Glosses

Type: Commentary

Rabbi Elijah ben Solomon, the "Ga'on" of Vilna

• About the Author

  Rabbi Elijah was an intellectual giant who devoted his entire life to study. His only involvement in communal affairs was his virulent campaign against the nascent Hasidic movement, which he saw as a threat to the traditional Jewish reverence for learning.

  Rabbi Elijah (commonly known by his acronym "GeR"A" =Ga'on Rabbi Eliyahu]), contributed to many areas of Rabbinic learning, encompassing the full range of Rabbinic texts, including several works that were rarely studied in the academies of his day. He also composed a series of annotations to the Shulhan Arukh law code, as well works on science and mathematics.

• Dates

  1720-1797

• Place

  Vilna, Lithuania

• Description

  Brief emendations of the text, without explanations.

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Type: Commentary

"Hagahot Ha-Ba"H"

• About the Author

  Rabbi Joel Sirkes was known primarily for his detailed commentary on Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's Tur, which he entitled "Bayit Hadash" (=New House). The acronym of that title, Ba"H, came to be applied to its author. Hence his glosses to the Talmud are called "Hagahot [=glosses of] ha-Ba"H."

• Dates

  1561-1640

• Place

  Poland

• Description

  Textual corrections to the Talmud and commentators, usually improvements of syntax and language.

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Type: Commentary

Type: Navigational Aid

Glosses by Rabbi Isaiah (Pick) Berlin

• About the Author

  He composed glosses and critical notes on many classical Rabbinic works, and served as a voice of moderation in the acrimonious disputes between traditionalists and reformers that split German Jewry during the latter part of the eighteenth century.

• Dates

  Rabbi Berlin lived 1725-1799. His Talmud glosses were first included in the editions of the Talmud that were published at Dyhernfurth (a town outside of Breslau).

• Place

  Breslau

• Description

  These glosses usually supplement the Mesoret Ha-Sha"s, adding references to Rabbinic works other than the Babylonian Talmud, especially to the 10th-century lexicon the 'Arukh by Rabbi Nathan ben Jehiel of Rome, to which Rabbi Berlin had composed a lengthy commentary.

  These glosses are usually distinguished from the original Mesoret Ha-Sha"s by square brackets.

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Type: Commentary

Gilyon Ha-Sha"S

(=In the Margins of the Talmud)

• About the Author

  Rabbi Akiva Eger was one of the most respected voices of Jewish traditionalism in nineteenth-century Prussia. He composed important "Responsa".

• Dates

  1761-1837.

• Place

  Posen, Prussia.

• Description

  Cryptically concise references to relevant passages in the Talmud and commentaries.

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In later usage, it came to be used more loosely as a designation for great scholars.

















"Responsa" are letters containing answers to questions, mostly on issues in Jewish law.

Many collections of responsa, composed by leading Jewish scholars, have been preserved.

They offer us a valuable means of studying how the ancient legal system was adapted to changing historical and social circumstances.