Rome: The event for the presentation of the new treatise published “Meghillà” at “Il Pitigliani”

On Wednesday, June 15, 2022 at 6:00 p.m., an event was held at “Il Pitigliani” for the presentation of the new edited treatise “Meghillà”.

The Meghillà treatise is a work of exegetical explanation whose narrative focuses on the rules of public reading and writing of the Biblical Book of Esther. Considered the Meghillà par excellence, the Book of Esther is the new stage of the Babylonian Talmud Translation Project, which places the book as the seventh translation in being. The reading of the Book takes place during the festival of Purim, a celebration similar to Carnival, in which children dress up as the characters in the story recounted in Persia. A story of redemption and joy, it hides intriguing mysteries and notions. We can see these tidbits from the mention of the dishes Esther ate at court: she followed a vegetarian diet consisting mostly of legumes so as not to break the precepts of kasherut (the food laws) or many claim that the traditional Purim cakes represent Aman’s ears, while another theory states that the three corners of the cookie represent the three patriarchs who weakened Aman’s power and gave Esther the strength to save the Jews.

President of the Italian Jewish Center “Il Pitigliani”, Bruno Sed, and Vice President of the Jewish Community of Rome, Ruben Della Rocca, brought greetings to the event.

We had the honor of hearing:

Rav Michael Ascoli – Curator of the Treaty of Meghillà Babylonian Talmud Translation Project.

Deborah Cohenca – Editor Babylonian Talmud Translation Project.

Tommaso Caliò – Professor of History of Christianity at the University of “Tor Vergata”

Rav Riccardo Di Segni – Chief Rabbi of Rome and President of the Babylonian Talmud Translation Project.

Introduced and moderated by Nathania Zevi, RAI Journalist.