- https://PayPal.Me/lukeisback
"Luke Ford reports all of the 'juicy' quotes, and has been doing it for years." (Marc B. Shapiro)
"This guy knows all the gossip, the ins and outs, the lashon hara of the Orthodox world. He’s an [expert] in... all the inner workings of the Orthodox world." (Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff) LATEST POSTS:
- Jean Raspail: The Consul of Lost Causes
- Michel Houellebecq: A Life
- Anthony Lane: A Life
- Author Philip Gourevitch
- Joseph Telushkin: The Accountant’s Son Who Taught America Judaism
- Still the Best Hope: Why the World Needs American Values to Triumph (2012)
- WP: As Christians are attacked in Israel, government shows little concern
- Life as a Haredi Jew
- Moral Philosopher Derek Parfit
- The Life of George Gilder
- Richard Posner’s Legal Pragmatism
- The MLA: A History
- The Great Delusions in History Theory
- Allan Bloom: The Teacher Who Wanted Your Soul
- The Great Delusions in Literary Theory
- William K. Wimsatt Jr.: The Judge of Evidence
- Larissa MacFarquhar: The Woman Who Slows Judgment Down
- Stanley Fish: A Biography
- Hortense Spillers: The Grammar Lesson
- Paul Gilroy: A Biography
BEST POSTS:
- * The Enlightenment Wasn’t Enlightened (6-23-26)
* Mr. Burge Draws The Line (6-23-26)
* 'Improving on Democracy' (6-17-26)
* People Leak To People Who Are Fun (6-11-26)
* Why Does Australia Produce So Many Great Journalists? (6-11-26)
* Steve Wynn and the Press: Power, Litigation, and the Contest Over Las Vegas (6-3-26)
* Sheldon Adelson and the Journalists (6-3-26)
* The Vigilant Animal: Thinkers Who Reject the Myth of Human Gullibility (6-2-26)
* The Cost of Refusing the Misunderstanding Myth (6-2-26)
* Show Me How It Travels (6-2-26)
* The Norm Explainers (6-2-26)
* Centering Marginalized Voices (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Washington Post put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Financial Times put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for the Los Angeles Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for The New York Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* Why Wembanyama Lives on the Perimeter (5-31-26)
* The Emotional Palettes Of San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco & Sacramento (5-27-26)
* The Administrative Capital: Sacramento Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* San Diego - The Quiet Republic (5-27-26)
* The Quiet Bar: San Diego Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* SF v LA Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* Why Talent Travels Poorly Between San Francisco and Los Angeles (5-27-26)
* San Francisco and Los Angeles as Rival Models of Urban Access (5-27-26)
* Social Cliques in New York, 2026 (5-25-26)
* Social Cliques in San Francisco, 2026 (5-25-26)
* The Rival Courts of Washington (5-25-26)
* The City of Private Rooms (5-25-26)
Category Archives: Talmud
Chicago Censors Talmud
Jeffrey Goldberg writes in the Forward in 1994: If Graydon Snyder only knew that he would be convicted of sexual harassment for teaching the Talmud, he might have kept his mouth shut. But Mr. Snyder, a Bible professor at the … Continue reading
Artscroll Prints The Censored Talmud
Marc B. Shapiro blogs July 29, 2015: ArtScroll is still worried about creating anti-Semitism and thus continues to print a censored Talmud. While I think everyone agrees that the ArtScroll Talmud translation is a masterpiece, opinions will obviously differ as … Continue reading
Posted in Artscroll, Marc B. Shapiro, Talmud
Comments Off on Artscroll Prints The Censored Talmud
How Does The Talmud Deal With Rape?
Adam Kirsch writes: “To calculate the exact degree of damage to a woman’s reputation, the mishna lays down a very pragmatic rule: “One considers her as though she were a maidservant sold in the marketplace, and assesses how much she … Continue reading
Physical Pleasure vs Spiritual Pleasure
So in Daf Yomi (Eruvin 53B) this morning, the Talmud said that you should seize every pleasure available to you today because tomorrow you might be dead. The Hasidic rabbi hastened to explain that the Talmud clearly means spiritual pleasure, … Continue reading
Posted in Talmud
Comments Off on Physical Pleasure vs Spiritual Pleasure
Should Ordinary Jews Study Talmud?
Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: In all the discussions recently about the success of Daf Yomi, I didn’t see anyone note that one of the reasons this success is so surprising is that the whole notion of Daf Yomi goes … Continue reading
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro, Talmud
Comments Off on Should Ordinary Jews Study Talmud?
Talmud Study Vs Daf Yomi
Joe emails: To me, daf yomi is a necessary semi-good, semi-evil. There is this belief that knowledge of the entire Talmud is part of being a torah jew. I would begrudgingly concede that it is a neat thing to have … Continue reading
Posted in Talmud
Tagged blitz chess, credit card receipt, daf yomi, talmud study, torah jew, understanding the talmud
Comments Off on Talmud Study Vs Daf Yomi
I Do A Page Of Talmud A Day But I Don’t Understand Much
I like to drink a couple of cups of coffee and stand there and listen to the rabbi and I feel like I’m doing something amazing. I don’t think I’d get up early every morning to struggle over one line … Continue reading
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro, Talmud
Comments Off on I Do A Page Of Talmud A Day But I Don’t Understand Much
What Is The Brisker Method Of Talmud Study?
According to Wikipedia: “The Brisker method, or Brisker derech, is a reductionistic approach to Talmud study innovated by Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik of Brisk, as opposed to the traditional approach which was rather holistic. It has since become popular and spread … Continue reading
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro, Talmud
Comments Off on What Is The Brisker Method Of Talmud Study?
There Are Parts Of The Talmud We Don’t Want Non-Jews To See
In his second lecture for Torah in Motion on the Chatam Sofer, professor Marc B. Shapiro says: “The Chatam Sofer gave his approval for the Talmud to be translated into German. What were the objections of the other rabbis? They … Continue reading
Posted in Jews, Marc B. Shapiro, Rabbis, Talmud
Comments Off on There Are Parts Of The Talmud We Don’t Want Non-Jews To See