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"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:
- What Might Survival Cost For Israel & Jews?
- If Mearsheimer Is Right
- Forty Thousand
- Vox Day
- Page 261
- The Oven
- Table Six
- For Money
- Live Questions in Torah
- Another Exciting Scold About AI From A University Professor!
- Sociologist Philip N. Cohen
- Herb K – Recovery Teacher
- Live Questions in Philosophy
- The List Problem
- Fred Luskin: Forgive for Good
- James C. Weidmann and the Making of Chateau Heartiste
- If the Populists Gain Power, Who Will be Their Favorite Economists?
- Live Questions in Psychology
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- The Gap
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)
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* 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)
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* 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)
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Category Archives: Marc B. Shapiro
The Historian Who Gets Me Excited About Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism is tough. There are so many required rituals, it can drive you crazy if you’re not born into it. One thing that keeps me going is inspiring Torah study and my favorite teacher for the past decade is … Continue reading
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro, Orthodoxy
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Orthodox Rabbi Attacks Belief In Divine Nature Of The Zohar
This video is a trip: Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: “I have no idea who the speaker is, and if he has ever even read a page of the Zohar, but he does seem very sure of himself. I have … Continue reading
Posted in Kabbalah, Marc B. Shapiro, Orthodoxy
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Using Slave Labor To Build Our Holy Temple In Jerusalem
Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: Regarding the Sacks siddur, I recommend that all listen to the wonderful dialogue between Rabbi Sacks and Leon Wieseltier available here. I have to say, however, that I was surprised to hear Sacks say at … Continue reading
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro, R. Jonathan Sacks
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Can We Trust R. Moses De Leon?
Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: “…R. Moses de Leon and the creation of the Zohar, and it is questionable if one can even speak of a single author. One essential point that must be recognized by all who investigate this … Continue reading
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The Jewish Ritual Of Washing Hands Upon Waking
Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: “R. Yitzhak Abadi discusses this in Or Yitzhak, vol. 1, no. 1. He begins his responsum by pointing out that despite the fact that the Mishnah Berurah records how one is not to walk four … Continue reading
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Is The World’s Most Prolific Writer Of Torah Publications A Plagiarist?
Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: The following page comes from R. Yehiel Michel Stern’s Ha-Torah ha-Temimah on the Book of Joshua, p. 84 no. 3, which appeared in 2009. As you can see, Stern’s comment is lifted word for word … Continue reading
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Don’t Pick Your Nose In Public
I find it disconcerting how many of the elementary courtesies are ignored by many in Orthodox Judaism. For instance, picking your nose in public. It’s widespread among my Orthodox friends. Historian Marc B. Shapiro writes: …R. Eliezer Melamed – who … Continue reading
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Do you think Orthodox Jews in America are more likely to be honest in business than the average Jew?
Historian Marc B. Shapiro replies to my email: “Absolutely no.”
Posted in Marc B. Shapiro
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Evidence For God’s Existence
In his third lecture on R. Meir Simcha of Dvinsk for Torah in Motion, historian Marc B. Shapiro says: The best proof for me of the truth of Torah it is not at all intellectual. It’s the feeling of a … Continue reading
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You cannot be a Lubavitcher and be a Zionist
In his second lecture on R. Shlomo Yosef Zevin for Torah in Motion, historian Marc B. Shapiro says: You cannot be a Lubavitcher and be a Zionist. Lubavitch was always opposed to Zionism. Practically, you can support the state. When … Continue reading
Posted in Israel, Marc B. Shapiro
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