It's pretty incredible that some of Judaism's biggest sages provided their disciples similar advice when dealing with epidemics of the past as guidelines released to Israeli citizens by the Ministry of Health and the Prime Minister's office.
Rabbi Yitzhak Malka has conducted extensive research on the centuries-long struggle of Halakhic authorities with different plagues. Could the first indications of isolation orders and social distancing guidelines be found in these? Malka says that the answer is certainly "Yes" and even points out that the current guidelines sound as if they were taken from the writings of Judaic scholars from the Middle Ages.
"I researched the period between 1450 and 1700 and focused on the period of Rabbi Ovadia Sforno (1468 to 1550). The Black Plague began in the spring of 1347 and continued in waves until the end of the 17th century. It was part of the culture and influenced prayer, the Passover Haggadah and Jewish holidays," says Malka, a member of the Department of Jewish History and Contemporary Jewry at Bar Ilan University and education lecturer at Efrata College.
"If you follow the Sages' [halakhic] rulings, there is nothing new under the sun. All the briefings of the Prime Minister's Office and Ministry of Health appear to have been taken from the writings of Rabbi Ovadia Sforno, Rabbi Yitzchak Abarbanel and later from Rabbi Yaakov Tzahlon and Rabbi Abraham Catalano," says Rabbi Malka and presents several examples with the Passover Haggadah as the first of these.
"There is a 15th-century Haggadah, the 'Birds Head Haggadah,' decorated with images of bird heads. What do birds have to do with Pesach? Researchers clearly indicates that this Haggadah, found in the Israel Museum, was composed during the time of the Black Plague. The bird's head symbolizes an ancient physician. In ancient Egypt, the symbol of medical practice was a bird's head. In the Haggadah, the figures appear wearing hats – the same hats as those used by doctors in times of epidemic. Black spots on the figures are another sign of the epidemic. All these was around already then." READ MORE
