DOCSLIB.ORG

Download Table of Contents

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Download Table of Contents CONTENTS ENGLISH CONTRIBUTIONS INTRODUCTION Harry Fox (University of Toronto) The Embarrassment of Embarrassment 5 Harry Fox (University of Toronto) Judaism and Genocide: The Embarrassment of Jewish Jihad 19 BIBLE Diane Kriger A Re-embracement of Judges 19: Challenging Public-Private Boundaries 55 Tzemah Yoreh (American Jewish University) Shekhem and the So-Called Rape of Dina 67 Miryam Segal (Queens College, City University of New York) An Embarrassment of Riches, A Pride of Depletion and the Ambiguity of Address 79 Paul Heger Unabashedly Reading Desired Outcomes Into Scripture: Jewish Reaction to External Encroachment on its Cultural Heritage 96 Hindy Najman (University of Toronto) Rewriting as Whitewashing: The Case of Rewritten Bible 140 Shana Husband (University of Toronto) Establishing a Sacred Church in the New Testament 154 TALMUD AND MIDRASH Laliv Clenman (University of Toronto) “It was not according to the will of the Sages”: Halakhic and Ag- gadic Responses to Pinhas’ Killing of Zimri and Kozbi in Numbers 25 169 Eric Lawee (York University) Embarrassment and Re-Embracement of a Midrash on Genesis 2:23 192 Pearl Elman Deuteronomy 21:10-14: The Beautiful Captive Woman 208 Eva Mroczek (University of Toronto) A Peg to Hang on: Metaphor, Ancestral Merit and the Midrashic Relationship of David and Solomon 219 Eliezer Segal (University of Calgary) From Glutton to Gangster 241 Alon Goshen Gottstein (Beit Morasha) Did the Tannaim Interpret the Song of Songs Systematically? Lieberman Reconsidered 260 Yaakov Elman (Yeshiva University) The Halakhah Follows Rava…Except When It Doesn’t: A Mediation on Halakhic Decision-Making 272 Herbert Basser (Queens University) Rabbinic Mindsets Within the Universal Mythic Structures of Sacred History: A Few Interesting Cases 308 Simcha Fishbane (Touro College) Count Your Blessings: Jewish Mourning Rituals During the Spring Season (Sefirat Haomer) 315 COMIC INTERLUDE Ilana Kurshan Making Fish for Shabbat (Yoma 75A) 346 MEDIEVAL INTERPRETATION Elisha S. Ancselovits Embarrassment as a Means of Embracing Authorial Intent 351 Gyöngyi Hegeds (University of Western Ontario) The Double Path: The Two Layers of Thinking and the Twofold Nature of Knowledge in the Work of Saadya Gaon 385 Albert Dov Friedberg (University of Toronto) Embarrassment as a Creative Force in Maimonides’ Meta-Halakhic Enumeration of the 613 Commandments 410 Alan Verskin (Princeton University) Teaching Philosophy to the Multitude: An Introduction to the Educational Theory of Nissim ben Moshe of Marseilles 415 MODERN Ira Robinson (Concordia University) Rabbi Natan Slifkin on Science and Torah: The Evolution of a Search for Truth 433 Bonna Devora Haberman (Hebrew University) Mapping Alternate texts of Gender Difference 447 Tirzah Meacham (University of Toronto) How Can They Be Better than Us? Embarrassment and Legislation 460 Justin Jaron Lewis (University of Manitoba) “Such things have never been heard of ”: Jewish Intellectuals and Hasidic Miracles 480 Edward Elkin "Chosenness" 496 Aubrey L. Glazer Durée, Devekuth, & Re-embracing the Godlover: Involution of Unio Mystica via Collocative HomosexuELity 505 Tanhum Yoreh (York University) Environmental Embarrassment, Genesis 1:26-28 vs. Genesis 2:15 554 AFTERWORD Aubrey Glazer Vixens Disturbing Vineyards: Why Fox's Embracement of Scriptures Can Be Embarrassing 587 HEBREW CONTRIBUTIONS יוסף טובי (אוניברסיטת חיפה) העתקה עברית של ִרסאלת ִאלחאתמי: השוואה בין אמרות המיוחסות לאריסטו לבין בתי שיר ֻלמ ַתנַ ִבּי 594 יועם יורה (אוניברסיטת טורונטו) אשת יפת תואר בספרי ובפרשנות הקדומה 626 אריה סטריקובסקי (מכון פרדס) ״…וקצת כפה לא תחס עינך״ 635 שמואל וחנה ספראי ז״ל וזאב ספראי (אוניברסיטת תל-אביב) בין חכמים לציבור: כיצד נוצרה ההלכה שבתורה שבעל פה 643.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Response to Rabbi Orlofsky's Lecture by Rabbi Natan Slifkin
    Response to Rabbi Orlofsky’s Lecture By Rabbi Natan Slifkin Rabbi Orlofsky gave a Motzai Shabbos lecture in which he attacked my writings. He first claimed that if I reject the idea that Moshe was ten amos tall, then I am saying that the Gemara’s statement about the dimensions of the Mishkan etc. is wrong. No I am not; I am saying that we have not understood the Gemara correctly. (Incidentally, no children’s book, including Feldheim’s Chait Haggadah, depicts Moshe Rabbeinu as being ten amos tall. Are they all heretical?) The greatest irony is that Rabbi Moshe Shapiro, who Rabbi Orlofsky claims as his rebbe, follows the Maharal in stating that Moshe was not literally ten amos tall! Rabbi Orlofsky then brought up the topic of the letter of the ban and says that “the first thing people said was that nobody ever signed,” and adds that this is not the case, as he has the letters from Rav Shapiro, Rav Shiner, etc. (which he presumably downloaded from my website), a point to which he returns several times as a means to discredit me. But neither I nor anyone else ever claimed that every signature was forged; we just raised the possibility that some of them were. The letters of the rabbonim that Rabbi Orlofsky has were probably downloaded from my own website! So Rabbi Orlofsky has set up a straw man. And it subsequently turned out that according to Rav Aharon Feldman who spoke with Rav Elyashiv, Rav Elyashiv did not sign his name to the posted notice which said that the books contain kefirah.
    [Show full text]
  • Nature and Its Discontents
    Editor’s Thoughts: Nature and Its Discontents kolhamevaser.com/2019/01/28/editors-thoughts-nature-and-its-discontents/ kolhamevaser January 29, 2019 By: Daniel Shlian The word “nature” is rich with differing meanings. When a chemist describes something as “natural,” a purveyor of organic food products might disagree[i]. One person’s proclivity in any number of realms might be described as unnatural by those who do not share them, but is perfectly natural to those who do. Absent a rigorous definition, then, the word loses much of its usefulness. Despite the word’s vagueness, for many, “natural” implies something desirable and positive, perhaps idyllic, or “the way things were meant to be.” But should it imply desirability? The twentieth-century English philosopher G. E. Moore described the naturalistic fallacy: it is invalid to conclude that something is good from any of its natural properties.[ii] If something has the quality of being pleasant, that does not make it good. In Moore’s view, good is an irreducible property, not derivable from any other properties, just as the concept of “yellow” does not depend on any other concept, neither does the idea of “good.”[iii] Later philosophers have disputed Moore’s contentions, but as a purely logical tool; relating the good and the natural is not useful. I am neither an ethicist nor a philosopher, but I will phrase the question in slightly different terms: in a religious worldview wherein creation is a Divine process and nature is put in place by God, is “natural” better? Should we attempt to leave things in the universe the way they are, or are we meant to use the World for our own ends? Not at all surprisingly, Judaism’s sources are not quiet on the topic, but neither do they speak in a unified voice.
    [Show full text]
  • The Question Kidneys' Counsel
    The Question of the Kidneys’ Counsel Natan Slifkin Copyright © 2010 by Natan Slifkin Version 1.3 http://www.ZooTorah.com http://www.RationalistJudaism.com This monograph is adapted from an essay that was written as part of the course requirements for a Master’s degree in Jewish Studies at the Lander Institute (Jerusalem). This document may be purchased at www.rationalistjudaism.com Other monographs available in this series: The Evolution of the Olive Shiluach HaKein: The Transformation of a Mitzvah The Sun’s Path at Night Messianic Wonders and Skeptical Rationalists Sod Hashem Liyreyav: The Expansion of a Useful Concept 2 The Question of the Kidneys’ Counsel Introduction The kidneys (kelayot) are mentioned in Scripture in two contexts. On several occasions they are listed amongst the organs of an animal that are offered on the altar.1 But on over a dozen other occasions they are described as organs with functions relating to cognition (which itself may be the reason why they play a role in sacrificial rites, due to the animals’ kidneys representing the parallel organ in man2); specifically, functioning as the mind, conscience, or the source of counsel/ free will: You are present in their mouths, but far from their kidneys. (Jer. 12:2) I bless God, Who has counseled me; my kidneys admonish me at night. (Ps. 16:7) On several occasions, the kidneys are mentioned in this context together with the heart: God of Hosts, just Judge, Who examines the kidneys and heart... (Jer. 11:20) I, God, probe the heart, and examine the kidneys, and repay each man according to his ways, with the fruit of his deeds.
    [Show full text]
  • The Novelty of Orthodoxy
    The Novelty of Orthodoxy Natan Slifkin Copyright © 2011 by Natan Slifkin Version 1.0 http://www.ZooTorah.com http://www.RationalistJudaism.com This monograph is adapted from an essay that was written as part of the requirements for entering the doctoral program at Bar-Ilan University. This document may be purchased at www.rationalistjudaism.com Other monographs available in this series: The Evolution of the Olive Shiluach HaKein: The Transformation of a Mitzvah The Sun’s Path at Night Messianic Wonders and Skeptical Rationalists Sod Hashem Liyreyav: The Expansion of a Useful Concept The Question of the Kidneys’ Counsel The Novelty of Orthodoxy Natan Slifkin Introduction The term “Orthodoxy,” as applied to a certain approach within Judaism, is somewhat of a misnomer. Throughout Jewish history, with the prominent exception of Maimonides, Judaism always rated devotion to halachic observance above allegiance to dogma.1 Nevertheless, the term was apparently borrowed from Christianity and ultimately used to describe Jews that, following the challenges of modernity, emancipation and the haskalah, remained loyal to traditional Jewish beliefs and practices. The Orthodox themselves viewed themselves as simply authentically continuing the ways of old. Originally, historians viewed them in the same way, considering them less interesting than more visibly new forms of Judaism such as the haskalah and Reform. But beginning with the work of Joseph Ben-David2 and Jacob Katz,3 it was realized in academic circles that all this was nothing more than a fiction, a romantic fantasy. The very act of being loyal to tradition in the face of the massive changes of the eighteenth century forced the creation of a new type of Judaism.
    [Show full text]
  • The Sun's Path at Night
    The Sun’s Path at Night The Revolution in Rabbinic Perspectives on the Ptolemaic Revolution RABBI NATAN SLIFKIN Copyright © 2010 by Natan Slifkin Version 1.1 http://www.ZooTorah.com http://www.RationalistJudaism.com This monograph is adapted from an essay that was written as part of the course requirements for a Master’s degree in Jewish Studies at the Lander Institute (Jerusalem). This document may be freely distributed as long as it is distributed complete and intact. If you are reading a printed version of this document and you wish to download it in PDF format, see www.rationalistjudaism.com Cover photograph: An armillary sphere, depicting the Ptolemaic model of the cosmos. Other monographs available in this series: The Evolution of the Olive Shiluach HaKein: The Transformation of a Mitzvah The Question of the Kidney’s Counsel Sod Hashem Liyreyav: The Expansion of a Useful Concept Messianic Wonders and Skeptical Rationalists The Sun’s Path at Night: The Revolution in Rabbinic Perspectives on the Ptolemaic Revolution Natan Slifkin Introduction The clash between reason and authority has many manifestations. But it comes to the fore with the issue of statements by the Sages of the Talmud concerning the natural world that are subsequently contradicted by science. In traditionalist circles, arguments about this topic have become especially heated in recent years, with many ultra-Orthodox authorities claiming that to attribute such error to the Sages was never a traditional view and is actually heresy.1 Typically, arguments about this topic range far and wide, covering many different statements in the Talmud and Midrash.
    [Show full text]
  • Was Rashi a Corporealist?
    81 Was Rashi a Corporealist? By: NATAN SLIFKIN Views of God in Medieval France Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki of France (1040-1105), better known by the acronym Rashi, is revered for his lucid commentaries on the entire Scriptures and most of the Talmud. His writings have probably been more widely studied than those of any other rabbinic scholar in his- tory. But in this essay, we will address a question that has never been comprehensively and methodically investigated before: Was Rashi a corporealist? Did he believe that God possesses form? Most Orthodox Jews living in the last few hundred years would be shocked and offended at the question. They would immediately— and indignantly—answer that, of course, Rashi never believed any such nonsense. A simple chain of logic produces this conclusion: 1. It is heretical to believe that God possesses form. 2. Rashi was a Torah scholar of inconceivable greatness. 3. Hence Rashi could not have believed that God possesses form. However, the huge number of manuscripts available to us today reveals that in medieval Europe, and especially in Rashi’s homeland of France, it was by no means unthinkable to believe that God pos- sesses form. The Tosafist R. Moshe Taku asserts that God some- times takes on human form, and considers it heretical to deny—as Rambam does—His ability to do so.1 Rabbi Isaiah ben Elijah of Trani (known as Riaz, 1235-1300, grandson of Rid) speaks of schol- ars who believed in a corporeal God. He notes that they do not be- 1 Kesav Tamim, in Otzar Nechmad (Vienna, 1860).
    [Show full text]
  • Bais Torah Bulletin פרשת ויצא הדלקת נרות 0044
    BAIS TORAH BULLETIN פרשת ויצא הדלקת נרות 0044 ח‘ כסלו תש“פ December 6, 2019 ערב שבת ויצא Candle Lighting 4:09 WHAT’S NEW Mincha 4:15 This week’s Kiddush is co-sponsored by the Gottlieb and Rosenberg Shkiah 4:27 families in honor of the birth of their granddaughter and niece, and by those celebrating birthdays and anniversaries in the months of October, November, and December. Thank you to all the sponsors, and Mazal Tov שבת פרשת ויצא Hashkama 7:30 to all the celebrants! .is available for sponsorship סעודת שלישית Daf Yomi 8:00 Shacharis 8:45 Bais Torah offers streamed video shiurim through the Torah Confer- encing Network as follows: Rabbi Mansour’s shiur is Thursday nights at Sof Zman K”S 9:27 7:45, Rabbi Frand’s shiur is Thursday nights at 9 PM,and Rabbi Reisman’s Halacha 3:15 shiur is Motzoei Shabbos at 7:30 PM. Avos Ubanim continues this Motzoei Shabbos at 6:30 with learning, Mincha 0044 pizza and prizes! This week is sponsored by Dr. Yehuda and Judi Shkiah 72:4 Eliezri. The Avos Ubanim program offers a great opportunity to sponsor an evening of learning at a cost of only $50. Please contact Amy Gottlieb Maariv 5:10 at [email protected] or 845 216 1194 to be a part of this nationwide Shabbos Ends 5:18 program! Thank you David Abramczik and Mendy Rosenbaum for cleaning up Weekday Schedule: the snow and salting the entrances to the shul Week of 12/8-12/12 The Daf Yomi Shiurim for this coming week are available for sponsor- Shacharis ship Sun 7:45 Join us Motzei Shabbos January 4 at 8 PM for a Gala Siyum Hashas Melave Malka at Bais Torah with special guest speaker Rabbi Betzalel Mon.., Thurs 6:20, 7:45 Rudinsky .The cost is $50 per person, with many sponsorship opportuni- Tues.Weds.Fri ties available.
    [Show full text]
  • Derech Hateva 2017.Pub
    Derech HaTeva A Journal of Torah and Science A Publication of Yeshiva University, Stern College for Women Volume 21 2016-2017 Editors-In-Chief Allison Tawil | Elana Perlow Co-Editors Hannah Piskun | Miriam Saffern Cover Design Miriam Rosenblum Layout Design Shmuel Ormianer Printing Advanced Copy Center, Brooklyn, NY 11230 Acknowledgements The editors of this year’s volume would like to thank Dr. Harvey Babich for all of the time and effort that he puts into this journal. Even as Dr. Babich was recovering from his accident, students were not deprived of his guidance and assistance for all matters (emails almost every day of summer opportuni- ties, positions in labs, editing articles, recommendation letters…). Dr. Babich’s dedication to his students is nothing short of legendary, and Stern was not the same in the months of his recovery. We’re so happy to have you back where you belong. Thank you for everything. The publication of Volume 21 of this journal was only possible thanks to the generosity of the following donors: Dr. and Mrs. Harvey Babich Rabbi Joel and Dr. Miriam Grossman Dr. Fred and Dr. Sheri (Rosenfeld) Grunseid Mr. and Mrs. Sam Koslowsky Rabbi Dr. and Mrs. Edward Reichman Mr. and Mrs. Morris Rosenthal Rabbi and Mrs. Baruch Solnica Mr. and Mrs. Mordechai Spitz Dr. and Mrs. Benjamin Solomowitz Dr. Howard and Dr. Leah Weintraub Torah Activities Council YU Undergraduate Admissions We thank you for making this opportunity possible. Allison Tawil Elana Perlow Hannah Piskun Miriam Saffern Dedication In prior volumes of Derech HaTeva the coeditors authored the dedication.
    [Show full text]
  • The Next Generation of Modern Orthodoxy
    The Next Generation of Modern Orthodoxy Next Generation.indb 1 4/3/12 3:43 PM Chancellor of Yeshiva University, meets each year to consider major issues of concern to the Jewish community. Forum participants from throughout the world, including academicians in both Jewish and ah, Jewish educators, and Jewish communal professionals, gather in conference as a think tank to and disseminate a new and vibrant Torah literature addressing the critical issues facing Jewry today. gratefully acknowledges the support of the Joseph J. and Bertha K. Green Memorial Fund established by Morris L. Green, of blessed memory. OF 19 r10 draft 08 balanced.indd ii 9/23/2008 8:19:37 AM Next Generation.indb 2 4/3/12 3:43 PM The Next Generation of Modern Orthodoxy EditEd by Shmuel Hain Robert S. Hirt, Series Editor the michael scharf publication trust of the yeshiva university press new york Next Generation.indb 3 4/3/12 3:43 PM Copyright © 2012 Yeshiva University Press Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The next generation of modern orthodoxy / edited by Shmuel Hain. p. cm. -- (Orthodox Forum series) Includes index. ISBN 978-1-60280-206-3 1. Orthodox Judaism--Congresses. 2. Judaism--21st century--Congresses. I. Hain, Shmuel. BM30.N49 2012 296.8’32--dc23 2012013967 Distributed by KTAV Publishing House, Inc. 888 Newark Avenue Jersey City, NJ 07306 [email protected] www.ktav.com (201) 963-9524 Fax (201) 963-0102 v Next Generation front-chp 11 rev 2.indd 4 4/10/12 10:16 AM Contents Contributors xi Series Editor’s Preface xvii Robert S.
    [Show full text]
  • Rationalisim Vs. Mysticism: Book Review
    Rationalisim vs. Mysticism: Book Review Byline: Steve Lipman Rationalism vs. Mysticism: Schisms in Traditional Jewish Thoughts. Natan Slifkin. The Torah and Nature Foundation. 557 pps. $39.95. Reviewed by Steve Lipman Rabbi Slifkin, who has earned a reputation, depending on your philosophical-theological leanings, as an annoying gadfly, in parts of the Orthodox world, or as a valuable beacon of clear thinking, in other parts, now offers a helpful guide to the widening divide between the dominant segments of Orthodox Judaism. The British-born rabbi, whose well-documented expertise in the relationship of natural science to Jewish thought reflects his larger perspective on fundamental Jewish beliefs, now focuses on the philosophical gap between large parts of the Orthodox community. "There are two fundamentally different worldviews regarding such things as epistemology (the nature of knowledge and where it comes from) and the relative roles of natural law and the supernatural. These are the rationalist and the (for want of a better word) mystical approaches," Rabbi Slifkin writes. "The rationalist approach has a rich heritage to it ... it was dominant amongst the Rishonim in many ways … but has declined over time to the point that there are great Talmudic scholars of today who do not realize that it even existed." The rabbi's definition of the two camps: "Rationalists believe that knowledge is legitimately obtained by man via his reasoning and senses, and should be preferably based upon evidence/reason rather than faith, especially for far- fetched claims. Mystics are skeptical of the ability of the human mind to arrive at truths, and prefer to base knowledge on revelation, or -- for those who are not worthy of revelation -- on faith in those who do experience revelation." Rabbi Slifkin notes that "mystics often demand belief in the absolute truth of every word in the Talmud, along with the Tannaic and ultimately divine origins of the Zohar, and many other texts.
    [Show full text]
  • Urim Publications Jerusalem · New York
    Urim Publications Jerusalem · New York Summer 2011 Independent publisher of contemporary Jewish interest books innovative | traditional | inspiring INDEX Bible Commentary 36–48 Children 58–61 Biography and History 4, 16, 22–33, 50, 52, 55 Contemporary Issues 10–11, 15, 57 Fiction 27, 50, 62 Holocaust / Memoir 18, 31–33 Inspirational 5, 13–14, 16, 21, 26, 28, 42, 52, 54–56 Israel 18, 25, 30, 34–35 Jewish Law 4, 6–9, 12 Jewish Thought 9–11, 16–20, 34 Lifecycle 12–14, 49 Darosh Darash Yosef Passover Haggadah Discourses of Rav Yosef Dov Halevi 53–55, 59 Soloveitchik on the Weekly Parashah Prayer 4–7, 19 by Rabbi Avishai C. David Science and Judaism “Rabbi Avishai David’s new book, , 10–11 Darosh Darash Yosef reflects a new genre, recording teachings from the Rav’s Tikkun Olam Saturday night drashot on Chumash . Darosh Darash 21 Yosef is a rich collection of the Rav’s teachings that can be enjoyed by a spectrum of readers, from relative novices Women and Judaism to seasoned students of Torah, even those who are well 8, 12–13, 48–51 acquainted with Rav Soloveitchik’s works.” Title Index –Stanley Peerless, Lookstein Digest 63 “The Rav’s Divrei Torah are both profound and inspira- tional.” –Rabbi Hershel Reichman Urim Publications, OU Press, and Yeshiva Torat Shraga, 2011 Hardcover, 472 pages, $29.95 (120 nis) Publishing since 1997 isbn 13: 978-965-524-046-7 2 www.UrimPublications.com Holidays Silver from the Land of Israel A New Light on the Sabbath and Holidays from the Writings of Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaKohen Kook by Rabbi Chanan Morrison National Jewish Book Award 2010 Finalist Winner in the category of Modern Jewish Thought & Experience A companion volume to Gold from the Land of Israel on the Torah.
    [Show full text]
  • “They Could Say It, We Cannot”: Defining the Charge of Heresy
    119 “They Could Say It, We Cannot”: Defining the Charge of Heresy By: NATAN SLIFKIN A Cryptic Judgment When three of my books were banned under the charge of heresy, this was a source of much confusion. It emerged that the respected rabbis who issued the ban were, for the most part, not condemning anything peculiar to my own presentation. Instead, they were con- demning two positions that I had unquestionably adopted in the books: that the Genesis account need not be interpreted as referring to a literal six-day creation and could be reconciled with modern sci- ence, and, even more significantly to them, that the Sages of the Tal- mud did not possess knowledge of the natural world beyond what anyone else in their era knew and were therefore mistaken in some of their statements. This begged the question that since these positions had been presented by towering Torah authorities of previous gen- erations, how could they be condemned as heretical? Rabbi Aharon Feldman of Ner Israel Rabbinical College traveled to Israel in order to ask this question of Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, the most distin- guished of the signatories in the ban, and considered by many to be the greatest halachic authority of our day. If Rav Sherira Gaon, Ram- bam, Rabbeinu Avraham ben HaRambam, Rav Yitzchak Lampronti, Rav Hirsch, and many others could state such views, how could these views be condemned as heretical? Rav Elyashiv’s cryptic reply was, “They could say it, we cannot.” Unfortunately, the reasoning behind this explanation is unclear and it is open to multiple interpretations.
    [Show full text]