With Prof. Edwin Seroussi discussing Rav Yisrael Najara (1555 - 1625): Gaza's most famous Rabbi, Poet, and Preacher

#247.

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** This episode is sponsored by Eli and Eva Genauer of Boca Raton Florida in commemoration of the 75th Yahrtzeit on the 8th of Kislev of Reb Moshe Yehuda Genauer of Seattle, Washington. 

This episode is also sponsored by the Israel Select Charity Fund: Tefillin campaign.  Only $500 to gift a pair of tefillin to a soldier who is committed to wearing them for life. Please give whatever you can to protect our soldiers in the current war in Israel: https://thechesedfund.com/israelselect/tefillin?aff=SCNW**

We discussed Rav Yisrael's bio (when and where he was born, his grandfathers Rav Levi Najara and Rav Yisrael di Corial, his father Rav Moshe Najara, and more), travels in the Middle East, end of life and burial in Gaza, his connection with the Arizal and Rav Chaim Vital, infamous comments of Rav Chaim Vital in Sefer Chezyonos, his poetry and its beauty, where he learned to compose poetry from, the controversey over his poetry and using secular music and poetry as its source and the argument with Rav Menachem de Loznano, his famous Shabbos Zemer Kah Ribon, what made his poetry unique, other works, the brand new (forthcoming) volume of Najara's poetry edited by Prof. Seroussi and Prof. Tova Beeri, and much more.

To read the Safed edition of Zemirot Ysirael: https://hebrewbooks.org/21788

To purchase Rav Yisrael's sermons, "Mikve Yisrael": https://www.biupress.co.il/index.php?dir=site&page;=catalog&op;=item&cs;=875