עמדתו של הרד"צ הופמן בפולמוס שמן השומשומין: עיון דיאכרוני לאור מקורות חדשים

Translated title of the contribution: Rabbi David Zvi Hoffmann’s Position on Sesame Oil: A Diachronic Study in the Light of New Sources

טובה גנזל, אלי פישר

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Nearly all scholars and writers who have addressed Rabbi David Zvi Hoffmann’s halakhic writings have lamented that the almost complete absence of dates in She’elot u-Teshuvot Melamed Leho’il makes it impossible to chart Rabbi Hoffmann’s development in this field. However,close scrutiny of Rabbi Hoffmann’s vast correspondence and of the chronological record from which Melamed Leho’il was abstracted allows us to begin to reconstruct his development.This paper will demonstrate the sources and methods by which this reconstruction can be accomplished by looking at one particular issue: the status of sesame oil on Passover. Rabbi Hoffmann addresses the question in one lengthy (and composite) responsum in Melamed Leho’il and refers to it obliquely in another. Additional correspondences have come to light more recently, and a newspaper article from the early 1900s completes the picture and demonstrates how Rabbi Hoffmann’s position changed over the course of five years. This is but one example of Rabbi Hoffmann’sevolution as a halakhist when he took up the mantle of posek during the last two decades of his life.
Translated title of the contributionRabbi David Zvi Hoffmann’s Position on Sesame Oil: A Diachronic Study in the Light of New Sources
Original languageHebrew
Pages (from-to)35-46
Number of pages12
Journalאוקימתא
Volume10
StatePublished - 2024

IHP Publications

  • ihp
  • Hametz
  • Jewish law
  • Judaism -- Customs and practices
  • Legumes
  • Responsa
  • Sephardim -- Israel

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