TORAH 101 - With Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe
TORAH 101 is aptly described as “An Intellectual’s Introduction to Torah”. If you are a person who wants to understand the foundations of Torah in a logical and cogent fashion, if you don’t want to subsist with the juvenile perception of Torah of your youth, if you want to wrestle with the deeper questions of theology, eschatology, theodicy, and Jewish philosophy, TORAH 101 is the podcast for you. We will delve into the weighty topics in Jewish philosophy: the divinity of Torah: the interrelationship of Written and Oral Torah, the multidimensionality of Torah, a critical examination of Bible criticism, Torah and Science, why bad things happen to good people, and we will thoroughly explore Maimonides’ Thirteen Principles of Jewish Faith. Please email all questions, comments, and feedback to rabbiwolbe@gmail.com
#68: The Persona of King Messiah + Annual TORCH Fundraiser at giveTORCH.org
Please support the annual TORCH fundraiser at giveTORCH.org by clicking HERE Please support The TORAH 101 Podcast at giveTORCH.org by clicking HERE Every donation is DOUBLED This is our only annual fundraiser and we need your support! giveTORCH.org Please support the TORAH 101 Podcast in 2023! – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]
Mon, 13 Feb 2023 05:50:00 +0000
#67: The Messianic Revolution
Messiah will be an era of seismic changes for the Jewish people and for the world. Knowledge of God will be ubiquitous. The primacy of the Jewish people as God’s chosen Nation will be universally accepted. The pursuit of wisdom will supersede all other pursuits. The world will begin it’s a rapid progress towards perfection. […]
Tue, 07 Feb 2023 05:01:05 +0000
#66: The Mechanisms of Messiah
The sources depicting Messiah and the Messianic Era paint a very different picture of the world than the one we are accustomed to. Knowledge of God will be universal, on that day God will be One and His Name will be One. The pursuit of knowledge will dominate. The Jewish Nation will be heralded. King […]
Mon, 23 Jan 2023 05:05:30 +0000
#65: The Objective of Messiah
The subject of the Messiah is notoriously confusing. What is Messiah? How will Messiah change our lives? What will be different in the Messianic era? The answers to these questions are not ubiquitously known. In this podcast we proceed in our studies of the Twelfth Principle of Rambam’s Thirteen Principles of Faith by addressing the […]
Mon, 16 Jan 2023 05:42:45 +0000
#64: Messiah: A General Introduction
Our nation has been anticipating and longing for the Messiah, Moshiach (משיח) in Hebrew, for millennia. We are awaiting his arrival, which can come any day. The Messianic era is a utopian world that we yearn for. But what exactly is the Messiah? What are the qualifications to be Messiah? What is the Messianic era […]
Mon, 26 Dec 2022 05:28:25 +0000
#63: Admission to the Afterlife
The term “Olam Haba” refers the world after the Resurrection, the world where there’s life with no death, where there is the dispensing of reward for those who adhere to the word of God. If we were to distill our life mission to one sentence it would be this sentence: our mission in this world […]
Mon, 05 Dec 2022 05:36:53 +0000
#62: The Experience of the Afterlife
What is Olam Haba like? Our sages describe this future world as the world of ultimate reward. Paradise in the Afterlife is a very wonderful and pleasurable experience, but even Paradise is not the ultimate reward. That is reserved for Olam Haba. But what is it like? What does it feel like? In this podcast […]
Wed, 28 Sep 2022 05:58:09 +0000
#61: Reincarnation
After a person dies, the Heavenly tribunal determines the fate of their Soul. If the Soul is pristinely pure, the person having accomplished everything that was expected of them and they are also lacking any blemishes borne about by sin, the Soul is ushered to Paradise. If the Soul needs some cleansing, it can be […]
Mon, 19 Sep 2022 05:40:41 +0000
#60: The Mechanics of the Afterlife
What happens after we die is an endlessly fascinating – or terrifying – topic. In our exploration of the Afterlife we have covered vast grounds: We’ve spoken about death and the various types of death; we’ve spoken about the reckoning and accounting that a person must submit before the Heavenly tribunal; we have been made […]
Mon, 12 Sep 2022 05:55:23 +0000
#59: Paradise and Purgatory
Paradise and Purgatory, “Gehenom” and “Gan Eden” in Hebrew, are two potential destinations of the soul after a person dies. The righteous ones who have lived their lives in complete compliance with the rules, instructions, and guidance of the Torah are brought to Paradise, a venue of sublime, spiritual pleasure. The wicked who have sullied […]
Mon, 05 Sep 2022 05:22:32 +0000
#58: Post-Mortem Judgment and Cleansing
Death is a inescapable part of human life. It was not always like that. Prior to Adam’s sin in the Garden, man was destined to live forever. As a result of his consumption from the Tree of Knowledge Good and Evil, Adam condemned humanity to undergo a necessary purification and cleansing process achieved with death. […]
Mon, 29 Aug 2022 05:19:05 +0000
#57: The Afterlife in Torah Literature
A central pillar of our belief is that when we adhere to the word of God, He will reward us in the Afterlife. Conversely, if we disobey God, we will suffer the consequences of our rebellion in the Afterlife as well. In this podcast we ponder an interesting question: the Torah discusses reward and punishment […]
Wed, 08 Jun 2022 05:04:36 +0000
#56: The Unique Markers of a Jewish Soul
Our nation purports to be the chosen people. What does that mean? Why were we chosen? What were we chosen for? The notion of being a chosen people is a very interesting and mysterious idea. In this special podcast, we focus on an element of the uniqueness of the Jewish nation: the Jewish Soul. Are […]
Mon, 25 Apr 2022 05:44:51 +0000
#55: The Transposition of the Soul
How did the soul end up here? What transpired to the soul before it got here? These are fascinating questions that on the surface seem to be quite theoretical. What difference does studying the history and the backstory of the Soul make for us who are already living? A lot, it turns out. By understanding […]
Mon, 11 Apr 2022 05:04:45 +0000
#54: The Origin of the Soul
The Soul is perhaps the loftiest creation of God. Our Sages tell us that the Soul is even loftier than Angels. What does that mean? What is the nature of the relationship of the Soul to its Creator? What are the properties of the Soul? In this fundamental podcast you will learn about the origin […]
Tue, 29 Mar 2022 05:44:33 +0000
We Have Been Blessed With a Baby Boy
With deep appreciation to the Almighty for all the goodness that He has bestowed upon us, I’m happy to share that my wife, Chaya, and I were blessed with a beautiful baby boy on Monday, March 14. Thank God, both Mom and baby are doing fabulous! In this special edition of the podcast, I share […]
Sun, 20 Mar 2022 16:44:29 +0000
#53: The Anatomy of the Soul
The human Soul is the most ethereal of God’s creations. Our Sages tell us that it is spiritually loftier than Angels. Before we continue our discussions related to what happens to the Soul in the Afterlife, it is important to gain a basic understanding of the nature of the Soul: What is it? Where does […]
Mon, 07 Mar 2022 06:59:09 +0000
Special: An Interview About My New Book, Upon A Ten-Stringed Harp
In conjunction with our annual fundraiser this week at giveTORCH.org (every donation is tripled), we are releasing a special interview conducted by the TORCH Board President, Dan Kullman, about my new book, Upon A Ten-Stringed Harp. Please consider contributing to our annual fundraiser at giveTORCH.org.
Thu, 17 Feb 2022 13:49:04 +0000
#52: What Happens After You Die: An Eschatological Timeline & TORCH Fundraiser (giveTORCH.org)
Please support The TORAH 101 Podcast and the annual TORCH fundraiser at giveTORCH.org Every donation will be TRIPLED Show your support for TORCH and The TORAH 101 Podcast and donate to the annual fundraiser at giveTORCH.org – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]
Mon, 14 Feb 2022 06:54:17 +0000
#51: How God Dispenses Divine Reward and Punishment
In our previous episode we established the basic principle that God dispenses reward to those who hearken to Him, and metes out punishment to those who disobey Him. In this episode we get down to specifics: What is the nature of the Divine system of reward and punishment? How is God’s methods of reward and […]
Mon, 07 Feb 2022 06:31:35 +0000
#50: Divine Reward and Punishment: A General Introduction
The 11th of the 13 principles of Faith states that God dispenses reward to those who obey His will and punishes those who violate it. What is the nature of this reward and punishment is a vast and complex subject that we will yet navigate, with the help of the Almighty. In this podcast we […]
Mon, 31 Jan 2022 06:35:18 +0000
#49: Free Will and Divine Foreknowledge
We hold two beliefs that seem to be mutually exclusive. The 10th principle of the 13 principles of faith declares that God knows everything – including the thoughts, deeds, and speech of people – even before it happens. There is nothing that is hidden from Him. We also believe in free will. The principle of […]
Mon, 03 Jan 2022 06:31:59 +0000
#48: How Pedigree and Past Lives Determine Circumstances
How exactly does the Almighty determine what are the circumstances that people are placed in in this world? That is an impossible question for humans to answer with exactitude. Unless the Almighty reveals the answer via one of His prophets, we are in the dark. Nevertheless, our Sages outlines for us a bevy of frameworks […]
Mon, 01 Nov 2021 05:49:01 +0000
#47: Frameworks for Human Situations, Sufferings, and Successes
Why are some people rich and others poor? Why do some people have a pleasant life, while others live in grinding, miserable, poverty and privation? Why is there so much inequality in the world? These questions are hard to answer. Rambam tells us that there is a certain kind of heretics that concludes from the […]
Mon, 25 Oct 2021 05:44:47 +0000
#46: Divine Omniscience
The Tenth Principle of the Thirteen Principles of Faith states that God is aware of the actions of mankind and acts accordingly. This kickstarts the third section of the Principles which broadly deal with reward and punishment. Divine reward and punishment is only feasible if the Almighty has complete knowledge of all the behavior and […]
Mon, 18 Oct 2021 05:46:43 +0000
#45: The Immutability of Torah
In Principle #8 of the 13 Principles of faith, we learned that the Torah is divine. In our exploration of that Principle, we probed many aspects of the idea of the Divinity of Torah, ranging from the history of Torah, to the components of Torah, to Oral Torah, to Rabbinic law, and culminating with the […]
Mon, 14 Jun 2021 06:34:24 +0000
#44: Torah Study: The Soul’s Panacea
Why is our nation so obsessed with Torah? Why do we make such an emphasis on it? What benefits do we as individuals and does society at large accrue with Torah study? In this sweeping episode we explore this fundamental question. We begin with the big picture by outlining some of the critical benefits that […]
Mon, 24 May 2021 07:32:31 +0000
#43: Torah Fusion
Torah study in not just another discipline; it’s a relationship. Our Sages compare the relationship of the Jew to Torah as that of a husband and wife. It’s deep, intimate, and special. Just as husband and wife can unite to create something new, the objective of Torah study is to transform the person and create […]
Tue, 11 May 2021 07:24:18 +0000
#42: Torah Study: Our National Pastime
For the Jewish people. Torah is not just a corpus of law, of an accounting of our past, or even the ancient heritage of our people. Torah and an obsession with Torah study have been the defining characteristics of our nation since its inception. Torah is what we stand for; it’s what we do; it’s […]
Mon, 19 Apr 2021 04:40:45 +0000
TORCH Fundraiser: A Conversation with our Board President, Dan Kullman
Please support The TORCH Podcasts and the annual TORCH fundraiser at giveTORCH.org Every donation will be TRIPLED Show your support for TORCH and the TORCH Podcasts and donate to the annual fundraiser at giveTORCH.org – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]
Thu, 04 Mar 2021 20:43:49 +0000
#41: Immanent Proofs for the Divinity of the Torah + TORCH Fundraiser
Please support TORAH 101 Podcast and the annual TORCH fundraiser at giveTORCH.org Every donation will be TRIPLED Show your support for TORCH and TORAH 101 Podcast and donate to the annual fundraiser at giveTORCH.org – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]
Tue, 02 Mar 2021 20:37:52 +0000
#40: The Case for the Divinity of Torah
The most important question we must ask is, “who wrote the Torah?” The consequences of this question are vast: If the Torah is divine, then its laws are obligatory and immutable; if the Torah is a hoax, then studying it and obeying its laws are ultimately a waste of time. If the Torah is legit, […]
Mon, 08 Feb 2021 08:01:01 +0000
#39: What is Kabbalah?
Kabbalah, the hidden, mystical parts of the Torah, is arguably the most misunderstood area of Torah. It is a subject rife with misconceptions and misinterpretations; it is also a subject that is bursting with charlatans seeking to take advantage of the gullible masses. In this sweeping episode, we try to understand what, exactly, Kabbalah is, […]
Mon, 11 Jan 2021 08:31:53 +0000
#38: What is Halacha?
With all the development and codification of Oral Torah that went into the Talmud, one areas was still incomplete: Halacha. Halacha refers to the practical application of Torah law, and despite the tremendous efforts invested in the Talmud in clarifying all the Torah laws, only an accomplished scholar would be able to extract the practical […]
Mon, 30 Nov 2020 08:57:56 +0000
#37: What is Aggadah?
The Talmud is comprised of two general formats: The Halachic portions (known in Talmudic parlance as, “shemaytza“), and the non-Halachic portions which are called “Aggadah”, or “Aggadata” or “Hagada”. These two parts of the Talmud cannot be more different: whereas in the Halachic portions the objective of the authors was to reveal their true meaning, in […]
Mon, 23 Nov 2020 08:25:01 +0000
#36: What is Talmud?
The Talmud, or how it is often called, “Gemara”, is an ancient set of books written as commentary and elaboration of Mishnah. Despite being 1500 years old, the Talmud is still studied today by millions of people worldwide. In this podcast we get educated in what exactly the Talmud is? Why are there two versions […]
Mon, 09 Nov 2020 09:48:53 +0000
#35: What is Mishnah?
For 1500 years, Oral Torah was just that: Oral. It was not committed to canonized writing. Circa 200 CE, that changed. Under the leadership of Rabbi Judah the Prince, the Nasi of the Sanhedrin, and the greatest Sage of his day, the laws of Oral Torah were codified and canonized in a series of 63 […]
Thu, 10 Sep 2020 07:09:31 +0000
Thanks a Million!
Of all the episodes that I have recorded over the years, this will be perhaps the most unique one. For one, it will be released simultaneously on all 6 channels that I am fortunate enough to host: The Parsha Podcast, The Jewish History Podcast, The Mitzvah Podcast , This Jewish Life, The Ethics Podcast, and […]
Wed, 09 Sep 2020 08:18:32 +0000
#34: Torah Under Siege: The Grounds for Codification of Oral Torah
The final century of the Second Temple and the one that followed its destruction were pivotal ones of Jewish history. It was an era replete with absolute Torah giants – Hillel the Elder, Rabban Yochanan Ben Zakkai, Rabban Gamliel of Yavneh and his colleagues, Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, Rabbi Akiva and his students, among […]
Mon, 03 Aug 2020 08:52:47 +0000
#33: Torah in the Second Temple Era
The Second Temple Era was an eventful time for the Jewish People and the perpetuation of Torah. Over the course of the Second Commonwealth our nation was blessed with great legends, such as Ezra, Shimon Ben Shetach, and Hillel, but the Nation faced unprecedented tests too: We were forced to contend with hostile foreign nations; […]
Mon, 27 Jul 2020 08:40:26 +0000
#32: From Moses to the Men of the Great Assembly: Development, Systematization, and Perpetuation of Torah
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 […]
Mon, 20 Jul 2020 09:15:26 +0000
#31: Innovation and Dynamism in Oral Torah
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 […]
Mon, 13 Jul 2020 09:30:22 +0000
#30: What is Oral Torah?
When Rambam lays out the Eighth Principle of his Thirteen Principles of Faith, that the Torah is divine, he includes believing in not only the Written Torah but also the Oral Torah as a necessary belief for Jews. But what exactly is Oral Torah? What is the relationship between the Written and Oral Torahs? In […]
Wed, 06 May 2020 09:41:00 +0000
#29: The Comprehensiveness of Torah
Please support TORCH and The TORAH 101 Podcast TODAY during our only annual fundraiser giveTORCH.org Support the TORAH 101 Podcast – https://www.charidy.com/torch/101 EVERY DONATION IS QUADRUPLED Today, TORCH needs your help!! Today YOU can partner with us in the largest and most downloaded Jewish Podcast Network (The Jewish History Podcast, This Jewish Life, The Parsha […]
Tue, 03 Mar 2020 19:28:00 +0000
#28: The Divine Torah: An Expanded Definition
The Eighth Principle, that the Torah is Divine, is the central principle upon which all the Thirteen Principles lean. Our entire religion hinges upon the fact that the Almighty gave us His Torah. But what exactly does that mean? In this podcast we discover that the Eighth Principle is much deeper than a question of […]
Tue, 04 Feb 2020 09:41:14 +0000
#27: Mosaic Prophecy
The prophecy of Moses differs from all other prophecies. In fact, Rambam tells us that they are only nominally similar – in truth, they are two totally different experiences. When we break down the subject we find that the differences fall into several categories: Mosaic prophecy contains a different level of understanding than all other prophecies; […]
Tue, 21 Jan 2020 10:36:28 +0000
#26: Moses: The Greatest Man
The Seventh Principle of Faith orients around the greatest man and the greatest prophet of them all, Moses. Moses towered above all members of the human species, and indeed over angels too. As a result of his supreme stature, Moses became the sole prophet who could bridge the two words and convey Torah to humanity. […]
Tue, 31 Dec 2019 10:35:51 +0000
#25: The History of Prophecy + FREE TORCH Gift
In this sweeping retrospective of prophecy from Adam until the extinction of prophecy at the onset of the Second Temple Era, we address many fundamental questions: What is the critical difference between the prophecy of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all other prophets? How did an entire nation merit prophecy at Sinai? How did a wicked man […]
Mon, 09 Dec 2019 10:30:48 +0000
#24: Prophecy: An Introduction
Rambam’s Thirteen Principles of Faith can be divided into three general concepts: God, Torah, and Reward and Punishment. The first five principles oriented around the Jewish understanding of God. The four Principles from six through nine revolve around Torah. The first of those Principles in the concept of prophecy in general. In this podcast, we […]
Mon, 25 Nov 2019 06:37:44 +0000
#23: The Parameters of Divine Providence
A central tenet of Jewish theology is that the same Creator who created the Heavens and the Earth also supervises His creation on an ongoing basis. Moreover, that supervision, that oversight is personal and down to the most minute detail. As such, it would seem that everything that happens to us is the product of […]
Wed, 30 Oct 2019 16:03:28 +0000
#22: God Alone is Worthy of Worship
In the fifth of the Thirteen Principles of Faith, Rambam codifies that God alone is worthy of our worship and that we ought not worship anything else, nor worship God via intermediaries. What is the general concept of worshipping God and why it is such a central pillar of our religion that it merits a […]
Sun, 06 Oct 2019 06:17:56 +0000
#21: Torah and Science: Can they be Reconciled?
There are many areas where Torah and the consensus of modern scientists seem to irreconcilably differ. The Torah indicates that the first man, Adam, lived around 6,000 years ago, and the universe is roughly that age. The consensus of the scientists is that the universe is multiple billions of years old. Can that gulf be […]
Mon, 16 Sep 2019 17:23:26 +0000
#20: Creation Ex Nihilo and the Age of the Universe Question
In the Fourth of the Thirteen Principles of Faith, Rambam codifies the distinction between God and everything else and the manner through which God effectuated Creation Ex Nihilo. In doing so, Rambam departs from the positions of Plato and Aristotle and explains the critical flaw in their thinking that made them incapable of distinguishing between […]
Mon, 29 Jul 2019 06:34:57 +0000
#19: The Incorporeality of God
The Third Principle of the Thirteen Principles of Jewish Faith states that God is incorporeal: He has no body, nor does He behave in a bodily way, and all indications in Scripture and other Torah literature to the contrary must be understood as analogies and metaphors. – – – – – – – – – […]
Mon, 08 Jul 2019 09:49:00 +0000
#18: Why Bad Things Happen to Good People: Three Torah Perspectives on this Vexing Problem
The question of theodicy is one that all people of faith grapple with. The Talmud records multiple conversations between Moses and the Almighty on this subject, and even the ministering angels, and Adam before his Sin weighed in on it. It is a very difficult subject to understand, and doubly hard to find answers that […]
Mon, 17 Jun 2019 07:45:20 +0000
#17: Why Bad Things Happen to Good People: An Introduction to Jewish Theodicy
Our nation is no stranger to suffering. Jewish history is a litany of pogroms, holocausts, expulsions, blood libels, and all manners of persecution and oppression. We believe that the Almighty is in full control of everything that transpires in the world. Nothing can happen against His Will. We also believe that the Almighty is good, […]
Mon, 03 Jun 2019 07:18:45 +0000
#16: How can Humans have Free Will if God is in Total Control?
In the previous podcast we discussed the Second Principle of the Thirteen Principles of Faith, that God is the sole Singular Power. How can that precept be reconciled with another pillar of Jewish faith – that man is in control of his own destiny and choices via his free will. Is man in charge or […]
Mon, 20 May 2019 15:35:25 +0000
#15: The Singularity of God
The Second Principle of Jewish Faith declares that God is One. But not like one of a pair; and not like one of a group; and not like one person that can be divided into many [smaller] units; and not like a thing which is numerically one but can be infinitely divided, rather He – God, may […]
Mon, 06 May 2019 17:52:03 +0000
#14: Faith vs. Emunah: Understanding the Difference between Intellectual and Instinctual Belief in God
The Thirteen Principles of Faith are the foundations of our religion. Just as the foundation of a structure is indispensable for ensuring the integrity of the building; these principles are necessary prerequisites for Jewish faith. But just as is the case in a building, the foundations are in the background – no one resides in […]
Mon, 22 Apr 2019 17:51:59 +0000
#13: Does God’s Creation of the Universe Conflict with the Principle of God’s Perfection?
This podcast attempts to reconcile a knotty philosophical dilemma: The First Principle of the Thirteen Principles of Faith teaches us that God, Creator of heaven and earth, is Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Perfect. If God is Perfect and lacks nothing, then why did He create the universe? Intellect only acts when seeking a certain outcome. There […]
Mon, 08 Apr 2019 16:44:12 +0000
#12: The Thirteen Principles of Jewish Faith: God as Creator and Sustainer
The clearest, most universally accepted articulation of the Principles of Jewish Belief are the Rambam’s Thirteen Principles of Faith. This list of Thirteen Principles were codified in his commentary on Mishnah in the introduction to Chapter 10 of the book of Sanhedrin; they were also added into Jewish Liturgy in the Ani Maamin and Yigdal […]
Thu, 14 Mar 2019 19:19:59 +0000
#11: Lost in Transmission: What Happens When Errors Occur in Oral Torah
The Jewish nation is entrusted with the task of preserving and perpetuating the Torah mistake-free. We have previously seen the vast ordinances in place to prevent errors. Yet humans are fallible and mistakes happen. What happens if/when things go awry? Contact: Website: RabbiWolbe.com; Twitter: @RabbiWolbe; Facebook: Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe; Email: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com. Podcasts Links iOS: This Jewish […]
Wed, 04 Jan 2017 18:01:56 +0000
#10: Codifying the Oral Torah
At the end of the second century of the common era a fateful decision was made to commit the Jewish Law, known as Mishna, to writing. What prompted this dramatic change? What are the unique methodologies employed in this project? Contact: Website: RabbiWolbe.com; Twitter: @RabbiWolbe; Facebook: Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe; Email: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com.
Wed, 28 Dec 2016 06:00:34 +0000
#9: Clear and Convincing Evidence to the Error-Free Transmission of the Oral Torah
The integrity of Jewish law, and by extension the dream of a great Jewish destiny, hinged upon the accurate transmission of an enormous body of law orally for 1400 years. Indeed, a fundamental principle of Jewish faith is that the same Torah given to Moses has been passed down to us mistake-free. How is the transmission of […]
Thu, 22 Dec 2016 16:03:14 +0000
#8: Why Moses Didn’t Simply Write Down the Oral Torah?
For nearly a millennia and a half, the entire corpus of Oral Torah was transmitted orally from generation to generation; parents to their children and teachers to their students. Moreover, a fierce prohibition was established to prevent its writing and codification in a finalized canonized format. What are the benefits for maintaining it in that […]
Thu, 15 Dec 2016 16:28:03 +0000
#7: Introduction to Oral Torah
What are the four components of Oral Torah? What are the four elements of the Oral Torah that are not sourced in the Written Torah? What are some of the classical pieces of evidence proving the existence of the Oral Torah? This is the place to begin if you want to understand Oral Torah. —— […]
Thu, 08 Dec 2016 18:54:51 +0000
#6: Incontrovertible Evidence to the Divinity of the Torah
We explore the intricate interrelationship between written and oral Torah and determine that the creation of such a labyrinthine tapestry is beyond the capacity to man. ——– This podcast was recorded live at the TORCH Centre in Houston, TX. Please visit torchweb.org for program details and to make a donation. If you enjoy this podcast please subscribe […]
Wed, 30 Nov 2016 17:33:53 +0000
#5: An Unprecedented Eternal Nation
We explore some predictions in the Torah that have come true and ponder how a human author could have known the future. ——– This podcast was recorded live at the TORCH Centre in Houston, TX. Please visit torchweb.org for program details and to make a donation. If you enjoy this podcast please subscribe and check out my […]
Tue, 22 Nov 2016 18:12:24 +0000
#4: The Cognitive Dissonance to the Veracity of the Torah and why Sinai Denial is on Shakier Intellectual Grounds than Holocaust Denial
We face internal resistance to the notion of a God-given Torah because that can create a divide between our beliefs and behaviors. How do we respond to the tumult caused by this revelation? ——- This podcast was recorded live at the TORCH Centre in Houston, TX. Please visit torcweb.org for program details and to make a […]
Wed, 02 Nov 2016 15:37:39 +0000
#3: Implications of the Authorship of the Torah
Why it matters who wrote the Torah. ——- This podcast was recorded live at the TORCH Centre in Houston, TX. Please visit torcweb.org for program details and to make a donation. If you enjoy this podcast please subscribe and check out my other podcasts: This Jewish Life – long form deep dives into critical Torah topics and The […]
Sun, 30 Oct 2016 02:26:27 +0000
#2: The Fallacy of the Bible Critics
We continue our dissection of the various options regarding the authorship of the Torah. ——- This podcast was recorded live at the TORCH Centre in Houston, TX. Please visit torcweb.org for program details and to make a donation. If you enjoy this podcast please subscribe and check out my other podcasts: This Jewish Life – long form […]
Sun, 16 Oct 2016 03:54:51 +0000
#1: Who Wrote the Torah
The authorship of the Torah is a highly consequential matter to clarify. If it is – as Jews have traditionally believed – the word of God, then it holds eternal absolute value for all. If it is not the word of God then it is no different than any other ancient document. What are the positions […]
Fri, 07 Oct 2016 01:40:17 +0000
