TORAH 101: From Moses to the Men of the Great Assembly: Development, Systematization, and Perpetuation of Torah

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Although the process to formally codify the Oral Torah did not begin for more than 1500 years after Sinai, there were many advancements in organizing and systematizing Oral Torah that began in earnest soon after Moses’ passing. In this special edition of the TORAH 101 podcast, we discuss the various developments in Oral Torah from Moses until the end of prophecy at the beginning of the Second Commonwealth. Among the many critical subjects discussed is the three different ways that Rabbinic ordinances can be rescinded.

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

TORCH Shabbat Light Switch Cover

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This Jewish History Podcast is dedicated in loving memory and leiluei nishmas Rivka bas Reb Avraham. May her holy Soul be elevated in Heaven

Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

History: Rabbi Avraham Grodzinsky: The Exemplar of Slabodka

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Rabbi Avraham Grodzinski was the last head of the Slabodka Yeshiva in Lithuania. He was primary disciple of the Alter of Slabodka, and his successor after the Alter moved to Chevron, heading the yeshiva until WW2 broke out, and even leading a cadre of students in the ghetto under ghastly conditions.  With the destruction of European Jewry in the Holocaust, the vibrant world of the Lithuanian Mussar Yeshiva world expired – the great yeshivos erected or resurrected after the war are a shell of their progenitor’s glory.

Rabbi Grodzinsky is an exemplar of the glory and greatness of that lost world

A man of unmatched nobility – even aristocracy, a person of flawless, sterling character, an unparalleled intellect, and a man who lived a tragic life replete with all manners of suffering, punctuated by his macabre murder by the Nazis on the 22nd day of Tammuz 1944, exactly 76 years to the day from when this podcast is released

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

TORCH Shabbat Light Switch Cover

Please visit our website torchweb.org to get your FREE TORCH Shabbat Light Switch Cover.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

This Jewish History Podcast is dedicated in loving memory and leiluei nishmas Rivka bas Reb Avraham. May her holy Soul be elevated in Heaven

Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

TORAH 101: Innovation and Dynamism in Oral Torah

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In the narrow sense, Oral Torah refers to the interpretation and understanding of the Written Torah. The Written Torah is written cryptically, and the Oral Torah demystifies and explains it. But the truth is that Oral Torah includes much more than that. Oral Torah includes all of Torah that is not included in the Written text. In our next installment on Rambam’s Thirteen Principles, we discuss the concept of Rabbinic Law, its roots, and how the corpus of Oral Torah was expanded.

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

TORCH Shabbat Light Switch Cover

Please visit our website torchweb.org to get your FREE TORCH Shabbat Light Switch Cover.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Rabbi Chaim Bucsko on Who is Me?

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We are taught that we are a heavenly soul residing in a physical body. However, our morning prayer states that we are thankful to G-d for restoring our souls to us, which implies that we are a body. So, which is it? Are we a body or a soul? I was having a middle age identity crisis, so I asked my dear friend, Rabbi Chaim Bucsko, to come on to the program and give me some clarity on who is “me.”

Parsha: Pinchas – Consistency is Key

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When the Temple was extant, first thing each morning a Tamid sacrifice was offered, and an afternoon Tamid offering was the last sacrifice of the day. The Midrash reveals to us quite surprisingly that the essence of Torah is encapsulated in the Tamid sacrifices. What is so special about this sacrifice that makes it worthy of that distinction?

Ethics: Lion’s Tail (4:20)

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The author of this Mishnah served as the rabbi of Rome. While all his colleagues were coalesced together in the great Torah centers of Israel, Rabbi Masya Ben Charash led the small community and academy in the epicenter of impurity. How he got there is certainly a tantalizing question. In this teaching he guides us in making career choices, ensuring relationship harmony, and how to be a pleasant amiable person.