Today in Jewish History – 28th Adar[1]
The Day the Decrees Were Annulled — A Festival in Megillat Ta’anit[2]
Today is recorded as a festival day in Megillat Ta’anit (chapter 12), because joyful news reached the Jewish people that they would not be severed from the Torah. The ruling empire had issued decrees of persecution forbidding Torah study, circumcision, and Shabbat observance, so Rabbi Yehuda ben Shamua and his colleagues sought counsel from a Roman noblewoman frequented by the leaders of Rome, who advised them to protest at night; they did so, crying out, “Are we not brothers? Are we not the children of one Father and one Mother? Why are we singled out from every other nation to suffer such harsh decrees?” Their plea was accepted, the decrees were annulled, and that day was therefore established as a day of rejoicing, as recorded in Rosh Hashanah 19a.
Purim of Egypt (Cairo) — A Day of Salvation
Today is known as Purim Mitzrayim, observed by the Jewish community of Cairo in the year 5284 (1524), following the downfall and killing of the tyrant Ahmed Pasha, the Ottoman governor of Egypt. Ahmed Pasha had rebelled against the Sultan and posed a grave threat to the Jewish community, but he was ultimately killed by loyalists of the Sultan, bringing sudden deliverance to the Jews of Egypt. In gratitude for this salvation, the community established this day as a local Purim. It became customary to read a special “Megillat HaNes” (Scroll of the Miracle) in Arabic, recounting the events of the rescue. On this day, Tachanun is omitted during the morning prayers, and the day is treated as a festive occasion, marking the miracle that took place at Nachal Mitzrayim and the salvation of Egyptian Jewry.
📅 Today’s Yahrzeits[3]
🕯️ Rabbi Avraham Pimentel — Author of Minchas Kohen
🕯️ Rabbi Moshe Horenshtein — Son in-law of Rebbe Maharash
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Their Background[4]
🕯️ Rabbi Avraham HaKohen Pimentel — Author of Minchas Kohen
Rabbi Avraham HaKohen Pimentel (1627–1697) was a prominent Sephardic halachic authority who served as a rabbi of the Spanish–Portuguese Jewish communities in Amsterdam and later Hamburg. He studied at the famed Etz Chaim Yeshiva in Amsterdam under Rabbi Shaul Levi Mortera, one of the leading rabbinic figures of the Western Sephardic world. Alongside his rabbinic scholarship, Rabbi Pimentel was engaged in commerce, while maintaining fixed and rigorous times for Torah study.
His monumental work, Minchas Kohen, first printed in Amsterdam in 1668, is a comprehensive halachic composition divided into three major sections: Mevo HaShemesh, dealing with the laws of halachic time; Sefer HaTa’arovot, a systematic presentation of the laws of mixtures; and Mishmeret HaShabbat, addressing the laws of cooking on Shabbat. The work achieved wide recognition and was cited extensively by later poskim, including Rabbi Chizkiyah da Silva (Pri Chadash) and Rabbi Yosef Teomim (Pri Megadim). Minchas Kohen received glowing approbations from leading sages of the time and remains an important halachic reference to this day.
🕯️ Rabbi Moshe Horenshtein — Husband of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka, Daughter of the Rebbe Maharash
Rabbi Moshe HaCohen Horenshtein (1869–1941) was the son‑in‑law of the Rebbe Maharash, having married Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka, the Rebbe Maharash’s daughter. A member of a distinguished Chassidic family, he was deeply devoted to the study of Chassidus and was known for his refinement, generosity, and hospitality. He lived in Russia, Volhynia, and later Poland, where his home became a center of warmth and support for Chassidim and yeshiva students. He passed away on 28 Adar 5701 (1941) in Otwock, Poland.
[1] Taken from Yimei Chabad
[2] Megilas Taanis Chapter 12; Rosh Hashanah 19a
[3] Taken from Luach Itim Labina
[4] Please not that these historical notes were prepared with the assistance of Copilot Pro, an AI Research Agent, and have not been independently verified.
