Discussion Of the Rav's Teachings

Resources detailing, summarizing, or analyzing teachings of the Rav

Books

Confrontation: The Existential Thought of Rabbi J.B. Soloveitchik, Zvi Kolitz, Ktav	Halachic Positions of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Three Volumes, Aharon Ziegler
Love and Terror in the God Encounter, David Hartman	Exploring the Thought of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, edited by Marc Angel
Insights of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Saul Weiss	מפניני הרב Hershel Schachter

(Hebrew) Beit Yosef Shaul, edited by Rabbi Elchanan A. Adler, Yeshiva University, New York, 5754.

Insights and Explanations in Teachings of Maran HaGaon Rabbi Yosef Dov HaLevi Soloveitchik zt"l on Matters of Sifrei Torah, Tefillin and Mezuzos.

Book Reviews

Reviews of books about the Rav or his teachings

Torah as Biography: Three Seforim of or about HaRav Yosef Dov HaLevi Soloveitchik zt"l (Rabbi Yosef Gavriel Bechhofer)

Book Review of Commitment (Rabbi Moshe Meiselman)

The Rav: The World of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik (Shalom Carmy, First Things, Journal of Religion, Culture, and Public Life) 

Prayer and the Beauty of God: Rav Soloveitchik on Prayer and Aesthetics, Review of Worship of the Heart, Joshua Amaru, Torah u'Maddah Journal

Audio

10th Yarzheit (Yeshiva University)

Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff (Gruss Institute, Yeshiva University, 142 classes)

Rabbi Hershel Schachter (REITS, Yeshiva University, 4 classes)

Rabbi Alan Brill (Yeshiva University, class on Modern Orthodoxy - see last two lectures in the series)

Essays

The Mesorah Torah Journal

"Each issue of Mesorah contains two parts: The first part contains Chiddushei Torah from Rabbi Yoseph Dov Soloveitchik, the Rav, zt"l, originally heard orally at Shiurim that were transcribed at the time by his students. The second section comprises original Torah articles about contemporary issues related to Kashruth."

Assorted

Article by Rav Yitzchol Boaz Gottleib (Mircaz Limudei Yahadut v'Ruach, In Hebrew)

FATE, DESTINY & SHIVAT TZIYON: The RAV on Religious Zionism (Dr. Moshe Sokolow, lookstein.org)

Introduction to the Philosophy of Rav Soloveitchik (Rabbi Ronnie Ziegler, 25 essays)

J. B. Soloveitchik and the Lonely Self (Harold M. Schulweis, Valley Beth Shalom)

Johnathan Baker's Notes on Rabbi Aaron Rothkoff-Rakeffet's Class

Lonely Man of Faith at 40 (ATID, Symposium)

Looksmart.org Articles

MJ-RAVTORAH Weekly Davar Torah 

From Michael Pitkowsky

"The Religious Philosophy of R. Joseph Soloveitchik", Dr. Lawrence
Kaplan, Tradition 14/2 (Fall 1973)

"Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik's Philosophy of Halakhah", Dr. Lawrence
Kaplan, The Jewish Law Annual vol. 7, Harwood Academic Publishers-The
Institute of Jewish Law at Boston University Law School

"Models of the Ideal Religious Personality in the Thought of Rabbi
Joseph Soloveitchik", Dr. Lawrence Kaplan, Jerusalem Studies in Jewish
Thought IV (1984/85), in Hebrew

"On the Problem of Halacha's Status in Judaism: A Study of the Attitude
of Rabbi Josef Dov Halevi Soloveitchik, R. Shihor, Forum (Spring and
Summer 1987)

"Joseph Soloveitchik: Lonely Man of Faith", David Singer and Moshe
Sokol, Modern Judaism vol. 2 no. 3, October 1982 (Johns Hopkins
University Press)

"Halakhic Man: A Review Essay", Elliot Dorff, Modern Judaism vol. 6 no.
1, February 1986

David Hartman wrote a response to Elliot Dorff's review:

"The Halakhic Hero: Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik", David Hartman, Modern
Judaism vol. 9 no. 3, October 1989

Koltorah.org (Rabbi Chaim Jachter)

Chalav Yisrael

Gems on the Haggadah

Symposium

 

Torah In Motion/YU Symposium 

The Soul of the Rav: Rabbi Soloveitchik's Halakhic Vision - Rabbi Hershel Schachter. 

From Brisk to Boston: The Sermons of Rav Soloveitchik - Dr. Arnold Lustiger.

Rav Soloveitchik and the Search for G-d - Rabbi Shalom Carmy.

Rav Soloveitchik and the Problem of Evil - Dr. David Shatz. Discussion: Lonely Man Of Faith - Ethan Isenberg.

Panel Discussion: Rav Soloveitchik: The Complex Legacy.

A recording of the lectures is available at Torah In Motion 

---------

ATID: TRANSLATING" THE TORAH AND PHILOSOPHY OF RABBI JOSEPH B. SOLOVEITCHIK zt"l TO CONTEMPORARY JEWISH EDUCATION  Discussion and Research Forum

---------

Studies Exploring the Influence of Rabbi J. B. Soloveitchik on Culture, Education and Jewish Thought The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, December 29–31, 2003

---------

Modern Orthodox Jews Have a Hero but Not All His Words (NY Times, By SAMUEL G. FREEDMAN Published: May 22, 1999)

Other

Thought of Rabbi Soloveitchik, Stern and Yeshiva College Final Exam Questions, Shalom Carmy, YU.edu)

1995    1996

---------

Congregation Ahavas Achim B'nai Jacob and David

700 Pleasant Valley Way West Orange, NJ 07052

Shabbos study group on the Rav, 15 minutes after Kiddush begins

 

 

One thing that ran through everything the Rav wrote was the significance of the individual. The Rav was very much a Jeffersonian. The individual was more important than the community or the state. And he had tremendous confidence in the individual. He said that beztelem elokim [the concept of creation in God's image] is reflective of this uniqueness of each individual. That's really the foundation of the mitzvah of aveilus [mourning], that something precious and irreplaceable has been taken away from the world. That's the mitzvah of aveilus to recognize that. Because every person is unique. It's reflective of God's uniqueness, of His loneliness....The Rav was very much an egalitarian, even though he was born aristocratic, into the beis HaRav [great rabbinic household], [aristocratic] both by [through] his family and his extradordinary intellect. But he also believed that each person had a special mission....Each person has a mission, not just talmedei chochamim (scholars). Everyone has a mission, a significant mission. (Transcipt of comments by R. Menachem Genack on the Rav's Third Yirtzheit)

Each year before Pesach students from other yeshivot, whose break started earlier, would come to Yeshiva only to be able to listen to the Rav saying shiur. Prominent Roshei Yeshiva would ask students for their notes. I had a great-uncle who was a known Hassidic talmid hakham; our conversation consisted primarily of my telling him, in response to his requests, some of the Torah that I heard form the Rav. (Yosef Blau, Mentor of Generations, p. 71)