560) What Can We Learn From the Writing Style of Kabbalistic Source Books?

This is another guest post by Rabbi Boruch Clinton, and originally appeared on his B'chol D'rachecha site.

(I asked Rabbi Clinton to share his fascinating and original thoughts on the stylistic underpinnings of our mystical texts, not only because so much of his writing resonates with me, but also because I have never before seen a theory of mysticism expressed in such a forthright manner - Gavin Michal)

Many years ago, a Torah scholar speaking at a public gathering I attended said some strange things. Everything sounded fine until you spent a moment thinking about it. As an example, he insisted that “Rabbi S.R. Hirsch and the Baal Hatanya translated the word הלל identically.”

Now that’s simply untrue. R’ Hirsch’s translation of הלל is on the record and it bears no resemblance to the translation reported in the speech.1 It’s not as though there are any political points to be made here one way or the other, it’s just incorrect. I said nothing at the time, but I quietly wondered why that rabbi would have said such nonsense.

559) The murder of Rabbi Avraham Kohn: A contested history

R. Avraham Kohn 1807-1848

Introduction

This article examines the contested history surrounding the murder of R. Avraham Kohn on September 6, 1848. He was a student of the Chief Rabbi of Prague, Shmuel Landau, who ordained him in 1831. He was also a graduate of Charles University of Prague. R. Kohn, himself,  later became the Chief Rabbi of Lemberg (Lviv). 

The story

Jewish Encyclopedia

According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, we are left with more questions than answers concerning the murder of R. Kohn: 

“[W]hile the better element [of Jewish society] rallied about him, the enemies of culture and progress [i.e. the radical Orthodox] were actively engaged in embittering his life and in undermining his growing popularity. Impelled by unbounded fanaticism, and encouraged by the lawless conditions [during the civil unrest] prevailing in 1848, they finally concocted a plan to take Kohn's life. On Sept. 6, 1848, a man, hired by the fanatical clique, entered Kohn's kitchen and poisoned the dinner. While the other members of his family recovered, Kohn and his youngest child died the following day. A wearisome trial ensued; but for some unknown reasons it was suppressed” (Jewish Encyclopedia 1906:534). 

558) The Temple Mount in Religious Zionism: Yesterday’s radicals - today’s moderates?

Hishtachavaya (full body prostration) on the Temple Mount. Just three years ago, this act would have led to immediate ejection.  

Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Professor Isaac Hershkowitz—examines the transformation of the Temple Mount from a previously marginal symbol to a current central component of Religious Zionism. 

Until about two decades ago, the need to ascend the Temple Mount was not a primary concern for Religious Zionism. Today, however, it shapes the contemporary political, theological and messianic discourse (Hershkowitz 2026:2). With the demographic rise in the religious sector in general, and the Religious Zionist sector in particular, the question of the Temple Mount is likely to assume an increasingly prominent role in all future Israeli narratives. 

557) The Roaring Lion returns: A contemporary polemic against Jewish mysticism

The Roaring Lion by R. Leon of Modena

Note: This article examines Jewish mysticism and Kabbalah from a historical, psychological and analytical perspective. If you prefer not to read such treatments of mysticism, you may wish to skip this piece. 

Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Lippman Bodoff—examines the highly contested roots of Medieval Jewish mysticism. I started writing this article twice and then stopped. This was because I know that some of the ideas expressed in it will be challenging to some, particularly in an era where mysticism has become mainstream Judaism. For many (including myself from the early age of thirteen), mysticism, specifically in the incarnation of modern Chassidism, had been the portal through which we returned to Torah Judaism. 

556) The Babylonian Talmud in its original Persian-Iranian context

Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Professor Shai Secunda—explores aspects of the cultural, legal and spiritual background to the Babylonian Talmud. The title of this Talmudic corpus, ‘Babylonian Talmud’ is in itself interesting because it was not produced in Babylonia as many assume, but rather in Sasanian Persia (modern-day Iran). The Babylonian Talmud, or Talmud Bavli, is most often studied in yeshivot, where the cultural context of this foundational work of Jewish literature is usually overlooked. In yeshiva environments, the importance and extraordinary authority of the Babylonian Talmud is frequently regarded as Divine and sometimes accorded a status equal to or above the Torah itself (Secunda 2018: at 2 min). 

555) Resisting the friendship impulse: Relationships in the teachings of Ishbitz

Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Professor Israel Koren—explores a most unusual approach to sociability, friendship and family, in the teachings R. Mordechai Yosef Leiner of Izbica (Ishbitz) (1800-1854). He dramatically broke away from the warm, traditional Chassidic conception of interpersonal relationships, which had previously been regarded positively as both reflective of, and parallel to, union with the Divine. Instead, he promoted a decidedly anti-social stance where sociability was scorned. Today, the Ishbitzer’s work, Mei haShiloach, is very popular. However, R. Mordechai’s striking ambivalence toward human friendship and companionship goes mostly unnoticed. Koren’s study of the Isbitzer’s distinct asociality contributes to a fuller understanding of the writings of Ishbitz. 

554) Rabbinic perspectives on honour killings

The Bat Rabim collection of manuscripts in the Russian State Library.

Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Dr Moti Benmelech—examines rabbinic perspectives on honour killings. It traces the fraught process by which some rabbis tried to reconcile local honour codes with Jewish law and practice, while others resisted and pushed back to deliberately limit its reach to uphold Jewish legal and moral standards. 

Honour Killings

An honour killing, or shame killing, typically refers to the murder of a female family member by a male relative, who believes she has behaved immorally, committed adultery, or otherwise brought shame upon the family. Such killings are intended to preserve or restore the family’s perceived honour and reputation. The phenomenon persists to this day, and according to the UN, five thousand girls and women are killed each year in honour‑related violence. 

553) The forgotten legacy of Philo of Alexandria

 Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Rabbi Dovid Campbell—examines the often-overlooked intellectual legacy and deep influence of Philo Judaeus of Alexandria (20 BCE-50 CE) on later Jewish thought. Philo, a leader of “the largest Jewish community of the first century,” may have been “one of history’s most influential Jews”. He laid solid foundations for “the entire stream of Western philosophy, including its religious and distinctively Jewish branches” (Campbell 2024:42). Essentially, Philo was an early, if not the first, thinker to understand the Torah as speaking the language of philosophy behind the plain meaning of its text. For Philo, Torah was philosophy. At this stage in Jewish history, Torah meant Tanach or Bible, because the rabbinic or Talmudic period was just beginning. Philo introduced numerous philosophical ideas into Judaism that changed its shape forever, but the man behind these contributions was lost to Jewish history. Today, we only know about Philo because other religious traditions preserved his work. In fact, many of his forgotten contributions have unknowingly become part of the very fabric of contemporary Orthodox Judaism, to the extent that those who disregard them would—to this day—almost certainly be considered as espousing heretical views. Campbell’s groundbreaking research expounds on this peculiar irony. 

552) The added blessing in the Amidah: Who are we cursing?

 

Kefar Sachnin in Galilee

Introduction:

This article—based extensively on the research by Professor R. Reuven Kimelman[1]—examines the twelfth of the eighteen (today nineteen) blessings of the Amidah, in an attempt to establish just who it is referring to. The nature of the ‘blessing’ is more of a curse and a petition for this community (or these communities) to “instantly perish.” The text of this prayer—which is today known as Bircat haMinim (Blessing denouncing the Heretics)—becomes a fascinating window into Jewish perceptions of the need to exclude the ‘other’ during the first century CE. The question is: who is this unnamed ‘other’ (or ‘others’)? 

551) R. Joseph Ber Soloveitchik’s adaptation of German Volk elements.

R. Yosef Ber Soloveitchik in 1944

Introduction

This article—based extensively on the research by Professor Daniel Herskowitz[1]—examines how certain elements of Germanic Volkish (volk = folk) thought, circulating in interwar Germany, are evident in the writings of R. Yosef Ber Soloveitchik, also known as the Rav (1903-1993). Volkism was a folk, cultural, and ideological movement which began in Germany in the late 19th century. R. Soloveitchik studied cultural themes that also appeared in Volkish and later National Socialist discourse, but R. Soloveitchik’s use was philosophical, not political. To be clear, although R. Soloveitchik adopted Volkish thought, he severely criticised it when it became politicised, adopted and weaponised by the Nazi party in Germany in the 1930s. Nevertheless, Volkism did indeed become the basis of the National Socialist movement in Germany. 

550) Likutei Halachot: Reinterpreting Halacha as a means to connect with the Tzadik

My copy of Likutei Halachot by R. Natan Sternhartz

Introduction

This article—drawing extensively on the research by Dr Leore Sachs-Shmueli[1]—examines the nineteenth-century Chassidic work, Likutei Halachot, by R. Natan Sternhartz of Nemirov (1780-1844). R. Natan worked on his manuscript of Likutei Halachot for forty years, from 1806 to two days before his passing in 1844. His autograph (i.e., original) manuscript is housed in the  National Library of Israel. This work by R. Natan, the foremost student of R. Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810), essentially redefines Halachic practice as a mnemonic (memory system) and theurgic (spiritually manipulative) means of connecting with the Tzadik, R. Nachman of Breslov (or more accurately Bratslav).

549) From Serafim to Sefirot: The Kedusha and the rise of human participation in the cosmic drama

The Kedusha in a 1745 Siddur according to the custom of the Arizal

Introduction

This article—drawing extensively on the research by Dr Leore Sachs-Shmueli—examines a fundamental shift in the mystical interpretation of the Kedusha, recited during the communal repetition of the Amidah (standing prayer). The Kedusha, with its liturgy dating to the fifth century CE (Fleischer 1998:305), was understood in early Jewish mysticism—particularly the Heichalot and Merkavah literature beginning from around the second century CE—as an opportunity for earthly worshippers to imitate and mimic the prayers of the heavenly angels who united heaven and earth through their recital of the Kedusha. In this ancient framework, human prayer was conceived as an echo of the primary celestial liturgy. However, with the emergence of the Zoharic corpus in the late thirteenth century (the Zohar first circulated around 1290), a significant theological shift took place. The angels, who were once conceptualised as being central to the Kedusha, were now relegated to the margins, while humanity assumed the pivotal role in a cosmic drama that sought to unite heaven and earth.