Category Archives: Marc B. Shapiro

Jewish Honor Killings

Marc B. Shapiro writes: …we indeed have some examples in Jewish history of “honor killings”. For example, in 1311 a Jewish woman who married a Christian and became pregnant was killed by her brothers.[27] In 1557 an Italian Jew killed … Continue reading

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Professor Marc Shapiro – Have the Rabbis Always Been Honest With Their Readers?

To what extent have modern rabbis rewritten the Jewish past eliminating what does not fit in with their contemporary religious self-interpretations and world view? This wide-ranging and original review of how this policy is applied in practice adds a new … Continue reading

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Changing The Immutable: How Orthodox Judaism Rewrites Its History

This book by professor Marc B. Shapiro comes out in September: A consideration of how segments of Orthodox society rewrite the past by eliminating that which does not fit in with their contemporary world-view. This wide-ranging and original review of … Continue reading

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Bad For The Jews

Historian Marc B. Shapiro gets flak for revealing things about Jews and Judaism that are widely seen as negative. Marc defended himself here: “And believe me, there are plenty of “unsavory” things I have not printed here on the Seforim … Continue reading

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The Path Of The Righteous

From historian Marc B. Shapiro’s new blog post: “Maimonides famously spoke of the sense of touch as being a “disgrace to us.” The Gaon actually had the same opinion in that he regarded sex as something to be loathed and … Continue reading

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Orthodox Jewish Cheerleaders

Marc B. Shapiro writes: When I was in high school in the early 1980s, in the New Jersey-New York yeshiva league only the girls of Bruriah wore sweat pants during basketball games (and the boys were not allowed to attend … Continue reading

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Will All Jews Live In Israel After The Messiah Comes?

In his sixth lecture on Rabbi Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor for Torah in Motion, Marc Shapiro says: For most of us, when we say at the Passover seder, ‘Next year in Jerusalem’, it’s not reality, it’s just an eschatological hope. That … Continue reading

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The Rogatchover Was A Genius

I once heard historian Marc B. Shapiro say that you could fit two Einsteins into the Rogatchover. In his fifth lecture on Rabbi Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor for Torah in Motion, Marc Shapiro says: Chief Rabbi of the British Empire, Herman … Continue reading

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Do You Always Need Two Witnesses To Prove A Case In Jewish Law?

When I read this comment on Facebook, it triggered two responses in me: “Have you considered that 2 witnesses is required in order to provide validity to the case. Otherwise anyone can walk into the court and accuse the innocent … Continue reading

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Haredim Defeat Modern Orthodox In Israel’s Chief Rabbi Elections

Professor Marc Shapiro responded to my inquiry: “The election of Rabbi David Lau is a bad joke. He is only 46 or 47 years old, and is not regarded as a great talmid chacham. So the Ashkenazi chief rabbi is … Continue reading

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