Daily Archives: December 22, 2016

What Happens When Jews Live In A Parallel Society

Marc B. Shapiro writes: In my post here I discussed a possibly fictional responsum by the fascinating figure R. Yair Hayyim Bacharach.[8] There is so much of interest in his responsa, but I want to offer one further example. In … Continue reading

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Shlomo Rechnitz & The 8th Principle Of The Jewish Faith

Marc B. Shapiro writes: The assumption of R. Navarra is also found in, of all places, Shlomo Rechnitz’s famous (or infamous, depending your perspective) speech on the Lakewood school situation. In this incredibly courageous speech, delivered, as it were, in … Continue reading

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Historians & The Dark Side

Robert Liberles: Historians, imbued with curiosity and a fascination with the dark side, can easily be drawn toward the negative, the hostile, the antinomian side of human behavior. In addition, deviant behavior has much to teach about a society under … Continue reading

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Torah & Science

Marc B. Shapiro, history professor, writes: In the archive of R. Isaac Herzog there are a number of letters from R. Herzog relevant to the issue of science and Torah.[18] He was writing to scientists and historians asking them how … Continue reading

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Who Is The Most Highly Regarded Haredi Torah Scholar?

Marc B. Shapiro, history professor, writes: …opponents of R. Steinman have been very harsh in their evaluation of him, and a steady stream of publications has appeared designed to show that his views are not in line with the haredi … Continue reading

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