Jewish History with Rabbi Dr. Dovid Katz

R Yehiel Weinberg - "The Seridei Aish" (1884-1966): Can One Be Yeshivish and Not Yeshivish At the Same Time? 12.01.2021 1:46:57 ↓

What happens when the beauty of mussar runs into the horrors of the materialism and genocide of modernity?

Isaiah Predicts Destruction Followed By Restoration - Haftarah Shmos 07.01.2021 33:37 ↓

Isaiah's condemnation of alcoholism and hedonism. The challenge of indulgence.

Parshas Shmos (2020): Unpacking the Hotel Incident - Did G-d Really Intend to Kill Moses After so Heavily Recruiting Him? 05.01.2021 48:03 ↓

Getting used to a life with no time for anything other than prophecy-availability

Rabbi Moshe Oster of Brody (1710-1785): Life in the Kloiz of the Early Modern Era 03.01.2021 52:11 ↓

Daunting schedule but the pay is good. Kabbalah after you have mastered Shas. No shortcuts!

David and Joab: A Complex of Emotions National-Security Issues - Haftarah VaYechi (2020) 31.12.2020 41:48 ↓

Does Dovid actually tell Shlomo to kill them? The Abarbanel's version.

Parshas VaYechi (2020): Why Did Yaakov Have a "Gentile" funeral? 30.12.2020 36:04 ↓

Where are exactly was Joseph buried in Egypt?

The "Ksav Sofer" of Pressburg (1825-1872): Steering the Ship Through Stormy Waters. 29.12.2020 1:15:16 ↓

"Who needs Gan Eden when you have a good yeshiva, a hot mikvah, and a good cup of coffee?"

The Sticks of Moses vs. the Sticks of Ezekiel - Haftarah VaYigash (2020) 23.12.2020 38:11 ↓

Has the "blending" of the tribes occured?

Parshas VaYigash: The Revelation, Shock, and Heart-Attacks in the Parsha 23.12.2020 42:01 ↓

Did the brothers doubt themselves after Joseph's revelation?

Shlomo Molcho (1500-1532) - Who Wanted to Raise a Jewish Army to Conquer Israel in the 16th century 21.12.2020 1:17:18 ↓

The extraordinary Marrano who was a hero to R Yosef Karo, and whose prophecies came true

Solomon’s Wisdom: What Kind of Wisdom Did He Request? What Kind Did He Get? -Haftarah Mikeitz (2020) 18.12.2020 42:58 ↓

When is wisdom a good thing? When is it counterproductive?

Parshas Mikeitz (2020): Had They Succeeded in Killing Joseph, Would They Have Survived the Famine? 16.12.2020 44:12 ↓

How was Joseph, alone, able to overcome Egyptian contempt for Hebrews?

Chanukah (2020): Who Were the "Greeks" of the Chanukah Story? 13.12.2020 46:15 ↓

Was Chanukah a battle between "cultures?"

The Prophecy of Haggai: Did It "Cause" the Miracle of Hanukkah? 09.12.2020 38:04 ↓

The original interpretation of R' Yaakov Emden re: the 24th of Kislev

Chanukah (2019): Women Refraining from Work the Entire Eight Days of Chanukah 09.12.2020 21:00 ↓

A learned defense by the remarkable grandmother of the Chavos Yair.

Parshas VaYeshev (2020): Why Doesn't Joseph Try to Contact His Father? 09.12.2020 39:18 ↓

When they sold him into slavery, did they think he would survive it?

Menashe ben Israel of Amsterdam (1604-1657): "The Jonathan Sacks of the 17th Century" 08.12.2020 1:30:59 ↓

Admired by Gentiles. Rodney Dangerfield to his own community.

Halacha Headlines Podcast 03.12.2020 2:11 ↓

Halacha Headlines Podcast   With everything happening in the world today, it’s safe to say the we as frum jews have a lot of questions on how to correctly deal with these situations that come up in and day out.  Halacha Headlines Podcast features a weekly topic drawn from current events and matzavs, and with a panel of Rabbanim, discusses the best way we- as a klal, can approach contempo...

Haftarah VaYishlach (2020): Who was Ovadia? Why Does He Hate Edom? 02.12.2020 36:36 ↓

Who was worse to whom? A bloody history.

Parshas VaYishlach (2020): Did Yaakov's Children Really Have Idols? The Aftermath of the Massacre 01.12.2020 30:41 ↓

What did Lavan mean when he said, "They are MY children"?

R' Moshe Hayyim Luzzatto (1707-1747): The Genius Who Didn't Fit Into the Regular Yeshivish Patterns. 29.11.2020 1:09:36 ↓

The first part of a three-part series on the Ramchal

Hoshea's Gloom and Doom - Haftarah (VaYetzei) 26.11.2020 36:25 ↓

Idolatry as infidelity. Idolatry as Judaism?

Parshas VaYetzei: Where is the Yeshiva of Shem? Why is Yaakov There? 25.11.2020 45:41 ↓

Why is Yaakov depressed? How does the "ladder" help with that?

The Aruch LaNer - R' Yaakov Ettlinger (1798-1871): Last of the "Old School" Geonim in Germany, First of the "New School" 24.11.2020 1:14:51 ↓

Altona, last of the autonomous coercive communities

The Book of Malachi and Its Critique of Formal Religion - Haftarah (Toldos) 19.11.2020 26:04 ↓

Are the Jews jerks? Or is it the fault of the Kohanim?