Roaring Lion: Military Operation or Legal Responsa? |
On Shabbat morning, 28 February 2026, Israel and the United States launched airstrikes on Iran. The U.S. termed the mission “Epic Fury”, while Israel chose a different name: “Sha’agat Ha-‘ari” – The Lion’s Roar. For students of rabbinic literature, this codename recalls a title shared by several books, notably three distinct collections of responsa. The most famous of these is Sha’agat Aryeh (Frankfurt an der Oder 1756), authored by Rabbi Aryeh Leib Ginzburg (ca. 1695-1785). When scholars mention “the Sha’agat Aryeh,” they are referring to this responsa collection or to the formidable man who wrote it.
The connection to our current moment might seem a stretch. While Operation Sha’agat Ha-‘ari is not identical to the book title Sha’agat Aryeh, the Hebrew letters are the same – the final heh of the book’s title has simply been moved to the front of the second word in the military codename. Interestingly, in the first edition, the title was printed as Sha’agat Arye’ (using a geresh or apostrophe rather than a final heh), bringing it even closer to the name of the military operation. Furthermore, in his preface, Rabbi Aryeh Leib noted: “That this humble work was completed in the month of Adar” – the same month in which Operation Sha’agat Ha-‘ari began. We share the hope that the Sha’agat Ha-‘ari mission, like the Sha’agat Aryeh itself, will be successfully “completed in the month of Adar.”
During my........