The Rising Lion: From Balaam to Leibowitz and Back Again

Warren Zev Harvey

Warren Zev Harvey is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Jewish Thought at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is the author of numerous studies on medieval and modern Jewish philosophy and the recipient of the EMET Prize in the Humanities (2009).

The great prophet of the gentiles, Balaam son of Beor, blessed the people of Israel with a blessing for military success: “Behold, a people shall rise up as a lion [labiʾ], and exalt himself as a regal lion [ari],[1] and shall not lie down until he eat of the prey and drink the blood of the slain” (Numbers 23:24).[2] Israel shall leap up like a lion and not rest until it has fully conquered its enemies. The prophet’s blessing is raw, forceful, and not politically correct. It is just because of verses like this that Friedrich Nietzsche so admired the Hebrew Bible. Indeed, what is the lion rising up and exalting himself if not the terrible blonde Bestie? Such is the morality and style of ancient Hebrew Scripture.

But “the language of the Torah is one thing, and that of the Sages something else” (BT ʿAbodah Zarah 58b). The Sages took Balaam son of Beor’s militaristic prophecy and turned it into a prophecy concerning a spiritual “rising up.” They changed “prey” and “blood” to “Torah” and “mitzvot.” In Midrash Tanḥuma (Mantua, Balak [14], 88b; Buber, Balak 23, 73a; cf. Numbers Rabbah 20:20), we read: “Behold, a people shall rise up as a lion – there is no nation in the world like them. Although they had been asleep to the Torah and the mitzvot, they awoke from their slumber like lions, eagerly recited the Shemaʿ, and proclaimed the kingship of the Holy One, blessed be He.”[4] The midrash speaks of a metaphorical slumber (cf. Maimonides, Laws of Repentance 3:4),[5] that is, a period during which Jews neglected the Torah and the mitzvot, such as the Babylonian exile, but in the end they awakened from their slumber and arose like lions to proclaim the unity of God and to crown Him as King.

In his Commentary on Numbers 23:24, Rashi quotes this text from Midrash Tanḥuma, but with significant changes. First, he does not interpret the Israelites’ sleep as metaphorical, but as literal. Second, he understands the lion to refer not to the Israelite “nation,” but to the individual Jew. Third, he conceives the character of the lion in light the Mishnah: “Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a gazelle, and mighty [gibbor] as a lion to do the will of your Father in heaven” (Abot 5:20).[6] Rashi writes: “‘Behold, a people shall rise up as a lion — when they awake [ʿomdin] from their sleep in the morning, they rise up mightily [mitgabberin] like a lion or regal lion [ke-ari] and eagerly perform the mitzvot: donning the tallit, reciting the Shemaʿ, and laying tefillin.”[7] In Rashi’s artfully revised midrash, the subject is not a historical event in which the people of Israel have sinned but now repent and return to monotheism, but rather it is the daily routine of the individual Jew who arises mightily each morning as a lion to perform the mitzvot. Rashi adroitly shifts the focus from nation to individual, from national morality to personal morality. Inspired by the Mishnah, he employs the verb mitgabberin (“they rise up mightily / valorously / heroically”). The Jew awakens every day at dawn and as a mighty lion he eagerly performs the mitzvot. In the words of Maharal, commenting on Rashi: “The mitzvot are acts of valor” (Gur Aryeh, ad loc.).[8]

When Rabbi Jacob ben Asher sought an opening for the “Laws of Conduct in the Morning” (Hilkhot Hanhagot ha-Adam ba-Boqer) at the beginning of his Arbaʿah Turim, he selected the Mishnah: “Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a gazelle, and mighty [gibbor] as a lion to do the will of your Father in heaven” (Oraḥ Ḥayyim, 1). But when Rabbi Joseph Karo sought an opening for his analogous “Laws of Conduct in the Morning” (Hilkhot Hanagat ha-Adam ba-Boqer) at the beginning of his Shulḥan ʿArukh, he recalled Rashi’s Commentary on Numbers 23:24, and wrote: “One should be mighty as a lion to arise [yitgabber ke-ari laʿamod] in the morning for the service of one’s Creator, and one should awaken the dawn! [cf. Psalms 57:9]” (Oraḥ Ḥayyim, 1).[9] The first three Hebrew words here reflect three words in Rashi’s Commentary: mitgabberin, ke-ari, and ʿomdin. Rabbi Joseph Karo thus transformed Rashi’s descriptive account of one’s morning conduct into an explicit command: One should be mighty as a lion to arise in the morning for the service of one’s Creator!

This stirring opening of the Shulḥan ʿArukh made a profound impression on the Israeli philosopher Yeshayahu Leibowitz. He quoted it frequently in his writings and lectures. In one passage he writes: “The slogan of theocentric religion is ʿabodah, the service of God, and its purpose is formulated in the first paragraph of the Shulḥan ʿArukh: One should be mighty as a lion to arise in the morning for the service of one’s Creator! In contrast to a religion conceived in terms of what it endows a person, there stands a religion conceived in terms of what it demands of a person. No opposition is deeper than this!” (Yahadut, Am Yehudi, u-Medinat Yisrael, Tel-Aviv 1975, p. 338).[10] The purpose of the demanding religion of Torah and mitzvot, Leibowitz emphasizes, is articulated in the imperative: Yitgabber! Be mighty, be valorous, be heroic! He further clarifies: “Life according to Torah and mitzvot is a life of heroism [geburah] in which a human being conquers his natural inclinations and needs and subjugates them to the service of his Creator” (ibid., p. 61).[11] The heroism of Rashi, Maharal, Rabbi Joseph Karo, and Leibowitz is that of performing the mitzvot.

At present the State of Israel has embarked on a difficult war against the Islamic Republic of Iran, and has named its campaign “Operation Rising Lion” (ʿAm ke-Labiʾ). During the long years of Exile, our Rabbis, like the homilists of Midrash Tanḥuma, Rashi, and Rabbi Joseph Karo, creatively developed a spiritual exegesis of the prophecy of Balaam son of Beor. They had a different morality and a different style. Now, with the independence of the sovereign State of Israel, we have – for better or for worse — returned to the original interpretation of the great prophet of the gentiles.

Notes:

* A Hebrew version of this article appeared in Yashar Magazine, 20 June 2025.

[1] It is difficult to translate labiʾ and ari. Hebrew has at least a half-dozen words for “lion” (ari, aryeh, kefir, labiʾ, layish, and shaḥal), while English has only one. Labiʾ may have influenced the Greek léōn, the Latin, leo, the English lion, and the Yiddish leyb. I have translated labiʾ as “lion” and ari as “regal lion” (cf. Rashi on Genesis 49:9).
[2] הֶן עָם כְּלָבִיא יָקוּם וְכַאֲרִי יִתְנַשָּׂא, לֹא יִשְׁכַּב עַד יֹאכַל טֶרֶף וְדַם חֲלָלִים יִשְׁתֶּה.
[3] לשון תורה לעצמה, לשון חכמים לעצמן.
[4] הֶן עָם כְּלָבִיא יָקוּם. אין לך אומה בעולם כיוצא בהם. הרי הם ישנים מן התורה ומן המצות, ועומדין משנתן כאריות, וחוטפין קריאת שמע וממליכין לקב”ה. I thank Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Jaffe, who has noted the very many places where the Rabbis turn military descriptions into spiritual ones; e.g., BT Berakhot 4a and 18b, Shabbat 63a, Pesaḥim 68a, Sanhedrin 7b, and 93b, and 111b, and Ḥagigah 14a.
[5] עורו ישנים משנתכם ונרדמים הקיצו מתרדמתכם וחפשו במעשיכם וחזרו בתשובה וזכרו בוראכם

(“Awake, you who sleep…from your slumber, search your deeds, return in repentance, and remember your Creator”). Cf. Immanuel Kant, Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics, ed. L.W. Beck, New York 1950, p. 8: “David Hume…interrupted my dogmatic slumber and gave my investigations in the field of speculative philosophy a new direction.”
[6] הווי עז כנמר, וקל כנשר, ורץ כצבי, וגיבור כארי, לעשות רצון אביך שבשמים.
[7] הֶן עָם כְּלָבִיא יָקוּם. כשהן עומדין משנתם שחרית, הן מתגברין כלביא וכארי לחטוף את המצוות, ללבוש טלית, לקרוא את שמע, ולהניח תפילין.
[8] ומפני שהמצוות הן גבורה, לפי שמי שעושה מצוה פועל פעולה אלוהית נפלאה (“The mitzvot are acts of valor, for whoever performs a mitzvah performs a wondrous divine act”).
[9] יתגבר כארי לעמוד בבוקר לעבודת בוראו, שיהא הוא מעורר השחר!
[10] סיסמתה של הדת התיאוצנטרית היא ‘עבודה‘, עבודת השם, ותכליתה מנוסחת בסעיף הראשון של שולחן-ערוך: ‘יתגבר כארי לעמוד בבוקר לעבודת בוראו‘. מול הדת הנתפסת מבחינת מה שהיא מעניקה לאדם, מוצגת הדת הנתפסת מבחינת מה שהיא תובעת מן האדם. ואין לך ניגוד עמוק מזה.
[11] החיים במסגרת של תורה ומצוות – הם חיי גבורה, שבהם האדם מתגבר על נטיותיו הטבעיות ועל צרכיו הטבעיים ומשעבד אותם לעבודת בוראו.

Book review – Nafshi BiShe’elati: The Halakhot of Mental Health

Ben Rothke

T.J. Hooper was a precedent-setting tort case[1] in 1932. Two tugboats, one of which was The T.J. Hooper, were towing barges. During a storm, the barges sank, and their cargoes lost. The owners of the cargo sued the barge owners, who in turn sued the tugboat owners. The barge owners claimed that the tug operators were negligent because they failed to equip their tugs with radios that would have warned them of the bad weather.

The tugboat companies defended under the prevailing practice theory. They claimed that because no other tugboat operators in the area were using radios, this constituted the industry standard of care.

Judge Learned Hand found the tugboat companies liable because they did not use readily available technology, radio receivers, to listen for broadcast weather reports, even though radio use was not yet standard industry practice 

Judge Hand observed, “Indeed, in most cases, reasonable prudence is, in fact, common prudence, but strictly it is never its measure. A whole calling may have unduly lagged in the adoption of new and available devices. Courts must in the end say what is required. There are precautions so imperative that even their universal disregard will not excuse their omission”.

I thought of the T.J. Hooper case when reading a most remarkable new book Nafshi BiShe’elati: The Halakhot of Mental Health[2] by Rabbi Yonatan Rosensweig and Dr. Shmuel Harris. Mental health is virgin ground in halacha and requires the subtle judgment of the most seasoned poskim. When Rav Asher Weiss used the term OCD in his teshuva in 1994 (Minchat Asher 2:134), it was, as I understand it, the first usage by a posek of the term OCD.

The authors quote Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (1910-1995) who was asked if one may turn on an electronic device on Shabbat to play music for a choleh sheyesh bo sakana who likes it. Rav Auerbach responded, “My son may permit this, but I have difficulty.”

He explained, “When I was growing up, a sick person needed warmth, food, and drink. While I can understand these new psychological needs, like music, are in fact needed—of course you are right—it is very difficult for me to permit them.”

A century ago, giving the sick person, be it one who was physically ill or with a mental malady, warmth, food, and drink was all one could do. This was an era where ear infections were fatal, and those with mental illnesses were considered incapable of being productive members of society or even counted as part of a minyan.

Today, with far-reaching advances in mental health care and pharmacology, a rabbi today who provides a congregant with warmth, food, and drinks instead of a referral for psychological care may have blood on his hands. The authors write that rabbis should avoid trying to provide psychological treatment in place of a licensed professional.

This is required even though the rabbi’s role throughout history as a spiritual guide in whom his disciples and community can confide is still as crucial as ever. He should differentiate between someone in need of sage counsel or an attentive ear and someone with a mental illness who needs professional care. Consequently, it is imperative that rabbis receive mental health training so that they can adequately distinguish between mental states and identify signs that warrant referral for professional treatment.

The authors are a remarkable pair with Rosensweig, the accomplished rabbinic scholar, and Harris, the physician. Rosensweig serves as the Rabbi of the Netzach Menashe synagogue in Beit Shemesh, Israel. He also teaches in various post-high school institutions and is the author of a number of books. In 2021, he founded Maagalei Nefesh[3], on an organization that deals with issues about mental health and halakha.

Harris is a psychiatrist who has served as the former head of psychiatric services at Hadassah Mt. Scopus. He is also the founder of Machon Dvir[4], a mental health organization servicing the English-speaking community in Israel.

The late Chicago-based posek Rav Gedalia Dov Schwartz said when dealing with transgender issues, “They didn’t really prepare me for this in yeshiva.” Schwartz echoed the sentiment that what was studied in the pristine study halls was often theoretical and abstract and didn’t match what was occurring in the real world.

When it comes to mental health, many communal rabbis are finding that yeshiva didn’t prepare them to deal with congregants who have mental health issues. Many of which can be exacerbated by halacha. These rabbis must be educated in various areas and understand the many mental health issues to properly and effectively minister to their congregants.

Eating, for example, plays a large part in Jewish life. Between the weekly Sabbath meals, the Passover seder, and various holiday meals, nearly 20% of the Jewish calendar revolves around meals or a fast.

So when a rabbi has a congregant with anorexia nervosa or other types of eating disorders, how they respond can have life or death repercussions as eating disorders have one of the highest mortality rates in comparison to other psychiatric illnesses, as 20% of anorexia nervosa deaths, are due to suicide. In addition, those with eating disorders are much more likely to engage in self-harm and experience suicidal ideation.

Anorexia nervosa is germane not just to eating but to fasting also. The authors detail situations where a person suffering from anorexia nervosa would be obligated to eat on a fast day, including Yom Kippur.

Most rabbis will wear out their copies of Hamadrich, The RCA Lifecycle Guide[5], as it is the go-to guide for various lifecycle events. Yet when it comes to mental health and halacha, there is no Hamadrich. And that is precisely the gap that Nafshi BiShe’elati brilliantly fills.

The book deals with every area where mental health and halacha intersect: Shabbat and holidays, marriage, divorce, relationships, prayer, kashrut, and much more.

As the authors live in Israel, they quote heavily on Israeli poskim. Readers will be introduced to poskim such as Rabbis Eliyahu Abergel, Reem Hacohen (Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Otniel), Yuval Cherlow (Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Hesder Amit Orot Shaul), and more.

In many areas, halacha addresses the status of the shoteh, someone not in total control of their mental facilities. The concept of shoteh is a difficult one to define and has been applied in relation to many different cases. The most common uses of the term have been reserved for and most closely describe the clinical phenomenon of psychosis, the state in which the individual lacks the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy.

With that, the book open with an analysis of shoteh, and the different levels it entails, including shoteh gamur, general shtut, shoteh ledavar ehad, and more. Defining what and who a shoteh is not an academic exercise. It can, in fact, have life-and-death consequences.

One is allowed to violate the sabbath for someone as the presumption is that it will enable them to observe many sabbaths in the future. One could argue, although the halacha is not like this, that Shabbat may not be violated to save a shoteh, as it will not bring them to observe more Shabbatot.

While a shoteh is exempt from the performance of mitzvot, the Maharil writes that if a man has a son who is a shoteh, he has fulfilled the mitzva of procreation, as writes that the shoteh has a soul, is a bar mitzva, and those of sound mind are cautioned about him.

The authors quote heavily from the late Rav Nahum Rabinovitch (former Rosh Yeshiva of the hesder yeshiva Birkat Moshe in Ma’ale Adumim). Rav Rabinovitch’s genius was matched by his sensitivity to the human condition.

Rav Rabinovitch believed that the very act of performing a mitzva can preserve a sense of being in good health for the shoteh, so it is important for them to perform mitzvot with or without assistance.

In Rupture and Reconstruction: The Transformation of Contemporary Orthodoxy[6] Professor Haym Soloveitchik writes of the swing to the right, where a significant increase in chumras has had significant consequences for Jewish society and the nature of Jewish spirituality.

When dealing with the halachic needs of those with mental health issues, the authors quote valid halahic sources which show how far right and strict things have become as normative halacha. This includes countless things from running and jumping on Shabbat, having non-Jews play instruments on Shabbat for newly married couples (which was the custom in Ashkenaz during the Middle Ages), certain aspects of mikvah usage for women, and more.

As to mikvah use, women with anorexia suffer intensely whenever they must attend to their body or appearance. Cleaning the body and preparing it for mikvah immersion is not a simple affair for them, as it brings negative feelings about their body, sometimes including disgust, to the surface.

The authors write that it is very important for rabbis answering questions from women with eating disorders to be sensitive to their tremendous difficulties and instruct them to go easy on the mikvah preparations and do only the absolute minimum required by Halacha.

Similarly, the mikveh attendants must be aware when someone has an eating disorder and should respect their privacy and do their best to create a pleasant and relaxed environment for them.

The concept of yeridat hadorot is the belief in the intellectual inferiority of subsequent and contemporary Torah scholarship and spirituality compared to that of the past. Yet when it comes to dealing with those who are deaf, mute, or both; and those with mental health issues, one can certainly say it is aliya hadorot. Our ability today to deal with and integrate Jews with those maladies pales in comparison to how they were handled and treated in generations past.

This is a book of unique erudition on a crucial topic, and Nafshi BiShe’elati: The Halakhot of Mental Health is a remarkable guide that is required reading not just for every rabbi but for everyone. Most of us know someone who has a mental health issue or is just one degree of separation from those who do.

It wasn’t that long ago that those with Down Syndrome were never let out of the house, and those with severe mental issues were lobotomized. Society in general, and Jewish society specifically, has come a long way in terms of mental health and how to deal with it. The book shows how Halacha is more than able to deal with these mental health situations. It’s incumbent on every rabbi and member of the Jewish community to understand how to deal with our brothers and sisters suffering from mental health issues.

This extraordinary book should be read by those looking for a serious and scholarly guide about halacha and mental health, a reference completely dedicated to halacha’s fealty.

[1] http://itlaw.wikia.com/wiki/T.J._Hooper
[2] https://korenpub.com/products/nafshi-bisheelati-halakhot-of-mental-health
[3] https://mnefesh.org
[4] https://machondvir.org/
[5] https://korenpub.com/products/hamadrikh-the-rca-lifecycle-guide
[6] https://traditiononline.org/rupture-and-reconstruction-the-transformation-of-contemporary-orthodoxy/

ועשו להם ציצת – What to Make of Tzitzit

By Joseph Wertzberger [1]

ויאמר ה׳ אל משה
דבר אל־בני ישראל ואמרת אלהם ועשו להם ציצת על־כנפי בגדיהם לדרתם ונתנו על ציצת הכנף פתיל תכלת
והיה לכם לציצת וראיתם אתו וזכרתם את כל מצות ה׳ ועשיתם אתם, ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם ואחרי עיניכם אשר אתם זנים אחריהם
למען תזכרו ועשיתם את כל מצותי והייתם קדשים לאלקיכם
אני ה׳ אלקיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם מארץ מצרים להיות לכם לאלקים, אני ה׳ אלקיכם
במדבר ט׳׳ו, ל׳׳ז – מ׳׳א

And HaShem said to Moshe as follows.
Speak to the people of Israel and tell them they should make themselves fringes on the ends of their garments, for generations, and place on the end-fringes a techelet-thread.
And they shall serve you as glance-objects – when you see them you’ll recall all HaShem’s orders and do them, and you won’t follow your hearts’ and eyes’ explorations, after which you tend to stray.
So that you recall and perform all my orders, and are ordained to your god.
I am HaShem, your god, that took you out of the land of Egypt to be your god, I am HaShem your god.

Numbers 15, 37-41

_________________

Archeologists recently published[2] new findings regarding the history of Tel Shiqmona, a site near present-day Haifa that was a large-scale production facility for techelet and argaman,[3] the deep blue and purple dyes used in ancient Israel and throughout the Near East during the First-Temple period and later.

Understanding techelet and its role in the ancient world can help us better appreciate how it, together with tzitzit, may have been viewed in early First-Temple Israel, and to more clearly recognize some of the ideas presented in its parsha and in related parshiot in the Torah.

Techelet was produced from the glandular excretions of the Murex trunculus sea-snail using an elaborate production method, and was the most valuable dye in the ancient Near-Eastern world — by some sources it took two-hundred and fifty thousand shells to produce one ounce of dye, which was then worth, by weight, three times the value of gold.[4] Due to its prized status and high cost, it was used in priestly vestments and royal garments[5] across the ancient Near East, including in Israel’s temple vestments.[6]

Techelet’s role in tzitzit can be understood as a signifier that, in contrast to other ancient Near-Eastern religions, in which the priestly class served as intermediaries between the people and their gods,[7] in ancient Judaism the entirety of the Jewish people and all of its members were conceived as a semi-priestly class, with each individual given direct access and communion to God, and all people required to serve him,[8] with sexual, dietary[9] and clothing rules applicable to each of them and signifying their special status.

Like the Israelite priesthood itself, which utilized techelet extensively in its raiment, and also perhaps in similitude to royal garments, individual Jews wore an article of clothing that included a small amount of techelet as a miniature priestly or royal vestment, reminding the wearer that they belong to a class of people vested with particular rules, and requiring maintenance of a higher order of behavior.[10][11][12]

Tzitzit and techelet are not simply objects randomly chosen to serve as reminders to keep the mitzvot. Rather, they signify the wearer’s membership in an elevated class of people to whom the mitzvot apply as part of class membership.

______________________

The root-word ציץ refers to a bud or a blossom,[13] to fringes or tassels,[14] and to the act of peeking,[15][16][17][18] and in its variants can be used in both noun and verb format.[19]

Understanding this reveals the beautiful and poetic wordplay-based meaning of parshat tzitzit, which juxtaposes two conceptions of the root-word ציץ playing off each other to provide the fuller meaning of the word ציצת, and the message of the passage and of the מצוה itself.

In the word’s initial appearance in verse 38, the Jews are told to make ציצת, bud-like thread-fringes, at the ends of their garments. In the next verse, the meaning of the word based on its sentence-context changes to the noun version of the work peek – an object to peek at.[20] The tzitzit together with their techelet are symbols of Israel’s special relationship with God, and thus serve as reminder-objects to regularly look at — “They shall be for you glance-objects,[21] for when you see them, you’ll recall the commandments…”.[22][23]

___________________________

All of which adds color to our understanding of the story of Korach and his arguments against Moshe and Aharon.

The reason the incident of Korach is placed directly after the chapter of tzitzit in the Torah is because Korach’s arguments flow directly from the ideas presented in that chapter. The foundational concept in the parsha of tzitzit is that all Jews are a royal and priestly class, all are קדשים לאלקיכם – sacred and dedicated to God; that God took the Jewish people out of Egypt, להיות לכם לאלקים, to be directly a God of all of the Jewish people – אני ה׳ אלקיכם. Comes Korach and argues, if all Jews are uniquely members of a royal and priestly class in direct communion with God, then why are separate priestly and ruling classes needed to lord over them and to mediate between them and the divine. Korach notes, כי כל העדה כלם קדשים )based on והייתם קדשים לאלקיכם); ובתוכם ה׳ )paralleling אני ה׳ אלקיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם מארץ מצרים להיות לכם לאלקים, אני ה׳ אלקיכם) and therefore ומדוע תתנשאו על קהל ה׳. The words in Parshat Korach, and Korach’s message, directly address the words and the message in the chapter preceding it.

Many readers are now surely recalling the well-known midrash, a version of which appears in Rashi on the first verse in Parshat Korach, according to which Korach used tzitzit and techelet as a metaphor in his arguments against Moshe and the priesthood’s rule over Israel, contending that an article of clothing made entirely of techelet should not require tzitzit.[24] The meaning of the midrash is made clearer through our understanding of the parshiot. The crux of Korach’s argument is based on techelet’s inclusion in tzitzit as a symbol of priesthood and royalty, signifying the elements of priesthood and royalty carried by all Jews. The midrash elucidates this, and highlights the Korach story’s placement immediately after tzitzit, by elaborating on Korach’s arguments and their premises in the ideas behind techelet. Like a royal garment all of techelet should not need another strand of techelet to make it royal, the Jewish people, who are all part of a royal class, as signified by their own techelet, should not need another royal class to lord over them. Since all Jews have priestly status and are connected to God, what sense is there in adding another priestly appendage? Like a royal or priestly garment does not need an additional purple thread to signify and manifest its meaning, a nation that is itself entirely royal and priestly, should not need other superior and ministerial classes added to it.[25]

___________________________

To round out the discussion, let’s take a look at another midrash that discusses tzitzit and touches on many of the ideas and themes mentioned above.

ועשו להם ציצת על כנפי בגדיהם. זה שאמר הכתוב אור זרע לצדיק ולישרי לב שמחה (תהלים צ׳׳ז – י׳׳א), ה’ חפץ למען צדקו (ישעיה מ׳׳ב – כ׳׳א). זרע להם הקדוש ברוך הוא את התורה ואת המצות לישראל, כדי להנחילם חיי העולם הבא, ולא הניח דבר בעולם שלא נתן בו מצוה לישראל. יצא לחרש, לא תחרש בשור ובחמור, לזרע, לא תזרע כרמך כלאים, לקצר, כי תקצר קצירך בשדה… נתכסה בטלית, ועשו להם ציצת

תנחומא, שלח, סי׳ ט׳׳ו; רבה, במדבר, סי׳ י׳׳ז

“And they should make themselves tzitzit”: Regarding this it is written, “A light shines for the righteous, and there is joy for the straight-hearted” (Tehillim 97-11), “God desired the sake of his righteousness” (Yeshaya 42-21). God sowed Torah and mitzvot for Israel, in order that they inherit eternal life, and he did not leave a thing in the world regarding which he didn’t give a commandment to Israel. A person goes out to plow, “Don’t plow with an ox and donkey”; to sow, “Do not sow your vineyard mixed varieties”; to harvest, “When you harvest in the field”… [the midrash then mentions many other mitzvot that apply to various tasks, and ends with] he covers himself with a cloak, “they should make themselves tzitzit”.

Tanchuma Shelach 15; Rabbah Bamidbar 17.

To better understand the midrash and the significance of its two introductory verses, one needs to see the fuller context of those verses.[26]

אור זרע לצדיק ולישרי⁠ לב שמחה. שמחו צדיקים בה׳ והודו לזכר קדשו. תהלים צ׳׳ז, י׳׳א – י׳׳ב

A light is implanted for the righteous, and there is joy for the straight-hearted. Righteous, rejoice in God, and praise the recollection of his sacredness. Tehillim 97, 11-12.

החרשים שמעו והעורים הביטו לראות. מי עור כי אם⁠ עבדי וחרש כמלאכי אשלח, מי עור כמשלם ועור כעבד ה׳. ראות רבות ולא תשמר פקוח אזנים ולא ישמע. ה׳ חפץ למען צדקו יגדיל תורה ויאדיר. ישעיה מ׳׳ב, י׳׳ח – כ׳׳א

Deaf ones, listen, and blind ones, look and see. Who is blind, but only my servant, who as deaf as the messenger I send; who as blind as the wholesome, as blind as the servant of God. Seeing much and paying no heed, open-eared and hearing not. God desires the sake of his righteousness, let the directives be great, and more mighty. Isaiah 42, 18-21.

We can recognize numerous allusions and references to tzitzit, which help us understand the midrash’s message.

אור זרוע לצדיק – Mitzvot, of course, are Ohr Zarua because they are a light that guides our path, and were implanted into the activities of the world; but tzitzit, representing all of the mitzvot, are particularly so – titzit’s root-word includes an allusion to shining light, and to planted blossoms, and it protects the person from sinning, assisting to make him righteous.

ולישרי לב שמחה — In reminding the person of the mitzvot, the tzitzit assist to keep the person’s heart straight, protecting it from straying. (ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם ואחרי עיניכם אשר אתם זנים אחריהם)

שמחו צדיקים בה׳ והודו לזכר קדשו – That righteous person who thereby kept the mitzvot should praise and be grateful for the tzitzit, the reminders of sacredness – למען תזכרו ועשיתם את כל מצותי והייתם קדשים לאלקיכם.

Now on to the verses in Yeshaya…

והעורים הביטו לראות. מי עור כי אם⁠ עבדי… מי עור כמשלם ועור כעבד ה׳. ראות רבות ולא תשמר… – The midrash exposits these verses as a reference to the person who looks at and sees his tzitzit but whose eyes are at the same time blind to other temptations. As commanded in the verse in Bamidbar, he looks at his tzitzit, recalls and performs all of the mitzvot, is a servant of God, stays wholesome, and becomes righteous, while blind and paying no heed to the things that would otherwise lead him astray (והיה לכם לציצת וראיתם אתו וזכרתם את כל מצות ה׳ ועשיתם אתם, ולא תתורו אחרי… עיניכם אשר אתם זנים אחריהם.).

ה׳ חפץ למען צדקו יגדיל תורה ויאדיר – God desires the sake of righteousness,[27] and therefore he made the Torah and its commandments greater by making them more numerous and all-encompassing, so that they serve to protect us against sinning and keep us righteous.[28] And the tzitzit are what serve to remind us to keep all of those commandments – [29]למען תזכרו ועשיתם את כל מצותי.

Looking back now at the verses in the chapter on tzitzit, one notices how many of its words and ideas are presented and cross-referenced in the two passages in Tehillim and Yeshaya as exposited by the midrash: the meaning of the word Tzitzit as a blossom, and as a shining light, tzitzit assisting their wearer and seer to remain righteous, to recall all of the very many mitzvot, to serve God and keep them, to remain wholesome and righteous, not to stray after one’s heart, and not to stray after one’s eyes.

והיה לכם לציצת וראיתם אתו וזכרתם את כל מצות ה׳ ועשיתם אתם, ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם ואחרי עיניכם אשר אתם זנים אחריהם. למען תזכרו ועשיתם את כל מצותי והייתם קדשים לאלקיכם

Almost everything in these two verses on tzitzit is cross-referenced somewhere in the passages mentioned in the midrash.

___________________________

Having said all of this one cannot help but end with the well-known Mishna that closes Tractate Makot:

רבי חנניה בן עקשיא אומר רצה הקב”ה לזכות את ישראל לפיכך הרבה להם תורה ומצות שנאמר ה’ חפץ למען צדקו יגדיל תורה ויאדיר. מכות ג׳ – ט׳׳ז

In light of the midrash just discussed, we recognize that the word לזכות as used in the Mishna means to purify (rather than to provide merit, the more common contemporary translation of the word as used in the passage). The numerous mitzvot serve to keep those who perform them pure, to help stay them from sin, and to maintain their righteousness.[30]

This also helps explain the Mishna’s placement at the end of the last chapter of Makot, which is comprised of lengthy lists of sins and descriptions of their punishments. In light of that, and also so as not to close the tractate with all of that negative material, the Mishna quotes this teaching regarding how mitzvot’s abundance serves to protect us from the many sins, and leads us in their stead to good.

[1] The author is the creator of the YouTube channel, Understanding Kohelet.
[2] Shalvi G., Sukenik N., Waiman-Barak P., Dunseth Z.C., Bar S., Pinsky S., et al. (2025), Tel Shiqmona during the Iron Age: A first glimpse into an ancient Mediterranean purple dye ‘factory’, PLoS ONE 20(4): e0321082 (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0321082); Shalvi, G., & Gilboa, A. (2023). Between Israel and Phoenicia: The Iron IIA–B Fortified Purple-dye Production Centre at Tel Shiqmona, Tel Aviv, 50(1), 75–110 (https://doi.org/10.1080/03344355.2023.2190283).

See also, Mihailo S. Zekic, The Secrets of Tel Shikmona, Let the Stones Speak Magazine, July – August 2023, (https://armstronginstitute.org/933-the-secrets-of-tel-shikmona); Lidz, Franz, In Israel, a 3,000-Year-Old Purple Factory, NYTimes, March 5, 2024, (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/05/science/archaeology-tyrian-purple-murex.html); Margolis, Andrea, Archeologists Uncover Ancient “Factory” Used to Produce Coveted Purple Dye Mentioned in Bible, Fox News Online, May 10, 2025 (https://www.foxnews.com/travel/archaeologists-uncover-ancient-factory-used-produce-coveted-purple-dye-mentioned-bible).
[3] Argaman is also known as Tyrian purple.
[4] Zaria Gorvett, Tyrian Purple: The lost ancient pigment that was more valuable than gold, BBC Online, November 24, 2023 (https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20231122-tyrian-purple-the-lost-ancient-pigment-that-was-more-valuable-than-gold#).
[5] E.g., Esther 8-15.
[6] E.g., Shemot, Chapter 28.
[7] See, for example, Ada Taggar-Cohen, Priests and priestesses, ancient near east (June 30, 2015), in The Encyclopedia of Ancient History (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781444338386.wbeah25085).
[8] ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש. שמות י׳׳ט ו׳

And you will be dedicated to me, a nation of priests, and a consecrated people. Shemot 19-6.
[9]  רמב׳׳ם, משנה תורה, סדר קדושה.
[10] This is alluded to in וראיתם אתו… ועשיתם את כל מצותי והייתם קדשים לאלקיכם, which expresses tzitzit’s role as a representative sign of the Jewish nation’s sacredness as a people dedicated to God and ordained to serve him.
[11] It may also be that fringes at the ends of garments themselves also signified royalty or the priestly class. See Stephen Bertman, Tasseled Garments in the Ancient Near East Mediterranean, The Biblical Archeologist, Vol. 24, No. 4 (Dec., 1961); Jacob Milgrom, Hems and Tassels, Biblical Archology Review, Volume IX, No. 3 (May/June 1983). Turning the weft that remained at either end of a garment into ornamental tassels would have been a way of indicating the significance of the wearer, contrasting with ordinary garments which would have had the ends of their wefts sewn into a straight hem, to make the clothing more utilitarian and also more durable. See also, Kelly Olson, Fringed Clothing in Roman iconography and written sources, Chapter 11 in Textiles in Ancient Mediterranean Iconography (Oxbow Books, 2022), and Ancient Fashion: Fringed Clothing in Roman Iconography and Written Sources, at https://brewminate.com/ancient-fashion-fringed-clothing-in-roman-iconography-and-written-sources.
[12] Another area where a parallel exists between the service of Israel’s priestly class and that of the ordinary Jewish “semi-priesthood”, is the prohibition on leaven in the Temple (Shemot, 34-25, and elsewhere), which applies to all of the Jewish people during their Pesach sacrifice and subsequent holiday.
[13] והיתה ציצת נובל צבי תפארתו, אשר על ראש גיא שמנים כבכורה בטרם קיץ, אשר יראה הראה אותה, בעודה בכפו יבלענה. ישעיה כ’’ח ד׳

הבאים ישרש יעקב, יציץ ופרח ישראל, ומלאו פני תבל תנובה. ישעיה כ’’ז ו׳
[14]  וישלח תבנית יד ויקחנו בציצת ראשי. יחזקאל ח׳ ג׳
[15] דומה דודי לצבי או לעפר האילים, הנה זה עומד אחר כתלנו, משגיח מן החלנות מציץ מן החרכים. שה’’ש ב׳ ט׳
[16] Consider also the interesting example of, .בפרח רשעים כמו עשב ויציצו כל פעלי און… ותבט עיני בשורי
[17] Of course the word ציץ‘s meanings of blossom and peek are related, since blossoms are the first peeks of a plant’s flower and color.

It’s interesting to note that just like the English word peek is used to refer both to the thing that is just barely seen peeking out of a crack, and to the person that is peeking and just barely sees something, the Hebrew word מציץ can have a similar dual use, as seen in the poetic utilization of the word מציץin the verse in Shir HaShirim referred to in note 15, where the lover peeking through the cracks in the verse can be understood as the lover looking at his beloved through the cracks (see, for example, Rashi, Rashbam and ibn Ezra), but also as the countenance of the lover just barely appearing to his beloved through the cracks (R’ Yosef Kimchi, Metzudat David and Ho’il Moshe, as well as Rashbam in Shemot 28-36) — the woman gets a glimpse of her lover, who then disappears, and later in verse 14 she beseeches him to appear again.

See also Me’or Eineyim, Bereshit and Pinchas, in the name of the Ba’al Shem Tov, that the concept of מציץ מן החרכים alludes to a person’s tendency to want to do the right thing due to the perception that people are watching and paying attention to them, and that this is in fact a manifestation of what in reality is the person’s desire to do the right thing due to their perception of God observing them. We feel and respond to our perception of human observation, but we are really perceiving God’s essence, so to speak, observing us; manifesting through our perception of humans’ perception – God is, so to speak, מציץ מן החרכים.

Here too, the Baal Shem Tov’s interpretation of the passage as reflected through this teaching can be understood as reading the word מציץ in the verse both as God observing us and watching us through the people that surround us, as well as God appearing to us through our sense of people’s observation.

The teaching contains a similar idea to the Baal Shem Tov’s well-known teaching regarding ה׳ צלך, that not only is God a shadow over the human, protecting them, but also a shadow of the human, appearing to the human as the human understands God; and is also typical of many of the Baal Shem Tov’s teachings in that it contains several layers of meaning that are related to one another and nest inside each other.
[18] With regard to the ציץ of the High Priest, there are various interpretations regarding the source of the word, for example ibn Ezra interprets it as similar to ויקחנו בציצת ראשי (see note 14), while Rashbam says it was called ציץ because it was seen, similarly to מציץ מן החרכים. It’s also possible that the source of the word was due to the shine glancing off of the ציץ, and how it added aura to the appearance of the High Priest, and made it ‘pop’, similarly to ועליו יציץ נזרו in Tehillim 132-18 (see also Chizkuni with a similar explanation). Again, of course all of these meanings are related, and it’s quite possible that the source of the word יציץ’s usage as shine and glance is itself based on light’s bursting forth from the shining object. In a similar light, R.S.R. Hirsch explains that the root word ציץ signifies something that protrudes and pops out of a surface, and that this is the source of the word’s usage for blossoms, fringes, peeking, as well as for the High Priest’s ציץ. See also Sifri, Bamidbar, 15-32, אין ציצת אלא דבר היוצא, ודבר כל שהוא, which supports to R.S.R. Hirsch’s interpretation. See also Divrei Yirmiyahu on Rambam, Mishnah Torah, Tzitzit, 1-1.

Speaking of which, it interesting to note that the ציץ, just like ציצת, incorporated a פתיל תכלת.
[19] אנושׁ כחציר ימיו, כציץ השדה כן יציץ. תהלים ק׳׳ג ט׳׳ו
[20] Rashbam and Ri Bechor Shor also note this change in the word’s meaning between verses 37 and 38. Interestingly, Rashi notes both fringes and looking as possible meanings of the word in verse 37, seemingly not taking the view that the word has different meanings in the two sentences.

The interpolation of the instruction to put techelet on the fringes coming between the two mentions of the word tzitzit, meshes well with reading a change in the word’s meaning between its two appearances, because it’s the techelet that makes the tzitzit a symbol of the Jews’ elevated status, thereby turning it in it into a handy reminder of its associated status’ accompanying behavioral requirements. ונתנו על ציצת הכנף פתיל תכלת –> והיה לכם לציצת In this reading these are not two unrelated phrases in sequence, but are in fact intended to be meaningfully read together, one related to the other.
[21] Unfortunately there is no English-language word equivalent to this concept, so I coined the word glance-object, or alternatively, look-object, somewhat similar to the word looking-glass.
[22] See also Tanchuma Bamidbar 15, Rabah Bamidbar 17-5 – והיה לכם לציצית, שתהא נראית… וראיתם אותו, פרט לכסות לילה. The word tzitzit itself already includes in its meaning the concept of being seen, even without the addition of וראיתם אותו.

Interestingly, this interpretation is first provided by the midrash in verse 38, and not in verse 37, while the Sifri’s exposition of the word tzitzit as signifying anything that protrudes, mentioned in note 18 above (and which seemingly contradicts the continuation of the midrash here in Tanchuma that provides a minimum length for tzitzit based on the requirement for it to be seen), is provided in verse 37. This seems to lend support to the idea that the meaning of the word changes between the two sentences.

Reading the first two uses of the word as fringes, and the third as referring to a larger mitzva of tzitzit with a broader meaning that encompasses both the fringe element and the techelet element works very well with the Rambam’s reading of tzitzit as two elements of one larger mitzva. Rambam, Mishnah Torah, Tzitzit, Chapter 1, Sections 1-5. Furthermore, with this perspective in mind we can also posit that the fringe element of the mitzva does not require a particular length, in accordance with the Tanchuma, while the combined fringe-techelet full mitzva of tzitzit requires a particular length, in accordance with the Sifri, since it is predicated on being seen. And in fact we must reconcile the Tanchuma and Sifri’s two readings halachically, and cannot read them as conflicting opinions, since the Sifri cites the elders of Bet Shamai and Bet Hillel as concurring on the point that tzitzit can be of any length as long as they protrude, while the Tanchuma cites a disagreement between Bet Hillel and Bet Shamai regarding different required lengths for tzitzit based on the requirement for them to be seen. In consonance with the Rambam’s reading and the explanation provided here, the two readings do not in fact contradict each other, neither halachically nor as a literary reading of the text, both of which support each other.

Incidentally, this is a case where one can follow the thread of halachic development very well. The Torah itself simply states in straightforward terms that one should create fringes at the ends of garments, and place techelet on the fringes, to have it be seen and serve as a reminder of the mitzvot. Chazal then flesh out the parameters more precisely based on the passages’ words and contextualized meanings — explaining tzitzit’s baseline concept as a simple protrusion, while noting that fulfillment of the fuller concept and its service as a seeable reminder requires a minimum that can be seen. The Rambam then forms the mitzva into a categorical set of parameterized components and rules tracking the requirements and concepts set out by Chazal. At each stage the mitzva and its details are presented using the language and conceptualization familiar to the Torah and expositors of the particular period, while expressing the same underlying ideas.
[23] Another interesting bit of wordplay in the passage is the juxtaposition of the words tzitzit and mitzvot. Both are somewhat similarly-sounding, and indeed, the tzitzit stand in as a reminder of the mitzvot.

I recall noticing as a child in shul, that when we got to the end of Keriyat Shema, you’d suddenly hear a lot of tz’s, s’s and z’s in the room, which had an interesting sound and ring to it. I used to think it was just a kind of funny random thing a child notices, but it turns out that the particularly perfusive profusion of sound in the passage is not an accident but in fact a feature of the passage’s poetry and wordplay (not dissimilar, for example, to the line צבאות צאנך יצלצלו בקול in Hakalir’s אדירי איומה, recited by Ashkenazim during shacharit on the first day of Rosh Hashana, or the line אלו ואלו בצפצוף מצפצפים in the similarly styled כל שנאני שחק, recited in the same place in the service on the second day).

And if we want to stretch the exercise further we might even say that the ז׳ in זכרתם also serves as a poetic counterpoint to the ז׳ in זנים – the tzitzit pull one back to the mitzvot, acting as a reminder to keep the mitzvot and not wander after the temptations pulling one away.
[24] The midrash is as follows, “’And Korach took…’ What is written prior to this matter, “Speak to the children of Israel and tell them to make themselves tzitzit”. Korach jumped on this point and said to Moshe, “does a garment all of techelet require tzitzit?” Moshe said to him it requires tzitzit. Said Korach, “a garment all of techelet does not exempt itself, and four threads exempt it?” Tanchuma Korach, Siman 2. Another story with a slightly different spin on how Korach arranged talitot and tzitzit to illustrate the ideas behind his argument is presented several lines later in the same midrash.

Note that the midrash also seems to be explicating the phrase “Vayikach Korach”, which is anomalous in that there is no object connected to the subject and verb. The Midrash explains that Korach “took” the chapter and the ideas that immediately precede the word “vayikach”. See also Tanchuma at the start of Siman 3, which states “ויקח קרח – לקח טליתו”, which seems to be phrasing the idea in a similar way, explicating the word “vayikach”.
[25] This is a good example of how classic midrash analyzes and identifies the literary references, and the larger ideas, meanings and messages, that underlie the Torah’s words, phrases and narratives, and their relationships and connections; and explicates and illustrates them using memorable story-form, metaphor and allegory.
[26] This is often the case with midrash. Our written versions of a particular midrashic teaching may quote only a brief snippet of the relevant verse being analyzed, while the full breadth and point of the midrash’s teaching become evident only in the light of, and often apply to, a much fuller extent of the quoted verse(s).
[27] The word צדקו in this verse also serves as a cross-reference to the word צדיק in the Tehillim verses.
[28] An additional connotation of the teaching is that the greater the Torah is (יגדיל), and the more commandments and rules it has, the mightier it is, and the more effect it has (יאדיר).
[29] The verse ה׳ חפץ למען צדקו as exposited in this midrash can also be read as a reference to the verse regarding tzitzit in Devarim 22-12, where tzitzit are called גדלים. ה׳ חפץ למען צדקו יגדיל תורה ויאדיר – in order to increase His desired righteousness, God represented the Torah and mitzvot in the gedilim, so that their wearers may perform the many mitzvot in the Torah and become great. And in fact the verseגדלים תעשה לך על ארבע כנפות כסותך in Devarim 22 – 12 comes directly after several of the other verses quoted in this midrash regarding the many and various mitzvot – the four verses directly preceding גדלים תעשה לך are all directly quoted in the midrash.
[30] This Mishna’s teaching reflects very well Chazal’s own project of building and enlarging Torah shebe’al peh as a means of clarifying, sharpening and expanding the contours of mitzvot and of the Torah, so that they serve as a stronger spiritual lattice and framework for the Jewish people, particularly after the loss of the Temple and its symbolic and ritualistic role as an identifying marker and base for Israel and for its connection to God, and following the exilic loss of the Jewish people’s identity tied to a land and a governing nation. מיום שחרב ביהמ”ק אין לו להקב”ה אלא ד’ אמות של הלכה בלבד (ברכות ח.) – the laws and rules of halacha act as a framework on which the Jewish people’s relationship with God establishes itself and is based upon, thereby serving as a space for God in this world, so to speak, in place of the Bet Hamikdash which had previously served this role.

Book Week: 2025

By Eliezer Brodt

Book Week has recently begun here in Eretz Yisrael. With gratitude to Hashem, this marks the eighteenth consecutive year that I’ve continued my annual tradition of highlighting noteworthy new titles during this time.

Each year, around Shavuos, begins Shavua HaSefer—Book Week—a ten-day celebration of books and publishing. Many publishers extend their sales for the entire month. Shavua HaSefer takes place across the country in malls, bookstores, and special venues set up exclusively for these sales. Some locations focus primarily on frum seforim, while others feature a wide range of general and secular publishers. Many publishers time the release of new titles specifically for this occasion.

As in previous years, my list may occasionally include an older title I recently discovered. Please note: I do not aim to present an exhaustive list of all new releases. Some of these books may receive full reviews in the future. I try to highlight works that I believe will be of broad interest.

For last year’s list, [see here]. As this list shows Seforim & Books are still being published in full force. [See here for statistics on new seforim and academic books on Jewish topics published this year].

If you’d like to get a taste of what Book Week is about, listen to this episode of my podcast Musings of a Book Collector, recorded back in 2023.

To receive PDFs of sale catalogs from Machon Yerushalayim and Ahavat Shalom, feel free to email me at: Eliezerbrodt@gmail.com.

Please note: I haven’t included every item from these catalogs—some titles are not yet released, while others I haven’t seen in person and therefore did not feel comfortable recommending. I generally prefer to include only titles I’ve had a chance to review firsthand.

Important: A book’s inclusion on the list does not necessarily mean it is currently on sale.

The second section below based on subjects, features books published over the past year on a wide range of topics. These are not necessarily part of Book Week sales and may be harder to find—but they are still worth noting. Again, this is not a comprehensive list, nor is it intended to be.

The goal of these lists is threefold:

1. To help Seforim Blog readers discover significant recent publications in the world of seforim and Jewish scholarship.
2. To assist interested readers in purchasing these books. As in previous years, I am offering a book purchasing service (for a small fee), including assistance in locating current or past titles. For more information, email me at: Eliezerbrodt@gmail.com.
3. Part of the proceeds from this service will go toward supporting the ongoing efforts of the Seforim Blog.

מגנס

1. דוד הנשקה, לבקש תפילה: תפילות הקבע בתלמודם של חכמים, שני חלקים, 1320 עמודים [מצוין]

2. בנימין בראון, המנהיגות החסידות בישראל, דוקטרינת הצדיק בין עבר להווה ובין רוח לחומר, 399 עמודים [מעניין]

3. יעקב צ’ מאיר וישי רוזן צבי, התלמוד בתולדות הלמדנות, 384 עמודים [מעניין]

4. צבי יקותיאל, בשני עולמות, זלמן שזר: ביוגרפיה

5. שירת ה’מאמינים’ השבתאים: פולחן, קהילה ומגעים בין־תרבותיים באימפריה העות’מאנית המאוחרת

6. מנחם יצחק כהנא, המכילתות לפרשת יתרו [מצוין]

7. לייב מוסקוביץ, המינוח של הירושלמי, המונחים המשניים [מצוין]

8. פיוטי שבת חתן ושבת ברית מילה, מהדורת יונה פרנקל וגבריאל וסרמן, 1026 עמודים

9. The Nuremberg Mahzor History, Codicology, Liturgy and Art

10. פיוטי רבי אלעזר בירבי קליר לחג הסוכות ולשמיני עצרת (מהם פיוטים חדשים הנדפסים כאן לראשונה), מהדורת פרופ’ שולמית אליצור, שני חלקים, יותר מ-1200 עמודים [מצוין]

11. קורות כז [כולל ספר הכיבוסים לרבי אשתורי הפרחי]

12. קובץ על יד, כרך ל [מצוין]

13. דברי הימים, כרך א-ב, מבוא ופירוש מאת שרה יפת

14. שולחנות ערוכים: אכילה, גבולות חברתיים ומעברים בין-תרבותיים, מרכז סכוליון

15. שמואל ספראי, בימי הבית ובימי המשנה, ב’ חלקים [חזר למלאי]

16. עמנואל אטקס, ר’ ישראל סלנטר וראשיתה של תנועת המוסר [חזר למלאי]

17. אביגדור שנאן, תרגום ואגדה בו, האגדה בתרגום התורה הארמי המיוחס ליונתן בן עוזיאל [חזר למלאי]

Littman Library

18.   Yosef Levine, Hakham Tzvi Ashkenazi and the Battlegrounds of the Early Modern Rabbinate
19. Marc Shapiro, Renewing the Old, Sanctifying the New, The Unique Vision of Rav Kook

הרצוג

20. מדרש איכה זוטא, מהדירה: ענת רייזל נקר

21. נטועים כד-כה [חומר מעניין]

22. שם משמואל, ספר היובל לשמואל ויגודה

23. מגדים, גליון כרך סג, משאת ליואל, עיונים במקרא ובהוראתו לכבוד הרב ד”ר יואל בן נון, 494 +54 עמודים [אוסף חומר מעניין] [כריכה קשה]

24. דוב ברקוביץ, המשנה של רבי

ביאליק

25. נפתלי הרץ וייזל, דברי שלום ואמת, מהפכת החינוך היהודי המודרני, ההדיר והוסיף מבוא והערות: שמאול פיינר, 350 עמודים

26. יוסף פרל, יונתן מאיר, בוחן צדיק

27. שמואל אלכסנדרוב, מאמרים ואיגרות

28. אהרן אופנהיימר, מעשה ארג לאהרן, ארץ ישראל בתקופות המשנה והתלמוד

29. צחי וייס, ראשית הקבלה: חשיבה מחודשת

30. סימה בלאק, הן עדיין יושבות ותופרות, מעולמן של נשות חסידות תולדות אהרן

31. בנימין זאב קדר, הממלכות הפראנקיות של ירושלים ויפו

32. כרחל נעלמה? רחל מורפורגו (1790-1871) מבחר כתבים

ראובן מס

33. אהרן מוריאלי, מילון שמות המשפחה בישראל

34. כתבי קודש, ר’ פנחס שפירא מקוריץ, מהדיר: רפאל כהן

35. חשק שלמה, ר’ יוחנן אלימאן, ג’ חלקים מכתב יד, מהדיר: רפאל כהן

קורן–מגיד

36. אליהו עסיס, תורה כפשוטה, במדבר

37. ר’ אורי ליפשיץ, שיחה על השאלה, סיפורה של פסיקת הלכה, מיומנו של רב קהילה, 409 עמודים

38. The Koren Tanakh of the Land of Israel, Devarim
39. Rachel Auerbach, The Jewish Revolt, A Warsaw Ghetto Exhibition, 277 pp.
40. Rabbi Bleich, Contemporary Halakhic Problems, Volume 8, 632 pp.
41. Rabbi Yitzhak Issac Halevi Herzog, Collected writings: Judaism: Law and Ethics\ The Main Institutions of Jewish Law\ Constitution and Law In a Jewish State According to the Halakha\ Hebrew Porphyrology, 2 Volumes, 1192+ 1210 pp.
42. Jose Faur, The Horizontal Society and Political Thought, 1447 pp.

אקדמיה הלאומית הישראלית

43. כרוניקה, תעודה לתולדות יעקב פראנק ותנועתו, מבוא והערות, הלל לוין, הדפסה שניה

44. מנדלי מוכר ספרים: מבטים חדשים, בעריכת ישראל ברטל, אבנר הולצמן ויונתן מאיר

אקדמיה ללשון העברית

45. אלכסיי אליהו יודיצקי, מקורות עבריים קדומים: נוסח, לשון תעתיקים, 248 עמודים

האוניברסיטה הפתוחה

46. יאיר גרדין, פנים חדשות, פרקים בתולדות סיפורי החכמים בספרות הזוהר, 324 עמודים

בר אילן

47. Daniel Sperber, The Jewish Life Cycle, Volume Two

48. Daniel Sperber, The Jewish Life Cycle, Volume one (reprint)

49. Y. Berger, Radak on Genesis

50. ולריה ליאורה חייבי, מורה לחיים: עיונים במשל הרב והתלמיד בכתבי רבי שניאור זלמן מליאדי

51. ציונות דתית, בעריכת דב שוורץ, כרך יא

52. מאור ושמש, היסטוריה, הגות, סיפורת, מורשת

53. זאב קיציס, לתקון באנו: ספרות השבחים החסידית, ביבליוגרפיה חדשה ומוערת

54. ציונות דתית, יב

55. שרה שוורץ, אלה תולדות יצחק: סיפור יצחק בספר בראשית

56. אילה שקלאר, ולו רק הד: מחלקת החרדים בקרן הקיימת לישראל 1926-1945

מרכז זלמן שזר

57. יואב שורק, מפרשבורג לירושלים, הרב גלאזנר האורתודוקסיה ההונגרית והציונות, 408 עמודים

58. משה יגור, עוברים ושבים: זהות יהודית במצרים בימי הביניים

59. זלמן שזר, פגישה מחודשת: אוסף כתבים

60. מירב ראובני, מסמל למציאות: שיח על שפה מתחדשת

61. יוסף יובל טובי, רבי שלום שבזי

62. תהלה דרמון מלכה, נעדרים: חיפוש קרובים אחרי השואה

כרמל

63. יון מצולה, ת”ח ות”ט

64.  מינקת רבקה, תרגום מיידיש: ימימה חובב

65. אפרים חמיאל, “הויית החכמה וגידולה” – פרקי מחקר ופרשנות – חלק ג

66. שיח שלום כהגות – עיונים בקבלה הלכה ואנטי פוליטיקה, בעריכת אבינועם רוזנק

67. האם יש עוד מקום לתיקון עולם? ספר גבורות לפול מנדס־פלור

68. מכתבים על יהודים ויהדות

69. אפרים חזן, ניצוצי פיוט, מנהג ופרשה פרשת השבוע בראי השירה, הפיוט והמנהג בספרד ובשלוחותיה

70. אריאל פיקאר, על הארץ ועל המזון: אתיקה יהודית

71. ז’אק שלנגר, על אמונות ועל דעות – דו-שיח עם סעדיה גאון

72. שאול וידר, רצוף אהבה – עיון ברצפים של שמונה מימרות בתלמוד הבבלי

בלימה

73. אלחנן ריינר, כהרף עין

74. יוסף וייס, תורת הדיאלקטיקה והאמונה לר׳ נחמן מברסלב

75. הלל צייטלין, עמקי תהום

76. הלל צייטלין, יחידים

77. שמואל פיינר, לתולדות החילון היהודי

78.   פאבל מצ’ייקו, הסכנות והתענוגות שבסינקרטיזם הדתי

79. הלל צייטלין, רב נחמן מברסלב

80. הלל צייטלין, שירות ותפילות

81. חביבה פדיה, מסעות החכמה

בית מדרש לרבנים

82. לוי גינצבורג, פירושים וחידושים בירושלמי, ברכות, א-ה מהדורה שנייה עם הערות הגר”ש ליברמן, ג’ חלקים

83. טאבו ואיסורים בקבלת קסטיליה, טעמים המצוות לא תעשה לר’ יוסף הבא משושן, מהדיר ליאור זקס-שמואלי, מכתב יד

אוניברסיטת תל–אביב

84. עמנואל פרידהיים, הַבֹטְחִים בַפָסֶל: הפוליתאיזם בארץ ישראל וסביבותיה בתקופה הרומית ובראשית ימי ביזנטיון

יצחק בן צבי

85. ספר המצוות לרב סעדיה גאון, מקור ותרגום, בעריכת: ניסים סבתו, חיים סבתו, אייל פישלר, 414 עמודים [חזר למלאי] [עם הוספות ותיקונים]

86. דניאל בויארין, העיון הספרדי: לפרשנות התלמוד של מגורשי ספרד [חזר למלאי]

87. זהר עמר ואחרים, חוט וצבע באריגי ארץ־ישראל הקדומה, 352 עמודים

88. אביגיל מנקין-במברגר, סדר מזיקין, משפט ומאגיה בספרות חז”ל ובקערות ההשבעה הבבליות

89. מורה לרבים, אברהם אבן עזרא – שירים לימודיים, מהדורה מדעית, בעריכת: מאשה יצחקי, חביבה ישי

90. ספונות ל

91. סרג’ רוזר, כתבי הברית החדשה כספרות יהודית

רסלינג

92. אסתי אינדורסקי, מבעד לסורגים שקופים, נשים חרדיות לומדות גמרא

93. משה בנוביץ, זיכרונות ישעיהו בן אמוץ

קיבוץ המאוחד

94. דוד סורוצקין, לידתה של יהדות נורמטיבית, הנדסה חברתית, קאנוניזציה וצנזורה בספרד בימי הביניים

95. דן בן עמוס, תקשורת במסורת, מאמרים בפולקלור, 248 עמודים

ישיבת אור וישעוה

96. ר’ אליהו בן אמזוג, אימת מפגיע, על אמיתות חכמת הקבלה

יד הרב ניסים

97. המקח והממכר, חלק א, מהדורת יהודה צבי שטמפפר, משה גרוס [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

98. פרופ’ ברכיהו ליפשיץ, המאבק על דין התורה

אהבת שלום

99. ר’ אברהם אזולאי, חסד לאברהם, כולל הרבה חומר חדש מכתב יד, מפתחות, מבוא, הערות ועוד [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

100. ר’ דוד זכות, זכר דוד [חזר למלאי] [מצוין]

101. כתבי מהר”ן שפירא, דרשות, תורת נתן, ג’ חלקים, מכתב יד

102. ר’ חיים ויטאל, עץ הדעת טוב, ג’ חלקים, דרשות על התורה ועוד, אהבת שלום

103. נפש החיים עם ביאור נשמת היום מאת ר’ יעקב משה הלל, שער א

104. ר’ ראובן מרגליות, תולדות רבינו חיים בן עטר, נר למאור, ביאורים והערות על אור החיים הקודש, תמו עמודים, אהבת שלום [מצוין]

105. שו”ת זרע אמת החדשות, ד’ חלקים [הכל חדש מכתב יד], אהבת שלום

106. שיטה מקובצת, חולין, אהבת שלום [חזר למלאי]

107. שו”ת מהר”א אשכנזי, אהבת שלום, [חזר למלאי]

108. ר’ יעקב הלל, כתבוני לדורות, גדולת האר”י ונצחיות תורתו, שפז עמודים [מהדורה חדשה]

109. ר’ מאיר פאפרש, אור רב, על הזהר

110. ר’ יהודה טולידאנו, אמרי בינה, על רש”י על התורה, בראשית, אהבת שלום

111. שו”ת הגרש”א אלפאנדארי, ד’ חלקים, אהבת שלום

112. ר’ רפאל שרעבי, דברי שלום, אהבת שלום

113. מן הגנזים יט [חומר מעניין]

114.   תומר דבורה, פרק א, עם פ’ של ר’ יעקב הלל

מכון עלה זית

115. אמרי משה המפואר [קונטרס מקוואות] עם הגהות יד משה

116. צפנת פענח על הרמב”ם משולב עם השמטות והוספות מכת”י, הרב יוסף רוזין – [יופיע בקרוב!]

117. ר’ הרב משה בונים פירוטינסקי, ספר הברית

118. הרב יעקב גוזונדהייט, תפארת יעקב – הל’ קידושין

119. Rabbi Reuven Wachs, Gluten Free in Halacha

120. אמרי אור, הרב אליה דוב וואכטפוגל

121. חידושי ושיעורי ר’ ברוך בער – הרב ברוך בער לייבוביץ, ד’ חלקים

122. תיקונים חדשים מאת רמח”ל, עם ביאור משולב

123. הרב יעקב קיר, תורת סלבודקה

124. ר’ ראובן קליין, שו”ת מטה ראובן, יו”ד ושו”ת

125. ר’ אריה גאנז, ספר אדירי התורה 

126. אמת ליעקב על התורה, מהדורה חדשה, עם הוספות

127. ר’ צבי הירש גראדזענסקי זצוק”ל, טהרת ישראל, הלכות נדה, מכתב יד, תצג עמודים

128. ר’ נח חיים צבי ברלין, בעל עצי אלמוגים, מעין החכמה על תרי”ג מצוות, הדפסה שנייה

129. Kinyan Halachah

130. Traveling in halachah

131. מלבי”ם על מגילת רות מכתב יד קדשו, מהדיר: ר’ דוד שלמה ענגלאנדער

132. ר’ מאיר מיכל ראבינאוויץ, המאיר לעולם, א-ג, עם מבוא והערות

133. אוהבי יש, שיחות מרבי שמעון אלסטר

מכון ירושלים

134. ר’ יצחק אייזק חבר, סדר זמנים, כולל חומר חדש מכתב יד, מהדיר: ר’ יעקב טריבץ

135. שו”ת הרא”ש, ב’ חלקים, הוספות ותיקונים

136. שו”ת בית יצחק, או”ח, ב’ חלקים, מכון ירושלים

137. אוצר מפרשי התורה, ויקרא ב

138. שו”ת שואל ומשיב, רביעאה, חלק שני

139. מנחת חינוך, בשולי המנחה, כרך ז

זכרון אהרן

140. סידור ר’ יעקב עמדין, עם הערות

141. ר’ שלמה אלגזי, דרשות אהבת עולם

142. ר’ אהרן לפפא, שו”ת בני אהרן

143. ר’ משה הכהן, כהונת עולם, ב’ חלקים, על הלכות ריבית

144. שו”ת משפט צדק, ג’ חלקים, זכרון אהרן

מכון משנת ר‘ אהרן

145. כתבי הערוך לנר, החדשים, מכתב יד, ריז עמודים

146. שו”ת גליא מסכת, ב’ חלקים, כולל חומר מכתב יד,

147. ביאור הגדות למדרשים לרבנו ידעיה הפניני, מכתב יד, 43+ תקפו עמודים,

148. הדרת מרדכי, שמות א

מכון תלמוד הישראלי

149. אנציקלופדיה תלמודית, נב (כולל ערך ‘מנורה’)

150. אנציקלופדיה תלמודית, טיפולי פוריות לאור הלכה, 168+211 עמודים

אידרא

151. ספר המשיב לרבינו יוסף טאיטאצ׳אק, מכתב יד

152. לדרכי החשיבה של תורת כהנים, שרגא גולץ

153. כמעשה הספיר: הסיפור החסידי והמעשה החינוכי

154. יעקב ברנאי, בתקופה שנעשית היסטוריה, החברה ההיסטורית הישראלית (1924-2024)

155. משה חלמיש, משנתו העיונית של ר’ שניאור זלמן מליאדי

156. דב שוורץ, הציונות הדתית מאין ולאן

157. האור שמתוך שברי הלוחות עולם מתחדש ומתקדש: בעקבות משנתו של הרב שג”ר

ידיעות ספרים

158. תמיר גרנות, חולם ולוחם, פרקי יומן, סרן אמתי גרנות ז”ל

159. בנימין לאו, חכמים, ו

160. שלמה הכט, עתידין להתחדש: עולם ההלכה במבט על העתיד

מוסד רב קוק

161. בעל המאור, על מסכת ברכות

162. ר’ טוביה פרשל, מאמרי טוביה חלק ח [ניתן לקבל תוכן]

163. ר’ אברהם בן הגר”א, תרגום אברהם [על תרגום אונקלוס] ופירוש התפילה

164. ביאור הגר”א, עם פי’ בינה ודעת, או”ח, סי’ א-קכז, מהדיר: ר’ מנחם אדלר [מצוין] [ניתן לקבל תוכן ודפי דוגמא]

165. ר’ יהושע ענבל, המאבק על תורה שבעל פה, 588 עמודים [מעניין]

166. חידושי מאירי זבחים, [ליקט]

167. רבי תנחום הירושלמי, ספר הביאור, לנביאים ראשונים, מכתב יד

168. ספר תהלים עם פי’ רש”י  עם מראה רחל, ע”י ר’ ישראל הרצג ור’ יוסף קמנצקי

169. שיטה מקובצת, כריתות

170. תהלים עם תוספות חיים, ליקוט על תהלים

171. ר’ חיים ברל, ר’ יצחק אייזיק מקאמרנא, הדפסה שנייה

Institute for Jewish Research and Publications

172. Milhemet Mitzvah: Volume 1-2: Halakhic Foundations, Religious Authority, and Military Service in Israel’s War of Independence, edited by Aviad Hacohen, Yitzchak Avi Roness, and Menachem Butler:

173. Avraham Grossman on the Cultural Dynamic of Medieval Jewish History and Thought, Edited by Menachem Butler and Jonathon Grossman
     Mosaica Press

174. Rabbi Yehuda Halpert, Speaking to an Empty Shul
175. Rabbi Joel Padowitz & Rabbi Jonathan Sassen, The Science Behind the Mishnah
176. Rabbi Moshe Taub, Jews in the New World History Halachah and Hashkafah, 221 pp.
177. Michael Baxter, The Rhythms and Cycles of The Jewish Calendar, 419 pp.
178. Rabbi Friedman, Practical Lessons, Teachings, and Wisdom Inspired by Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz
179. Rabbi Yehoshua Kaganoff, Is Alternative Healing Kosher?
180. Yitzchok Aharon Pinkesz, Kosher Astrology
181. Rabbi Cohen, Nephilim:Giants and Fallen Angels

חז“ל, גאונים, ראשונים

182. חומש אונקלוס המבואר, במדבר, תקכד עמודים

183. תורה שלמה, כרך חדש, פרשת דברים, 64+שו עמודים, בעריכת נכדו, ר’ יעקב פרנקל

184. תורה שלמה, כרך חדש, פרשת דברים, כט +שיח +כח עמודים, בעריכת ר’ מיכאל פלג

185. תורה שלמה, כרך חדשה, פרשת ואתחנן, תשנט+ קנ עמודים, בעריכת ר’ מיכאל פלג

186. המקח והממכר, משפטי שבועות עם פי’ עמק השער לר’ מיכל יהודה ליפקוביץ [נדפס מחדש]

187. מקבים ב [מצוין] [מקבים א חזר למלאי] [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

188. עיטור השלם, מכתב יד, ב’ חלקים [ועומד להופיע עוד ב’ חלקים], מהדיר: ר’ יאיר חזן

189. האגודה, ג’ חלקים מהדורת ר’ דוד דבליצקי [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

190. ספר המנהגות לרבנו אשר מלוניל, על פי כתב יד

191. ר’ דוד צדוק, ביאור שמות קדש וחול המיוחס לרבינו הרמב”ם ז”ל, אגרת כוונת שמות הקדש, ריט עמודים

192. מורה נבוכים, ב’ חלקים [על פי כת”י], כולל פי’ האפודי, אברבנאל, שם טוב, קרשקש, הנרבוני, משכיות כסף, עמודי כסף

193. שיר השירים עם פי’ רבי מאיר עראמה

194. ר’ יוסף יעבץ, אור החיים עם מעין גנים לר’ צבי אלימלך שפירא, [מצוין] [על פי כת”י] כולל מבוא, והערות, תתק עמודים

195. ר’ חסדאי קרשקש, חסדי השם, מהדורת ר’ שלמה פישר, מהדורת צילום [חזר למלאי]

196. רלב”ג על התורה, 7 חלקים, מהדורה שנייה, וגם כרך מבוא, וכרך חדש של מפתחות, מכון מעליות

197. שו”ת ר’ אברהם בן הרמב”ם, מקיצי נרדמים, מהדורת צילום [נדפס לראשונה בשנת תרצ”ח], 231 עמודים

198. חזה התנופה, קיצור תשובות הראש, מכתב יד עם הערות, 38+רפג עמודים

199. ספרי זוטא, ב, שלח-קרח, עם פי’ באר אש מנחת אש, מהדיר: ר’ אהרן שליו, שמז עמודים

200. ליקוטי מדרשים, חלק שמיני, כריכה רכה

הלכה

201. ר’ מנחם די לונזאנו, אור תורה, על מסורת קריאת התורה וכתיבתה, עם הגהות מעצם כתב ידו, כולל תיקון סופרים בן משק, ומכתב מאליהו ועוד

202. שו”ת חזון נחום, רבנו אליעזר נחום, [מכתב יד] מכון שובי נפשי, [מצוין], 70+ תקצד עמודים [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

203. ר’ יחיאל מאיר, מעמקי ים, אורח חיים הלכה ודעת, תתרפט עמודים [ניתן לקבל תוכן ודפי דוגמא]

204. ר’ יונה ליברמן, בדיקת תולעים כהלכתה

205. ר’ מרדכי אהרן הלר, מניעה כהלכתה, דיני מניעת הריון, כולל נספח רפואי מקיף, קכה עמודים

206. ר’ ישראל מתתיהו אויערבאך, מקרא קדש, ליקוטי רימ”א, הלכות יום טוב וחול המועד, שמח עמודים

207. ר’ נחמיה וילהלם, דורון דרשה, אוצר ההלכה והדרוש לבר מצוה, רפט עמודים

208. וזאת ליהודה: פת לחם, ביאור ברכת המזון עם הערות שלחן שלמה לר’ רפאל רבין, קיז עמודים

209. חידושי מהר”י אבן צהל, וחידושים מר’ נתן קורוניל, [מכתב יד], תקיט+כו עמודים

210. ר’ יצחק יאקאב, הלכות ומנהגי נטילת ידיים המבואר, קסב עמודים

211. ר’ אפרים בוקוולד, קרית אריאל, בירורים בהלכות תחום שבת והמסתעף, שער אריאל, שיעורים על פרק מי שהוציאוהו, שלז,+סח עמודים [מהדורה שניה]

212. ר’ בנימין כהן, חלקת בנימין, הלכות מזוזה

213. ר’ מרדכי קוט, מים רבים, אכילה לפני התפילות וקיום המצוות [אוסף חשוב]

214. ר’ הדר יהודה מרגולין, הידורי המידות, [מהדורה שלישית עם הרבה תיקונים והוספות], תקעא + 30 עמודים

215. ר’ שאול וידר, ברא מזכה אבא השלם, חיוב הבנים והנהגותיהם לזכות הוריהם לאחר פטירתם, תקלד עמודים

216. ר’ יהודה שפיץ, פנינים משלחן יהודה, עניני או”ח וי”ד, קפז עמודים

217. ר’ יצחק דוד הלוי באמבערגער, אמירה לבית יעקב, על מצות הנשים, נדה חלקה והדלקת הנר, והלכות מליחה, עם חלק התשובות, 55+ שמט עמודים כולל הוספות הגהות ומדור ההערות, מכון אכסניא של תורה

218. ר’ מרדכי אבנסון, מגדל המאה, הלכות מאה ברכות, שעג עמודים

219. ר’ שלמה תווינא, כתבנו לחיים, חודש אלול והימים הנוראים, רפח עמודים

220. אהלי שם: שלחן המערכת, כללי וסדר שמות אנשים ונשים [חזר למלאי]

221. ר’ שלום מאסקוויטש, אב”ד שאץ, דעת שלום, ג’ חלקים על שו”ע ועוד

222. ר’ עקיבא מלר, הקריאה בתורה והלכותיה, 1310 עמודים

223. ר’ יוסף לרנר, שמירת הגוף והנפש, שני חלקים, מהדורה חדשה עם המון הוספות

224. ר’ יעקב בלויא, נתיבות השבת, [הוצאה ועירובין], ב’ חלקים

225. ר’ יוסף לורינץ, משנת פקוח נפש, האיר יוסף, ב’ חלקים, מהדורה תניינא, [שמירת הנפש, וחי בהם, לא תעמוד על דם רעיך, ועוד]

226. ר’ עמנואל מולקנדוב, תורת הקדמונים, ד, תרצא עמודים

227. ר’ משה קוטקס, שיעורי המצוות לליל הסדר, ושיעורים ארבעת המינים, שצה עמודים [מעניין]

228. זמני ההלכה למעשה, ב’ חלקים [מהדורה חדשה]

229. ר’ חיים פלאג’י קול החיים

230. מאסף לכל המחנות, ב’ חלקים

231. ר’ חיים ליב אויערבאך, [אבא של ר’ שלמה זלמן אויערבאך] חכם לב

232. שו”ת הרלב”ח והרד”ך ושו”ת קדמונים, בעניני סוגיות הכתב, תקעה עמודים

233. ר’ בצלאל זאב שפרן, משנת הרב”ז, הערות על שו”ע או”ח, תרלח עמודים

234. ספר פועה, חלק ה

235. נפש חיה השלם על ד’ חלקים שו”ע, ר’ ראובן מרגליות, מכתב יד, שפב עמודים, מכון עלה זית

236. ר’  שלמה גיסינגער, כתר שלמה, ב’ חלקים, פסקי הלכה וביאורים, גליוני משנה ברורה, ועוד, [מצוין] [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

237. משנת הגר, הל’ גרים

238. ר’ יצחק לאמפין, הזמנים בהבנה, מדבריך להבנת הגמרא והפוסקים בענייני עלות השחר, בין השמשות וצאת הכוכבים, עם תמונות, תקו+76 עמודים

239. ר’ דוד בריזל, משפט הנהנה, ב’ חלקים דיני הנהנה ממון אחרים ופעולותיהם, ביאורי הסוגיות-פסקי הלכות, משפט הרב קו, משפט זכויות  היוצרים ועוד [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

240. כתבי הגרמ”א האברמן, חלק ב, תשובות ומכתבי תורה, דרשות והספדים מאת ר’ מרדכי האברמן [מכתב יד], בעריכת ר’ שמחה שכטר

241. סדר הדין בבית דין הרבני, ג’ חלקים, פרופ’ אליאב שוחטמן

242. ר’ אליהו ליפשיץ, תורת המשפט, כללי הכרעה בדיני ממונות, ג’ חלקים

243. עטרת זקנים, כתבי ר’ אברהם שמואל שפיטצער

244. זמן מוצאי שבת

245. ר’ ברוך רקובר, ברכת אליהו טו, חושן משפט

246.  בן איש חי, עם ביאור מנחת משה

247. ספר הצומות, ב’ חלקים

248. עשרה זהובים, החוטף מצוה מחבירו, 640 עמודים

249. ר’ אהרן קושיצקי, טריפות העוף השכיחות בזמנינו, שכח עמודים

250. ר’ מיכאל פארשלעגער, קדושת מיכאל, שד עמודים

251. ר’ ישעיהו פייערשטיין, אסתכל באורייתא, דיני הסתכלות וראיה בענינים שונים בתורה, קפח עמודים

252. ר’ אהרן כהן, בגדי קודש, בירור מקום השוק ואורך הלבוש גדרי דת יהודית כהלכתה והמסתעף, שצג עמודים

253. ר’ זכריה הבר הי”ד, מנחה חדשה, אנציקלופדיה למדנית לתורה שבעל פה, חלק אורח חיים [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

254. ר’ עובדיה טולידאנו, משפט הירושה, ג’ חלקים

255. ר’ שלמה בניזרי, גרים גרורים, גירות [כנגד ספר ‘זרע ישראל’], 655 עמודים

256. ליקוטי הערות חתם סופר ה’ חלקים [חזר למלאי]

257. גט פשוט, למהר”ם חגיז, וגט מקושר לר’ יונה נבון, מכון אור הטוב

258. ר’ אריאל יצחק הלוי, קונטרס אור החמה, לוחות זמני היום, 368 עמודים

259. ר’ יוחנן גורארי’, חקרי מנהגים, במנהגי פיורדא ופרידברג

260. נמצאה התכלת, חוברת, מהדורה שישית

261. הארבה במסורת תימן

262. טלית מקופלת, חוברת

263. ר’ אריה כץ, שו”ת שאגת כהן, חלק ג

264. שדי חמד חנוכה [תשפ”ד] רטו+נו עמודים, כריכה רכה, כולל הערות

265. שדי חמד סוכות [תשפ”ה], שיא עמודים, כרכיה רכה, כולל הערות

266. שו”ת צפנת פענח, דוינסק, עם הערות ועוד, תתנ עמודים

267. תשובות הרב קאפח, כרך ח

תפילה

268. ר’ אברהם בן הגר”א, באר אברהם, על שמונה עשרה, על פי כ”י, רלט עמודים

269. אוצר התפילות, ב’ חלקים, מהדורה שנייה

270. ר’ אלחנן אדלר, עת לחננה, ביאורים לתפילת מוסף של שבת, שס עמודים [כולל ק’ טעם למוסף תקנת שבת לר’ יוסף הכהן, נדפס לראשונה בוינציאה שס”ד]

271. ר’ יוסף ווייסבארד, ביאורי תפילה, שיח יוסף, שמונה עשרה, אוסף מדברי ראשונים ואחרונים לברר וללבן פירוש המילים וכוונת התפילה, תתד עמודים

272. סדור רבינו הזקן, עם ציונים, מקורות, הערות ועיונים, ג’ חלקים [מצוין]

273. ר’ צבי הירש פרבר, שיח צבי, חלק ב תפילת שבת [כולל הוספות על פי כתב יד] [מצוין]

274. ר’ חיים אלעזר שפירא, בעל מנחת אלעזר, מאמר אדון כל על זמר ‘קל אדון’ לשבת קודש, נו עמודים

275. ר’ אברהם בורשטיין, מזמור לתודה, על פרק מזמור לתודה

276. ברכון שביט ישורון, מהדורה ביקורת, 119 עמודים

277. לדוד ברוך, ספר תהלים, כולל שימוש תהלים וחומר מכת”י

278. ר’ דוד פלק, תהלים עם ביאור בתורתו יהגה, תשפג עמודים

תנ“ך

279. חמשי חומשי תורה ועם ראשוני פרשני רש”י, מהדיר: ר’ משה פיליפ, מהדורה חדשה עם תיקונים

280. חומש תולדות אהרן, לר’ אהרן מפיסארו, בראשית-במדבר, ד’ חלקים + חוברת של דפוס צילום של מהדורה ראשונה משנת שמ”ג

281. חתם סופר על התורה ומועדים ודרשות מכתי”ק שנת תקצה, שכ עמודים, עם הערות מר’ משה שלאמיוק

282. רמ”ד וואלי, שופטים שמואל, מלכים, תניינא, מכתב יד, 874 עמודים

283. ר’ טוביה הלוי מצפת, חן טוב, ב’ חלקים, האוצר

284. דרשות וחידושי ר’ אליהו גוטמכר, דברים [מכתב יד]

285. מוסרי שערי חיים על התורה, ממרן הגר”ח שמואלביץ, ב’ חלקים [מצוין]

286. ר’ דב אליאך, הגר”א על התורה, ב’ חלקים [כולל כל החומר מתוך הסט של ה’ חלקים, גם הפנינים משלחן הגר”א (למעט על נ”ך וש”ס), ועוד הוספות חדשות]

287. ר’ צבי הירש, מרגליות התורה, מכון הגר”א, ג’ חלקים, [תלמיד הגר”א]

288. ר’ משה פיליפ, רמב”ן על פירוש רש”י, ביאור שיטת הרמב”ן בפרש”י על פי פרשני רש”י ורמב”ן בתוספת ביאורים חידושים והערות, 793 עמודים

289. ר’ חיים פאלאג’י ובחרת בחיים, על רש”י והרא”ם

290. ר’ משה אלקאים, תועפות ראם, על רש”י והרא”ם

291. ר’ בנימין שלמה שפיצר, תקון שלמה, דרשות, ועל התורה, ב’ חלקים

292. ר’ דוד מנחם רעגענשבערג, דברי מנחם על התורה

293. מתורתו של הצפנת פענח על התורה והמועדים, חלק ד, קמח עמודים, כריכה רכה

294. ר’ קלמן כהנא, עיונים בפירוש הרמב”ן לתורה, שסח עמודים

295. ר’ יצחק פוס, חמודי יצחק, שמות, האורת וביאורים על התורה, תתקכד עמודים [מצוין]

296. ר’ דוד בירדוגו, מי מנוחות, על התורה, ב’ חלקי

297. מנחת יהודה לרבי יהודה בן חנין, מלכים, מכתב יד, 319 עמודים

298. יצחק אורלן, ימי בראשית, קריאה חדשה ומקורית בפסוקי בראשית  החושפת את ההתאמה בין הנאמר בתורה לממצאי המדע, 306 עמודים

ש“ס – רמב“ם

299. ר’ משה מפיזענץ, דרש משה על אגדות הש”ס, [נדפס לראשונה שנט], שפ+כד עמודים

300. ר’ שלמה קלוגר, חדושי אנשי שם, שמות אנשים ונשים, שני חלקים

301. ר’ יעקב ורשנר, סדר יעקב, על מסכת עבודה זרה, א-ב, מהדורה חדשה, 725+672 עמודים

302. יעקב מלבר, משה מלגאו, ר’ יעקב מולכו הגהות בספר משנה תורה לרמב”ם, מכ”י, מהדיר ר’ בצלאל נאור

303. ר’ דוד יואל וייס, מגדים חדשים, תענית [מצוין], תרכד עמודים

304. שיעורים של מהר”ם שיק על מסכת קידושין, מכ”י, מכון שם עולם

305. שיעורי בעל ה’מקדש דוד’, ג’ חלקים

306. ר’ שמואל הילמן, אור הישר, מסכת שבת, עם הגהות והערות בעריכת ר’ פינחס דונר, תסה עמודים

307. ר’ שרגא ניוברגר, לשונו הזהב, א-ב, ביאורים על לשונות הרמב”ם

308. שבת של מי, ב’ חלקים, על פי דפוס ראשון

309. אבן האזל, מהדורה חדשה

310. ר’ מסעוד חי רקח, מעשה רוקח, על ש”ס [מכתב יד], ברכות, שבת, פסחים ראש השנה ועוד

311. ר’ שלמה קלוגר, עבודת עבודה, על מסכת עבודה זרה מהדורה שנייה

312. ר’ אליהו לרנר, הדרת קודש, רמב”ם הלכות איסורי מזבח, שיד עמודים

313. ר’ שאול אלתר, נמלכין בסנהדרין, תקעז עמודים

314. סופרי המלך, מבית מדרשו של רבינו עקיבא איגר, ב, [הרבה חומר מכתב יד], תקי עמודים

315. ר’ חיים שטיין, ברכת חיים, חידושים, ומכתבים

316. צפנת פענח, גיליונות על מסכת שבת ועירובין

317. ארים נסי, הרב מאיר מאזוז על מסכת ברכות

318. צפנת פענח, גליונות על מסכת שבת עירובין, מכון המאור

319. ר’ אפרים בורודיאנסקי, בנין אפרים, כולל מכתבים ומאמרים [מצוין], תא עמודים

תולדות

320. לב נאמן: יומן הגאון הנאמ”ן, רבנו מאיר מאזוז זצ”ל, מסע חייו המרתק כפי שתיעד בכתב ידו, א, 437 עמודים [מצוין] [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

321. אוסף מילי דהספדא, שנשאו גדולי הדור אחר הסתלקותו של בעל מנחת אלעזר, רעח עמודים

322. עובדות והנהגות שמשמעו מפי מרן… הגר”מ שטרנבוך שליט”א, תקפו עמודים

323. מיכאל באחת, מהדורה שנייה עם הוספות, על ר’ מיכאל פארשלעגער [מצוין]

324. ר’ יוסף קורח, חיי שלום, פרקי זיכרונות מחיי הרב שלום קורח ותקופתו, 531 עמודים

325. הרב שלמה הופמן, המחונך המחנך, פרקי חיים ופרקי חינוך בצל רבו הגדול מרן הגאון רבי אייזיק שר זצ”ל, 548 עמודים

326. ספר זכרון אהל אברהם, לכבוד ר’ אברהם דוב אויערבאך זצ”ל [מלא חומר מעניין], תתשכג עמודים

327. הרב הדומה למלאך, תולדות רבי ברוך בער לייבאוויץ, מהדורה חדשה עם הוספות, 647 עמודים

328. איש אלקים קדוש, תולדות חייו, של ר’ נחום משאדיק, [נפטר תרכו] תקכ עמודים

329. גיבור כארי, תולדות ר’ יהודה אריה טרגר, ב’ חלקים

330. ר’ ישראל דנדרוביץ, היו דברים מעולם, חלק ב, הסודות הגנוזים של העולם התורני, 661 עמודים [מלא חומר מעניין]

331. ר’ גד יזדי, קצות דרכיו, על ר’ עובדיה יוסף זצ”ל, שיג עמודים [כולל חומר מתוך כת”י של ר’ עובדיה יוסף]

332. הרבנית רמה פינקל, האבא מסלבודקה, על ר’ חיים זאב פינקל, 664 עמודים [מעניין]

333. פרופ’ אהרן קירשנבאום, בין חדש וישן, חיים אמונה ומחקר באמריקה ובישראל [מהדורה שנייה], ]מצוין[

334. ראש צורים, תולדות חייו של הרב שמואל יצחק הילמן

335. ר’ דוד מנדלבוים, תולדות הגאון ר’ מנחם זעמבא הי”ד, 732 עמודים [מצוין]

336. ר’ מנחם מנדל פלאטו, מרן החזון איש, חלק ד

337. מסורת אליהו, הנהגות ועוד מר’ אליהו לופיאן, שנשמעו ע”י ר’ אליעזר דינר, קכח עמודים [יפה]

338. לב שלמה על ר’ שלמה פפנהיים

339. ר’ אביאל חיים חורי, ראשי ההרים, עובדות הנהגות סיפורים, זקני תלמידי חכמים מספרים מכלי ראשון על אבותיהם ורבותיהם, 550 עמודים

340. ר’ יהודה טאוב, נחלת יעקב, גדולי ישראל בונים את ארץ ישראל, 347 עמודים

341. ר’ מיכאל ביר, פני מלך, בעקבות שבעה ממאורי הדורות [רע”א, נצי”ב, ערוך השלחן, שפת אמת, ר’ חיים מבריסק, הראי”ה קוק, והתורה תמימה], 253 עמודים

342. ר’ חיים מינץ, זקניך יאמרו לך, פסקים עובדות והנהגות ממרן רבי משה פיינשטיין זצוק”ל ומעוד זקני גדולי הדור, רפו עמודים [מצוין] [ניתן לקבל דפי דוגמא]

343. ר’ מאיר צבי גרוזמן, הייתי תלמיד בישיבת חברון, זכרונות משנות תשי”ב-תשי”ח, [מצוין]

מחקר – שונות

344. בנימין קלוגר, פכים קטנים, ספרים סופרים וסיפורים: זכרונות ורישומים של ספרן וסופר הסוקר את עולם הספר, 534 עמודים

345. חיים צבי אלבוים, מסורת צמחי המשנה, 604 עמודים

346. גנזי יהודה, כרך שביעי, כתבי קודש משנות הק’ ר’ ש’ עד לערך שנת ת”ס, שנו עמודים [מלא וגדוש חומר מעניין]

347. זיקתו הפילוסופית של ר’ דוד קמחי (רד”ק) לרמב”ם ולאבן עזרא

348. פרופ’ יעקב שמואל שפיגל, שערי תפילה ומועד [מצוין] 662 עמודים

349. יצחק קליין, מבשר ישועה, כתבי האדמו”ר החלוץ הרב ישעיהו שפירא

350. ר’ מאיר ליכטנשטיין, מוסר אבי שיעורים בעקבי תורת אבי מורי הרב אהרן ליכטנשטיין

351. ר’ ירחמיאל בהר, פירוש לחיים, בבא מציעא, פרק אלו מציאות, עם עיונים וקונטרס תמונות, קכד עמודים [מאוד מעניין, פ’ על פי כ”י וראשונים]

352. ר’ חנוך טוביאס, סופה וסערה, חלק ה [מעניין]

353. ר’ אליהו מרגליות, דעת ללב, פיצוחו של עיון, על אינטואיציה, לוגיקה, ומתודולוגיה תלמודית והשקפת התורה, 325 עמודים [בעל ‘מבריסק עד קוסובה’]

354. ישראל שפירא, עזה מאז ולתמיד, תולדות יהדות עזה, [מהדורה שלישית], 168 עמודים

355. למען אחיי ורעיי, הרב מנחם הכהן, פרקי חיים [אוטוביוגרפיה], 360 עמודים

356. יוסף שטרית, הלכה ומאגיה, יסודות התרבות הדואלית של יהודי מרוקו והתמורות שחלו בה במאות הי”ט והכ’, שני חלקים

357. ר’ שמחה קאלימאני, תוכחת מגולה: מהדיר אלי שטרן

358. ר’ יהונתן דון, ערוך השלחן העבר, בראשית, שעח עמודים

359. ר’ רפאל רייכמן, חידושים והערות, ב’ חלקים

360. ר’ שמואל יפה, אגרות תורה, הערות חידושים ומכתבים על הרבה עניני יורה דעה, תקנג עמודים

361. ר’ מאיר מזוז, סלת נקיה, כללי העיבור לתלמידים, ועוד, מהדורה שניה, תקפא עמודים

362. זהר עמר, צמחי תימן

363. אברהם מיכאל קארדוזו דרוש בקר דאברהם, מהדורה מוערת, מכתב יד, נועם לפלר, מהי שבתאות?, ליאור הולצר, 256 עמודים

364. מנחם נאבת, חרדים על דברו, חרדיות בין מגזר לתנועה

365. ר’ ישראל אריאל, בית ה’ נלך, 729 עמודים [מאוד מעניין]

366. בנימין פורת, נקי כפיים ובר לבב: כשירות של מנהיגי ציבור המעורבים בפלילים בראי המסורת היהודית

367. ר’ אברהם וסרמן, היד השמאלית: הראי”ה קוק ותנועות הפועלים, 483 עמודים

368. שלום צדיק, קריאה לתחייתה של הפילוסופיה הדתית

369. כל ספרי ר’ עמנואל חי ריקי, יד חלקים

370. ר’ אבינדב אבוקרט, אחדים בידך: מסע בתורתו ועולמו של החיד”א

371. וידעתם כי אני ה’ – משיעורי הגרי”ש זילברמן זצ”ל, שיעורים באמונה ובטחון, קלא עמודים

372. ר’ אליעזר מלמד, פניני הלכה, אמונה ומצוותיה, ב’ חלקים

373. ר’ מאיר מאזוז זצ”ל, קובץ מאמרים חלק ג

374. חידושי מהר”ץ חיות, מכתב יד, ריג עמודים

375. ר’ יוסף חיים מסעוד, אוצרות אליהו הנביא, שישה ספרים

376. ר’ ישראל נאג’ארה, כלי מחזיק ברכה, 194 עמודים

377. אוצר ספרי קבלה, שמות ספרי הקודש שנכתבו בסודות התורה מחז”ל עד אחרונים, קמד עמודים

378. ר’ משה באראן, [סבא של ר’ אלישיב], מענה רך, תכא עמודים

379. ר’ אביעד נייגר, מצות ישוב ארץ ישראל, 202 עמודים

380. ר’ יצחק קלויזנר, אפסי ארץ, על גבולות הארץ, חוברת

381. כתבי הגרי”ש אלישיב, על מסכת אבות, ב’ חלקים

382. שירת ציון, שירת הלויים

383. ר’ יריב שמואלי, דורות האמוראים

384. ר’ אליהו ליפשיץ, תורת אמך – בין אדם לחברו: לשון הרע  

385. פתוחי חותם, אוצרות חתם סופר, מהדורה שניה, בעריכת ר’ משה שלאמיוק, [מצוין], רנ עמודים

386. ר’ אליהו דושניצר, נחלת אליהו, דברי מוסר על סדר הפרשיות והמועדים, תצט עמודים

387. אוצר גנזי ש”י, אוסף כתבי יד גדולי ישראל, תשיט+קע עמודים

388. ר’ שמואל יעקב בורנשטיין, אורה ושמחה, חנוכה, תקצז עמודים

389. שער השירים, לסעודת שבת, ר’ משה שלמה מטאלאטשין, תלמיד הגר”א, קסט עמודים

390. מסכת אבות עם פירוש רבינו יונה וביאור יונת אלם לר’ אליהו מזריב, תרסז עמודים

391. ר’ יוסף מיכאל יוסקוביץ, למועד מועדים וחצי, סדר זמנים במקרא, שכד עמודים

392. תקוני הזהר, עם פירוש כסא מלך, ר’ שלום בוזאגלו, תתעח עמודים כולל שני קונטריסים, א’ דברי שלום ואמת {על הרמב”ם} וב’ מאירת עיניים, בנושא של הקמיעות של ר’ יהונתן אייבשיץ, [יח עמודים]

393. ר’ יהודה חיון, אוצרות אחרים הימים, ג-ה

394. ר’ יעקב חאגיז, אור מישור השלם, 39+ קלה עמודים

395. נחותי ימא, שיעורי ר’ משה שפירא על אגדות דרבה בר בר חנה, מהדיר: ר’ יחזקאל הרטמן, תקסד עמודים

396. ר’ דניאל וויינשטאק, הוראת לדעת, עניני אמונה ומלחמת היצר התלוי בו על פי דברי גדולי ישראל, תיט עמודים

397. מלחמה וגאולה, המלחמה הנוכחית וחבלי משיח על פי משנתו של מרן ר’ משה שטרנבוך שליט”א

398. יהודה שוחט ויוסף קלאר, מסכת יציאה, הסיפורים מאחורי תנעות היציאה מהחברה החרדית, 223 עמודים

399. עין לא ראתה, משנת הכוללים ופרנסת האברכים בימינו, תב עמודים

400. תיבת עץ נחלי עדן, מחקר מקיף ובלעדי לגילוי תיבת נח האבודה

401. ר’ דוד הנזיר, חוג הראיה, על אורות הקודש, ז

402. ר’ יעקב קאפל שווארץ, קונטרס שטרא דאירכסא, אודות פירוש רבי יוסף קרא המזויף על יהושע-מלכים, סה עמודים

403. ר’ בנימין טבדי, שבט נחלתו, בירורי הלכה בסוגיות הנוגעות לעם ולארץ [כולל השתתפות תלמידי חכמים במלחמות ישראל]

404. חזון איש, אמונה ובטחון, עם ביאור חזון נפרץ, רעב עמודים

405. חזון איש, אמונה ובטחון, עם ביאור נרחב מקורות אגרות ועיונים, מהדיר: ר’ שלמה קוסובר, רכא עמודים

406. אגרות מהרי”ץ, ר’ יוסף צבי דושינסקיא, תרפד עמודים

407. הלל ויס, ספר המעשים לשוחרי המקדש, [על נסיונות קידום המלכות המקדש והסנהדרין, תשכז-תשפד], 654 עמודים

408. ר’ יצחק אריאל, אבני אריאל, שלד עמודים

409. זמירות שבת, שלמי אריאל, מר’ יצחק אריאלי, קס עמודים

410. דרכי החינוך, מ’בעל בן מלך’, רנו עמודים

קבצים

411. רליגיה, גליון ח

412. המעין 250-253

413. אור ישראל

414. היכל הבעל שם טוב

415. קובץ בית אהרן וישראל [מלא חומר חשוב על ר’ אברהם בן הרמב”ם]

416. ישורון, מח [חומר מעניין]

417. שיננא א, 1023 עמודים [חומר מעניין] [ניתן לקבל תוכן]

418. תחומין, מד

419. מגילות, יז

420. ירושתנו, כרך יג, תשפה, תל עמודים

421. ישורון מט [מעניין]

422. שיננא ב, מאסף תורני, 1375 עמודים [ניתן לקבל תוכן]

423. האוצר, גליון המאה, כריכה קשה, תרסח עמודים

פורים

424. דרך ישרה, הנהגות ודקדוקי הלכה של ר’ שריה דבליצקי, [מצוין], שעה עמודים

425. ספר הליווי בגלות לר’ סעדיה גאון, אסתר, [מכתב יד] מהדורה שנייה

426. כתבי ר’ משה דוד ואלי, אסתר, מכון האוצר

427. ר’ חיים הכהן, בעל ה’טור ברקת’, עטרת זהב אסתר, ב’ חלקים, פשט ופרדס, מכון האוצר

428. אוצר מגילת אסתר, [ספר הביאור לר’ תנחום הירושלמי, חן טוב, אורה ושמחה, ועוד], מהדורה שנייה, מכון האוצר

429. קונטרס פורים המשולש ערב פסח שחל בשבת, ר’ יוסף חיים זוננפלד, עם ביאורים ומקורות

430. ר’ ראובן שווארץ, עמק המן טאשין, עיונים וביאורים בענין אכילת המן טאשין בפורים, [[תשפ”ד], שד עמודים

פסח

431. Rabbi Moshe Hubner, Legacy Hagadah, Fisher Family Edition, Insights from Gedolim whose Torah is Their Legacy, 32+261 pp.

432. הגדות חכמי צפת [חן טוב, צפנת פענח, סדר היום, מדרש שמואל (מכתב יד)], רלב עמודים

433. הגדה של פסח, משיב נפש, פי’ עץ יוסף וענף יוסף מכתב יד

434. ר’ חנוך טוביאס, הגדה של פסח, שואלין ודורשין [חומר מעניין],464 עמודים

435. הגדה של פסח, תפארת יוסף, אוסף של תורתו של ר’ יוסף ענגיל

436. ר’ אליהו מרגליות, הגדת ארץ ישראל, מסע ישראלי, על האמונה והפילוסופיה היהודית, על חרות וגאולה, 258 עמודים [בעל ‘מבריסק עד קוסבה’].

A Little-Known Rabbi Doctor and his Exceedingly Rare Medical Diploma
Leon Cantarini- AKA Yehuda HaKohen Katz Me-HaHazzanim (University of Padua, 1623)

Rabbi Edward Reichman, MD

Professor of Emergency Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Isaac and Bella Tendler Chair of Jewish Medical Ethics, Yeshiva University

“He obtained a degree in medicine and philosophy on 31 October 1623, as can be seen from his original diploma which has been perfectly preserved despite the destructive effects of time.” (translated from the Italian)

Marco Osimo 1875

Original Books and manuscripts of past centuries known to historians throughout the ages have sometimes been lost forever to the ravages of time or war. Every so often, these works disappear from the public eye and are preserved in an intentional or accidental state of hibernation, only to reappear centuries later.

In late 2024, Manfred Niekisch, a German biologist, nature conservationist, and former director of the Frankfurt Zoo, died at the age of 73. He left a vast archive covering a wide range of topics, including taxonomy, ecology, behavior and reproduction of reptiles, amphibians and birds, not a place one would expect to find any items of Jewish interest, let alone of importance.

In April 2025 I was contacted to assess the historical significance of a single item from Niekisch’s massive collection. A thematic outlier, it is a small leatherbound volume, the contents of which comprise a seventeenth century medical diploma, and for a Jewish student, nonetheless. I was enlisted to address whether this item has any unique value or contribution to Jewish or medical history. This article constitutes the substance of my response. We will attempt to breathe a little life into this comatose medical document, resuscitate some long-forgotten and little-known archives, and perform at least a preliminary examination of the life of a remarkable, if little-known, Jewish medical graduate of the Early Modern period.

The Graduate- Leon Cantarini

The name of our graduate is Leon Cantarini. Leon, the son of Shmuel Cantarini, was one of eight children and a member of a prominent dynastic family in Early Modern Italy. Leon was also known as Yehuda HaKohen Katz Me’ha-Hazzanim. The synonymous Italian and Hebrew family name purportedly derives from family members having led the synagogue services as the hazzan, or cantor. Standard literature searches, including main search engines, library databases (such as the National Library Israel), or archival records (such as Internet Archives and Haithi Trust) yield next to nothing about our graduate. The few brief biobibliographical entries for him are scant, inconsistent, and often error filled.

Much of what we know about Leon is found in a comprehensive nineteenth century Italian biography of the Cantarini family by Marco Osimo, himself a medical graduate of Padua centuries later in 1851. This work was seemingly inaccessible or unknown to many of Leon’s biographers. In this essay we draw on the work of Osimo, correct some earlier biographies (including Osimo), and add much important previously unknown archival material to flesh out the existing skeletal biography of Leon Cantarini.

Dates of Birth and Death

Confusion abounds regarding the dates of both Leon’s birth and death. We begin with his date of death, as Leon’s birth date is inferred therefrom. The Jewish Encyclopedia entry for “Cantarini, Judah (Leon) ben Samuel Ha-Kohen,” authored by Louis Ginzberg and Israel Berlin, reads, “Italian physician and rabbi; born about 1650 at Padua; died there April 28, 1694.”[1] While the description is clearly of our graduate, the dates are grossly in error. Perhaps they confused Leon’s date of death with his date of birth. These dates were unfortunately perpetuated by others.[2] Osimo, the definitive biographer of the Cantarini family, places Leon’s date of death in July of 1651 based on a decree from July 20, 1651, announcing the election of Leon’s pupil to a community position, replacing his mentor upon the latter’s death. While this proves that Leon had already died by this date, it does not pinpoint his date of death.

There is a single unexpected, unimpeachable source that states the exact Hebrew date of Leon’s death. Leon’s relative, Isaac Hayyim Cantarini, also a rabbi and graduate of Padua’s medical school, engaged in a correspondence with the Christian theologian Christian Theophil Unger from 1717 to 1719. The exchange was first published by Shadal in his Otzar Nehmad in 1860.[3] While scholars have studied these letters for obvious reasons, they also contain a wealth of biographical information about the Jewish Italian scholars of this period. In a list of the dates of death of a number of prominent members of the Italian Jewish community, we find the following

The date of Leon’s death is listed as 26 Nisan 5410, corresponding to April 27, 1650. He is buried in the ancient (Via Wiel) cemetery of Padua,[4] though his tombstone does not remain.

There is one non-Jewish source, published in 1728, which correctly lists the exact date of Leon’s death.[5]

This is because the Christian author was familiar with the letter exchange of Cantarini and Unger, unlike his Jewish counterparts who only learned of it through the journal of Shadal published over a century later.

There is no independent source confirming the day or year of Leon’s birth. What is known with certainty is that he died at the age of fifty-six, a fact recorded in multiple sources, including a memorial book for the Jewish community of Padua.[6] Since Osimo dated Leon’s death in 1651, he placed his date of birth fifty-six years earlier, “around 1595.” The year 1595 is widely quoted as Leon’s birth year, based on Osimo. Since we now know the exact date of Leon’s death as being in 1650, we would revise his date of birth to “around 1594.”

Leon’s Father’s Name

The name of Leon’s father was Shmuel. Yet, he is also referred to as Simon, including on Leon’s medical diploma (see below). Simon (or Simeon) today is the English name for Shimon. What is the origin of this alternate name. The answer is surprisingly found in the aforementioned letter exchange between Isaac Cantarini and Christian Theophil Unger.

Among the numerous questions posed by Unger to Cantarini is why, for example, Rabbi Menahem Porto is called by the first name Emanuel instead of his Hebrew first name.[7] Cantarini answers that while all Italian Jews have a given Hebrew name, many have an additional secular or vernacular “translation” or substitute for their Hebrew name. He provides two examples. One is the name Mandolin for Menahem. The other is the name of one of his own children: “In my home I have a young child whom I named Shmuel, but in la’az (vernacular) he is called Simon, which is (synonymous with the Hebrew) Shimon.” This analysis of Isaac Cantarini’s child’s name provides direct insight into the double name of Leon’s father, after whom this child was likely named. It appears that while today our English correlate for Shmuel is Samuel, and for Shimon is Simon, at that time Simon was the accepted latinized form for Shmuel.

Leon’s Relationship to Isaac Hayyim Cantarini

The historical record of Leon Cantarini is dwarfed by his more famous relative, Isaac Hayyim Cantarini,[8] whose writings contribute to Leon’s biography as well. Isaac, a physician, rabbi, poet and orator, is one of the towering figures of Early Modern Jewish history. How were Leon and Isaac related? Nepi and Ghirondi identify Isaac as Leon’s “nekhed.”[9] While this typically means grandchild, perhaps they were using the term to mean descendant. Leon was in fact Isaac’s uncle, the brother of Isaac’s father, Ventura Yaakov Yitzchak. Isaac, born in 1644, would have been only six years old at the time of Leon’s death, precluding any substantive personal relationship. Nepi and Ghirondi state that they viewed a eulogy written by Isaac for his uncle Leon.[10] It is unclear to me when this eulogy would have been written, given Isaac’s age at the time of Leon’s death, though perhaps he wrote some form of eulogy when he was older to commemorate his uncle’s yartzheit (anniversary of his death). Isaac clearly had great reverence for his uncle Leon, always referring to him in a highly praiseworthy fashion. In his historical work, Pahad Yitshak, Isaac refers to Leon twice describing him as expert in both Torah and medicine.[11]

Leon Cantarini the Rabbi

Leon obtained his rabbinic ordination in 1618, at the age of twenty-four.[12] Rabbi Judah Saltara, who would later serve as a witness for his medical graduation (see below), was one of the granting rabbis. In the Padua community archives (pinkassim) for the years 1603-1630, his name appears on two occasions (October 28, 1621, and October 31, 1625) in his rabbinic capacity serving as judge for routine community matters.[13] Leon founded a yeshivah in the Ashkenazi synagogue, where he taught Talmud. He also officiated as preacher and delivered sermons and eulogies in both Padua and Venice.

I am aware of only one published responsum from Leon,[14] which he penned to Yaakov ben Yisrael Levi dealing with a dispute between three sons regarding the disposition of their father’s estate after their father had left very explicit and equitable instructions. Leon was clearly well versed in rabbinic literature, citing multiple references to support his position, and dealt among other issues with the propriety of bypassing the biblical requirement to grant a double portion to the firstborn.

Osimo was in possession of numerous rabbinic related manuscripts of Leon in varying stages of completion, the whereabouts of which are unknown to me. These manuscripts include sermons, biblical commentaries, philosophical and theological treatises. As Osimo was not versed in rabbinic literature, he forwarded Leon’s Jewish related manuscripts to a Rabbi Benedetto Levi of the Rabbinical Institute of Padua for evaluation of their content.[15] The text of Rabbi Levi’s response is provided where he comments on Cantarini’s familiarity and facility with rabbinic literature and philosophy and the areas where his work may or may not have exhibited originality. Osimo bases his laudatory comments in his work on Levi’s analysis.

Leon Cantarini the Physician

Leon’s medical degree was from the University of Padua. This university, over 800 years old, plays a prominent role in Jewish medical history.[16] As the first, and for some time only, medical school in Europe to officially admit Jewish students, it was the hub of Jewish medical training from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, during which some 400 Jewish students attended.

Leon graduated from Padua on October 31, 1623. We would be remiss if we did not mention that Leon wasn’t the only Cantarini to walk down the aisle of the Aula Augustiori (Grand Hall) that day to receive his medical diploma. Caliman, his younger brother by two years, graduated right alongside him. These two Cantarini brothers would be the first of a total of eleven members of the Cantarini family who would graduate from Padua over a span of some one hundred and twenty years. There is even an entry in the Padua University Archives which includes both brothers, Clemente (Latinized form of Caliman/Kalman/Kalonymus) and Leo, together.

Leon maintained a large practice among both the Christian and Jewish population of Padua. He is also recognized for his exemplary treatment of the poor, visiting them up to three or four times a day without receiving compensation.

Osimo was in possession of multiple medical manuscripts of Leon, the whereabouts of which today are unknown to me. The medical material he notes as summaries or comments on the works of Hippocrates, Galen and Avicenna, the latter explicitly mentioned in Leon’s diploma, as discussed below, and copies of his medical school lectures.

An entry in the archives of the Venetian Senate mentioning Leon reflects on the challenges and discrimination facing Jews and Jewish physicians at that time. Jews in Italy were obligated to wear distinctive clothing to identify them as members of the Jewish faith.[17] This included a specific color hat, sometimes red, sometimes yellow. This would preclude Leon, or any other Jewish physician, from wearing the black hat (biretta or cappello) which was granted them upon graduation from medical school and associated with the medical profession.[18] On May 15, 1643, Leon requested permission from the Venetian Senate to be exempted from the prohibition against wearing the black cappello on the basis of his medical degree. While Leon’s request was granted, and he was permitted to wear the black cappello both during the day and at night without any hindrance,[19] the Venetian Senate was generally conflicted about whether Jewish physicians should qualify for this exemption.[20] Other Jewish medical graduates of Padua often petitioned for similar exemptions.[21]

Leon Cantarini’s Marriage

On March 10, 1628 Leon married Mindele, daughter of Yosef Kohen Rofeh De Datolis (Tamari). They had three children.[22]

Impact of the Padua Plague of 1631 on Yehudah and the Cantarini Family

Any biographical discussion of Leon would be woefully inadequate, both literally and figuratively, without discussion of the impact on his life of the 1631 Plague in Padua. Indeed, this is exactly how Nepi and Ghirondi introduce his brief biography:[23]

The plague’s toll on the Jewish community of Padua was profound with around a fifty percent fatality. The plague was assiduously chronicled by Abraham Catalano, a physician and one of the administrators of the plague for the Jewish community, in his Olam Hafukh. One of the many remarkable aspects of this unique plague chronicle is Catalano’s scrupulous documentation for posterity of the names of all those involved, including each one of the victims. Catalano includes a passage about the Cantarini family where he singles out our graduate:

After recording the death of Leon’s brothers in the plague, Catalano writes, “May my mouth speak the praise of God[24] that their brother the physician, prominent leader (aluf), Rabbi Yehuda Katz was not present in Padua during the plague, having married a woman from Venice and settling there. He provided aid and assistance (during the plague).”

Though the impact of Leon’s family losses during the 1631 plague is inestimable, there is likely one loss that affected him differently than others. Leon’s brother Caliman was also a physician, having graduated together with him on the very same day. Caliman was living in Padua during the plague and served as a physician for the Jewish community. Acutely aware of the raging and highly fatal epidemic in Padua, and concerned for the welfare of his dear physician brother on the medical battlefield, on July 18, 1631, Leon penned a letter to Caliman, advising him of some effective remedies recommended to overcome the dreaded disease, as well as appropriate precautions to prevent the contracting or spread of the infection.[25] Leon specifically recommended the use of emeralds, which since the Black Death had been considered a cure for plague. Leon emphatically warned his brother to exercise extreme caution and diligence in order to preserve his health. It would be only twelve days after the writing of Leon’s letter, on July 30, that Caliman succumbed to the plague at the age of 38. Below is a record of Caliman’s death in the Libro De Morti, the Padua City Death Registry.

His death is recorded in the city death registry alongside his profession, which was unusual for these records. He is also identified as “ebreo.

In order to fully assess the nature of the impact of the plague on the entire Cantarini dynasty, one would need to carefully read every line of Olam Hafukh and to note every time a member of the Cantarini family is mentioned. It turns out that this work has already been done already, by none other than Isaac Hayyim Cantarini. Isaac painstakingly transcribed the entire manuscript of Olam Hafukh by hand. While this manuscript, housed at Columbia University, is well known to Jewish scholars and historians, there is one “key” factor which has gone overlooked. For every mention of a Cantarini family member in the work, Isaac added a notation shaped like a key, akin to an asterisk, referring the reader to the margin, where he noted how the individual was related to him. Below are some examples:

Shmuel Katz MeHazanim, Isaac’s maternal grandfather, died from the plague 8 Tammuz

Menahem Katz MeHazanim, Isaac’s paternal great uncle died on 22 Tammuz

During the plague Leon lost his father, three brothers and many additional extended family members.

Leon Cantarini and the Venice Plague of 1630

While Leon’s absence from Padua during the 1631 plague is recorded for posterity by Catalano, it is not as if he completed evaded the impact of the Bubonic plague. The impact on his life of the Venetian Plague, which preceded that of Padua by just one year, has gone unnoticed. It is unappreciated that the very same bubonic plague, on its way to Padua, devastated Venice in 1630,[26] where Leon was living at the time.

We know from other sources that a young Jewish physician by the name of Isaac Gedalia served as the physician for the Jewish community of Venice during the plague. This is the same physician who wrote a poem in honor of Leon’s graduation, and Leon would certainly have been in contact with him. Tragically, Gedalia met the same fate as Leon’s brother Caliman, and succumbed to the plague. Gedalia died in 1630 at the age of 32 and is buried in the Lido Cemetery of Venice. His epitaph, composed by Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Modena, reflects his service as a physician to the Jewish community during that time.[27] Below is the epitaph in the autograph of Modena,[28] followed by the transcription of Berliner.[29]

We have not known, however, what medical role if any Leon played in the Venice plague of 1630. Was he simply a bystander, or perhaps worked side by side with Gedalia, his fellow Padua alumnus. Leon’s diploma, discussed below, sheds new light on this question.

Leon Cantarini’s Graduation Diploma

Leon Cantarini’s magnificently bound and meticulously calligraphed medical diploma was ceremoniously placed into his hands on October 31, 1623 accompanied by the traditional pomp and circumstance of the University of Padua graduation. He put it to good use during his lifetime. Over three hundred years later, we find Leon’s diploma in the possession of Marco Osimo, a Padua-trained physician. In his definitive history of the Cantarini family he writes regarding Leon: “He obtained a degree in medicine and philosophy … and his original diploma … has been perfectly preserved despite the destructive effects of time.” The renowned Hungarian Jewish historian David Kaufmann recalled that he had viewed Leon’s diploma at Osimo’s home.[30] The Cantarini biography was published in 1875 and Osimo died in 1881. As the family biographer, Osimo likely procured the diploma from members of the Cantarini family. While details of the journey from Osimo’s home to that of Professor Manfred Niekisch, whose collection contained Leon’s diploma, are unknown, it appears that no one, not Osimo nor Kaufmann, has previously carefully examined Leon’s diploma.

One of the archival items that reflects the unique historical chapter of Jewish medical training at the University of Padua is the medical diploma.[31] Prior to reviewing Leon Cantarini’s diploma, I had identified, in libraries, museums and private collections, eighteen extant diplomas of Jewish medical graduates of the University of Padua, the earliest of which was 1647.[32] One of these is the diploma of Gershon Cantarini (1703),[33] Leon’s grandnephew. Below we review the features found in our “new” graduate’s diploma, as compared to those of his fellow Padua alumni.

Form

Leon’s diploma is a bound quarto booklet with a red Italian tooled leather binding consistent with the typical Padua diploma of this period.

In its original form, a pair of wax seals would have been attached to the binding, as pictured in the diploma of Emanuel di Jacob (Del) Medigo de Dattolis (Menachem Kohen Rofeh Tamari)[34] from 1686,[35] a member of Leon’s wife’s family.[36]

The text is written in period calligraphy appointed with periodic gold leaf lettering. The text of the diploma, written with generous font size and spacing, as well as wide margins, occupies ten double sided pages. This is unusual, as the typical diploma text usually fills four to six sides. 

Content

The diplomas of Jewish medical graduates of Padua contain some deviations from the standard issue. As the standard Padua diploma contained a number of Christian references, the university accommodated the Jewish students by allowing certain alterations or emendations:

1. The invocation was changed from “In Christi Nomine Amen” to “In Dei Aeterni Nomine Amen.” Leon’s diploma conforms to this pattern:

2. The convention for writing the year of the graduation invariably contained a Christian reference, such as anno Domino, anno Christiano, or anno a Christi Nativitate. In many Jewish diplomas this reference is omitted. Here we do not see an alteration of the date and it retains the Christian reference, Anno Christiano.

3. The graduation for the Christian student was held in the Episcopal palace, a religious venue. This is mentioned in the text of the diploma. The graduation for the Jewish student was convened in a non-ecclesiastical location, a fact reflected in the diploma text. Leon’s graduation was held in the “Aula Augustiori” (grand hall) of the university, the largest hall in the university at the time and not designated for religious use.[37]

4. Many diplomas contained ornate illustrations and images, typically of a Christian nature. If the Jewish student diploma were illustrated, it would be with flora and fauna and devoid of any Christian imagery. This diploma has no added illustrations.

5. The identifier “ebreo” or “hebreus” was added for Jewish students. This was a convention followed consistently in Padua, and less so in other European universities. This was not specifically requested by the student, nor was its presence a reflection of antisemitism.

6. Witnesses were required to attest to the graduation. Jewish graduates often enlisted Jewish witnesses. Leon’s three witnesses were Jewish.

The above changes are not found uniformly or consistently in every Jewish student diploma, and Leon’s diploma contains all but one of them.

General Diploma Observations

Chronological Precedence

This is the earliest extant diploma for a Jewish medical graduate of the University of Padua of which I am aware. Previously the earliest extant diploma of this type was from 1647.[38]

During the early centuries of the University of Padua Medical School, doctoral degrees were granted exclusively by the Sacred College of Philosophers and Physicians in a Catholic religious ceremony. Non-Catholics who received training at the university could obtain medical degrees through a different pathway outside of the university walls, granted by specific individuals known as Counts Palatine, who received their authority from the Holy Roman Emperor. These ceremonies were held privately before a notary and witnesses.[39] It was only in 1615 that the Collegio Veneto was established to serve the purpose of granting formal degrees to non-Catholic students and essentially replaced the Counts Palatine. Leon was the fifteenth Jewish graduate after the procedure changed.[40]

Faculty Support for Graduation

In order to graduate, a student required the support of a number of faculty to promote his candidacy. Names of the faculty members promoting the graduate are listed in the diploma. One such faculty member identified in the diploma maintained a unique relationship with Leon and the Jewish community regarding an important aspect of the educational experience of the Jewish medical students.

Caesar Cremonin was a Professor of Philosophy in Padua, as philosophy at this stage of history was an integral part of medical training. In fact, the medical diploma for each graduate, including Leon, certified a degree in “Philosophia et Medicina.”

We know from historical records of the Padua Jewish community that Professor Cremonin served as a university representative to the Jewish community on a matter of utmost significance. Since the expansion of the anatomy curriculum during the tenure of Vesalius in the mid sixteenth century, and the subsequent construction during the time of Fallopius of the first historical dedicated anatomical theater, the demand for cadavers for teaching at the university exponentially increased. The university turned to the student body, including the Jewish students, to provide cadavers from their respective communities. As this request ran counter to Jewish law, which prohibited the desecration of the corpse after death, the Jewish community negotiated a compromise arrangement whereby a fee would be paid to the university in exchange for an exemption to provide cadavers.[41] The following entry appears in the Padua Jewish Community Archives from April 19, 1624.[42]

In that the spirit of God has enlightened the esteemed philosopher Senior Caesar Cremonin to declare freedom (from dissection) for our deceased, through the continued annual designated payment to the College of Arts, generation after generation. As a result, they are obligated to allow us to properly bury our dead during the season of dissection. Any violators will be fined, and they have coordinated with us to obtain from the government permission for a required fine for all who violate this agreement in a way amenable and sufficient for our needs.

The continuation of the archival entry mentions the Jewish community member delegated to negotiate with Cremonin. It is none other than our graduate.

The aforementioned Master Caesar and Yehudah Katz have already spoken on this matter and have begun discussion regarding the amount the Jewish community is willing to pay for this privilege.

The archival entry is dated just a few months after Leon’s (Yehudah’s) graduation, and he was an ideal representative for the community given his preexisting relationship with Cremonin, one of his medical school professors and graduation promoters.

Curriculum

The diploma contains a list of the student’s professors and course subject matter. For example, Leon was taught the works of Avicenna by Professor Francisco Bonardo.

Avicenna (980–1037), known in Hebrew sources as Ibn Sina, was a Persian physician of great renown. His main work, The Canon, was considered the authoritative work on medicine for many centuries and is quoted extensively by rabbinic sources. The only extant Hebrew medical incunabula is a copy of Avicenna’s Canon (Naples, 1491). Many Hebrew manuscripts of Avicenna were found in the Cairo Geniza.[42]

The Identity of the Witnesses

Two of Leon’s witness were prominent local rabbis and are known to us from other sources.

1. Rabbi Jacob Alpron (also known as Helipron or Heilbronn)[44]

Alpron was a Talmudic scholar, author, and translator, most known for his popular work, Mitzvot Nashim,[45] a Hebrew translation of an Italian work on the three mitzvot specific to women, the laws of niddah, hallah, and lighting of Sabbath candles, which, if not observed, “are the three transgressions for which woman die in childbirth” (Shabbat 31b).

2. Rabbi Leon (Yehudah) Saltaro da Fano (1505-1629)[46]

Saltaro was one of the rabbis who granted Leon his rabbinic ordination five years earlier.[47] It must have been meaningful for him to serve as a witness for his student’s medical graduation.

Saltaro authored a work, Sefer Sha’arei Gan Eden, attempting to identify the location of the Garden of Eden.[48] In his Mikveh Israel on the laws of the ritual bath, inter alia, Saltaro provides insight into the Jewish education of students attending the medical school in Padua. He mentions Avtalyon miModena, the uncle of Yehuda Aryeh da Modena, who in addition to his medical studies at the University of Padua, learned Torah in the Yeshiva of Rabbi Meir Katzenelenbogen (Maharam Padua).[49]

In fact, the Jewish Ghetto of Padua was and remains mere steps from the University of Padua campus, and other students over the centuries pursued Torah study with the prominent rabbis of Padua while enrolled in the city’s famous medical school.

Addenda to the Diploma- New Evidence of Leon’s Medical Involvement in the Venice 1630 Plague

It is not uncommon to find handwritten records appended to Padua diplomas documenting subsequent academic or clinical experiences. Occasionally, a student would present his diploma as part of his application for a medical position and the institution would inscribe acceptance or approval on the diploma itself. We find such an entry in Leon’s diploma that sheds some light on his clinical role in the Venice plague. On the inside of the back cover appears the following entry dated August 1630:

The diploma was presented to the Officio di Sanità in Venice (Provveditori e sopraprovveditori alla sanità) and “admesso” (accepted). This was required in order for Leon to practice in Venice. Until now, we have had no evidence of Leon himself practicing medicine during the plague. These few lines reveal that Leon was indeed providing medical service during the Venice 1630 plague, and like his fellow Padua graduates, including Gedalia and his own brother Caliman, put his life at risk in the process. While the latter two succumbed to the plague, Leon was fortunate to survive and to live for another twenty years practicing medicine and teaching Torah.

Congratulatory Poems for Leon’s Graduation

In seventeenth century Italy it was common for Jews to compose celebratory or commemorative poems for a variety of occasions, such as weddings or funerals. One such occasion that precipitated a poetic response was the graduation of Jewish students from the medical school of the University of Padua. I have identified over one hundred such poems written in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, most of which are extant. Rabbi Yehudah Arye Modena compiled an entire book of collected poems in honor of Joseph Hamitz, a fellow graduate of Leon from Padua in 1623.[50]

Sometimes the poems were composed by fellow students or alumni. Isaac Gedalia, a Padua medical graduate of 1622,[51] composed two poems for our graduate, one in Spanish and one in Latin.[52] There is also a record in the Padua city medical archives from April of 1625 of Gedalia treating a number of Jewish patients,[53] one of whom was Jacob Alpron, a witness for Leon’s medical graduation.

April 20 1625
Giacob Alpron Rabi Hebreo di anni 85 in circa ammalato giorni 15 di mal di muchi visitato dall’Ecc.mo Gadilia Hebreo nel ghetto.

Giacob Alpron Rabi Hebreo aged about 85. He was ill for about 15 days with a sore throat [?]. His Excellency Gadilia Hebreo examined him in the Ghetto.[54]

A Diploma for a Rabbi Doctor

Leon was a rabbi by the time he graduated medical school and he is identified as such in his diploma. Just how rare is it find a medical diploma for a rabbi doctor? Throughout history there have numerous attempts to create institutions or formal curricula combining the study of both Torah and Medicine.[55] These initiatives, well intentioned as they may have been, were of only limited duration and success. It was thus left to the individual physician to navigate his Torah study independently, something most physicians did informally. Some however sought more formal training. The Haver degree, a lower and less rigorous form of rabbinic ordination, was one such option. Unlike rabbinic ordination, with its expansive requirements to master specific areas of practical Jewish law, there was no uniform curriculum for the Haver degree.[56] Each location designed its own program. The student would be required to spend a period dedicated to Torah study and display basic competency, as well as character traits consistent with Torah values. Those deemed worthy would receive the title Haver within a few short years or less, typically bestowed by local rabbinic authorities.[57] A number of Padua alumni chose the Haver option,[58] including Leon’s fellow graduate, David Morpurg.[59] We have record of one Padua graduate receiving his Haver degree on the very same day as his medical graduation.[60]

A select few physicians throughout Jewish history chose the more advanced and labor-intensive course of study to obtain rabbinic ordination. These physician-rabbis have garnered the attention of scholars such as Holub,61] Sergei,[62] Epstein,[63] Margalit,[64] Salah,[65] and Steinberg.[66] Of this elite group, a large number received their medical training through apprenticeship, especially prior to the sixteenth century, when, with few exceptions, Jews were barred from university training. There is thus no official diploma to be found for these rabbi doctors.

As the University of Padua was the first European university to officially admit Jewish students and remained a major center of Jewish medical training into the late eighteenth century, many of our rabbi doctors in this period are counted among its alumni.[67] Leon, though less known and not mentioned by the aforementioned scholars, was one of these university-trained rabbi doctors.

Even among this relatively small group of rabbi doctors from Padua, most obtained their rabbinic ordination after completion of their medical training. The average age of the Jewish medical students upon entry to medical school was late teens to early twenties. This would have been too young to obtain rabbinic ordination, which was not typically granted to students of this age.

In 1651, the community of Padua, set specific age requirements for both the Haver and Rabbinic degrees.[68] For unmarried men, the age requirement for Havrut was twenty-five and above, while for married men it was age twenty and above. Rabbinic ordination was restricted to those thirty and above irrespective of marital status, though I am unsure if these age limits were either in force or enforced prior to this date. It is thus rare to find a Padua medical graduate who was already a rabbi at the time of his graduation.

Leon Cantarini is one such example. Born in 1594, Leon obtained his rabbinic ordination in 1618,[69] around the age of twenty-four, and had already been an ordained rabbi for five years by the time he graduated medical school at the (atypical) age of twenty-nine. In his diploma, he is identified as “Rabbi” Leon Cantarini throughout the entire twenty-page text of the diploma.

Of note, in the university records of his graduation, maintained to this day in the archives, he is not identified as a rabbi.

Leo Cantarinius hebreus[70]

Leon’s own brother Caliman, two years his junior, also obtained rabbinic ordination, though we do not know when.[71]

While it was indeed rare for a medical graduate of Padua to have already been a rabbi, another example happens to be one of Leon’s fellow Class of 1623 graduates, Moises Uziel.⁷² We do not possess Uziel’s diploma, but in his archival record, unlike Leon, he is identified as a rabbi.

Rabi Moises Uziel hebreus

Leon’s however is the only extant Padua medical diploma for a rabbi, and I have not seen any other medical diplomas elsewhere where the graduate was identified as a rabbi.

Conclusion

In sum, I hope our resuscitative efforts have been successfully for both Leon Cantarini and his diploma. Leon’s diploma is the earliest known extant diploma of a Jewish medical graduate of the University of Padua, and I believe it is the only extant diploma (of any kind) granted to a rabbi who is identified as such in the text. Furthermore, it possesses nearly all the alterations, accommodations and features that can be found in the diplomas of the Jewish medical graduates of the University of Padua. Moreover, an addition later appended to the document fills an important historical lacuna in Leon’s biography and established his role in the Venice plague of 1630.

While Leon Cantarini’s diploma may be one of the least artistically adorned of the Jewish Padua graduates, it may also be one of the most historically noteworthy. A rare unicum of no mean significance, this diploma sheds light on one of the greatest chapters in Jewish medical history and its resurfacing has afforded us the opportunity to explore the life of a prominent Early Modern rabbi physician. I look forward to the reawakening of other diplomas and archives from their state of hibernation.