New books from our faculy

The Mendel Gottesman Library collection was recently enriched by the addition of three titles, written or edited by our own YU faculty members. Rabbi Moshe Schapiro, reference librarian at MGL, describes the new works as follows:

Sefer Imre Barukh, ‘Eruvin u-Reshuyuot, by Rabbi Baruch Simon. New York, 2009.

Rabbi Baruch Simon’s latest publication is an erudite, thorough and lucid study of some of the most complex and heatedly debated topics in Jewish Law. Rabbi Simon covers the definitions of the different halachic “domains” on Shabbat, the regulations of the structural aspects of contemporary eruvin and the proper procedural methods for enacting an eruv. Though the subject matter is by its very nature difficult, Rabbi Simon’s clarity and organization make the discussion accessible and meaningful even to the non-expert.

———————————————————-

Orthodox Jews in America, by Prof. Jeffrey S. Gurock. Indiana University Press, 2009.

Dr. Gurock’s latest study of the history of Jews in America is an enthralling and thought provoking survey and analysis of the changing challenges and developments within Orthodoxy in America. Dr. Gurock begins with the problems of mass assimilation and Sabbath desecration in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, continues with the educational and social innovations of the middle part of the 20th century and concludes with the more contemporary issues of the manifestations of feminism and materialism within the orthodox community. Captivating anecdotes and absorbing discussions of controversial matters make this volume a fascinating read.

——————————————————————

Sefer ha-Gan, by R. Aharon ben R. Yosi ha-Kohen, 13th cent.; edited by Prof. Mitchell Orlian. Jerusalem : Mosad Harav Kuk, 2009.

R. Aharon ben R. Yosi ha-Kohen, one of the French Ba’ale ha-Tosafot, wrote his original and penetrating commentary on the Pentateuch, Sefer ha-Gan, over 700 years ago, but it is only with the publication of this new volume that the full work of this great Medieval commentator has been made available to all. Rabbi Dr. Mitchell Orlian’s painstaking labor over manuscripts, and his addition of careful and copious footnotes have resulted in a presentation of both a classical commentary and an illuminating work of modern scholarship.