Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz
12 Iyar 5786
אשכנז מבצר המסורת
Ashkenaz, Fortress of Tradition (Hebrew)
Introduction to the series Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz
by Rav Binyomin Shlomo Hamburger
Bnei Brak, 5786
353 pages
Table of Contents | Sample Pages
Ashkenaz, Fortress of Tradition is a sweeping historical and halachic study of the spiritual world of Ashkenaz Jewry and the enduring strength of its traditions.
The work grew out of the earlier booklet Leading Rabbis Throughout the Generations on the Preservation of Minhag Ashkenaz, which served as an introduction to the Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz series. In this expanded work, the subject is treated on a far broader scale, with many additional topics exploring the significance and foundations of the Ashkenaz mesorah.
The volume details the antiquity and authority of Minhag Ashkenaz as well as the esteem in which it was held by the Gedolei Yisrael throughout the generations. It discusses the relationship between the Ashkenaz tradition and other Jewish traditions—including the French and Spanish traditions—and explores the Ashkenaz approach to Kabbalistic and Sephardic customs.
Its chapters present a broad picture of the efforts made by leading Ashkenaz rabbanim to preserve their mesorah, and of how that tradition survived so remarkably into recent times through the steadfast commitment of the communities themselves to their ancestral customs. The book also sheds light on the historical and spiritual connection of the Polish and Lithuanian communities to their Ashkenaz roots, as well as the central role of the Rema’s rulings in shaping the Ashkenaz approach to minhag.
In addition, the work traces later developments in European synagogues, the flourishing of Orthodox communities in Germany, the devastating blow dealt to Ashkenaz tradition by the Holocaust, and the subsequent efforts—under the guidance of Gedolei Yisrael—to restore and preserve that heritage.
Ashkenaz, Fortress of Tradition is an important work for anyone seeking to understand the uniqueness of the Ashkenaz tradition, the story of its preservation, and its enduring importance for future generations.
4 Tishrei 5755
גדולי הדורות על משמר מנהג אשכנז
Leading Rabbis throughout the Generations on the Guarding of Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew)
Introduction to the series Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz
by Rav Binyomin Shlomo Hamburger
Bnei Brak, 5754
127 pages
4 Tishrei 5765
שרשי מנהג אשכנז
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew)
by Rav Binyomin Shlomo Hamburger
Bnei Brak
5 vols.
Volume 5 is currently available. Volume 6 and a second edition of volumes 1 and 4 are currently in preparation, and reprinting of the entire series is expected in the near future.
Vol. 1 (5755), 481 pages
Vol. 2 (5760), 619 pages: Table of Contents | Sample Pages
Vol. 3 (5762), 550 pages: Table of Contents | Sample Pages
Vol. 4 (5764), 595 pages: Table of Contents | Sample Pages
Vol. 5 (5778), 917 pages: Table of Contents | Sample Pages
Foremost in the effort of Machon Moreshes Ashkenaz during the last thirty years to research, archive, preserve and disseminate the over-one-thousand-year-old, magnificent heritage of Ashkenaz has been the publication of this monumental series, which researches the evolution of German-Jewish customs and traditions, their development, origins and views surrounding them, in a detailed and clear format.
These books have become an invaluable asset for anyone with an interest in Jewish customs in general and German-Jewish customs in particular. The series is intended to expand to tens of volumes, and currently includes a wide range of topics such as minhagim of tefillah and shul, Shabbos and Yom Tov, marriage customs, yoledes and bris milah, as well as a variety of other minhagim.
4 Tishrei 5756
שרשי מנהג אשכנז: כרך ראשון
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew): Vol. 1
Bnei Brak, 5755
481 pages
4 Tishrei 5761
שרשי מנהג אשכנז: כרך שני
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew): Vol. 2
Bnei Brak, 5760
619 pages
4 Tishrei 5763
שרשי מנהג אשכנז: כרך שלישי
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew): Vol. 3
Bnei Brak, 5762
550 pages
4 Tishrei 5765
שרשי מנהג אשכנז: כרך רביעי
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew): Vol. 4
Bnei Brak, 5764
595 pages
28 Adar 5778
שרשי מנהג אשכנז: כרך חמישי: הנחת תפילין בחול המועד
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (Hebrew): Vol. 5: Wearing Tefillin on Chol haMoed
by Rav Binyomin Shlomo Hamburger
Bnei Brak, 5778
917 pages
Distributed by Yefe Nof. Available in fine Jewish bookstores.
Table of Contents | Sample Pages
מחלוקת עתיקת יומין, החריפה, הקיצונית והממושכת ביותר בתולדות ישראל, סובבת את השאלה אם חובה להניח תפילין בימי חול המועד, או לפחות אם מותר להניח בהם תפילין, או שמא אסור חול המועד בהנחת תפילין ויש בו עוון מיתה. על עוצמתה של מחלוקת כבירה זו עמדו כמה חכמים, שמבחר מדבריהם יובא פה:
11 Cheshvan 5771
Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz (English)
Minhag Ashkenaz: Sources and Roots
Synopsis of Volumes I–IV
by Rav Binyomin Shlomo Hamburger
Translated by David Silverberg
Bnei Brak, 5771
223 pages
Distributed by Yefe Nof. Available in fine Jewish bookstores.
Table of Contents | Sample Pages
Foremost in the effort of Machon Moreshes Ashkenaz during the last thirty years to research, archive, preserve and disseminate the over-one-thousand-year-old, magnificent heritage of Ashkenaz has been the publication of the monumental series Shorshei Minhag Ashkenaz, which researches the evolution of German-Jewish customs and traditions, their development, origins and views surrounding them, in a detailed and clear format.
These books have become an invaluable asset for anyone with an interest in Jewish customs in general and German-Jewish customs in particular. Intended to expand to tens of volumes, the series is currently comprised of four, which include a wide range of topics such as minhagim of tefillah and shul, Shabbos and Yom Tov, marriage customs, yoledes and bris milah, as well as a variety of other minhagim. Those who do not have time to read every chapter in its entirety will nevertheless gain satisfaction from the synopses found at the end of each one.
Despite the great demand for an English translation, this work is thus far available only in Hebrew. However, the synopses following each chapter in the first four volumes have been translated and collected in one volume, so that English readers will be able to find the salient points for their research.