this is a proper practice. See also most recently Yakav Speigel in Amudim Betoldost Sefer haivri ( BEsharei Hadefus) Chapter Two…
Book Week 2026 & Year in Review: Hebrew Publishing is Alive and Well
…Shavuos, begins Shavua HaSefer—Book Week—a ten-day celebration of books and publishing. Many publishers extend their sales for the entire month. Shavua HaSefer takes place across the country in malls, bookstores,…