Posts by Zachary Edinger
54 posts
Thinking about the word Tallit recently: or as William Jeuda De Oliveira often takes the time to "point" out - talēt /talé.Jastrow says the pointing is with a patah and hiriq (and dagesh in the lamed - therefore "Tallit"). And that the etymology of Tallit is טלל. But William's colloquial pronunciation got me wondering if the etymology could be from טלה.... maybe being connected to lambs wool?Any...
Shearith Israel is looking for a Youth Director. If you know anyone appropriate - please let them know about this posting.[https://jewishjobs.com/jobs/view/55198](https://jewishjobs.com/jobs/view/55198)
Noam Sienna has been asking if there is any genealogical information about Meir b. Netanel Crescas who lived c. 1600 in Algeria - but also seems to have travelled extensively through the Sephardic Diaspora - especially Amsterdam and Hamburg.Do we know have any genealogies about the Crescas family - Michael Waas Ton Tielen?
Another question about titles: (Especially for Salomon Vaz Dias or others familiar with Hashcabot and Aliyot)Who gets the honorific "HaNe'elah"? And who gets the honorofic "haNekhbad"? - Do these have specific meaning?
3 related questions:1) Can anyone tell me about the title "Ribbi" as used in Amsterdam? In particular by the Ets Haim Yeshibah. What did it signify?2) Are there any lists of students and the titles they attained or were conferred by Ets Haim? I.e. are there archival records about individual students at the Ets Haim yeshiba in Amsterdam?or lists of students?3) Can you point me to any good sources ...
**Annual Memorial Prayer for Jews Left Behind**This Shabbat,** **Shearith Israel will recite a special *Hashcaba *in memory of Jews from Arab lands who were "left behind" and whose burial places can no longer be easily visited.In 2014, November 30 was established as a **Day of Commemoration for the Jewish refugees from Arab countries and Iran**. This is a day to remember and mourn the ending of Je...
**Annual Memorial Prayer for Jews Left Behind**This Shabbat,** **Shearith Israel will recite a special *Hashcaba *in memory of Jews from Arab lands who were "left behind" and whose burial places can no longer be easily visited.In 2014, November 30 was established as a **Day of Commemoration for the Jewish refugees from Arab countries and Iran**. This is a day to remember and mourn the ending of Je...
Call for papers. Hope to see you in NY for this important conference this coming May!תזכו לשנים רבות!
In re: Evening Selichot:Much has been said about this practice - but I don't think anyone has yet connected this form of selichot to a similar selichot recitation (Kabbalistic in origin) that is said among some people (not S&P) on Ereb Rosh Hodesh (Seder Yom Kippur Qatan) - from what I can tell the form of the Seder Yom Kippur Qatan is very similar to our evening selihot - with a few extra poems (...
I have a congregant who is looking to sell (or donate to a sephardic congregation) a valuable sefer Torah written in the S&P style, likely from Amsterdam in the 19th century. Serious inquiries only- please message me privately.
I noticed in the KKTT inventory of 1640 (published by Julie Marte Cohen) the name of a certain Hakham Zavarro. Has anyone come across his name before? Do we know anything about him? Ton Tielen William Jeuda De Oliveira
I think the Admins of this group work very hard to maintain this page as a place of respectful discourse on the topic of Western Sephardic tradition. They are sometimes confronted with dillemas - such as when or whether to remove someone from the group. In a group this large (1400+) this is not at all easy. I want to express my appreciation for the hard work and tough calls that are made by the...
We are very happy to have מכון אות inventorying Shearith Israel's Sifrei Torah. We're learning a lot about our sefarim.
A 1926 photograph of the Spanish & Portuguese synagogue in Hamburg decorated for Shabu'ot. (From the Shearith Israel Archives)
At the back of my Gaster (but not the later Gaon edition) is printed the order of service for a special appeal on behalf of the Hospital Fund. Does this fund still exist? Is there still an appeal? Can anyone shed some background context on this "service"?
The megilah that was read from this evening in Shearith Israel was a beautiful and historic scroll. Donated to the congregation by Rebecca Machado Phillips after the death of her husband, Jonas Phillips. The scroll itself dates from the 18th century. Quite special!
From the NY Herald Tribune: March 3, 1841
Just got an email about an upcoming event of interest to this group: I wish I could attend, alas לבי במזרח ואנכי בסוף מערב. Perhaps some of you in Israel will be able to go.*******The Istanbuli Synagogue, Sha'are Ratzon, its friends, and the general public, are invited to a special talk by independent researcher Ton Tielen this coming Sunday March 17. "Support from Amsterdam and London for Eretz...
Come to Shearith Israel this Wednesday evening for a class about Shem Tob Gaguine!
Question: What is the S&P Minhag for observing a nahala in a leap year?Generally: Ashkenazim observe an Adar anniversary in Adar I while Sephardim observe Adar anniversaries in Adar II (veAdar.) Some people actually observe it in both months. A good overview of the sources is here: http://www.schechter.edu/when-a-person-passed-away-in-adar-when-is-the-yahrzeit-observed-in-a-leap-year/I had th...
We have a bit of a debate going on among several long time Shearith Israel members whether or not the Kahal stands for the final verse of each book of the Torah (after which we recite Hazaq veNithazaq, Hizku veYaametz Libabkhem Kol haMeyachalim ladonai.)What is the custom in your synagogue? Does the Kahal stand for the last verse?[Extra credit if you know of any sources indicating this custom one ...
The word ולבכותה at Genesis 23:2 (this week's parasha) has a special diminished kaf. Almost all modern torah scrolls have this special letter. It is attested to in many Masoretic sources -but not all - it is absent from the Leningrad Codex. I took a look at our oldest sefer torah here in Shearith Israel and was surprised to find that kaf appears not to be especially small. Wondering if others w...
More on the 'ayin (ngayin):I don't dispute the respected opinions and scholarship of our learned members Aron Sterk and Catriel Ceballos. Indeed, the majority of modern scholarship attributes the velar nasal (or palatal nasal of the French Portuguese) pronunciation of the 'ayin to a borrowing of the Portuguese Jews from the Italian in the 17th c. But my point has been and continues to be that thi...
Shearith Israel's sukkah. Mo'adim leSimha!
From Kal Nidre. The sanctuary photos were pulled from our security cameras and don't do justice to the service. But you can get a sense of its grandeur.