338) ABRAHAM’S ANGELS AND G-D’S SPEECH:

 

 Three angels, Senoy, Sans(m)enoy and Semangelof, tasked with protecting newborn babies. 

INTRODUCTION:

In this article, we examine the debate between the rationalist, Maimonides (Rambam, 1135-1204), and the mystic, Nachmanides (Ramban, 1195-1270) on the nature of the angels.  Our starting point is the episode in Genesis 18 describing the “three men” who visit Abraham by the oaks of Mamre.

There are a number of questions one could ask on the basic structure of the well-known text: G-d appears to Abraham in verse 1 and the three men, apparently unrelated to the initial vision, appear in verse two. Abraham leaves G-d and attends to the men. Then verse three suddenly changes from the plural to the singular: “My lord, if I find favour with you.” And in verse thirteen, G-d unexpectantly enters the conversation asking why Sarah laughed.

 

337) RABBI CHAIM HIRSCHENSOHN – BETWEEN RAV KOOK AND R. YOM TOV SCHWARZ?

 

Rabbi Chaim Hirschensohn 1856-1935.

INTRODUCION:

R. Chaim Hirschensohn (1856-1935) is another of those forgotten rabbis whose voices have been quietened and whose ideas have been, unintentionally or otherwise, overshadowed by history. This article seeks to explore some of R. Hirschensohn’s thinking and is based extensively on the research by Dr David Zohar[1] who is republishing an updated version of R. Hirschensohn's writings.

336) WHEN THE ANSWER IS YES AND NO:

INTRODUCTION:

In reading rabbinic responsa literature (She’elot uTeshuvot), Halacha, and other writings, one sometimes notices a certain ambiguity. The subject matter is weighed up from all angles and then a final verdict is provided. Before reaching the final conclusion, however, one is presented with a number of options. What is the purpose of those options if the field of choice is narrowed down to only one ruling at the end?

Is it just a style of writing or,  depending on the personality of the writer, is another dynamic perhaps at play?

Some examples follow:

335) WHEN FAITH AND FACTS COLLIDE – THREE RABBINIC APPROACHES

Ketav Ivri

INTRODUCTION:

If the person of faith has not lost their ability to think, they soon realise that facts sometimes get in the way of faith. What happens when faith and facts collide?

This article, based on the writing of Haggai Misgav[1] from the Institute of Archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, explores three rabbinic approaches to this question.[2]

 

THE TALMUDIC DISCUSSION ON THE PROVENANCE OF HEBREW WRITING:

There are two forms of Hebrew script, Ketav Ivri or Old Hebrew and Ketav Ashuri, the square script of the Hebrew we still use today. Technically, our ‘Hebrew’ script is not really Hebrew but Ashurite.

The Talmud[3] records a second century CE discussion between three rabbis about the original format of Hebrew writing:

334) Torah Institutions and the Truth

 

A GUEST POST BY RABBI BORUCH CLINTON:

 

Rabbi Boruch Clinton is a regular contributor to Kotzk Blog. He is most qualified to write about Torah education and Torah institutions, having taught at both yeshiva and Bais Yakov schools for twenty years. He currently works as an information technology provider, authoring books and courses on cloud computing, technology security, server virtualization, data analytics, and Linux system administration.

 Do people running Orthodox communal institutions have a responsibility to the truth? By which I mean: is the active use of deception and misrepresentation reasonable when, say, you’re attempting to protect individual children and families from possible harms associated with school closures and pandemic-related shut downs?

The problem

Here’s what I’m talking about. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of Torah schools were faced with mandated closure alongside all the public and private schools in their city. Rather than shut down, these schools claimed to comply while, in fact, remaining effectively open in one form or another. They also issued vaguely worded communications to parents that, in plain English, suggested compliance while hinting to alternate guidance.

There is no question that remote schooling is, in nearly all cases, less effective, perhaps even disastrous. Nearly everyone agrees that children should be in school whenever possible. The issue I’ll be discussing here involves the use of deception to achieve that goal. Is such behavior within the bounds of accepted Torah tradition? And, from the perspective of a straightforward cost/benefit analysis, does it even make sense?