Tag Archives: Marc B. Shapiro

Can Too Much Torah Study Hurt Your Spiritual Life?

Professor Marc B. Shapiro is out with his first blog post since April. He writes: I have mentioned how R. Kook compares the Torah scholars and the masses, and how the masses have elements of natural morality that are not … Continue reading

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Beware Of Any Man Who Tells You He’s Elijah The Prophet And He Wants To Make Moshiach Baby With You

In his second lecture on Rav Yaakov Ettlinger in 2007, Dr. Marc B. Shapiro relates a famous story from 19th Century Eastern Europe. “The responsa I’m going to tell you now is almost like a movie. “A man was staying … Continue reading

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Rabbi Hershel Shachter’s Rav Revisionism

Marc B. Shapiro blogs: It is common to hear among YU figures the expression “hakhmei ha-mesorah,” referring to authoritative rabbinic spokesmen. Readers can correct me if I am mistaken, but I don’t think that this expression, with the meaning currently … Continue reading

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The Visual Culture Of Chabad

Marc B. Shapiro blogs: …[L]et me also include this amazing picture of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. It appears courtesy of the Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary, and I thank Rabbi Jerry Schwarzbard who first showed it to me a few … Continue reading

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Rabbi Marc B. Shapiro Spoke At Beth Jacob Shabbos

I’m kicking myself for missing this. A source says: Heard Marc Shapiro speak at BJ at the 3rd meal, first time I’d seen or heard him. I thought he was one of the more interesting I’ve heard in many years … Continue reading

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Human Flight In The Jewish Tradition

Rabbi Marc B. Shapiro blogs: The most famous example of human flight in Jewish literature is that of Jesus. As described in Toledot Yeshu, Jesus was able to use God’s holy name in order to fly, and was brought down … Continue reading

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The Torah Has Nothing To Teach Us About Science

Rabbi Marc B. Shapiro blogs: Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, whose prolific writing continues to astound, has recently said the same thing: “There is a difference between science and religion. Science is about explanation. Religion is about interpretation. The Bible simply … Continue reading

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The Eye Of The Storm

Dr. Marc B. Shapiro catches a story passed off as fact that never occurred in the new book by the rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Ner Yisroel, R. Aharon Feldman, The Eye of the Storm. Such nonsense makes me distrust anything … Continue reading

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Does The Torah Incorporate Superstition?

Dr. Marc B. Shapiro blogs: I must now deal with R. Joseph Ibn Caspi, who is often described as holding a view similar to what we have seen already, but more radical in that he saw it as a general … Continue reading

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Spiritual Reasons For Tragedies

Professor Marc B. Shapiro has new blog post up: As I am writing this people are once again outraged by something R. Ovadiah Yosef said, in that he attributed the fires in Israel to lack of Sabbath observance. Obviously, this … Continue reading

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