Papers by World Union of Jewish Studies
In cooperation with the Orion Center for the Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls
The World Union of Jewish Studies announces its call for 2021 book publication grant applications... more The World Union of Jewish Studies announces its call for 2021 book publication grant applications. Early career scholars without research funds, who are current WUJS members and have never held a tenured position at a university, may apply for the book publication grant.
The application is now OPEN and will close on Monday, April 5th, 2021.
Ulpan Scholarships for in... more The application is now OPEN and will close on Monday, April 5th, 2021.
Ulpan Scholarships for intensive Hebrew language programmes in Israel (summer 2021) are available for BA, MA and PhD students, and early career scholars of Jewish Studies.
These scholarships have been funded through the generous support of the Rothschild Foundation Hanadiv Europe.
https://www.jewish-studies.org/grants/
Ulpan Scholarships , 2019
For mor infomation: http://www.jewish-studies.org/ulpan_en.ehtml
Books by World Union of Jewish Studies
Rosh Hashana, the Day of Judgment, has been embellished with numerous fascinating liturgical poem... more Rosh Hashana, the Day of Judgment, has been embellished with numerous fascinating liturgical poems (piyyutim). This book is devoted to the compositions that were written for Rosh Hashana by the illustrious poet R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir, who was active in the Land of Israel at the beginning of the seventh century. The piyyutim for Rosh Hashana are many and varied, and they adorn all of the special prayers for the festival. A number of these piyyutim are known and recited to this day in Ashkenazi congregations, while others are published here for the first time. Even those piyyutim that are known from the festival prayer books (mahzorim) are presented here in a new light. The present edition is primarily based not on European mahzorim, but on earlier fragments from the Cairo Genizah; on the basis of such early sources the editors have succeeded in adding new, original material to the known compositions—there is not one famous composition to which heretofore unpublished material has not been added, in some cases throwing new light on the entire work. Even in such cases, therefore, we are not merely offering old wine in new wineskins, but presenting a new blend that confers on the poetic compositions novel aspects, not previously brought to light.
This edition has been prepared on the basis of close to 400 manuscripts, and all of the variant readings have been given in the margins. An extensive commentary aids the reader in understanding the difficult idiom of the payyetan, identifying the many scriptural and midrashic sources that are woven into the piyyutim, and following the development of their themes. A general introduction treats various questions connected to the poems, from their attribution to the author and the reconstruction of the component parts of each composition, to the literary shaping of the material. In his piyyutim, R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir treats Rosh Hashana in all of its aspects: the Day of Judgment, the blowing of the shofar; the malkhiyot, zikhronot, and shofarot verses; the merit of the Fathers; and more. A number of compositions are specially intended for when Rosh Hashana falls on the Sabbath. Qillir’s unique method in the shaping of each of these themes is also clarified in the introduction. The complex web of interrelations between the piyyutim and their literary sources is elucidated as well; thus it has become clear, for example, that one of the piyyutim edited here for the first time throws new light on the famous poem, U-netane toqef qedushat ha-yom.
“O King, Remember [the ram] caught [by its] horn!” These few words from one of the piyyutim published in the book reveal the genius of the great payyetan. Here, R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir has succeeded in encapsulating in four words the three great themes that lie at the heart of the benedictions that are unique to Rosh Hashana—kingship, remembrance and the ram’s horn (shofar)—all in the form of a prayer that beseeches God to remember for our sakes, on the Day of Judgment, the Binding of Isaac, symbolized by the ram whose horns are caught in the thicket. And if in four words the payyetan has managed to encapsulate such far-flung meanings, one can only imagine the riches contained in this enormous collection of R. El‘azarʼs writings for the Day of Judgment, which we now have before us.
The book Ahava ba-Ta¢anugim - (Love In delights) was written during the years 1353- 1356 by Rabbi... more The book Ahava ba-Ta¢anugim - (Love In delights) was written during the years 1353- 1356 by Rabbi Moses Ben Judah. It is a huge and comprehensive encyclopedia of Aristotelian physics and metaphysics and includes also a substantial theological section. Nevertheless, Ahavah ba-Ta¢anugim is far from being a simple compendium of the Aristotelian sciences and a mere summary of its corpus. Its author discusses and explains each scientific topic in a creative and innovative way. Some of his innovative explanations on matter, atoms, time and motion, have no source in the classical Aristotelian literature, and deviate from the whole Aristotelian system. These innovations contributed to the development of sciences of the author's days and they reflect new trends of the study of Aristotle’s philosophy of nature among the 14th century scholars. These trends paved the ground for modern science that, as modern scholarship observed, did not emerge ex nihilo, but had its roots in the criticism of Aristotelian science in the 14th century.
The current book is a critical edition of the first seven discourses of the first part of the encyclopedia, which deals with physics. Each discourse deals with one scientific topic and includes some biblical commentarial chapters that aim to show the harmony between the scientific topic and the Torah and to expose the secrets that were hinted by Ibn Ezra, Maimonides and Nachmanides in their treatises.
The edition includes an introduction which presents a general overview of the treatise: its period, place and its purpose, its sources and its approach. The introduction also describes and explains the content of the seven discourses presented in the edition and highlights its innovations and main original explanations.
Critical Edition - Introduction and Commentary by Esti Eisenmann.
This fascinating work represents the peak of philosophical, allegorical interpretation of the Mid... more This fascinating work represents the peak of philosophical, allegorical interpretation of the Middle Ages. The book by Rabbi Levi rests on Talmudic, midrashic, halakhic, rich philosophical and scientific sources, and evokes admiration in its readers, who are left impressed by the scope of the author's knowledge and fertile imagination.
Towards the end of the thirteenth century,the Provençal Jewish philosopher R. Levi ben Avraham wrote aunique treatise – an in-depth Hebrew encyclopedia of the sciences and of Judaism entitled LivyatḤen. R. Levi was known already in his lifetime as a leading exponent of the philosophical-allegorical interpretation of the Torah and of rabbinic midrash. In the Jewish part of his encyclopedia he deals with a myriad of topics, including Jewish ethics, prophecy, the reasons for the commandments, the stories of Moses and the patriarchs, the principles of faith, the Work of Creation, the Work of the Chariot, and the interpretation of rabbinic midrash and aggadah. Prior to LivyatḤenR. Levi wrote an encyclopedic poem of over 1000 stanzas in rhymed meter entitled Batei ha-Nepheshve-ha-Laḥashim. This poem is devoted to the same topics in science and Judaism that are later discussed in great detail in his treatise.
This book presents three hundred pieces added by Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (Nachmanides) to his com... more This book presents three hundred pieces added by Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (Nachmanides) to his commentary on the Torah when he made aliyah to Israel at the end of his life. The added segments were identified according to update lists sent by Nachmanides himself and others to the Diaspora, as well as on the basis of extensive comparative examination of all the hand-written transcripts of Nachmanides’ interpretation of the Torah found today in the world (about fifty in number). There is a comprehensive introduction at the beginning of the book, that discusses the phenomenon of the additions and analyzes the findings of the hand-written transcripts and surveys the reasons and for these additional pieces. The bulk of the book is comprised of interpretive discussions detailed in every piece, whose purpose is to clarify Nachmanides’ motives when making additions to what he first wrote. In the book itself – and the website that accompanies it – detailed information is presented about the additions and the evidence of them in the list of additions and the hand-written transcripts. The awareness of the commentary’s formation by those who studied the commentary, both at large and specifically for each particular piece, adds a new dimension to the commentary, and is a significant contribution to understanding the way of Nachmanides, to solving problems in his sayings and clarifying his intent. To this end, the book is a very important tool for scholars of Nachmanides, Torah learners and lovers.
Meir of Rothenburg (c. 1215 – 2 May 1293) was a German Rabbi and poet, a major author of the tosa... more Meir of Rothenburg (c. 1215 – 2 May 1293) was a German Rabbi and poet, a major author of the tosafot on Rashi's commentary on the Talmud. He is also known as Meir ben Baruch, the Maharam of Rothenburg His responsa are of great importance to advanced students of the Talmud, as well as to students of Jewish life and customs of the 13th Century.
This commentary was first published in 1855 in the Aharon Yelink Edition of the 32 Hamburg manusc... more This commentary was first published in 1855 in the Aharon Yelink Edition of the 32 Hamburg manuscripts and was welcomed happily by the Jewish Sages of that generation, however it was quickly forgotten and its relation to RASHBAM was distrusted. The damaged edition, in which it was published, did not benefit it either, and it hardly left any impression on the Biblical research of the new age. The current essay is a revised scientific edition of the commentary, based on all the known wording testimonies known today: 3 complete manuscripts, 2 segments of other manuscripts and another written testimony of another manuscript which we do not hold. The commentary's edition is preceded by a comprehensive preface which deals with a wide range of subjects: identifying the commentary's author, its affinity to other essays by RASHBAM, the sources of the commentary…, the literary aspects of the commentary, allegoric commentary of SONG OF SONGS and his message according to his time and era, verbal issues in the commentary and an introduction to this edition…
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Papers by World Union of Jewish Studies
Ulpan Scholarships for intensive Hebrew language programmes in Israel (summer 2021) are available for BA, MA and PhD students, and early career scholars of Jewish Studies.
These scholarships have been funded through the generous support of the Rothschild Foundation Hanadiv Europe.
https://www.jewish-studies.org/grants/
Books by World Union of Jewish Studies
This edition has been prepared on the basis of close to 400 manuscripts, and all of the variant readings have been given in the margins. An extensive commentary aids the reader in understanding the difficult idiom of the payyetan, identifying the many scriptural and midrashic sources that are woven into the piyyutim, and following the development of their themes. A general introduction treats various questions connected to the poems, from their attribution to the author and the reconstruction of the component parts of each composition, to the literary shaping of the material. In his piyyutim, R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir treats Rosh Hashana in all of its aspects: the Day of Judgment, the blowing of the shofar; the malkhiyot, zikhronot, and shofarot verses; the merit of the Fathers; and more. A number of compositions are specially intended for when Rosh Hashana falls on the Sabbath. Qillir’s unique method in the shaping of each of these themes is also clarified in the introduction. The complex web of interrelations between the piyyutim and their literary sources is elucidated as well; thus it has become clear, for example, that one of the piyyutim edited here for the first time throws new light on the famous poem, U-netane toqef qedushat ha-yom.
“O King, Remember [the ram] caught [by its] horn!” These few words from one of the piyyutim published in the book reveal the genius of the great payyetan. Here, R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir has succeeded in encapsulating in four words the three great themes that lie at the heart of the benedictions that are unique to Rosh Hashana—kingship, remembrance and the ram’s horn (shofar)—all in the form of a prayer that beseeches God to remember for our sakes, on the Day of Judgment, the Binding of Isaac, symbolized by the ram whose horns are caught in the thicket. And if in four words the payyetan has managed to encapsulate such far-flung meanings, one can only imagine the riches contained in this enormous collection of R. El‘azarʼs writings for the Day of Judgment, which we now have before us.
The current book is a critical edition of the first seven discourses of the first part of the encyclopedia, which deals with physics. Each discourse deals with one scientific topic and includes some biblical commentarial chapters that aim to show the harmony between the scientific topic and the Torah and to expose the secrets that were hinted by Ibn Ezra, Maimonides and Nachmanides in their treatises.
The edition includes an introduction which presents a general overview of the treatise: its period, place and its purpose, its sources and its approach. The introduction also describes and explains the content of the seven discourses presented in the edition and highlights its innovations and main original explanations.
Critical Edition - Introduction and Commentary by Esti Eisenmann.
Towards the end of the thirteenth century,the Provençal Jewish philosopher R. Levi ben Avraham wrote aunique treatise – an in-depth Hebrew encyclopedia of the sciences and of Judaism entitled LivyatḤen. R. Levi was known already in his lifetime as a leading exponent of the philosophical-allegorical interpretation of the Torah and of rabbinic midrash. In the Jewish part of his encyclopedia he deals with a myriad of topics, including Jewish ethics, prophecy, the reasons for the commandments, the stories of Moses and the patriarchs, the principles of faith, the Work of Creation, the Work of the Chariot, and the interpretation of rabbinic midrash and aggadah. Prior to LivyatḤenR. Levi wrote an encyclopedic poem of over 1000 stanzas in rhymed meter entitled Batei ha-Nepheshve-ha-Laḥashim. This poem is devoted to the same topics in science and Judaism that are later discussed in great detail in his treatise.
Ulpan Scholarships for intensive Hebrew language programmes in Israel (summer 2021) are available for BA, MA and PhD students, and early career scholars of Jewish Studies.
These scholarships have been funded through the generous support of the Rothschild Foundation Hanadiv Europe.
https://www.jewish-studies.org/grants/
This edition has been prepared on the basis of close to 400 manuscripts, and all of the variant readings have been given in the margins. An extensive commentary aids the reader in understanding the difficult idiom of the payyetan, identifying the many scriptural and midrashic sources that are woven into the piyyutim, and following the development of their themes. A general introduction treats various questions connected to the poems, from their attribution to the author and the reconstruction of the component parts of each composition, to the literary shaping of the material. In his piyyutim, R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir treats Rosh Hashana in all of its aspects: the Day of Judgment, the blowing of the shofar; the malkhiyot, zikhronot, and shofarot verses; the merit of the Fathers; and more. A number of compositions are specially intended for when Rosh Hashana falls on the Sabbath. Qillir’s unique method in the shaping of each of these themes is also clarified in the introduction. The complex web of interrelations between the piyyutim and their literary sources is elucidated as well; thus it has become clear, for example, that one of the piyyutim edited here for the first time throws new light on the famous poem, U-netane toqef qedushat ha-yom.
“O King, Remember [the ram] caught [by its] horn!” These few words from one of the piyyutim published in the book reveal the genius of the great payyetan. Here, R. El‘azar berabbi Qillir has succeeded in encapsulating in four words the three great themes that lie at the heart of the benedictions that are unique to Rosh Hashana—kingship, remembrance and the ram’s horn (shofar)—all in the form of a prayer that beseeches God to remember for our sakes, on the Day of Judgment, the Binding of Isaac, symbolized by the ram whose horns are caught in the thicket. And if in four words the payyetan has managed to encapsulate such far-flung meanings, one can only imagine the riches contained in this enormous collection of R. El‘azarʼs writings for the Day of Judgment, which we now have before us.
The current book is a critical edition of the first seven discourses of the first part of the encyclopedia, which deals with physics. Each discourse deals with one scientific topic and includes some biblical commentarial chapters that aim to show the harmony between the scientific topic and the Torah and to expose the secrets that were hinted by Ibn Ezra, Maimonides and Nachmanides in their treatises.
The edition includes an introduction which presents a general overview of the treatise: its period, place and its purpose, its sources and its approach. The introduction also describes and explains the content of the seven discourses presented in the edition and highlights its innovations and main original explanations.
Critical Edition - Introduction and Commentary by Esti Eisenmann.
Towards the end of the thirteenth century,the Provençal Jewish philosopher R. Levi ben Avraham wrote aunique treatise – an in-depth Hebrew encyclopedia of the sciences and of Judaism entitled LivyatḤen. R. Levi was known already in his lifetime as a leading exponent of the philosophical-allegorical interpretation of the Torah and of rabbinic midrash. In the Jewish part of his encyclopedia he deals with a myriad of topics, including Jewish ethics, prophecy, the reasons for the commandments, the stories of Moses and the patriarchs, the principles of faith, the Work of Creation, the Work of the Chariot, and the interpretation of rabbinic midrash and aggadah. Prior to LivyatḤenR. Levi wrote an encyclopedic poem of over 1000 stanzas in rhymed meter entitled Batei ha-Nepheshve-ha-Laḥashim. This poem is devoted to the same topics in science and Judaism that are later discussed in great detail in his treatise.
This book traces the historical development of the list. The author has culled previously unknown versions of this list--from manuscripts, early piyyutim, and other surprising sources. All these versions of the list are discussed in detail; a synoptic analysis of each fast, as presented in the various sources, attempts to solve some of the riddles presented by the texts. Towards the end of the book, a detailed chapter deals with the complex occurrences of the list in halachic literature. The final chapter sets out the internal structure of the list; Attempts to arrive at its original form; and maps its metamorphoses through time.
The Piyyutim presented in the book are accompanied by textual variants and detailed commentary. Comprehensive introductions to the poems discuss the poet and his works, their designations and references, patterns, their literary language, content, literary sources, as well as early customs that can be learned from them. The discussion brings up Hebrew words that have not been written before. Many long-forgotten Midrashim are exposed and authentic Halakhic customs from the Land of Israel are revealed, such as the calculation of the Hebrew calendar and early fasting traditions. First and foremost, this collection of Rabbi Pinhas' Piyyutim brings back one of the greatest poets of Israel to Hebrew literature and allows the readers to enjoy his rich poetry again.
Edited and commented by Shulamit Elizur.
The current book is a critical edition of the first seven discourses of the first part of the encyclopedia, which deals with physics. Each discourse deals with one scientific topic and includes some biblical commentarial chapters that aim to show the harmony between the scientific topic and the Torah and to expose the secrets that were hinted by Ibn Ezra, Maimonides and Nachmanides in their treatises.
The edition includes an introduction which presents a general overview of the treatise: its period, place and its purpose, its sources and its approach. The introduction also describes and explains the content of the seven discourses presented in the edition and highlights its innovations and main original explanations.
Critical Edition - Introduction and Commentary by Esti Eisenmann.
The poems are printed in their entirety, with variant manuscripts readings and detailed notes. The book opens with an introduction that describes each cycle in detail and examines the development of the genre over the generations.
מידע ופרטים נוספים על תהליך ההגשה ניתן למצוא באתר האיגוד: https://www.jewish-studies.org/.../%d7%a7%d7%95%d7%a0%d7
We are happy to announce the call for papers for The
18th World Congress of Jewish Studies. 🥳
More information can be found here:
https://www.jewish-studies.org/congress-2