כולנו התמלאנו שמחה, נחת רוח והתרגשות כשראינו את פרופסור ישראל אומן מקבל את פרס נובל לכלכלה לשנת 2005. כל שאר חתני הפרס, מלומדים נכבדים בזכות עצמם, החווירו לעומת היהודי עם הכיפה הלבנה הגדולה והזקן הלבן הארוך, שחיוכו הפיח... READ MORE →
In its simplest form of definition, the Talmud is the record of centuries of discussion expounding the Oral Law of Judaism as it took place in the great Torah academies of the Land of Israel and Babylonia long ago. The Mishna, which is the basis of all talmudic discussions, was completed and edited at the beginning of the third century CE be Rabi Yehuda HaNassi in Tzipori in the Galilee. The... READ MORE →
בהגדרה הפשוטה ביותר שלו, התלמוד הנו תיעוד של מאות שנים של הסברים שעוסקים בתורה שבעל-פה כפי שניתנו בבתי המדרש הגדולים בארץ ישראל ובבבל לפני שנים רבות. המשנה, שהיא הבסיס לדיונים בתלמוד, הושלמה ונערכה בראשית המאה השלישית... READ MORE →
Patience is not really a Jewish virtue. The Talmud records for us that a non-Jew made this observation to one of the great rabbis when he called the Jews ama peziza - a hasty, impetuous folk. The non-Jew was referring to the impetuosity of Israel at Mount Sinai when they accepted the Torah unconditionally without waiting to hear all of the details of the Law from God through Moshe. But as a... READ MORE →
הסבלנות איננה באמת תכונה יהודית. התלמוד מספר לנו שגוי אחד ציין זאת בפני אחד הרבנים הגדולים כשכינה את היהודים "עמא פזיזא", עם פזיז וקצר רוח. אותו גוי דיבר על קוצר הרוח של בני ישראל בהר סיני, כאשר קיבלו את התורה בלי תנאי, בלי... READ MORE →
Jewish tradition is rife with details of sibling rivalries, family feuds and enormous disappointments with children and descendants. The Bible itself provides us with sufficient examples of these sad but all too common characteristics of human life. Lot, Yishmael and Eisav are the prime examples of this problem in the lives of our forefathers. The story of Yosef and his conflict with his brothers... READ MORE →
The Talmud and in fact the Tanach itself is full of debates and disputes. In fact, the given and accepted method of Talmudic study is to debate and discuss each point thoroughly and logically. Throughout Jewish history, great issues have been debated and argued. These issues, moral, spiritual, national and practical were all brought into sharp focus and relevance by the presence of these ongoing... READ MORE →
Douglas Southall Freeman was recognized as one of the premier American historians of the twentieth century. He was a confidant of presidents, a noted author and Pulitzer Prize winner and a man of great charm and character. During the Cold War he was the thorn in the side of the Leftist academicians who insisted that the inexorable tide of history was on the side of the Soviet Union and that the... READ MORE →
Henry Ford, in many respects the founder of modern manufacturing processes a century ago, was also a very great hater and a classic anti-Semite. He also posed himself as the champion of the "plain people" against the intellectual snobbery of academia and academics. In this role he described history as "bunk." In an interview that Henry Ford gave to the Chicago Tribune in 1916 he stated: "History... READ MORE →
The month of Tishrei with all of its dramatic and joyful holidays is behind us. More than one-third of that month is filled with holy days: Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur and Succot/Shmini Atzeret/Simchat Torah. If one factors in the days of preparation and effort inherent in the proper observance of these holidays then it is no exaggeration to say that practically the whole month of Tishrei is a... READ MORE →
