Editing Gershom ben Judah (section)

== Works ==
Questions of religious law were addressed to him from all countries, and measures which he authorized had legal force among all the Jews of Europe.

Gershom's literary activity was similarly fruitful. He is celebrated for his works in the field of [[Biblical exegesis]], the ''[[Masoretic Text|Masorah]]'', and [[lexicography]]. His school composed glosses on the text of the ''Talmud'',<ref>{{cite web |title=Gershom |url=https://www.ou.org/judaism-101/bios/leaders-in-the-diaspora/rabbeinu-gershom/ |website=www.ou.org}}</ref> and wrote commentaries on several treatises of the latter which were very popular and gave an impulse to the production of other works of the kind. His {{Transliteration|he|selichot}} were inspired by the bloody persecutions of his time. Gershom also left a large number of rabbinical ''responsa,'' which are scattered throughout various collections.

He is the author of [[Selichot|Seliha]] 42 – ''Zechor Berit Avraham'' ("Remember the Covenant of Abraham"), a liturgical poem recited by Ashkenazic Jews during the [[High Holidays|season of Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur]], which includes the following stanza:

{{Poem quote|The [[Jerusalem|Holy City]] and its regions
are turned to shame and to spoils
and all its desirable things are buried and hidden
and nothing is left except this [[Torah]].}}