Hagahot

Two attitudes towards the Talmudhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

2011-12-27T19:56:00.002+02:00

A Hannukah party is waiting to be organized so telegraphically - there are two basic attitudes towards the Talmud. Legal code or multivalent discussion. Summarized admirably in the following two quotes in the NYTimes:

Rabbi Benjamin Blech, professor of Talmud at Yeshiva University, said the rabbis believed that study should not be made too easy. “We want people to struggle with the text because by figuring it out you will have a deeper comprehension,” he said. “They wanted a living index, not a printed index.”
Nothing satisfied Mr. Retter’s needs. As he said: “I’m a lawyer, and if I want to know the law, I look it up in an index.”

Hungarian Responsa Studies (book review)

2011-11-25T09:07:00.004+02:00

תשובות ושאלות
Studies in Responsa Literature, ed. Viktoria Banyai and Szonja Rahel Komoroczy, Budapest 2011

It is rare to hear of a new scholarly volume entirely devoted to Halakhic responsa (or, indeed, to any aspect of post-Talmudic Halakhah). So I was fascinated by the very existence of 'Studies in Responsa Literature'. It is a collection of studies by scholars affiliated (at present or in the past) with the Center of Jewish Studies at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. According to the introduction, the volume reflects the sustained interest in responsa that the students and teachers at the Center have maintained over the past several years. That institutional focus on responsa is also noteworthy. Responsa literature is so rich and multivalent that a concerted approach by different scholars with different interests makes a lot of sense. It also makes for a rewarding reading experience, going through a volume with multiple authors but with a fairly unified topic.

The first article in the volume is by Tamas (Sinai) Turan, who has made his mark in Budapest and in Jerusalem. The title is 'Terse Analogical Reasoning in Responsa Literature: Four Medieval Examples', but despite all that detail, it doesn't really explain the point of this deeply learned article. Taking examples from early medieval responsa (Geonim, Rashi, Maimonides, Tosafists), Turan shows how declarative statements by the rabbinic respondents often mask a more complicated Halakhic reality. He suggests that the text of the responsum often serves a rhetorical purpose, and that the actual Halakhic rationale employed by the rabbi may be hidden from view.

Dora Zsom has recently several articles recently (in the Hispania Judaica Bulletin) on rabbinic attitudes towards Jewish converts to Christianity in late medieval Spain and its diaspora. Here she discusses the central role that these converts played in the kosher wine trade in Spain, Majorca and North Africa, and the changing attitudes taken by the rabbis of the Duran family.

That's it for the medieval responsa. Geza Komoroczy discusses a responsum by Hakham Zvi about events in Budapest during the 1686 siege. His contention is that the person discussed in the responsum - whose wife and daughter were killed by a "bomba" during the siege - is actually Hakham Zvi himself, and draws grim conclusions from this about the rabbi's integrity. But, as far as I can see, the only basis for this identification is that, in describing his own flight from the city in 1686, Hakham Zvi mentioned losing 'my books and my dearest beloved', which is how Komoroczy translates the Hebrew and inteprets the 'dearest beloved' as being his wife and daughter. But the Hebrew term he translated is מחמדי הטובים, which can refer to prized possessions, maybe nice clothes like those of Esau, but I can't imagine a man referring that way to his dead wife and child. Without that, the whole identification falls apart.

Viktoria Banyai points to the potential use of Rabbi Yehezkel Landau's responsa (including some recently published manuscripts) for the study of Jewish history in Hungary. It's a short article and quite focused. But a lot of significant research has been done on the Noda bi-Yehudah recently (by Sharon Flatto and Maoz Kahana - others too?). Hopefully, these different scholarly strands will come together.

Szonja Rahel Komoroczy writes a fascinating analysis of R Hillel Lichtenstein's belief in the importance of Yiddish as a Jewish language, as the only language that Jews should speak. Besides studying several of his responsa and sermons, she points to the impact that this attitude had on the print history of Hungarian Jewry.

The last three articles in the book discuss Holocaust-era responsa and Halakhic discussions. Because the Nazis reached Hungary at a late stage in World War II, the communities there had the opportunity to consider the Halakhic ramifications of the tragedy enveloping them, and many of those responsa have been published over the past few decades.

I hope that the Center in Budapest continues to study responsa, and to publish its findings in English.

Wikipedian lacuna

2011-10-06T09:56:00.002+02:00

Wikipedia has a rubric, but no article, on 'Textual criticism of the Talmud'. Is there no one out there to fill this in, le-hagdil Torah ule-ha'adirah?

BWB colloquium day 3

2011-07-20T14:39:00.000+03:00

Dr Saverio Campanini

On the awareness of the Hebrew content of binding fragments in 15^th-18^th century Europe. Konrad Pellikan described his attempts as a young man to learn Hebrew from fragments of Hebrew manuscripts he saw as bindings. From end of 15^th century, widespread desire to learn Hebrew but little access to texts. Awareness of the fact that bindings are in Hebrew is passive Hebrew literacy. Italian notaries sometimes began their register with a description of the number of pages and the type of binding of the register, in order to protect against later alteration of their records. Sometimes they note that the register is bound in parchment, sometimes that the parchment has writing on it, and occasionally that the writing was in Hebrew. In 1764, JS Semler published a sermon calling attention to the potential of Hebrew manuscript bindings for studying biblical textual variants.

Dr Javier Castaño

Hebrew documents from Spain should be divided into five areas:

1. Catalonia (including Valencia, Majorca, Roussillon)
2. Navarre and Aragon
3. Castile and Portugal
4. NW Castile (Burgos, Valladolid)
5. Andalusia (has not been studied yet)

Discussion of court documents from Navarra, including Maaseh Bet Din that summarizes documents (ketubah, tsava’ah, shetar matanah) dating back over 100 years in context of a family conflict over inheritance.

Justine Isserles – Hebrew binding fragments in Switzerland. 28 fragments in all, in Ashkenazic script. Mahzorim. Biblical fragments.

Saskia Dönitz

Two unusual fragments in Berlin, a biblical commentary still unidentified. Berlin Staatsbibliothek has important Oriental collection, has not been catalogued since Steinschneider, so probably potential for finding more fragments.

8 folios in two columns, reused in Seheim (SE of Darmstadt) from 1619 onwards – biblical commentary on end of Deuteronomy and beginning of Genesis, identified by Steinschneider as being by Menahem ben Shelomo (Midrash Sekhel Tov). Since Sekhel Tov has not been published on this section, hard to say for certain. Buber, in his introduction to his edition of the midrash, mentions these fragments which were copied for him and he concludes that they are not from the midrash. Part of the commentary focuses on linguistic parallels, another part is more midrashic and discusses numerical significance of letters.

Judith Olszowy-Schlanger

Revisiting Durham fragment already described in 2003 and earlier. Peter the Venerable, most radical anti-Jewish polemicist, first Western Christian source to mention Talmud, as well as Alpha Beta de-ben Sira. AB de-ben Sira was widely read and copied by Jews. It is also quoted in the Hebrew-Latin-French glossary published in 2008 – evidence that it was known in Hebrew in 13^th century England. Very small fragment of Latin translation of AB ben Sira, preserved in Durham library. Already detached from binding so hard to know what it looked like there, but binding was done in England and clear that it was folded over the outside of a book and then later reused in a 16^th century binding as a pastedown. Interlinear Latin translation of Hebrew text – superscriptio. Hebrew writing includes calligraphic elements, but also cursive aleph (found in documentary texts), seems to have been written by a Jew. Vocalization is in the same ink as superscription and follows system used in other Hebrew-Latin manuscripts. Translation reflects accurate grasp of Hebrew language, including nuance such as ‘ha-Makom’ = Dominus.

BWB colloquium – day 2

2011-07-19T22:58:00.004+03:00

Dr Avraham David – Ginze Yerushalayim

120 medieval fragments, mostly from bindings, that were kept in boxes for years. There are also many modern Oriental and Yemenite fragments, including those donated by Ezra Gorodetzky and Israel Mehlman. More fragments are held in Jerusalem by Michael Krupp and by the Schocken Institute for Jewish Research. There is no budget at the library for studying the fragments, nor for searching for fragments still within NLI bindings.

27 fragments of Isaac de Lattes’s Kiryat Sefer. 2 badly damaged fragments of responsa by Rabad of Posquieres, including the tail end of an unknown responsum. 6 pages of Grabadin, a medical work by Elisha the Greek (15^th century, probably from Adrianople) – Ezra Gorodetzky has fragments of another copy. Ephraim Wust recently discovered that this author, Elisha the Physician, was the teacher of Georgius Gemistus.

Fragments of Gersonides on Pentateuch, unidentified introduction to the Talmud, laws of Passover, Nahmanides on Pentateuch, Talmud Bavli Berachot and Baba Mezia.

Update: Dr Ezra Chwat adds the following about 'Genizat Yerushalayim':
Most of the Genizat Yerushalayim items can be found in NLI Heb. 8°1800, presently holding 400 cataloged items. Among them, material similar to Cairo Genizah fragment, like this one, that if they were not in secondary use as bindings would have remained in an unknown Yemenite genizah that dated to 12th cent, if not The (Ben Ezra) Genizah.

Prof Simcha Emanuel – the first Tosafist autograph manuscript

Most of the few extant autographs of medieval rabbis were found in the Cairo genizah. Yehudah ha-Levi, Maimonides, R Hayye Gaon, R Samuel ben Ali, R Manoah.

A single leaf, commentary on TB Berachot, found in monastery in Melk. Unfortunately, no information in the library on what book the leaf was originally bound into. The page contains corrections and lengthy additions, including lines that run along the side of the page. Additional leaves from the same manuscript are found in Gratz, including the end of commentary to Berachot. On one of those pages there is a quote from the author’s brother, R Yehudah. This quotation is found word for word in Yihuse Tannaim va-Amoraim. So the author was the brother of R Yehuda ben Kalonymus of Speyer. R Yehuda’s older brother, Meir, wrote Tosafot but these do not quote the younger brother. R David ben Kalonymus of Mintzburg seems to have been much younger than R Yehuda, and therefore Urbach suspected that he wasn’t even his brother. But Aptowitzer pointed out that he was simply a much younger brother. This R David is probably the author of the fragmentary Berachot commentary. Judith Olszowy-Schlanger pointed out (based on Hebrew documents from England) that the script and graphic fillers reflect 13^th century rather than 12^th century, so additional reason to identify the younger brother rather than the older.

After this, I started getting tired from the fast and jetlag. So I'll summarize:

Dr Judith Kogel has been studying Hebrew fragments from Colmar. She discussed the dimensions, order and layout of a Sefer Haftarot she found there, in comparison with similar manuscripts in Parma.

Michael Krupp showed some fragments he bought in recent years, purportedly all from the library of a single Yemenite community. Many of the fragments are from Europe, and presumably made their way to Yemen.

Elodie Attia discussed a Hebrew booklist from Avignon that she found, along with other fragments from Comtat Venaissin, in the binding of a Hebrew manuscript in Munich.

Luca Baraldi couldn't make it and his paper was read by Emma Abate. He discussed chemical analysis of binding fragments and the importance of interpreting the resulting information in historical context.

Tamas Visi discussed medieval Jewish manuscripts from Moravia. Virtually no complete manuscripts exist. One manuscript in Oxford contains a divorce (get) from Brno.

Fragments of 6 manuscripts can be identified, though, based on the fact that they are bound in books that were produced in Moravia. Tur, Mahzor Yom Kippur, Talmud (Sanhedrin and Keritut), Mahzor Pesah and Shavuot, Rif with Rashi, Tosafot and Mordechai. Fifty more fragments can also be considered. History of Jewish in Moravia – communities from 1200, but no significant rabbis until 1390. After Black Death, influx of Jewish refugees. Aizik Turna in the 1420s and Mahari Bruna in 1430s. 1454 – expulsion from major cities. 15^th century – bindings of Latin manuscripts from monasteries. 16^th-17^th centuries – administrative records. Kromeriz – French-Hebrew glossary, bound into Latin manuscript from 1394, perhaps in the wake of French expulsion. Most fragments came from Ashkenaz – Germany and Austria. Fragments divide equally between Biblical (34%), liturgical (35%) and Halakhic (31%). Nothing scientific or philosophical. Apparently high incidence of Torah interspersed with Onkelos.

Dr Esperança Valls discussed economic fragments from Girona - list of moneylenders, a builder's contract in Hebrew and other documents.

Prof Martha Keil described the state of the Austrian Genizah project, which has almost finished with the small libraries and is ready to tackle the large ones. Then she spoke about an exhibition that she helped organize at the Jewish museum in Vienna, illustrating medieval Jewish life in Vienna through Hebrew manuscript fragments.

Books Within Books colloquium - day 1

2011-07-19T00:06:00.002+03:00

I arrived in Oxford today for the BWB colloquium at Wolfson College. For tonight, just some brief notes. Andreas Lehnardt described what he's been up to since the last meeting of the various European Genizah searchers. He mentioned an actual genizah of a small synagogue in Mainz that includes some old manuscripts. An Italian ketubah bound inside a Hebrew manuscript in Frankfurt. Mauro Perani mentioned that the Modena fragments of Sifre were finally detached from the books they were binding, just a few weeks ago, revealing that a 16th century owner of the manuscript added the full text of the verses quoted in the Sifre. Unclear why he did that - in preparation for a printed edition of the Sifre? Copying from another manuscript? Or just for his own use?
The geographical range of researchers at this gathering is exciting, as Hebrew fragments crop up in more and more places.

Majorca

2011-07-11T13:16:00.002+03:00

The NYT reports that R Nissim Karelitz has declared several old Majorcan families to be Jews.
Majorca was an important way-station for Jews fleeing France in 1306. At the time it was part of a semi-independent kingdom of the same name that also controlled Montpellier. So R Aharon ha-Kohen, author of Orhot Hayyim AND the Kolbo, spent some time there with Rabbi Falcon before moving on to the Spanish mainland. While there he reworked the Orhot Hayyim, and some manuscripts of the work (including the one that volume 2 was published from) contain references to the island and the local rabbi. For all you ever dreamed of knowing about medieval Majorca, see David Abulafia's A Mediterranean Emporium: the Catalan Kingdom of Majorca.

And more new books

2011-06-17T16:50:00.002+03:00

Matthew Morgenstern's long-awaited book on Babylonian Jewish Aramaic has been published. BJA is the language of the Babylonian Talmud and other related works including the writings of the Babylonian Geonim, and Morgenstern's work is based on careful use of many manuscripts. Hence the title of the book: Studies in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic based upon Early Eastern Manuscripts.

More new books

2011-06-16T15:27:00.002+03:00

Another new book, in English and therefore not on sale at the Hebrew Book Week but nevertheless newly published in Israel and imminently available in the US as well, is Et Le'ehov: The Newlywed's Guide to Physical Intimacy. Published by Geffen and available for pre-order on Amazon here. It's a sex manual for engaged and newly married religious Jewish couples. Such couples face many of the confusing, bemusing and sometimes very difficult situations that any new couple can face, and also many situations that are culturally more unique. This book is a frank attempt to address those situations, without compromising religious or clinical standards. It was written jointly by Drs Jennie Rosenfeld and David Ribner. One of the authors has a son-in-law who learned in yeshivah with me. The other author is rather more closely related to me.
Order your copy now - if not for you, then for someone you know!

New books

2011-06-16T15:12:00.002+03:00

Obviously, this is the season for new books in Israel. Tevunot has released a new volume that I think is very important and useful. The book is titled 'Introduction to the Midrashic Literature', and in Hebrew - מבוא למדרשים. The author is Anat Reizel, a doctoral student at Ben Gurion University who recently finished her MA at Hebrew University with Avigdor Shinan. Her MA thesis dealt with Midrash Eikhah Zuta.
The book, with more than 400 pages, covers all of the major and most of the minor midrashim. For each midrash, Anat reviews the state of research on questions like provenance and text. For each one she provides one or two nice examples of midrashic technique. She also provides bibliographic information on editions and studies.
Earlier versions of some of the chapters can be found here - there's a tab in the sidebar labelled 'Mavo la-Midrashim'.

Reizel's introduction to the midrashim is available now at the Tevunot stand at Shavua ha-Sefer for only 60 shekels. It's also available online for 80 shekels.

Disclosure: the author is an old friend of mine, and I helped a little with the bibliographic aspects of the book. That said, I have no doubt that this is one of the most helpful tools for students and scholars of Midrash to appear in a while. Without purporting to contain original discoveries, it presents a great deal of pertinent information that anyone dealing with the gamut of midrashic literature need but rarely know offhand.

Valmadonna catalogue

2011-06-12T21:36:00.002+03:00

The Valmadonna Trust Library, which by now is surely the most famous private collection of Hebrew books in the world, has sponsored several catalogues and studies of different aspects of the collection. A new volume has now been published, devoted to the incunabula and other rare printings. These include books printed on vellum, on coloured paper and on silk. Besides listing the holdings of the library, the volume includes studies of these different types of books by some of the leading Hebrew bibliographers of our times. Adrian Offenberg contributed an essay on the incunabula, Yitshak Yudelov summed up what is known about Hebrew printing on vellum, and Brad Sabin Hill studied printing on colour paper (I remember first seeing books with blue paper in the late lamented Yeshurun library). The editor was David Sclar.
The volume was printed in 300 copies and is available at shmintz@gmail.com or custodian.valmadonna@idcholdings.com.

Sperber conference

2011-06-09T08:51:00.002+03:00

Bar Ilan University is holding a conference on Monday to mark the retirement of Prof. Daniel Sperber. The first session is devoted to topics in Hazal and late Antiquity, while the second session is on medieval and modern times.

The Ultimate Critical Edition

2011-05-30T09:31:00.003+03:00

Professor Menahem Kahana is the unrivalled expert in Tannaitic Midrash (Midrash Halakhah). Over the past decade he has published two major books. The first was a partial and comparative edition of the two Mekhiltot on Exodus, focusing on the Aggadic section about Amalek. The second was an edition of Sifre Zuta on Deuteronomy - a midrash that was so lost we didn't even know it existed until Kahana found it.
Kahana's doctorate was a prolegomenon to Sifre Numbers. Now, almost thirty years later, the groundwork he laid there is beginning to come to fruition. The first volume of his critical edition of Sifre Numbers has been published by Magnes. It includes an introduction, and the full critical apparatus for the first 106 pericopes of the midrash. It also has a more minimal edition of the remainder of the midrash (a simple transcription of the Vatican MS). Two more volumes are supposed to appear soon, with his exhaustive commentary on the first part of the midrash. The commentary and the full edition of the last part is still in the works. The TOC and preface are online.
I haven't seen the book yet. But I've taken enough courses with Kahana, and read enough of his published work, to know that the standards of this edition are extremely high. I'm not sure I'll be able to find room on my shelf for all these volumes of a midrash that until now took up only a couple of centimeters. But I look forward to seeing the complete edition in print.

Talmud Department

2011-05-23T19:44:00.002+03:00

The blogger who usually reports on Yossi Cedar's movie Footnote is busy running a major conference, so he hasn't noted that the movie won best screenplay at Cannes. I'm sure he'll rectify that soon. But now that the whole world has been exposed (or will be soon) to the joys and terrors of the Talmud department, it seems like a good opportunity to encourage young people to choose to study there.
For all the criticism that can be heard (sometimes from me), it is a remarkable department. The teachers are extremely learned, and they all are deeply committed to their students. Jewish studies has grown worldwide, but the Hebrew University Talmud department remains the best place in the world to study Midrash Halakhah, Geonic literature and medieval Halakhah, not to mention the core topics of Mishnah and both Talmuds. In general, I believe it is the best place to study what can generally be called 'Talmudic philology' and to gain a close and balanced familiarity with the manuscripts.
Besides all that, for the second year running the department is offering full scholarships for students beginning their BA. Full scholarships are also available for those beginning an MA and even for students pursuing supplementary courses to upgrade from a B.Ed to an MA.

And maybe you'll even appear in the sequel movie, Nispah (Excursus).

Peering through the conferenceshttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

2011-05-18T15:39:00.003+03:00

Shazar has published a Hebrew translation of Ephraim Kanarfogel's Peering through the Lattices: Mystical, Magical, Miraculous, Martyrological, Moribund, Dimensions in the Tosafist Period. In honour of this event, there will be an event at the Shazar offices on May 26th, with Profs Avraham Grossman, Yossef Hecker, Moshe Idel and the author.

Bar Ilan University is having a major conference devoted to Rashbam, Rabbi Samuel ben Meir of Ramerupt or thereabouts, in memory of Eliezer Touito. Non-fancy schedule here. It amazes me, the amount of attention that scholars of medieval biblical exegesis lavish on a fairly limited corpus. I must admit that it also frustrates me that despite all this enthusiasm for studying Rashbam's biblical exegesis, his Talmudic commentaries and, to an even greater degree, his Halakhic writings have received virtually no attention whatsoever. Anyway, Hanna Liss has recently published a new book on Rashbam titled Creating Fictional Worlds. I haven't finished reading it, so I'll hold off on criticism, but the basic idea is that Rashbam was responding to the Christian culture surrounding him, but not in the way people like the late Touito thought. The real backdrop is not the scholastic biblical exegesis that was being written in Latin, but rather the romances being written in the vernacular (French). I look forward to being convinced of this intriguing suggestion.

Ha-Ma'ayan

2011-05-02T21:21:00.004+03:00

The new issue of ha-Ma'ayan is online. I haven't had time to go through it carefully. But there is one exchange that I thought was worth commenting on. Someone who berated R Yoel Friedmann for his critical review (in an earlier issue of ha-Ma'ayan) of R David Avraham's new edition of Sefer ha-Terumah. Friedmann is working on a doctorate on Sefer ha-Terumah, and noone knows the manuscripts of that work better than he does. His main complaint against the new edition was that the editor used the manuscripts in a haphazard way, without trying to determine their relative worth. It's worth mentioning that R David Avraham's previous project was a massive (8 volumes, I think) new edition of Sefer Kolbo. His footnotes there are exhaustive and sometimes exhausting but definitely helpful. But Kolbo is almost unique among medieval Halakhic works in that it exists only in a printed edition - no manuscripts of it are known to have survived.

The berater declares that Friedmann's perspective is irrelevant because it is academic, whereas Avraham is following the methodology of the 'Yeshiva world'. Academics concern themselves with variants and with determining the original text, while Yeshiva adherents are enamoured of the received text that has been sanctified by generations of learning. I've heard that claim before, and I find it silly, but if it's followed consistently, at least it doesn't purport to more than it achieves. However, as Friedmann points out in his rejoinder, this new edition is not a reproduction of the standard printed text, since the editor did in fact make use of manuscripts and presents this as one of the main advantages of his edition. In this light, the berater's position seems to be that the Yeshiva world insists on its right to use critical tools haphazardly. Ignoring them would bespeak ignorance, but using them carefully and consistently would apparently betray the values of the Yeshiva world. So a happy compromise is found in mediocrity.

The number of scholars within the "Yeshiva world" who are studying Talmudic philology and other branches of critical Jewish studies, and applying them carefully and successfully to traditional texts and traditional questions is growing. This issue of Ha-Ma'ayan includes a few interesting examples. But the tension is still there. Looking at other articles in the issue, one can find an attempt to resolve a Halakhic question with grave implications for the rule of law in Israel through comparison of manuscripts. On the other hand, in Rav Yoel Katan's regular column which surveys new books in the field, he criticizes the author of Derekh ha-Melekh for citing too many academic sources in a Halakhic context. Of course, there is a big difference between the application of thought to textual criticism and privileging any article published in an academic journal over traditional sources. But the allure of academic Jewish studies is quite bright.

The argument over Sefer ha-Terumah upsets me, partly because I know R Yoel Friedmann, but mostly because the study of medieval Halakhah is one field where the distance between academics and traditional learners is fairly small, and the opportunities for working symbiotically are great.

Prof Benayahu Memorial Evening

2011-04-15T14:06:00.003+03:00

The National Library of Israel will be holding a memorial evening for Prof. Meir Benayahu on May 5th, with lectures by Moshe Idel, Roberto Bonfil and Avraham Grossman. Poster here. The event will be chaired by Aviad Stollman, whose volume of responsa, Pele Yoetz, is now available.

More and more online

2011-03-14T14:04:00.002+02:00

Some recent arrivals online:
The very important Rosenthaliana manuscript of Or Zarua - in two volumes.

Several Hebrew manuscripts from the municipal library of Nimes, including an early copy of Isaac of Corbeil's Amude Golah.

More than 6000 fragments in Judeo-Arabic from the Cambridge University Taylor-Schechter Additional Series.

Conference on Halakhah and history

2011-03-13T14:59:00.002+02:00

PDF version available here.

Haside Ashkenaz

2011-02-23T23:35:00.002+02:00

Everybody's favourite medieval Jews now have another volume devoted to them - volume five of Yosef Dan's survey of Jewish mysticism.

13th Century France - some thoughts

2011-02-21T21:44:00.003+02:00

The aim of the conference, as I understood it, was to begin to bridge the gap between scholars studying Jewish and Christian history in the same time and place. By juxtaposing papers on similar topics in both societies, it could be possible to find shared concepts, ideas, trends, developments and so forth.
Most of the lectures were like regular academic lectures - some better, some worse, but each basically focused inwardly. There were a few - notably, the lectures given by the organizers of the conference, and by scholars whose work often bridges the gap between the two societies (Sara Lipton, Kirsten Fudeman) - that really gave us a vision of what could be done.

An interesting aspect of the conference was that each of the four days was summed up in a round-table discussion. On the first day (from what I heard afterwards - I wasn't able to stay till the last session) the discussion was about definitions and directions. The next couple of days, the last sessions were focused on what had been said during the day, without giving all that much of a wider perspective. But by the last day, after all had been said and done, and people were already used to the round-table format, the discussion became very focused on the potential for finding commonalities and mutual influence in medieval France. It was in that context that one participants, whose consistent position has been to dismiss any influence of medieval Christian thought on Jewish communities, made the comment about the outhouses.

Some of this debate obviously depends on the kind of influence you have in mind. Christians and Jews in medieval France spoke the same language. They lived in the same cities, saw each other every day, did business of various sorts with each other. The tricky questions have to do with ideas, but even then, there are different levels. Commonalities in biblical exegesis may be coincidental. But what about popular religious developments? If Christian preachers and writers were targeting a wider audience, would rabbis have known about that and tried to do the same?

In terms of legal history, the differences between medieval Halakhah and the various systems of medieval Christian law are great. I'm still very unclear on what kinds of comparisons can be made profitably. I'm a little frustrated that the lectures I heard on that topic didn't help to clarify points that would help me understand that. But I learned a lot, met some top scholars, ate catered lunches for a week, and now I need to learn more.

Underappreciated hagahot

2011-02-21T09:25:00.002+02:00

Here.
I hope to soon organize and post my thoughts from last week's conference on 13th century France. For the moment, I give you a comment from one of the round table discussions: "Both Jews and Christians had outhouses. That doesn't mean they influenced each other." To be clear, though - outhouses were not a major topic of discussion.

Long-living Sefardi dwarves

2011-02-16T21:35:00.000+02:00

Here.

Rupture and reconstruction at the Seforim Sale

2011-02-11T08:59:00.001+02:00

Here.

Hebrew manuscripts cause international crisis

2011-02-03T12:01:00.002+02:00

Here. Lubavitch also have a collection in New York, that hasn't been microfilmed by the IMHM. A lot of the interesting material is described here.

Gerim Heyitem

2010-12-14T20:17:00.002+02:00

A friend of mine just launched a website aiming to bring together anti-racist rabbis. The website is here. There's a growing list of links here.

Dr Miriam Goldstein at the National Library

2010-12-12T14:17:00.001+02:00

Dafkesher was kind enough to send me his notes from today's event at the National Library. They're abbreviated, but very informative:
Live blogging: Miriam G is part of the growing circle of scholars who are into the growing field of Judaeo-Arabic studies, which is an interdisciplinary field. She is also an interdisciplinary student of three universities. Recent publications and PhD thesis etc.
Miriam herself: thanks for coming, and thanks to the library. The birth of the concept of authorship in JA lit. in the Mid. Ages. If I were to speak about the entirety of A lit., I could talk about that too, and this is an innovation in A lit in 9-10 c., which has been negelected. I want to talk about how these concepts came into J thought, Js who wrote in A.
Background first, about the A world, and then about the Js.
Important period, transition in A lit. 7th c., birth of Quran, not much more written. What exists is mostly oral. Some epigraphy and letters and lists and contracts. Not much lit. Xs and Js did not have written material in A. There was i.e. oral NT in A, and JA lit which was oral. Q is first big written document in A. Writing of books in A comes after this. Writing was a subject of debate. What do you mean you can write in your own book, and learn from books? You have to learn from hearing, from people. But they did write, and the idea sunk in by the 9th c. Then you could learn form written things. How did they write in A? Q is not such a great example, hard to follow. One of the elements that shaped the mode of writing is the translation movement. We see by the mid-end 8th and into the 9th c. a very wide activity of Translation from Syr. Pahl. Greek, Sanskrit. Let's say an Arab who knows Q and the oral tradition starts in 8-9 c. to be exposed to a wide variety of material of different kinds. Exposure to these works which came from other cultures will influence A books. Say Aristotle – Books, chapters, etc. Enough BG.
Let's look at the Js. At the time, 90% of the J world was within an A speaking culture. J should be compared to As. If we look at the situation of Js and scholarly Js and their writing, we will see that the situation is similar – but they had much more material to work with, more traditions (not writing). The centrality of orality is similar. There was not much written J material: Torah, Hekhalot, notebooks or whatever that might be, maybe responsa, but orality was central to the culture.
When As came – language changed in (6)7c. Js start conversing in A instead of Aramaic/Hebrew. Centers of power and learning expand and the yeshivot are weaker, and in 7-8 c there are movements that challenge the Ys, like the Karaites. We hear about others from historians. We see that there are centers of learning in other places. These changes affect the sources already in the 9th c. Q to Rav Natronai from North Africa: Js would like to use an A translation with the Aramaic in torah reading. He says no, but RSG writes an A translation himself. 10th c. muslims already comfortable to write, and Js concur. R. Drori first scholar of this. Motivation for this change, there are no written works with authors in 9th c, i.e. HG and HP, but in 10th c. there is an author who is willing to say that there is something new. RD says motivation comes from Karaites who were freer to adopt new language and new genres. RSG was willing to write in A and made A and authorsip and novelty "kosher". Translations also influences Js. New Genres: Theology, Dictionaries, Grammar, Commentary. Things came from traditional sources, but forms and disciplines were influences by surroundings. There must have been a greater consciousness of the concept of the author.
We will read from two prefaces written by a K scholar, Baghdad, 10th c. Yaquub Al-Qirqasaani. Similar to RSG (who took from whom?). Bibliophile. Met with Bishops and Muslims. Wrote several works, two survived, one was published, Kitab al-anwar, theology and halakha, description of all religions that he knows and a description of K halakha. Al-K was not accepted by the K community. Was a bit separatists. Kit. Al-Riyyad, book of fields and gardens, was accepted, in rm 221 we can find MSS of this work commentators in Jeru. Accepted Al-K on the Torah. I will present parts of each of them. Both of these prefaces were discovered by others. Q of all authors is most conscious of these questions. .
He starts with Bsmillah, like all A authors, then praise of God, then preface. Al-K speaks of this practice, and uses Biblical sources to justify this practice. Then justifies the praise etc. Then the preface. Saw both books as one unified commentary. Polemic against manichaeans. Solution of problems in the Torah. Important to talk about simple things. Book is like building. But also important not to be ignorant of simple things for simple people. Marks elements of preface. Very rare. Usually just convention. Speaks of how to write. Do not ignore simple things.
Books of lights: beginning is missing. MS hard to read. Translation from edition. Criticizes those who conduct polemic w/o quoting opponents and explain their opinions. Important to start with prefaces and introductions. Uses Baraita derabbi Ishmael for this.
Importance: influence of these concepts goes quite deep. JA torah commentary has great consciousness of biblical authorial techniques. (MGs article in J of Sem studies). We have not yet examined the repercussions of this transition in JA lit.

Dr Rami Reiner on Sefer ha-Yashar

2010-11-28T13:06:00.000+02:00

Liveblogging from the music room at the National Library. Dr Aviad Stollman says that Rami Reiner is one of the fixtures of the library's "Beit Midrash", and thus an appropriate person to open the 'Scholar at Noon' lecture series.
Rami Reiner: The figure of Rashi still elicits feelings of love, and genealogical enthusiasm as well. Many people, till today, trace their lineage back to Rashi. Family is also strongly present in Rashi's own writings. Many of his descendants became noted scholars, and they noted this down even to the seventh generation. Mentions the four sons and one daughter of Rabbi Meir, Rashi's son-in-law. R Judah Sirleone was a grandson of Rivan, from the less famous branch of the family. In the mid-13th century the line fades away, and reappears in the 16th century with Maharshal.

Two daughters of Rashi, Yokheved and Miriam, who married R Meir and Rivan. Sefer ha-Yashar (responsa), p. 44: R Yaakov Tam mentions to his maternal cousin their mutual aunt Rahel - hence there was at least a third sister. But possibly he does not mean 'aunt' in the strictest sense, and we don't know any more about this Rahel. This is an example of biographical data that emerges from Halakhic discussions (how to write a name on a divorce writ).

R Meir and his sons receive a question from Germany, from Raavan and his sons. R Tam writes the response, probably his first, and mentions the death of his brother Isaac, who seems to have died young.

Now to move on to the manuscripts and editions. Mahzor Vitry, ed. Horowitz, p. 243 - Isaac ben Dorbelo tells of the death of R Tam's grandson, son of R. Tam's son Yosef. As Shabbat enters, R Tam asks his brother Shlomo to take the grieving father Yosef to the synagogue. Yosef was led to the synagogue by 'the Haver, Isaac ben Rabenu Shmuel'. Is this R Isaac of Dampierre?

In the scholarly literature, it is accepted that besides this son, Yosef, R. Tam had a son named Isaac.

R. Tam's composition, Sefer ha-Yashar, exists only in two manuscripts, both 16th century Sefardic copies. One in Oxford and the other here in the room. The two manuscripts differ from each other in content and order. The first edition of the book (Vienna 1811) was published from the Jerusalem manuscript, which the HIDA was also familiar with and other scholars after him. 1898, Rosenthal publishes only the responsa.

Number 58 in Rosenthal's edition ends with regards sent to 'our teachers' R Tam and to 'R Isaac ben Rabenu'. This would seem to be another son of R Tam, and in fact theories have been floated that the acronym RYBY, found in Sefer ha-Yashar, is this R Isaac ben Yaakov. It should be noted that this sentence is not found in the Jerusalem manuscript of Sefer ha-Yashar, but rather from the famous MS Montefiore 98.

Looking at the full text in MS Montefiore, it emerges that the question was sent mainly to R. Samuel, Rashbam, R. Tam's elder brother, and only secondarily to R Tam. That is why it ends by referring to 'our teachers'. And the son Isaac mentioned here is a son of Rashbam, and not of R Tam. He is probably also the Isaac ben Rabenu Shmuel mentioned in Isaac ben Dorbelo's story.

People in that 12th century generation knew quite well that there were two Isaac ben Shmuels in the same generation - the son of Rashbam, and the famous Isaac of Dampierre. Isaac ben Dorbelo differentiated between them by calling Rashbam 'Rabenu'. Another way of differentiating is in a responsum of R Tam (Ra'avyah and MS Oxford 566) sent to Rabenu Isaac ben Rabenu Shmuel his brother to Reims.

The scribe of Sefer ha-Yashar seems to have left Rashbam out of the responsum, while MS Montefiore left him in. The reason is probably because R Tam wrote the responsum himself, even though the question was addressed to Rashbam. Sefer ha-Terumah, written by a student of R Isaac of Dampierre, refers to this responsum as being written by R Tam. R Tam himself refers back to it elsewhere in Sefer ha-Yashar as something he wrote himself. The scribe of Sefer ha-Yashar followed this through by turning the text of the responsum into a focus on R Tam himself.

R Tam's daughter was widowed without children, and her brothers-in-law used the levirate link to press her for money. The story is found in Yihuse Tannaim va-Amoraim, and R Tam says there that R Tam covered the expenses 'ha-kol le-shem shamayim'.

Vocalization and History of Kabbalah

2010-11-24T08:57:00.002+02:00

Jordan Penkower has published a new book (in Hebrew) with Cherub Press titled The Dates of Composition of The Zohar and The Book Bahir: The History of Biblical Vocalization and Accentuation as a Tool for Dating Kabbalistic Works. The title pretty much sums it up - the references to Hebrew punctuation in these Kabbalistic works provide key information for determining when the Zohar and the Bahir were written (and more importantly, when they were not written). The long chapter on the Bahir was written in response to an attempt by Ronit Meroz (in Da'at 49, 2002) to identify the punctuation system of the Bahir as being Babylonian ("nikud Bavli") and thus placing the composition of the Bahir in the very early medieval East.

The Authorized Copy

2010-11-08T17:48:00.002+02:00

Someone notified me this morning that today, 8 November, is the 408th birthday of the Bodleian library in Oxford. It seems fitting that today they also launched (or at least, today I became aware of) a new website with a digitised version of one of their most important Hebrew manuscripts - the famous MS Huntington 80. There is more content that has yet to be posted, but the manuscript itself can now be seen in its entirety.

This manuscript contains the first two books of Mishneh Torah by Maimonides. It is famous because, towards the end of the manuscript, Maimonides himself wrote a note declaring that this manuscript was corrected against his own personal copy of Mishneh Torah. Therefore, it must reflect a very accurate version of the book.

Without getting here into the polemics that sprung up around this manuscript a few decades ago, I would like to mention that in a recent article, Karmiel Cohen has demonstrated that this manuscript does not always reflect the final stage of Mishneh Torah. There are instances where R Abraham Maimonides testifies that his father changed his mind and corrected the text, and this correction is not reflected in the Huntington manuscript. But, on the whole, it is definitely a manuscript worthy of a great deal of attention.

At the National Library

2010-11-04T14:07:00.002+02:00

The National Library continues to surprise its regulars and reach out to the wider public by running interesting events. I got an email about some upcoming events - since it doesn't seem to be on the library website I'll post it here.

There are two events that interest me. On November 14th there will be an evening event to mark the acquisition of a kabbalistic manuscript copied by Menahem de Lonzano. Lonzano is best known as a scholar of the Biblical masorah, but he studied and copied manuscripts in a variety of fields, and he played an important role in the transmission of Lurianic kabbalah. Many of the manuscripts that he describes in his works are not known from other sources, including several references to Provencal works. So that evening should be interesting - the speakers include an expert on Masora, a scholar of Kabbalah and a historian specializing in 16th century Ottoman Jewish history.

The other event is on November 28th. Dr Rami Reiner of Ben Gurion University will speak about Rabenu Tam, the grandson of Rashi, and some of his relatives. Reiner wrote his MA and his PhD on Rabenu Tam, who remains one of the most creative and fascinating personalities in the history of Halakhah. The lecture, scheduled for half an hour before the famous minchah minyan at the library, will also be an opportunity to see the manuscript of Sefer ha-Yashar - Rabeinu Tam's Sefer ha-Yashar, not the others - held by the National Library. There are only two manuscripts of this book, the other held by the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Rami is a great speaker, and this is a topic he's passionate about.

NYPL

2010-10-12T09:49:00.002+02:00

The New York Public Library is launching a major exhibition on Christianity, Islam and Judaism. I did some work on choosing the materials for the Judaism bit, so I'm curious to see how it turns out. The exhibition opens October 22nd.

When I was working at the NYPL, I met Prof Shlomo Eidelberg a few times. I learnt this morning that he died, and that his funeral will take place later today. From one of his letters that I read, I realized that he thought of writing his dissertation at Hebrew University with Prof Simha Assaf. In the end he got his doctorate from Yeshiva University, in 1952, and Simha Assaf died in 1953. His dissertation, which was published as a book in 1956, was an edition of the responsa of Rabenu Gershom Meor ha-Golah. תנצב"ה

Digital Humanities

2010-10-11T07:27:00.003+02:00

Last week, the National Library of Israel hosted a two-day workshop by InterEdition. The first day was open to the public, and a fascinating cross-section of National Library regulars was in attendance. The second was only for pre-registered participants, of whom I was lucky to be one. I won't try to give a full account (especially because domestic matters forced me to miss several sessions) but I have a few thoughts (and links) that I wanted to share.

Prof. Dirk Van Hulle illustrated the range of functions that a digital edition can fill (as laid out by Peter Shillingsburg in 'From Gutenberg to Google') through screen shots of existing projects, mostly modern writers and thinkers. Good examples were the website dedicated to Proust, and the beautiful Woolf Online. Another cool example we saw the next day was medieval.

The next day we got down to the nitty-gritty, with a session on XML and the Text Encoding Initiative, followed by an exercise in transferring two transcriptions of a text into XML, to be displayed on the Versioning Machine. It was while slogging through this encoding that I finally started to realize what this workshop was about. It was not about analyzing the textual data. That's what I had expected, and so had some of the other Talmudists in the workshop that I spoke with. The data was already there, ready to be analyzed, and the Versioning Machine was simply displaying it. I'm not even convinced it was easier to look at it in that format. The main point (which is probably obvious to many) was that Digital Humanities allows access to a wider circle of readers and scholars.

That realization helped me to start thinking about what use I, and the field of Jewish Studies, could make of these applications. For my part, I think I'm working on texts that are too short and too minor to justify putting special effort into placing them online in any kind of sophisticated way. The scholarly community that would be interested is too small, and my resources are definitely too limited.

But this approach works well with a canonical text that people all over the world want to use, in different ways. A text that is complex, multi-layered. In short, the Talmud. And much work has already been done to place Talmudic resources online. Several of them are listed in the sidebar of this blog. But they're not linked to each other in any way. If a larger project (and these digital projects are usually large) could bring together:

the raw images of Talmudic manuscripts from the National Library website and from the Friedberg Genizah Project
the transcriptions of those same texts from the Lieberman Institute
the lexicographic analysis of the words of the Talmud from the Hebrew Language Historical Dictionary and from Michael Sokoloff's Aramaic dictionaries and the Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon
and the commentaries from Hebrewbooks.org's Talmud portal

then, without needing to create any new content, a vast network of information would be readily available to anyone studying the Talmud.

But for medieval Halakhah, I think there's still a long way to go.

Upcoming conference

2010-09-21T12:10:00.002+02:00

A major conference on Jews and Christians in 13th century France is planned for February 2011 in Jerusalem. Jews and Christians - meaning giving both cultures their own attention rather than focusing only on the direct contact between them. As the organizers write: "In convening scholars of Christian medieval culture and society as well as those specializing in Jewish society and culture of the time we hope to significantly advance scholarship of this time and place." Poster here.

Manuscripts and morbidity

2010-09-20T09:14:00.002+02:00

Benjamin Richler, a truly wonderful person, shares some morbid thoughts brought on by his 70th birthday and by a couple of manuscripts, here.

Automatic writing

2010-07-15T20:05:00.002+03:00

Dr Amos Goldreich has published a new book with Cherub Press. His dissertation was a study and edition of Isaac of Acre's Sefer Meirat Enayim. He has published studies on the late strata of the Zohar. Now he has come out with a huge (400 pages) volume on the phenomenon of automatic writing, which is apparently found in the Tikune Zohar. Here's the description:

Automatic Writing in Zoharic Literature and Modernism, שם הכותב וכתיבה אוטומטית בספרות הזוהר ובמודרניזם, by Amos Goldreich (Sources and Studies in the Literature of Jewish Mysticism 24; 2010, 408 pages, ISBN 1-933379-17-0, in Hebrew). This richly detailed monograph explores the phenomenon of mystical and magical techniques which induce a different state of consciousness that leads to literary production. The impetus of the study is the suggestion, offered in the celebrated testimony of R. Isaac of Acre, that R. Moses de León was able to write the Zohar using shem ha-kotev, a magical application of the divine name. It has been demonstrated that the later stratum of the Zohar, that is Tiqqunei ha-Zohar, was actually written using this technique. All scholarly treatments of the topic, including new evidence from manuscript sources and a history of related phenomena amongst kabbalists, and on through the development of similar techniques in modernism, such as automatic writing experiments in early twentieth-century English occultism and French surrealism, are all discussed at length in this monumental study.

A quote

2010-07-14T13:43:00.002+03:00

The young scholar is doubly handicapped, being ignorant alike of the new field of study and of the adult problems which history is, for the most part, about. The mediaeval king's bench was the first bureaucratic institution with which I had had protracted dealings: I had yet to try to recover money from the Inland Revenue or to be passed from one telephone extension to another in a County Hall.

Marjorie Blatcher, The Court of King's Bench 1450-1550, London 1978, p. vii

Rav Amital

2010-07-09T11:09:00.004+03:00

Rav Yehudah Amital, the founder of Yeshivat Har Etzion, died this morning. I'm leaving for the funeral in a couple of minutes.

When I first arrived at the yeshivah, Rav Amital was one of the biggest draws for me. However, a few months after I started, Yitzhak Rabin was murdered and Shimon Peres asked Rav Amital to join the government. So for the rest of that year his appearances in Alon Shevut were rare and he was always accompanied by bodyguards. It also ended up being the beginning of a slow retirement process. So I have never claimed to have had a close relationship with Rav Amital, and I tried to avoid the expressions of adulation I saw in others as a compensation for that lack of real contact.

But there is a comment that Rav Amital made that has often come back to me. He would say that in his shi'urim, when he was teaching Talmud, he made an effort never to repeat himself, always to have something new to say. In his sihot, his talks on ideas and values, however, he always said the same things. This, he explained, was because those values were really important and he wanted to emphasize them.

I found this comment very attractive. I think it bespeaks real humility and self-awareness, even self-deprecating humour. [Now I'm back from the funeral]. And I think that's very important in an educator.

It points to an intellectual liveliness that typified him into old age. By the way, I spent several months in his weekly Gemara shiur. We were learning Gittin, and his only interest in the sugyot was how to use them to free agunot.

It points to his strong belief in certain central ideas. As both Rav Lichtenstein and his son R Yoel Amital mentioned at the funeral today, one of those central ideas was Kiddush Hashem, the sanctification of God's name. That's an idea that means very different things to different people, and what it meant to Rav Amital living through the Holocaust was something very different from what it meant to him in the State of Israel. But the idea remained a constant concern to him.

Finally, R Yoel Amital mentioned today the emphasis his father placed on the importance of silence. Remaining silent in the face of his detractors, attackers and misintrepreters. In the face of tragedies he did not want to theologize. Silent about things he didn't want to trivialize.

תהא נשמתו צרורה בצרור החיים

Hebrew

2010-06-25T08:56:00.002+03:00

Prof Shimon Sharvit has written many studies on the language of the Mishnah, and should be best known for his critical edition of Mishnah Avot. Bar Ilan University has just published a festschrift in his honour, and it contains several articles that look (from their titles) quite interesting. I'm wondering what Doron Ya'akov's article on the 'perpetual plural' in Hazal is about. Shamma Friedman continues to discuss 'hashash' (see his article in Leshonenu 50). Moshe Halamish contributes to the discussion about 'yadekha ha-mele'ah, ha-petuhah, ha-kedoshah veha-rehavah' (presumably, on the Hassidic tradition that reads 'ha-gedushah').
Of medieval significance are the studies by Mordechai Mishor (on grammar in Ashkenaz), Amos Dodi (on a 15th century Spanish siddur which contains the Mishnah tractate Tamid) and Hayyim Cohen (on pronunciation of 'Bore peri ha-gafen' in Ashkenaz - or was that gefen?).

Prof Jordan Penkower pointed out to me that the Jewish Study Bible is now available online here.

The Tammuz issue of Ha-Ma'ayan is now online. I haven't found anything there that interests me, but I'm sure that others will.

French

2010-06-14T21:28:00.002+03:00

There is an upcoming conference in Jerusalem on Jewish languages. Program here. Most research in Jewish languages is post-medieval, so a lot of it doesn't interest me. But there is a session on Judeo-French, including a lecture by Cyril Aslanov about the Troyes Lament.

Speaking of Judeo-French, Kirsten Fudeman's book on that medieval language and its uses is about to be published (still available for pre-order on Amazon) by Penn Press.
And speaking of France, Nouvelle Gallia Judaica has published another volume of articles. Judith Olszowy-Schlanger's article, 'Deux ketubbot comtadines du Moyen Âge et leurs formules juridiques', sounds interesting.

The other lecture at the languages conference that should be of interest to Talmudists is the Shlomo Morag Memorial Lecture, being delivered by Yohanan Breuer. His lecture is devoted to the fascinating Hilkhot Re'u, a Hebrew translation of the Babylonian Aramaic work Halakhot Pesukot. A doctorate was written about it by Samuel Morell at JTS many years ago, and it is certainly worthy of a fresh look.

Shavua ha-Sefer

2010-06-07T19:25:00.002+03:00

I haven't made it to Shavua ha-Sefer yet this year (nor last). But in this virtual age, you don't need to leave your house. My friend R. Eliezer has a breathless account of all the new books, and he is even offering his services (for a small fee) in making your purchases for you.

Shut

2010-05-31T06:02:00.002+03:00

This Thursday, the Yedidyah-Kibbutz Dati evening Beit Midrash is hosting an evening on Halakhah and physical disability. This is to launch a new book of responsa by Rabbi Shaul Anvari relating to the halakhic ramifications of physical disabilities.
I thought to mention that recently I was studying a manuscript responsum from the 14th century on the question of whether a blind person could be called up to read from the Torah. The respondent considered the question ridiculous - if he is blind, how can he read? I was surprised to find an extremely long list of rabbis throughout the centuries who have taken the opposite position. I assume this has much to do with the question of whether the 'oleh' reads from the Torah personally, or has the Torah read for him by the reader.

Vatican 66

2010-05-25T12:35:00.003+03:00

The Jewish Museum in London is launching an exhibition of Jewish manuscripts, including what is truly one of the most precious Hebrew manuscripts in existence - MS Vatican ebr. 66 of the Sifra. it's enough to give you this line from the Vatican catalogue: ', late 9th-mid 10th century'.

A short bibliography:
Louis Finkelstein, Sifra, or Torah Kohanim, according to Codex Assemani LXVI, New York 1956.
Shlomo Naeh, Leshon ha-Tannaim ba-Sifra al-pi ketav yad Vatikan 66, Ph.D. dissertation, Hebrew University, Jerusalem 1989
Mordechai Glatzer, 'Kitve Yad Bavliyim Kedumim', Al Sefarim ve-Anashim 10 (1996), pp. 16-19

Beard hairs in books

2010-05-23T22:57:00.002+03:00

Somewhere in his sprawling Minhage Yisrael, Prof Daniel Sperber discusses the custom of readers leaving the hairs that fall from their bears within the pages of the book they are reading. Kabbalistic reasons have been given. But now we know the real one - to preserve their identity for posterity:

Scientists have been examining Copernicus’s skull and leg bones since they were discovered by archaeologists three years ago in an unmarked grave in the cathedral. Testing revealed that the body was of a 70 year old man, and that he had a broken nose, which would have the same age and condition of the Polish scientist when he died. Furthermore, DNA taken from teeth and bones matched hairs that were found in one of his books, and they ultimately concluded that they had found Copernicus.

From here.

I got the feeling that it sounds bad

2010-05-23T09:54:00.001+03:00

Now the ultimate authority has confirmed - 'Talmud' sounds bad.

More Fragments online

2010-05-20T16:20:00.002+03:00

The Yehudah Nachum collection of Yemenites manuscripts and binding fragments is now online, from the people who brought you the Genizah.
And the co-operation between researchers across Europe is now supposed to bring all the Hebrew binding fragments known as the European Genizah to one site. I don't have access to the database (I hope that will change soon!), but to judge from the Austrian site that has been up for a while, it should be very useful.

And the HebrewBooks people have placed a lot of scanned early modern JTS manuscripts here.

Fun in the library

2010-05-20T16:19:00.000+03:00

The Public Library.

Conference

2010-05-05T12:43:00.002+03:00

The poster for the conference next week at Mt Scopus is now available here. Note the last session:

הקשרים רב-תחומיים בחקר תולדות ההלכה
יו"ר: ד"ר רמי ריינר
רחל פירסט
נרטיביות ורטוריקה בספרות השו"ת: מתודות חדשות
בפרשנות ההלכה
פנחס רוט
קשרים ומתחים בין תרבויות הלכתיות במערב אירופה בימי
הביניים

Other lectures that day will include Oded Porat on Ma'ayan ha-Hokhmah, Christian Stadel on Aramaic and the Septuagint, Oren Roman on Yiddish epic biblical poems and Rahel Hason on popular Judeo-Arabic songs in the Firkovitch collection. The first day (Yom Yerushalayim) includes lectures by Hanan Harif on Benjamin Disraeli on Orientalism and Zionism, Ra'anan Eichler on the cherubs, and Yaron Zini on the connections between Hekhalot literature and early Piyyut.

Graduate student conference at Hebrew U

2010-04-28T12:32:00.002+03:00

A two day conference at Hebrew University (Mt Scopus). The speakers are all second-year doctoral students, from across the Humanities. The very last session will be dedicated to a pair of lectures on Halakhah.

WCJS abstracts

2010-04-27T12:46:00.001+03:00

Abstracts from many of the lectures delivered at the 15th World Congress of Jewish Studies last summer are now available here.

Kenishta

2010-04-26T22:13:00.001+03:00

New volume of the Bar Ilan journal on prayer. TOC here.

Sermons by the Jews, for the Finns

2010-04-26T21:59:00.003+03:00

The Finnish Roman Institute is hosting a conference, scheduled for February 2011, about Preaching On the Jews, For the Jews and By the Jews. Details here. Note the tone of this paragraph:

In addition to sermons on the Jews or for the conversion of the Jews, we would also love to see papers on preaching by the Jews themselves. How did they try to repel the attacks of the Christian missionary preachers or the hostile attitudes disseminated by the preaching to the general population? To what extent were Jewish sermons meant to force their own religious and cultural identity under the pressures constituted by the Christian majority?

So, if you think you can help - go for it! Besides the coolness of speaking in a building that looks like this, it's an opportunity to bring authentic Jewish voices into a conversation that rarely hears them.

What is this? Bryant Park?

2010-04-22T15:14:00.001+03:00

The IMHM will be closed next Tuesday morning (and the Judaica Reading Room at the National Library will be closed all day) because of filming for the new Talmud movie.

NYT discovers the joys of glosses

2010-04-19T11:35:00.004+03:00

Nice presentation of Mark Twain's notations in books he owned. Is a similar website for Saul Lieberman's library a reasonable wish?

Death and Burial in Tel Aviv

2010-04-14T14:40:00.000+03:00

Upcoming conference.

Genizat Germania volume

2010-04-14T14:22:00.001+03:00

The proceedings of the Genizat Germania conference have been published by Brill. Highlights include Edna Engel's article on the development of Ashkenazic script, and Andreas Lehnardt's bibliography of publications on and from the European Genizah.

Sforno

2010-04-13T10:56:00.002+03:00

A conference is taking place in Bologna next week about Rabbi Ovadiah Sforno. Details here. Notice how they chose to illustrate the announcement? Artscroll strikes again!

New

2010-04-12T20:57:00.003+03:00

The Lubavitch library in New York holds a variety of interesting items, but for the most part it has not been accessible to scholars (partly because it has not been microfilmed by the indispensable IMHM). Now, dozens of the items in the library have been described in a beautiful and well-researched catalogue. Part of it is available in the following sample PDF. The sample includes the descriptions of several pages of Talmud (late medieval manuscripts and a Spanish print), and a manuscript of Orhot Hayyim that reflects the later, Majorcan version of that fascinating work.

And version 18 of the Responsa Project disc has been released. It includes two Tosafist commentaries on the Torah (Ba'al ha-Turim and R Hayyim Paltiel), the Cremona edition of Maharam's responsa, and the fascinating halakhic work Sefer ha-Niyyar (from when paper began to replace parchment in France, in the late 13th century).

Finally, a new volume of Ale Sefer. Several interesting articles, including one by Dan on censorship or lack thereof, and an article by Simcha Emanuel about another collection of Maharam's responsa - the Lemberg edition, published by Rabbi RNN Rabinowitz.

And Shavua ha-Sefer hasn't even arrived yet!

York

2010-04-09T14:10:00.002+03:00

The week before Pesah, I participated in an academic conference on the Jews of medieval England. It was held in the city of York, in commemoration of the Jews of York who died in the city on Shabbat ha-Gadol 1190. The details of the conference can be found here and ongoing discussions flowing from the conference can be found here.

It was an amazing experience for me (though somewhat nerve-wracking, being so far from my kitchen that was still in need of Pesach cleaning). Among the highlights for me was Nicholas Vincent's lecture the first evening, on the portrayal of Richard I in William of Newburgh. Not that I know much about Richard I, or even about William, the unrivaled star of the conference. But Prof Vincent's lecture made such beautiful use of medieval manuscripts that I was deeply moved (really!). Utilizing information like the literary sources that William used, the distribution of the Latin versions of Josephus in English manuscripts, and an intimate familiarity with the language of the Vulgate, and incredible knowledge in the historiography of English monarchy, he suggested that William modeled his portrayal of King Richard on Josephus's portrayal of Titus (ha-rasha).

Several speakers, who were also a lively audience, displayed tremendous knowledge of archival sources - in one memorable exchange, someone recited the years of each visit that King Richard made to York. Quite a few. I hope to someday know the primary materials that I study the way these academics know theirs.

Something that emerged for me on the third and last day of the conference, was the significance of scholarship in Jewish studies that is published in English. Books published in recent years in English on the (perennial) topic of Jewish martyrdom, even books that I would not necessarily have considered to be particularly crucial, have become part of a common discourse among medieval historians and the names of their authors are on everyone's lips. But important Israeli scholars who have published extensively in Hebrew and only rarely in English remain anonymous in these wider circles. Obviously a natural result, but one that gave me pause when I caught a glimpse of it.

So I hope it was a good thing that I delivered a paper on Halakhah. I hope to publish it in a form that is meaningful and convincing for both the larger circle of historians and the smaller circle of Talmudists.

Prof Meir Benayahu z"l memorial evening

2010-04-09T14:09:00.001+03:00

Programme here.

Goldstein-Goren online

2010-04-06T16:24:00.001+03:00

Ben-Gurion University's Center for Jewish Thought now has three volumes of studies available in full text online. See here. Hat-tip: Prof JSP.

New books

2010-03-17T10:12:00.003+02:00

Menachem Mendel has already noted the publication of Yirmiyahu Malchi's collection of articles on Rashi's Talmud commentary. I haven't been able to check yet whether any of the chapters are new, but in any case it's an important new tool for studying the travails of a major medieval book.

And Shai (thanking MM) mentioned Yuval Harari's new book on magic.

I thought I would just add one more, also published by Mosad Bialik, on behalf of Ben Gurion University of the Negev Press - three new works by Moses ibn Tibbon (belated hattip to R Eliezer Brodt of the Seforim blog). This 13th century scion of the famous family of translators and philosophers has received a fair amount of attention in recent years, with his commentary on Shir ha-Shirim published recently in German translation.

Colette Sirat announced long ago her intention of publishing his commentary on Talmudic aggadah, included in this volume (Sefer ha-Peah). 13th century Southern France produced a number of interesting commentaries on Talmudic aggadah as part of its grappling with philosophy, rationalism and allegory. One that has received some attention is that of R Isaac ben Yedaiah, as described by Marc Saperstein in 'Decoding the Rabbis'. R Menahem Meiri, everyone's favourite rationalist rabbi, did his fair share of explaining away weird aggadot. Saperstein also described the aggadic commentaries of Yedaiah ha-Penini (who wrote on a wider swath of compositions - Menahem Kahana in his doctorate praises the textual virtues of his citations of Sifre Numbers in his commentary ad loc). I'm curious to see which sugyot Moses ibn Tibbon chose.

Avraham Israel recently published Moses' commentary on Solomon ibn Gabirol's Azharot as part of his MA thesis, and it is included in the new volume. And Howard Kreisel, his advisor, seems to have published Sefer ha-Taninim. But I don't know anything about that.

R Abraham Portaleone's Shilte ha-Giborim

2010-03-15T08:59:00.002+02:00

To be clear - this is not the famous Shilte ha-Gibborim by R Joshua Boaz. This is a book (only part of it, actually) devoted to the realia of the Temple and related topics, written by an Italian doctor in the 17th century. The book was published during his lifetime. But in recent years it has attracted the attention of Jewish Temple enthusiasts, who have devoted considerable time and effort to publishing a new edition.

Oh well

2010-03-12T11:58:00.001+02:00

I just noticed this:

Taylor-Schechter Geniza Collection, Cambridge University Library
Targum Shlishi provided both general support and funding for the development of a CD-ROM to document the Taylor-Schechter Genizah Collection at Cambridge University Library. The collection includes 140,000 centuries-old fragments of Hebrew and Jewish literature and documents recovered from the Ben Ezra Synagogue in Cairo in the late 1800s. Despite the great promise of the project and interest in it, the CD-ROM was never completed. The Cambridge faculty’s focus was of a scholarly nature; bringing the Geniza Collection to the public was not a priority, which contributed to the abandonment of the project.

Publishing magic

2010-02-26T10:10:00.003+02:00

An autograph manuscript by R Hayyim Vital, with his notes on practical magic, has attracted a fair amount of scholarly attention in the past decades. Several lengthy studies have appeared in Hebrew, and at least one in English (Gerrit Bos, 'Hayyim Vital's Practical Kabbalah and Alchemy: a 17th century Book of Secrets', Journal of Jewish Thought and Philosophy 4 (1995), pp. 55-112).

Now, someone (the editor's name is not mentioned in the volume, as far as I can tell) has published as much of the manuscript as is extant today. Titled Sefer ha-Pe'ulot, it includes indices and an introduction, but virtually no notes to the text.

What I found fascinating was the following proviso, at the beginning of the book:

ספר זה נועד לעיון בלבד ולא לשימוש מעשי. והעושה מפעולותיו, על דעתו ובאחריותו הוא עושה. שומר נפשו וגופו ירחק מלעשותן והיה שלום.
This book is meant purely for research, and not for practical use. Anyone who follows its instructions, does so on his own responsibility. Whoever care about their soul or body will stay away from performing them and shall be at peace.

Not something you normally see in magic studies.
For more details, email the editor at hapeulot -at- gmail.com

Shloshim

2010-02-15T20:07:00.001+02:00

Fragments at Yale

2010-02-12T19:54:00.003+02:00

The Yale Law Library has launched an exhibition of medieval manuscript fragments. Most are Latin, but there is a page from an Ashkenazic mahzor, and a fragment of Mishneh Torah.

Manuscript edition posted online

2010-02-10T15:20:00.003+02:00

Emese Kozma, who wrote her MA on Haside Ashkenaz, has posted her editions of two unpublished Halakhic works by R Eleazar Roekah on the IMHM blog. Her editions are very focused, with her footnotes providing only references of immediate significance (source references, etc.). For a more expansive approach to one of the same texts, see the recent doctoral dissertation of Roye Zak, An exploration of the Halakhic methology of Rabbi Elazar b. R. Yehuda of Worms : the laws of Issur ve’Heter, PhD dissertation, Bar Ilan University, 2008.

Travel grant - NYPL

2010-01-29T06:28:00.001+02:00

I was asked to publicize the following announcement. The Dorot Jewish Division is not strong in its medieval holdings, but it has fascinating archival holdings that are almost completely unexplored by scholars. It is also one of the few libraries that is still actively building its collection of Hebrew manuscripts.

Short-Term Research Fellowships at The New York Public Library
The New York Public Library is delighted to announce the availability of up to ten fellowships to support visiting scholars wishing to pursue research during 2010 in the Library’s Dorot Jewish Division, Manuscripts and Archives Division, Miriam & Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs, or the Carl H. Pforzheimer Collection of Shelley and His Circle. Awards will be in the range of $2,500–$3,000. Scholars from outside the New York metropolitan area engaged in graduate-level, post-doctoral, or independent research are invited to apply.
The Dorot Jewish Division houses one of the world’s great collections of Hebraica and Judaica. Primary source materials are especially rich in the following areas: Jews in the United States, especially in New York in the age of immigration; Yiddish theater; Jews in the land of Israel, through 1948; Jews in early modern Europe, especially Jewish-Gentile relations; Christian Hebraism; antisemitism; and world Jewish newspapers and periodicals of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. For more information see: http://www.nypl.org/locations/schwarzman/jewish-division
The Manuscripts and Archives Division holds some 30,000 linear feet of archival material in more than 3,000 collections, with material dating from the third millennium BCE to the present. The focus is on the history of New York, documented in the papers of individuals, families, and organizations, primarily from the eighteenth through the twentieth centuries. Holdings are especially strong in politics, literature, publishing, and activism. Important collections include the archives of: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Inc.; the New Yorker Magazine, Inc.; the Emergency Committee in Aid of Displaced Foreign Scholars; the National Civic Federation; the New York Central Railroad; the National Audubon Society; and the New York World's Fairs of 1939-1940 and 1964-1965, among many others. For more information see: http://www.nypl.org/locations/schwarzman/manuscripts-division
The Miriam & Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs comprises the Art and Architecture Collection, the Photography Collection and the Print Collection.
The Art and Architecture Collection is a major reference collection supporting research on the fine and decorative arts, architecture, and design. Its holdings are strong in monographs and monographic series, exhibition catalogs and catalogues raisonnés, auction records and periodicals, both in English and in other European languages. For more information see: http://www.nypl.org/locations/schwarzman/art-architecture-collection
The Photography Collection comprises approximately 500,000 photographs by 6,000 photographers, including examples of almost every photographic process from the daguerreotype to digital imagery. It is especially strong in photographically illustrated books, travel and topographical photography, stereoscopic views, and portraiture. Other strengths include works from the first years of photography, American photography from the 1930s and 40s, limited edition portfolios, and works by New York-based photographers working in the 1970s and 80s. For more information see:
http://www.nypl.org/locations/schwarzman/prints-and-photographs-study-room/photography-collection
The Print Collection comprises close to 200,000 original prints, spanning the history of Western art from 15th-century woodcuts to 21st-century digital prints, with a special strength in 19th- and 20th-century American prints, by New York artists in particular. Japanese woodcuts, especially of the 18th and 19th centuries, but from as far back as the 10th century, are another special strength. For more information see: http://www.nypl.org/locations/schwarzman/prints-and-photographs-study-room/print-collection
The Carl H. Pforzheimer Collection of Shelley and His Circle is one of the world's leading repositories for the study of British Romanticism. Its holdings consist of some 25,000 books, manuscripts, letters, and other objects, chiefly from the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. The collection focuses on the life and work of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and his contemporaries, including his second wife, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, her parents, William Godwin and
Mary Wollstonecraft, and such friends and fellow writers as Lord Byron, Claire Clairmont, Teresa Guiccioli, Thomas Hogg, Leigh Hunt, Thomas Love Peacock, and Edward Trelawny. Besides the books and manuscripts of the Shelley circle, the collection offers a wide range of collateral materials from the Romantic era. Because of the significance of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley in the history of women’s writing, materials concerning women have always formed an important component of the Pforzheimer Collection. For more information see: http://www.nypl.org/locations/schwarzman/pforzheimer-collection-shelley-and-his-circle
Applications must demonstrate how the New York Public Library’s collections are essential to the research proposed, and successful applicants are expected to contribute a report on their findings, suitable for posting to the Library’s website, at the conclusion of their fellowship.
Applicants who are neither United States citizens nor entitled to work in the U.S. nor citizens of participant countries in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program will be responsible for arranging an acceptable visa (such as the B-1 business-classification visitor's visa, but not the B-2 tourist-classification visitor's visa). Awards will be made as reimbursements of travel and/or per diem expenses where this is required by the recipient’s visa status.
Applications must be received by April 1, 2010, and should include:
--Cover letter
--Curriculum vitae
--Outline of proposed research and indication of Library holdings to be used (not more than 1,000 words)
--Outline budget for travel and per diem expenses
--Proposed dates to be spent in residence
--One letter of recommendation
Application materials, including letters of recommendation, may be submitted by email in PDF format (the preferred submission method) to
jbaumann@nypl.org. Applications may also be sent in print format to:
Jason Baumann
The New York Public Library
Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
476 Fifth Avenue
New York NY 10018
For questions about the program or the Library’s collections, please contact Jason Baumann at jbaumann@nypl.org. Awards will be announced April 30.

Benayahu memorial evening

2009-12-08T09:50:00.003+02:00

Chanan Benayahu asked me to advertise the following:

שלום רב,
ביום ה' הקרוב, בשעה 19:30 בערב יתקיים שיעור עיוני מפי פרופ' יוסף פאור לזכרו של מור אבי, פרופ' בניהו ז"ל
השיעור ייתקים בבית אבי המנוח ברחוב ברנר 1 ירושלים
אודה למי שיוכל לעדכן אותי אם הוא מעוניין להשתתף
בברכה,
חנן בניהו

Please RSVP to echadb@gmail.com

Update: The shiur will begin at 7pm.

Colophons

2009-11-28T21:57:00.000+02:00

Even Hebrew ones!

Jewish scholarship in Israel

2009-11-24T08:09:00.002+02:00

In the past twelve hours I've seen two critiques of the field of Jewish studies in Israel. One is a blog entry by an American-trained professor at an Israeli university. The other is a journal article by an American-trained professor (who spent time studying in Israel) at an American university (which is also in decline). Still sorting out my own thoughts on the matter. Most of my academic training has been in Israel, and that part of it that was not served mostly to show me that I needed to get back here (though some of it was very broadening). Some things really need a combination of approaches. To mention a pet peeve of mine - the study of medieval Halakhic manuscripts could be much more interdisciplinary than it is now. But jumping into that kind of endeavour without a sound grasp of more traditional Talmud philology is a waste of time.

Sotheby's scrolls

2009-11-10T16:11:00.002+02:00

Sotheby's have an auction coming up of Judaica. It includes several manuscripts. At least one is from the Montefiore collection. But one of the major items that they are touting is a medieval Spanish tittled Torah scroll. The catalogue claims that it was written in the circle of R Shem Tov ibn Gaon. The entry is quite long and interesting.

There are also several Esther scrolls. The most important one is from 1564, and is apparently the earliest decorated Megillah. It was written by a woman named Estellina bat Menahem. Yup, a female scribe.

And two megillot illustrated by Shalom Italia.

Cool stuff. Catalogue is here.

Vatican catalogue

2009-11-03T19:31:00.002+02:00

They really did it! The complete catalogue of Hebrew manuscripts in the Vatican collections is now available for download, here.

Erfurt

2009-11-03T19:16:00.002+02:00

Readers of this blog should by now be familiar with the Erfurt manuscript of the Tosefta (digitized in full here, and transcribed here). You may also have heard about the 'Erfurt Treasure', which was on exhibit in several museums over the past few years. You may not have known, as I didn't, that Erfurt also boasts an old synagogue, possibly one of the oldest in Europe.

The Erfurt Treasure is now going on permanent display in the newly restored synagogue, and to celebrate, the city is holding a three day conference. The programme is here. Most of it is in German and of mostly local interest. But Prof Jordan Penkower will be there, speaking about 'The Ashkenazi Pentateuch Tradition as Reflected in the Erfurt Hebrew Bible Manuscripts - Text, Section Divisons, Layout of the Songs'. Prof Penkower has been doing work on medieval Ashkenazic Pentateuchs and Torah scrolls (some of which belong to the Erfurt collection, usually in Berlin but at least some will be on display in the synagogue), and he has discovered some fascinating things. If you're in the area, go and hear him (and Avraham David, who will be speaking in Erfurt in December). If not, you'll have to wait until he publishes his research. At the rate that he publishes, I don't expect that to be very long.

Southern France at Bialik

2009-10-26T08:31:00.002+02:00

Mosad Bialik has just published two books on the Jewish communities of Southern France. One is the pinkas of the Jewish community in Carpentras, from the 18th century. It is one of the rich ironies of Jewish history that, after 1497, the only Jews living openly in Western Europe (west of Italy, that is) were the Jews living in the Papal States.

By that time, the Jewish communities of the area lacked the vitality and creativity they were known for in earlier times. But they did preserve their liturgical tradition, which contains many indigenous piyyutim. Those piyyutim are the subject of a major new study by Binyamin Bar-Tikvah, who previously published a monograph on the work of one of those medieval poets, Isaac ha-Seniri.

Book history

2009-10-25T09:01:00.001+02:00

A cool event devoted to an important genre of literature - detective fiction!

Medieval Iberia

2009-10-22T13:31:00.002+02:00

A workshop on new research into medieval Iberia is taking place at Hofstra University on November 6th. Some details here, though none I could find about the content. For a very brief explanation of some new research being done on Jews in 14th century Aragon who requested permission from the king to practice polygamy, see here.

Digital

2009-10-14T16:53:00.002+02:00

The Leon Levy Foundation has put a lot of money into funding digitization and conservation of archives (including several archives that I catalogued). Like this Friday ketubah. And the Simonsen collection in Copenhagen is also online, which is very cool. The most famous manuscript there is, I think, this copy of Maimonides' responsa, though some people have other interests. Their interface is very user-friendly, and doesn't require downloading any special software, unlike another library I could mention.

Yemen, again

2009-10-09T13:12:00.003+02:00

The latest volume of the venerable REJ is now available online. It includes an article by Dr M Morgenstern on the textual value of the Yemenite manuscripts of the Babylonian Talmud. Morgenstern is working on a comprehensive grammar of Jewish Babylonian Aramaic, based primarily on Oriental manuscripts (of the Talmud and the Geonic literature) and on magic bowls. His conclusion in this article is that from a linguistic perspective, the Yemenite manuscripts are contaminated by outside influences, and sometimes are simply mistaken.

Correction: Dr Morgenstern pointed out to me that he was discussing the Yemenite reading tradition, not necessarily the text of Yemenite manuscripts.

Hebrew manuscript fragments in Morocco

2009-10-08T14:15:00.002+02:00

An upcoming conference advertised on H-Judaic, taking place in Paris in November, sounds very cool. The unspecific title is 'Ongoing research on Hebrew manuscripts at EPHE: present and future'. I'll mention two lectures that sound interesting. One is by Justine Isserles (who is/was? working on Mahzor Vitry last I heard) about MS Parma de Rossi 403 (a fascinating French halakhic compendium - see Simcha Emanuel, Shivre Luhot, p. 300) and haroset.
There will be another lecture by Judith Kogel about fragments from Alsace. One about fragments from South-West France and Switzerland. And Wissem Gueddich is speaking about Hebrew manuscript fragments from Morocco. I wish I could be there (and that my French were good enough for me to understand the lectures).

Lulav as victory sign

2009-10-08T09:08:00.002+02:00

This midrashic idea expressed last night - here. While performing this song.

Modena Genizah and astrology

2009-10-07T19:02:00.002+02:00

A new issue of Aleph - the journal for the study of science and Jewish history - has appeared. TOC here. It includes an article about a binding fragment recently detached in Modena containing passages from two astrological books by Ibn Ezra. Some of the other fragments are described here.

Logic

2009-10-02T08:31:00.002+02:00

Dr Aviram Ravitsky, with whom I was lucky enough to take a couple of courses when he was still working on his doctorate, has just published his second book, based on aforementioned doctorate. His first book was a critical edition of Sha'are Tsedek, a commentary on the Baraita de-R. Yishma'el often attributed to Gersonides. His new book deals with the larger phenomenon of philosophical commentaries on that Baraita which attempt to align it with the principles of Aristotelian logic. An essay of his on the topic can be found here.

Kara

2009-09-30T08:18:00.002+02:00

Our local Jerusalem supermarket has been selling Rosh ha-Shanah vegetables, under their traditional names. I'm never sure exactly what they are. They include gourds called Kara. I have no idea whether they are worth trying. Anyone know?

Medieval Jewish Studies Online has finally shown a sign of life, with some new material on the fascinating medieval French exegete, R. Yosef Kara. A critical edition of his commentary on the books of Yoel, Ovadiah and Yonah is now available, as well as a short introduction to the project. The introduction seems to indicate an important shift in the thinking of the leader of the project. While at first she writes:

Our first investigations conducted at the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts, Jerusalem, led us to suspect that it will not necessarily be possible to distinguish between Qara’s and Rashi’s commentaries in the sense of a literature by two clearly distinct authors, as has been assumed until now.

the actual meeting with the manuscripts led her to a different conclusion:

Having worked on the edition and translation of the text for the last two years, our first and probably most important result is that the commentary on the Minor Prophets (Tere Asar) reveals a stable and consistent textual tradition and does not show any sign of fluctual transmission.

A testimony to an open mind and the value of manuscript research!

Cooperation

2009-09-25T11:04:00.003+03:00

I openly confess that I'm not interested in yet more discussions of ritual murder (or martyrdom). But this kind of scholarly cooperation is really impressive and exciting.

York

2009-09-23T19:39:00.001+03:00

Conference marking 820th anniversary of the burning of the Jews in York Castle.

Tosefta

2009-09-23T09:08:00.002+03:00

A nice roundup of online resources for the Tosefta, as well as a nice English translation of the text and a fascinating blog, can all be found at Tosefta Online.

A new book about the medieval Jewish community of Portugal.

Gmar tov.

Young academics online

2009-09-16T21:58:00.003+03:00

Today I became aware of the websites of two Talmudists. They have both taken the laudable step of placing their academic publications online, freely available to the wider public.

Jonathan Milgram is an assistant professor of Talmud at JTS. He wrote his doctorate at Bar Ilan University under Shamma Friedman, on Bavli Bekhorot. The synopsis from his dissertation, as well as an article with part of his commentary on the section he studied, is on the site.

Yachin Epstein teaches, I believe, in the Open University in Israel, and before that was a ram at the late and lamented Yeshivat ha-Kibbutz ha-Dati - Ein Tsurim. He wrote his MA on a chapter of Bavli Yoma, and the thesis is on the site. His dissertation, on Kallah Rabbati, written under the guidance of Robert Brody, will go up soon. Another item of interest is a high school paper written by his sister, on their grandfather Prof Jacob Nahum Epstein.

A sad story from an institution I love

2009-09-08T00:54:00.001+03:00

Here.

Sefer Hassidim

2009-09-01T17:50:00.002+03:00

Looks like the Princeton website on Sefer Hassidim is up and running. It requires registration, which I just applied for, so I haven't seen the site on the inside yet. I wonder about the significance of textual variants among manuscripts of SH (and in general about the value of collecting variants on a large scale for works without a complicated textual history). My impression is that, while they may contain a range of different passages, the variants for a single passage are not usually large. But that's just a vague impression based on the Parma ms compared to the Bologna edition, and I may be completely wrong. Hopefully the database will give an answer.

Beit Midrash

2009-08-30T19:02:00.002+03:00

If you're in Jerusalem and looking for an edificatory way to spend an evening or two a week, check out the new website of the Yedidyah/ Yeshivat ha-Kibbutz Dati graduates beit midrash. Officially named בית מדרש ערב ידידיה, and targeted at people who are working or studying but would like to learn some Torah in an open and socially-aware way. The teachers are amazing people (though their English-language lecturer will not be there this semester), and it's well worth trying out.

Saving the Tannaim

2009-08-28T23:25:00.005+03:00

The sidebar of this blog includes a link to the 'Primary Textual Witnesses to Tannaitic Literature' website. It contains full transcriptions of all extant manuscripts of the Tosefta and the Mekhilta - including Geniza fragments. You just put in the passage you want, and the witnesses you want it from, and you get a separate window for each manuscript - conducive to careful comparison (though the units they are presented in are too long and unwieldy).

Here is some more information sent to me by a friend who runs the project:
The project is headed by Prof. Shamma Friedman and aspires to transcribe all extant Tannaitic literature, and hopefully to upload high quality scans in addition to the transcription. The project is free and run for the public's use. We welcome comments via e-mail and make corrections according to peoples comments. The project is run by Asaf Pink and 5 dedicated workers. We have the Tosefta and Mechilta de-Rabbi Yishmael fully uploaded.

The Sifra will be uploaded in the next few months and both the Sifreis should be uploaded till the end of 2010. Additionally we have uploaded a fascinating paper pointing out the pros and cons of some of the Tosefta and Mechilta editions with quite a few corrections even to Kahana's Geniza fragments edition.

Now here's the important part:
We would welcome donations and comments. The project is funded by Bar Ilan University and the Naftal Institute but unfortunately the economic crisis has caused the budget to be downsized considerably. For comments or donations they can contact my e-mail. We are planning to start working on the Mishna soon and if enough funding could be found we plan to have all extant Mss of the Mishna uploaded by the end of 2013!!!!

So there you have it. An important project, with new data, open access and a need for funding to keep going. Give, or don't come to me in 2013 complaining that you can't find a Genizah fragment for Masekhet Mikvaot.

A new wave of Talmudic commentary? AG's comments on Session 304

2009-08-07T16:55:00.001+03:00

Kahana:
We should acknowledge our debt to the traditional commentators. The
basis for any new commentary is a new edition and the new commentary
is important for the creation of new editions. They are both equally
valuable and support each other.
The method is known as the "philological-historical-

literary (sic!)" method.
An acceptable commentary of an halakhic midrash should be succinct and
to the point. It should strive to reconstruct the original wording
(probably of the composition, not the homily), a literal commentary,
an exaplantion of the mode of exegesis, reveal the halakha in the
homily and the homily's relation to the pshat. Then you can go on to
find order and patterns in homilies (not always, but sometimes,
there), and locate places where traditions were transferred from one
(sometimes otherwise lost) source to another. Do not discuss general
subjects or tangential material at length.

Milikovsky: Seder Olam needs a different kind of commentary. We modern
westerns think everything needs commentary, in in the case of SO it
means to try and reconstruct his calculations and biblical
interpretations.

Brody: began studying Talmud thinking there was a whole shelf of
Talmud commentaries and discovered there was one vol. of Halivni and
one of Feldblum. Halivni has grown and Friedman and co. wrote more,
but the former is too short, the latter too long. His forthcoming (he
estimated 8 years) commentary on ketubot will be a middle ground
between the two and focus on PaRDeS: Philology, Ribud, Dimyonot (i.e.
parallels) and Sevara (yes, sevara, he believes in sevara, it is not
just for yeshivot) (for that matter he thinks what he's doing should
be acceptable in any yeshiva too, and would like his book to be used
in "traditional" settings as well). The use of older commentaries
should be mentioned only when they discuss the talmud (i.e. stop
focusing on them instead of the text). Do not write too much (they all
seem to say that - AG). Nusach discussions are limited and based on
the green set, and he has better things to do with his time than that,
since someone already did it for him. He is not fazed or deterred by
the tendency of his predecessors at the department not to write
commentaries.

Some things I learned at the World Congress

2009-08-07T10:26:00.002+03:00

Inflection makes a big difference to a public lecture.
If your lecture is about Talmud, don't give a blow-by-blow account of the sugya.
Germans and Spaniards speaking in English are often (though not always) very difficult to understand.
The Friedberg Genizah Project has a program that can match together Genizah fragments from the same codex. 30% success rate, whatever that means.
The Princeton University Sefer Hasidim Database will be available at the end of the month at this address.
The new edition of Midrash Shmuel, edited by Barchiyahu and the late Tirtsah Lifshitz, has been published. So has the second printing of Elazar Hurvitz's 2006 catalogue of Westminster College Genizah fragments (ואכמ"ל).
It's exhausting.
Not much about Halakhah in the Middle Ages.

World Congress Day 5 – part 2

2009-08-06T13:33:00.001+03:00

Session 704 – The European Genizah Project 2

Elisabeth Hollender. About half of fragments from Germany contain piyutim. These liturgical manuscripts are difficult to localize since they do not normally contain information about the scribe, and are usually copied in square script. How can we cull additional information from these fragments? For one, some fragments in the Trier collection contain Minhag Tsarfat and are from the 14^th century, saying something about immigration from France even before the Expulsion. There are other Tsarfatic fragments found in Germany. But none of the fragments at Erlangen defined by Ernst Roth as Tsarfatic are actually French. Beyond the upper valley of the Moselle, there are only occasional uses of Minhag Tsarfat, showing that French refugees did not keep with their tradition. Mention of Giluy Milta blog. The chance of finding unknown piyutim is low – one new piyut by Shimshon ben Yonah (? yotser for first day of Shavuot) has been found and will be published by Dr Hollender in the forthcoming volume on Genizat Europe. All other piyutim found were mentioned by Zunz and were usually published by Goldschmidt and Fraenkel. Most manuscripts are from 14^th century or later, so repertoire was limited. Except perhaps shiv'atot, which were mostly composed in Ashkenaz and were only popular for a limited time, so they are not common in the binding fragments. But there are a few from the 14^th century. The use of selihot was less fixed than piyutim, as shown by Avraham Fraenkel in his introduction to Leket Piyute Selihot. Only the rise of printed Selihot created unity in the liturgy. In answer to a question – most piyutim are vocalized according to the simplified Ashkenazic system.

Javier Castano. Still in preliminary stage of checking notarial documents from Aragon – access to archives is not a simple issue. First – preservation of Hebrew documents is connected to notarial culture in Mediterranean. Fragments of Hebrew expenses book from Tarazona in binding of Quran, first described in 1912 but misidentified until Yahuda corrected the identification. Mentions the payment made by the community to avoid being stoned on Easter. Incidental interest by Aragonese scholars in 20^th century. Stronger interest in 1970s but still awaiting research. Document from Beit Din 1466 Saragossa. Two important books have been published – on the ketubot and on documents from Navarra. Unlike the Catalan fragments from bindings, most of the Aragonese fragments are from 15^th century. Dispersion and discontextualisation of data makes research difficult. Image from border of Spain and France, with Ketubah 1465 Aragonese city, serving as binding for notarial protocol. Other Hebrew documents were attached to related notarial documents. From Navarra 68 documents were published in one volume (and 12 have been found since) – in Aragon 70 documents have been found, no more than 4 in the same place (excepting Saragossa). But this is an early survey. Typology of private deeds – account books, ketubot, etc. 44 ketubot were published, only 6 from Aragon. Almosnino family monopolized scribal activity in their town for several generations in 15^th century. Public documents – court decisions. Someone mentioned in Hebrew court document from Huesca is probably the person burned to death a few years later as studied by Y Baer. טירואל court wrote to Saragossa in Hebrew alphabet vernacular. In contrast to Girona, the finds in Aragon and Castile and Portugal are modest. Project trying to survey systematically. In Catalunya, the destruction in 1391 and confiscation of Hebrew books in 15^th century explains the recycling. But in Aragon, communities survived into 15^th century, and the project may help to provide information about them. In answer to question - Catalan Jews are basically Provencal Jews, but the rest of the Iberian peninsula is a different culture, including Jewish culture. Halakhic and Talmudic fragments have been found in Catalunya, but not in other areas. In Barcelona there are four archives that may contain similar bindings to Girona, which may be the tip of the iceberg. Recovering them is primarily a monetary question, and archivists are often resistant to taking apart their holdings. Also – in Catalunya the archives are state-controlled, but in Aragon they are private, so just getting access is not easy. Perani asks how many fragments are parchment. Castano answers that they are mostly paper, but parchment is used for outer bindings – either ketubot or Bible (sometimes Sefer Torah). Fragments of Torah scrolls have been found in many small towns.

Andreas Kunz-Luebcke – fragments in Freiberg, in East Germany, including Mahzor. 2 pages from Pentateuch, 6 from Mahzor and fragments of Haftarot. Pentateuch manuscript, with Targum and masorah, has illustrations of dragons, of a bird, and flowers. Attempt to explain connection between illustration and biblical text. One dragon has two heads, one at each end, and one of them is anthropomorphic. Textual comparison of Biblical and Targumic text to other witnesses. Targum may possibly be connected to Targum Yerushalmi I. Fragments from Mahzor – approx. 1% of the complete codex. Similar to Nuremberg Mahzor, as opposed to Leipzig and Worms mahzorim in both repertoire of piyutim and specific variants in text of piyutim. This suggests that the Eastern Ashkenazic rite was in use in Freiberg. Comment by [Avraham Fraenkel, or his brother in law, not sure] – cataloguing should differentiate between Siddur, Mahzor and Selihot.

Andreas Lehnardt. Renewed interest in bindings in Italy and Austria is well developed, but in Germany it has been neglected. Andreas once found page of a Mahzor with piyut of Kalir in a book from library of Eisenmeger and later in Jewish community of Mainz. This sparked his interest in the topic. Just found 12^th century Hebrew fragment in Giessen – possibly oldest found so far. Pieta from Lake Constance with a Hebrew fragment stuck to Jesus's knee – not only in bindings. 14^th-17^th centuries are period when bindings were reused. Several hundred new fragments in places were persecutions were known – Frankfurt in 17^th century, Friedberg where Jews were expelled in 1620 – 144 fragments (3% Talmud, 36% liturgy, 25% Bible, Mishneh Torah and Sefer ha-Terumah). First interest in Germany in Hebrew binding fragments in 15^th century, but mostly in 18^th century, usually when Latin fragments were found by librarians or scholars. Moritz Steinschneider was not very interested in fragments, though he did describe fragments that he was shown, and he sometimes misidentified them. After the Holocaust, hardly anyone studied fragments – Ernst Roth. Michael Krupp took an interest in fragments. Famous Sefer Yerushalmi in Darmstadt. In almost every town Andreas has visited in the past years he has found at least one fragment. Mentions fragment of Emunot ve-Deot (Ashkenazic translation) that I identified 1 ½ years ago. And Talmud fragments (in Sefardic script, probably from Italy) from Kassel. No fragments of mystical texts have been found, and rarely of midrash. Collaboration with Mif'al ha-Mishnah. Need to look in other countries too - some fragments from Trier are now in Cincinnati and fragments from Mainz in New York. Some fragments from Trier may now be in Paris. Benjamin Richler asks – in terms of range of topics, need to remember that large format manuscripts are the ones that were useful. And Malachi Beit-Arie says the same proportions are found everywhere, and it may be also because of original demand. In Italian Genizah there are not many Italian manuscripts. Kogel asks about grammatical works – but none of those. 700 fragments have been found so far, and new findings turn up every week.

World Congress Day 5 – part 1

2009-08-06T11:01:00.001+03:00

Session 703 – The European Genizah Project 1

Michael Krupp discussing a fragment of Sifre Deuteronomy in his collection (Krupp 3859, MSS-D 133). Latin inscription (1611-1615) on first page suggests that it is from Italy. It was not used for binding a book but simply as a folder. Fragment in Italian script, IMHM did not offer a date. Krupp thinks it is comparable to well-known 11^th century Italian manuscripts of rabbinic texts, based on descriptions by Moshe Lutzki in introduction to Vatican 66. Justification of left-hand column. Krupp prepared an edition of this text, with variants from Mss Berlin and London, and to eds. princ. and Finkelstein. Then a synopsis including some Genizah fragments (from Kahana's edition). Krupp fragment resembles the Genizah fragments, but also includes a sentence that appears in Finkelstein's ed based on Midrash Hakhamim. Menahem Kahana thanks Krupp who gave him the fragment in the past, and comments that Midrash Hakhamim is a solidly Italian witness, so it is interesting that this fragment resembles it. Mauro Perani thinks it is from early 13^th century. Edna Engel just walked out, but Perani thinks she will agree.

Mauro Perani (Andreas Lehnardt: "He is the Italian Genizah") on Girona Geniza. 'The wonderful city in which Nahmanides was born'. In Italy and Central Europe, the reused pages were always parchment, beginning in 16^th century. 385 printed books in Modena were bound in the 1640s with Hebrew manuscripts, including fragment of Midrash Halakhah (so Menahem Kahana asked for them to be removed). In Girona, 90% of the fragments are paper, and the reuse began in 1331. Also, in Italy the finds are exclusively literary while Girona contains many documentary fragments. In both areas, Hebrew manuscripts were used alongside Christian and even Greek and Arabic works. In Girona the pages were pasted together to create hard bindings for books. Millas Vallicrosa published some fragments starting in 1928. There are several archives in Girona which all have fragments, but work started in Historical archive. In Perpignan, the registers are very well preserved and so it is not possible to see fragments peeking out (one fragment has been found), but in Girona they are in worse condition and so the bindings have started to open up and reveal the fragments inside. Restoring fragments from a register costs 1000 Euro. 60 registers have been opened so far, yielding up to 20 fragments per register. Based on the number of unopened registers, we can expect around 2000 fragments (a lower figure than Perani gave in 1998). In Hebrew registers, years are given by both Jewish and Christian calendars. Slide with deed from Girona, 1307 (not the translation that I prepared for Perani of this document, forthcoming in Hispania Judaica Bulletin). Ketubbah from 1377 reused in 1477. Malachi Beit Arie points out that recycling Hebrew manuscripts is only a small part of a larger European phenomenon. But the circumstances are different because Latin manuscripts were discarded with the advent of printing, while only certain Hebrew manuscripts come up in bindings. Vienna NB is now being checked, with fragments bound in mid-15^th century following expulsion of Jews.

Edna
Engel on development of Hebrew script in Italy. From reed to quill. There are not enough dated Italian manuscripts, so the Italian Genizah is helpful. General explanation of script types. Engel's scheme of development of types, based on Oriental scripts, works for European as well. It is important to differentiate between different areas of Italy. First, 11^th-12^th centuries in Southern Italy. 13^th century, Rome. 14^th-15^th centuries, Northern and Central Italy. For first period, a few manuscripts from 11^th century Otranto and Genizah fragments (too little from Northern Italy, but probably also pre-square like in the South). Cramped letters, vertical lines descending with tilt to left, shin with sharp base – all similar to pre-square script from 9^th century Israel. How is that? Didn't Italian script develop over the first few centuries? Zerah ben Yehudah, writing in 1105 without localization but probably Italian in real square script, shows more development in letters. Semi-square script from mid-12^th century becomes the calligraphic script, with less squareness and thus easier to create. 13^th century Rome has cursive script that still has links to square script. Letters continue to tilt leftwards and a harmonic flow, aleph like a K. Avraham ben Yom Tov ha-Kohen worked in Rome as a scribe in last quarter of 13^th century – larger space between letters and more harmonic, more calligraphic that approaches square. Beginnings of development of benoni script in mid-13^th century. Pola bat Avraham, professional scribe from the Anavim family. Her aleph resembles her father, but beyond that her script is unique, half-square, well proportioned between height and width, she added crowns and little flourishes at the bottom of letters like aleph and tav. Transition to writing with quill reflects growing similarity to Ashkenazic script, allowing sharper vertical lines. Can be seen in Avraham ben Yom Tov. Slowly, it affects the non-square scripts as well. Only in 15^th century does quill become the main tool.

Judith Kogel. Systematic work on bindings in France began only 6 months ago. Dijon Marseilles Anjou. Some fragments from Alsace were studied by Paul Fenton and JP Rothschild 20 years ago. Focus on Colmar libraries. 96 bindings contain Hebrew fragments – the others are Latin fragments. Most of the volumes of incunabula come from the Dominican convent in Colmar. We don't know where the books were bound – possibly in the convent itself. 85 of the 96 have been examined, 212 fragments have been recovered. Some are only strips. 75 are prayers books, 12 are Halakhot and 21 Talmud. Some are copied in Italian script. The largest fragment is a bifolio of haftarot (other pages of the same manuscript have been found), copied by a scribe named Baruch who probably also provided the vocalization. Possibly the same scribe who copied a manuscript in Parma where Baruch is also marked in Ruth. Semag, 47 cm high and 32 cm wide, three columns, 44 lines per page. Decorated mahzor with picture of bird, in green and red, at the bottom of leaf, connected to a aleph-lamed ligature (which is itself decorated with dragons). The head of the bird provides the head of the lamed – a rare feature in Hebrew manuscripts. A fragment of Rashi's Talmud commentary including a diagram of the Land of Israel (mentions Therese Metzger , Betzalel Narkiss, Gabrielle Sed-Rajna, Mayer Gruber, Avraham Grossman, Yossi Ofer). Discusses which way the scribe turned the page in order to write the captions in the diagram. A catalogue is in preparation. Malachi Beit Arie says that shortly Sfardata will be available online.

World Congress day 4

2009-08-05T11:34:00.002+03:00

Session 213. I made it for the last moments of Ephraim Kanarfogel's speech. He's speaking slowly! Gap between France and Ashkenaz. France continued to follow Rashi in his sympathetic attitude towards apostates, while Germany perceived them as enemies. But from the late 13^th century, in Evreux, the antagonistic attitude prevailed.

Elisheva Baumgarten on women and time-bound commandments in the 13^th century. Mahzor Vitry in section on tsitsit begins with midrash about David, emphasizing the role of these mitsvot in creating Jewish identity. How involved were women in this kind of Jewish identity? The topic of women performing these mitsvot has been studied in recent years by Mordechai Friedman (recent MA), Bitkha Har Shefi, Avraham Grossman and the late Yisrael Ta-Shma. There are three Halakhic questions – can they perform it, can they make the blessing, and can men help them? Friedman claims that there is no unity on these questions even within medieval France. Grossman made it clear that women did perform these mitsvot on a fairly wide scale. None of these scholars tried to place the women within a wider social perspective. For the moment, only in the Jewish context, but the Christian context is important too. Gender does not include only women. Medieval sources discuss this in biblical exegesis, in minhag and halakhah books, in responsa and in books like Sefer Hasidim. Lulav, sukkah and shofar. The initiative to perform these mitsvot came from the women themselves. Discussed by Rashi and his teacher, wide discussion in 12^th century, especially R Tam. In 13^th century less enthusiasm but not rejection of R Tam. From mid-13^th century, discussion focuses on Tefilin and Tsitsit, and earlier discussions are neglected. The first triad were performed on festivals, but these were performed daily. As Kanarfogel has shown, men neglected these daily mitsvot. Some for theological reasons, some because they felt they could be performed only by special people, and some because of the mahloket Rashi-R Tam regarding Tefillin. So they were performed mostly by the religious elite. We don't know how many women performed these mitsvot – probably fewer than those who performed lulav et al. R Avigdor says that נשים צדקניות would do it. In any case, this is not a small group of women joining the larger body of all men, but rather a small group of women joining a small group of men. So the gender difference is not the full explanation here – part of it is social. Exemplum in Sefer Hasidim – people who perform Tefillin and Tsitsit suffer socially because people humiliate them. R Moses of Coucy and R Isaac of Corbeil reflect the importance of encouraging men to perform them. Maharam discourages women from performing them – his contemporaries were surprised, because it was accepted that women did. But by the 15^th century, Maharam's position had become normative – Maharil mentions only one women known for wearing tsitsit, and it appears odd and even arrogant. The attitude of the poskim changed, as did their rhetoric – at first, women were compared to blind men, who are exempt from these mitsvot, and the main discussion was about the question of reciting the blessing. But from Maharam onwards, women are discouraged from performing it at all, and their rhetoric has more to do with the female body (that is not consistently clean). Perhaps this move was meant to encourage men to perform the mitsvot, to distinguish themselves as a group from women. [R Yosef Bekhor Shor – concern that women's busying themselves with mitsvot would keep them from paying attention to their husbands]. This shift reflects a change in thinking about the differences between men and women. Women became more 'other' than they used to be.

Simcha Emanuel – EE Urbach surveyed medieval German scholars. 12^th century. We start with Riva –wrote pesakim before him. Ra'avan was his younger contemporary. Albeck's introduction has a list of scholars who corresponded with him – 22 people. Moving to Regensburg, we find several important scholars, students of both Riva and R Tam. Plenty of people. When we reach the end of the 12^th century, we find the two sons-in-law of Ra'avan – Rashbat and R Yoel of Bonne, with whom he corresponded and argued. Speyers – Yihuse Tannaim va-Amoraim, Riva tsair. Beginning of 13^th century – Ra'avyah, R Simcha of Speyers, R Baruch of Mainz and others. They died around 1320s. But who comes next? Who were the students of Ra'avyah? You may think of R Yitshak Or Zarua – but he lived in Austria. Aptowitzer doesn't know of any students. Explanation in my Shivre Luhot for lack of students of R Baruch of Mainz is insufficient. Students of R Simha of Speyers did not live in Germany – Bohemia (Arugat ha-Bosem), Austria and Italy. Magdeburg was also very far away. Some of these students came to Germany from other lands, but others were German-born but chose to move East. So by the 1230s, there were no significant Torah scholars in Germany. There are a few names, but none are noteworthy. 1241 – Rachel Furst's case of Frankfurt. Important point is that all the scholars were involved – four German scholars and R Yitzhak Or Zarua. The German scholars are almost anonymous, but Or Zarua, who lived in Vienna, is well known. At this time, R Meir of Rothenburg was starting to emerge. When he did, it was not as heir to the German tradition but as a lonely figure. R Elazar of Worms wrote at the beginning of the 13^th century (1217) about the lack of scholars to sustain the tradition, particularly after the death of R Yehudah he-Hasid. It sounds subjective, and some historians have claimed that the passage is forged. In another place, unquestionably by Rokeah, he writes more about how people are not able to learn properly, and with the death of his only son he has no one to pass his Torah to. This is what compelled him to commit his mysticism to writing, unlike his predecessors. Rokeah's concern was real – he saw that there were no young students in the yeshivot. So what happened? Why weren't these sages able to create a new generation? I don't know. I'm not aware of any major historical event to explain it ca 1235. Jacob Sussman pointed out the break in relations between France and Germany, that erupted after the first quarter of the 13^th century – best shown by the lack of German students in French yeshivot. Afterwards they started up again – R Yitshak Or Zarua and Maharam of Rothenburg. This is the same period we are talking about. But which came first? Haym Soloveitchik in book on interest says that in second quarter of 13^th century Germany stopped being independent of France in its Halakhic thought. Or Zarua and Maharam, and especially their students, are basically French in their Talmudic thought. Is this a coincidence? Was the tower built by German scholars one of cards? Soloveitchik in his article on creativity and catastrophe says that French creativity ended after R Shimshon of Sens, and therefore the 1306 expulsion didn't really change anything. But the Rintfleisch attacks in Germany in 1298 had a critical impact. If I were a young student in the 1240s, I would certainly have gone to learn in France, even though the teachers were not as great as R Tam – R Jonah of Gerona did this. But who could I have learned with in Germany? Now we need to re-appraise Maharam of Rothenburg. He missed learning with the German greats by a few years – he even knew R Yitshak Or Zarua slightly, and he tells of one thing he learned from him when he was a tinok. Maharam's German teachers (R Yehudah ha-Kohen of Friedberg, actually of Wurzburg, and another) were minor figures. Maharam filled the vacuum in Germany, so that the break there lasted only one generation. Maharam wrote thousands of responsa, and Talmudic commentaries, and his students wrote a long list of important works. This was indeed broken by the 1298 attacks. But it was not an original German tradition that was broken, but rather a new one created by Maharam.

Yehuda Galinsky. The literary works on Halakhah in 13^th century Northern France and what they teach us about Jewish society at the time. 'Can Halakhic Texts Talk History' has been answered positively. The question today is what we can learn from the works themselves. Two kinds of works – student notes (pesakim), and Halakhic compositions. The first are usually haphazard and not comprehensive. The second are usually carefully built and include an introduction and survey of contents. The goal of the pesakim was to preserve the opinions of a teacher who did not commit his thoughts and decisions to writing, so the disciple set them to writing and tried to disseminate them outside the confines of his Bet Midrash. But there is no attempt to cover a topic comprehensively. Often, this will include the pesakim of his teacher's teachers. With the second category, the goal is not simply to preserve the teacher's opinions. Table shows that the genre of student notes had a long history, from R Shemaiah for Rashi, through to the student of R Isaac and R Peretz of Corbeil at the end of the 13^th century. This genre did not change much over time in form. Usually, these notes have no introduction, and it is difficult to ascertain who wrote them, and the circumstances under which they were written. In the second category we find Sefer Yere'im, Sefer ha-Terumah, Semag and Semak. All of these have introductions, and the authors invested in planning the book. Yere'im follows the order of Bahag, but supplies all the details himself. He presents the sugyot based upon the Tosafist tradition, and emphasizes practical issues. R Eliezer of Metz writes explicitly in his introduction that he composes his work for the scholars who are caught up in pilpul and find it difficult to keep track of practical halakhah. Sefer ha-Terumah – student of Ri ha-Zaken. Two parts – iyun and pesakim. Much of the book can be compared to Tosafot Sens – the overall structure of the book is inscrutable, but the internal structure follows the tractate it is based upon. Focus on practical issues is an innovation of the book, and the other is the table of contents that precedes the book. The author explains that this table itself can often supply relevant Halakhic information. So it is really a list of pesakim, linked to a longer iyun work. So both these books are aimed at Talmudists caught up in the Tosafist revolution. In the 13^th century, we find a change. R Moses of Coucy left his Bet Midrash and wandered through the Diaspora as a preacher. When he returned home, he became the first French scholar to compose a comprehensive Halakhic work – based on his French antecedents, but mostly upon Maimonides' Mishneh Torah. Who was the audience? Several – to help Talmudic scholars remember things; in Asin 3 he mentions the genesis of his book – the communities in Spain who heard his preaching requested a concise explanation of the mitsvot. Not his students or his colleagues, but his popular audience. It doesn't matter that the finished product did not really answer the needs of this audience – what is important is that this is an audience that we have not encountered before (except perhaps the consumers of the genre of Mahzorim). Semak by R Isaac of Corbeil. Epistle appended to beginning shows that it was directed at a wide audience, including even women. For R Moses of Coucy, the popular audience was just part of his aim – for R Isaac of Corbeil it was the primary one. It is a shorter work. He also made an effort to encourage people to read the work every work. More manuscripts survive than any other French Halakhic work – 96 mss in Ashkenazic writing from 13^th-14^th centuries, while Semag has 24 and Terumah fewer than 10. A few other works from this time were also aimed at a popular audience – Kitzur Semag, Sefer ha-Niyar and maybe also the lost Sefer ha-Menahel. Clearly, something changed from the 12^th to the 13^th century. Ephraim Kanarfogel has been studying the second tier scholars in Ashkenaz and France in the 13^th century, and that may be connected. In 13^th century, the scholars write for a wider audience, and the masses became more interested in reading.

David Berger – chairman and respondent. First – women. Having heard Dr Baumgarten, apparently in the time of Rashi, hardly any women wore tefillin or tsitsit, and the focus on festival commandments was stronger. Perhaps the 13^th century campaign to convince men to wear tefillin convinced women as well. I don't see much difference between Ri and Maharam in their concern about women's hygiene, and they both feel that women do not really take it seriously. And dropping tefillin also led to dropping tsitsit, which is not really a binding commandment for men either. Dr Galinsky also points us to an interesting passage about women – the epistle of the student of R Isaac of Corbeil – that women should also learn the commandments that relate to them. Unclear whether this teaches us much about the learning of women in Northern France, but apparently the author thought they were capable of reading the Semak. Not clear how seriously we should take this line. Dr Emanuel's important suggestion may have a partial explanation. There were students, but they left for Austria and Bohemia – this may be the explanation. The Jewish communities in Austria and Bohemia were growing greatly at this time, and received special legal encouragement. Moving East seemed attractive. If enough leading students were drawn East by financial considerations, that could be enough to leave the yeshivot in Germany barren. Another comment about Maharam – Haym Soloveitchik pointed out that Maharam was the first German scholar to adopt the work of Maimonides because he was the first figure great enough to recognize the greatness of Mishneh Torah. Emanuel's speech suggests that because Maharam was working in a void that sapped the self-perception of German Torah, and therefore he was more open to outside influences. Prof Kanarfogel – according to the programme I should be speaking in English. The speeches were in Hebrew, so I should respond in Hebrew, but here is a passage that I wrote in English about Jacob Katz's explanation of Rashi's position on apostates. 'I would add… Jews wanted to see all the acts of apostates as sins… increase[ing] the temperature of the hellfire that awaits them'. And Kanarfogel has supplied two texts that support this. For instance, the position that a Jew may not lend an apostate money at interest because of 'lifne iver'. And Rid wrote to R Yitshak Or Zarua דלא כל הימנו להפקיע עצמו מישראל. Jews felt that apostates had no right to stop considering themselves as Jews.

Questions. JI Lifshitz to Emanuel – we would have expected to see more of a break in the work of Maharam, but there is continuity. Emanuel answers that Maharam was open to different options – French, Maimonides, and German traditions from 25 years earlier. But what is striking is that Maharam is only one person, as opposed to the large groups of scholars from before. Rami Reiner to Baumgarten – women had access to lulav etc already from the Mishnah. So what changed at the time of Rashi? Alex Tal asked something about tefillin as amulets. Baumgarten says that there are Talmudic sources, but their focus is different. Will be dealt with more at length in writing. However you define the objects of these mitsvot, they are objects that build a Jewish identity. Women wearing tefillin started before the Tefillin campaign, so Berger's comment is weak. Ephraim Halivni says that the sources talk only about tefillin, and not also about tsitsit. Baumgarten agrees that halakhically they are different, but from a social perspective the issue with tefillin is hygiene and with tsitsit it is hubris – both of these are related claims that are targeted at Christian women at this time as well.

Someone asks Galinsky about the term 'remazim' in Sefer ha-Terumah. Galinsky says they have a double purpose – not just a table of contents but also pesakim and an independent work. Rashba, in writing Torat ha-Bayit in long and short version, was probably thinking of Terumah. Questioner refers to remazim in Yalkut Shimoni (which function as internal cross-referencing). Ari Geiger asks Galinsky whether the change in reading audience is connected to burning of Talmud in 1240, and whether Simane Or Zarua is a parallel German phenomenon. Galinsky doesn't believe that the Tosafists disappeared after R Shimshon left for Israel. Yeshivot continued to work. But in parallel to the yeshivot, the audience widened, not diminished.

Abravanel

2009-08-05T08:13:00.001+03:00

Some new articles available here.

Rashbam

2009-08-04T21:14:00.002+03:00

Two of my mentors told me that Dr A Mondschein announced at the World Congress today the discovery of Rashbam's commentary on most of Psalms.

(I have no idea what this website is. But the last sentence in the biography is wrong: 'Mordecai b. Hillel says ('Erubin, end) that he was so absent-minded that once, while traveling, he climbed into a wagon loaded with cattle.' It wasn't loaded with cattle. It was being drawn by a horse and a mule, in violation of Deut 22:10).