Jewish History with Rabbi Dr. Dovid Katz

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To help support this podcast, please consider giving a tax deductible contribution here: http://support.rabbidovidkatz.com --- Rabbi Dovid Katz, PhD is lauded for his extensive knowledge of Jewish History, his engaging and insightful lecture series, and eye opening historical international tours.…

Rabbi Dovid Katz


    • Sep 3, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • weekdays NEW EPISODES
    • 40m AVG DURATION
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    4.7 from 285 ratings Listeners of Jewish History with Rabbi Dr. Dovid Katz that love the show mention: jewish history, fascinating, thank you for sharing, incredible, knowledge, different, interesting, amazing, best, great, listen, rabbonim, minyanim, rabbi katz, r katz.


    Ivy Insights

    The Jewish History with Rabbi Dr. Dovid Katz podcast is an absolute treasure for anyone interested in Jewish history. Rabbi Dr. Katz's extensive knowledge and unique perspective make every episode worthy of study. Even if one may disagree with certain aspects of his approach, the podcast offers a fresh way to see historical issues. It's truly amazing to witness the depth of knowledge that one person possesses, and I highly recommend this podcast to anyone seeking a comprehensive understanding of Jewish history.

    One of the best aspects of this podcast is Rabbi Dr. Katz's eye for detail and unmatched perspective. He has a talent for delving into historical topics and presenting them in an engaging and informative manner. His ability to connect various sources and present a cohesive narrative is truly impressive. Listening to his lectures feels like being transported back in time, as he brings these historical events to life with his expert storytelling skills.

    However, it's worth noting that there may be instances where listeners may disagree with Rabbi Dr. Katz's interpretations or conclusions. This is natural when studying history, as different scholars often have varying perspectives on certain events or figures. While Rabbi Dr. Katz provides a comprehensive understanding of Jewish history, it's important for listeners to approach the material critically and form their own interpretations based on additional research.

    In conclusion, The Jewish History with Rabbi Dr. Dovid Katz podcast is an invaluable resource for those interested in Jewish history. Through his extensive knowledge, engaging storytelling skills, and unique perspective, Rabbi Dr. Katz provides listeners with a deep understanding of historical events and figures. While there may be room for differing interpretations, this podcast remains highly recommended for its informative and captivating content.



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    Latest episodes from Jewish History with Rabbi Dr. Dovid Katz

    Why is Rosh Hashanah decribed as "covered up" or obscure? תִּקְעוּ בַחֹדֶשׁ שׁוֹפָר בַּכֵּסֶה לְיוֹם חַגֵּנוּ?

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2025 32:03


    What if you hold the world was created in Nissan? And anyway, the story of Moshe Rabbenu pleading before Hashem a third time (Elul-Tishrei) is very unclear in the text of the Chumash.

    "הַפְטָרַת פָּרָשַׁת כִּי תֵּצֵא תשפ"ה - "הַרְחִבִי מְקוֹם אֲהָלֵךְ!

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2025 26:27


    Isaiah predicts the expansion of Israel in the Messianic Era. Will Israel annex Turkey and Spain?!https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Genazym is offering a personal letter from R Ovadia Yosef to R Shlomo Zalman Auerbach re: High Israeli Politics concerning the Shas Party

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2025 26:04


    The bitter politics surrounding the 1992 Knesset Elections (which led to the Oslo Agreement) and the bitter politics in the frum world surrounding the Shas Party's disobeying the political directives of the leadership of the "Litvish" Yeshiva World's leadership. https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    פָּרָשַׁת כִּי תֵּצֵא תשפ"ה - יְפַת תֹּאַר בְּעוֹלַם הַקַּבָּלָה

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2025 35:35


    How can "Righteous Soldiers" (like King David) lust on the battlefield? A mystical take.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Genazym is offering the Prague 1595 edition of the famous Ramban theological essay דְּרָשַׁת "תּוֹרַת הַשֵּׁם תְּמִימָה"

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 31, 2025 41:17


    In this essay, Ramban analyzes the grandeur of the Written Law , the תּוֹרָה שֶׁבִּכְתָב, refuting Christlogical readings and the skepticism of Spanish Jewish אֶפִּיקוֹרְסִים. This is the edition published in the Prague of the Maharal Era.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    הַפְטָרַת פָּרָשַׁת שׁוֹפְטִים תשפ"ה - "סוּרוּ סוּרוּ צְאוּ מִשָּׁם, טָמֵא אַל תִּגְּעוּ!"

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 30:30


    What kind of cultural "baggage" will Jews bring with them from their exiles when they return to Eretz Yisroel? https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    פָּרָשַׁת שׁוֹפְטִים תשפ"ה - What is the actual meaning of "צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף"?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 27, 2025 30:23


    There's צֶדֶק - justice in the sense of social-contract. Then there is צֶדֶק צֶדֶק, which is Justice with a capital J, the attainment of judicial righteousness, which is an ideal to be pursued (תִּרְדֹּף"), though never quite attained.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Psalm # 2 and Israel's losing the current propaganda war

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 26, 2025 30:28


    Read this Kapitel and you will see the relevance to Israel's floundering in the current war of ideas and information. Israel is not successfully countering the demonization efforts of its enemies.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Genazym: The First Printing of the classic בֵּית מֵאִיר (1787), the author's own copy with extensive handwritten glosses on the sides!

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 25, 2025 50:09


    Rabbi Meir Posner of Danzig (1725-1807), one of the leading poskim of the entire 18th century. R Akiva Eger used to send him his questions! A classic אב"ד of the "Old School" https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    A recent find of of an ancient coin in Jerusalem, and thoughts about the Messianic Era . Some "dirt" re: Ptolemy III and Berenice II

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 24, 2025 51:31


    For some obscure reason, Egyptian Pharaoh Ptolemy III's invasion of Syria (246 BCE) to rescue his sister Berenice from a crazed mob is mentioned by the Angel Gabriel in Daniel Chapter 11 as being relevant to the events of יְמוֹת הַמָּשִׁיחַ. The other day, a coin of Ptlemy's Queen Berenice II was discovered under a Jerusalem parking lot.The weird world of archaeology...https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Genazym is auctioning the 15h century classic of Talmudic Methodolgy - הֲלִיכוֹת עוֹלָם, first complete edition (Constantinople 1510)

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 21, 2025 42:09


    This methodological intro to the Talmud was held in high esteem, and R Yosef Karo wrote a commentary (סֵפֶר כְּלָלֵי הַגְּמָרָא) on it. One of the first Hebrew books ever printed https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Moses' warning: אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל can easily become a קְלָלָה!

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 20, 2025 39:44


    To prevent human sacrifce by the uneducated, the Temple is located on the Mountain of the עֲקֵדַת יִצְחָק

    Genazym is Auctioning an item (a סְמִיכַת חָבֵר) from the tension-laden Golden Age of Prague, the Era of the Noda BiYhudah and the remarkable R Meir Bumsla (1703-1769), the millionaire Rosh Yeshiva

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 19, 2025 49:32


    A close student of R Yehonasan Eibeschutz, Bumsla nevertheless got along with the Noda BiYhudah, and the latter had a "prophecy" about Bumsla which he shared at the latter's funeral.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    הַפְטָרָה פָּרָשַׁת רְאֵה תשפ"ה - A future without fear? Really?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 18, 2025 25:05


    Isaiah 54:15 difficult to translate convincingly

    פָּרָשַׁת רְאֵה תשפ"ה - Keep the booze out of the house of the fellow in recovery

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 18, 2025 32:25


    אַבֵּד תְּאַבְּדוּן אֶת הַמְּקוֹמוֹת - How does one destroy a place?

    R Naphtali Katz (1648-1719) Part 2

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2025 56:01


    After the Great Fire in Frankfurt: Battling the Sabbateans (Nechemiah Chayon). The very famous (and romantic!) Ethical Will https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    R Naphtali Katz (1648-1719): The בַּעַל "סְמִיכַת חֲכָמִים". Part 1

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 14, 2025 71:49


    Did he cause the Great Fire of 1711 which burned down the entire Jewish Ghetto of Frankfurt? Was it a case of קַבָּלָה מַעֲשִׂית gone awry?

    Moses and the Bones of Joseph: Two different models of Jewish leadership?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2025 25:46


    Joseph was the personification of Traditionalism. Moshe was the personification of חִנּוּךְhttps://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Pirkei Avos Chapter 4: Why is the phrase אַל תִּפְרֹשׁ מִן הַצִּבּוּר associted with the Tanna R Tzadok?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2025 30:02


    Did the Rabbis of Eretz Yisroel learn the lesson of שִׂנְאַת חִנָּם in the wake of the Destruction of the בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ?

    הַפְטָרַת פָּרָשַׁת עֵקֶב תשפ"ה - The Revolution in Identity in the Messianic Era

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 11, 2025 29:30


    Millions of gentiles will discover they are actually Jews, which will necessitate territorial expansion of ארץ ישראל

    פָּרָשַׁת עֵקֶב תשפ"ה - וְנָשַׁל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶת הַגּוֹיִם הָאֵל מִפָּנֶיךָ מְעַט מְעָט לֹא תוּכַל כַּלֹּתָם מַהֵר פֶּן תִּרְבֶּה עָ

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2025 37:36


    Why was the Conquest of the Land supposed to proceed slowly? who are the "Wild Beasts?"

    פָּרָשַׁת וָאֶתְחַנַּן תשפ"ה - זָכוֹר אוֹ שָׁמוֹר? Is the Sabbath theology or history?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 7, 2025 35:30


    Why is a nochri punished so severely for שְׁמִירַת שַׁבָּת?

    The curious but vital role of Egypt in the current Gaza War.

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2025 41:48


    Egypt HATES Israel, but the Middle-Eastern political chessboard, both externally and internaly, compels the Egyptian regime to act in a manner fundamentally friendly to Israel, though this could never be acknowleged.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    הַפְטָרַת שַׁבַּת נַחֲמוּ תשפ"ה - Prophets cannot provide comfort to survivors; Prophets are too "frum"

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2025 27:36


    נַחֲמוּ נַחֲמוּ עַמִּי doesn't work. So it has to be אָנֹכִי אָנֹכִי הוּא מְנַחֶמְכֶם

    פָּרָשַׁת וָאֶתְחַנָּן תשפ"ה - וְנוֹשַׁנְתֶּם

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2025 27:17


    What exactly transpired in Galus Bavel?

    15th of Av - Humpty-Dumpty Day?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2025 37:30


    Can machlokes and unilateralism ever be fully-repaired?

    Tisha b'Av 5785/2025

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 3, 2025 282:22


    Rabbi Dovid Katz at BAH shul in Baltimoreunedited

    On the Arizal's yahrtzeit: Some historical thoughts re: one of the most mysterious yet influential figures in Jewish History

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 30, 2025 39:00


    How come the Ari's bona fides was never challenged? And why did the רבונו של עולם choose to reveal more about himself in the 16th century than any other? And why did the Arizal get "prophecies" in Egypt, of all places?https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    הַפְטָרַת שַׁבַּת חֲזוֹן תשפ"ה - Isaiah decries organized crime in Ancient Jerusalem

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 29, 2025 25:39


    481 synagogues and yeshivos ... and the mafia

    This Tisha B'av, turn tears into Action

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 29, 2025 21:13


    Watch the ground breaking, first of its kind initiative called Uniting Torah which unites the 4 Torah worlds. Let's show hashem that the divisions of the past no longer define us. Now every Jew can support all Torah worlds equally. This time, we give to each other.https://Unitingtorah.com/rk

    Parshas Devarim: The strange story of how the Transjordan was divided-up by Moses, not G-d

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 29:13


    Why was Half-Manasseh invited in by Moses? And given so much land?

    Torah Im Derech Eretz in a Different Key Part 2

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 40:28


    R Yaakov Ettlinger and R Samson Raphael Hirsch: Why they dropped out of College and how they used their secular education

    Torah Im derech Eretz in a Different Key: Four Gedolim who dropped-out of college but utilized their secular education

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 25, 2025 31:31


    !.) Azariah Figo 2.)Ramchal 3.) R Yaakov Ettlinger 4.) SR HirschThis podcast is the first of two partshttps://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Analyzing the sinister role of Turkey, currently Israel's mortal enemy, inthe goings-on in Syria and the Middle East

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 24, 2025 36:28


    The old Ottoman policy of religious toleration has been abandoned for over a century and replaced by a policy of killing non Sunni Muslims whenever opportunity presents itself (as in Syria), and as they hope to do one day in EY. :(https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Parshas Matos 5785 What happened to the kids of the two and a half tribes while the fathers were away fighting on the other side of the Jordan River?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 23, 2025 25:05


    The kids lived in a rough neighborhood (מִפְּנֵי יוֹשְׁבֵי הָאָרֶץ), heavily armed and without paternal supervision for years. result? בְּגִלְעָד נְפִישֵׁי רוֹצְחִין!https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    הַפְטָרַת מַטּוֹת-מַסְּעֵי (בֵּין הַמְּצָרִים) תשפ"ה - A Famous Jeremiad

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 22, 2025 25:09


    "Why are the Jews the only people who voluntarily switched their god? The Prophet tears into them.https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Rashi's raw hatred of the Crusaders - the vicious poem תִּתְּנֵם לְחֶרְפָּה

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 20, 2025 30:24


    Every kind of curse and imprecation in the Hebrew language . How Rashi felt when he learned about the Crusader massacres of 1096https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    פָּרָשַׁת מִטּוֹת מַסְּעֵי תשפ"ה - מִלְחֶמֶת הַנְּקָמָה בְּמִדְיׇן וְהַמִּלְחָמָה נֶגֶד חָמָס בְּעַזָּה

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 20, 2025 29:20


    Moshe (a former "Midianite") is told to lead the war. He tries to wiggle out, but as events unfold, he is dragged into the thick of it

    Haftarah Pinchas: The Relationship between Pinchas and Eliyahu -Are they literally the same person?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 17, 2025 33:52


    Moses says הָרְגֵנִי נָא הָרוֹג. Pinchas says קַח נַפְשִׁי. What is the difference?https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    R Katz Analyzes the Current Middle East Crisis involving the Druze, Syria, Israel, and the USA

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2025 46:21


    The Existential Dilemma facing Bibi: Making Peace with Syria, but also bombing Syria to save the Syrian Druze (thereby giving מְנוּחַת הַנֶּפֶשׁ to the Israeli Druze). A very complicated story!

    The Influence of R Saadia Gaon on the Rambam and all the other Medieval Jewish Philosophers

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2025 27:02


    Many of the ideas in the מוֹרֵה נְבוֹכִים, הַכּוּזָרִי, הַחוֹבוֹת הַלְּבָבוֹת, יַד רמ"ה, הָעִקָּרִים, וְכוּלְהוּ actually were already written in the אֱמוּנוֹת וְדֵעוֹת

    Isaac Ochberg of Cape Town (1878-1937): Rescuer of Orphans from World War I

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2025 33:47


    A South African "Jewish Jew" who went to wartorn Ukraine in 1920, then in the midst of massacres of Jews, and brought 200 Jewish orphans to safety in South Africa

    פָּרָשַׁת פִּינְחָס תשפ"ה - The Bloody Discrepancies

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 14, 2025 28:34


    Why did the Civil Wars between the Tribes in the Desert degenerate into exterminatory massacres?

    Bilam's obseration of הֶן עָם לְבָדָד יִשְׁכֹּן and the current phenomenon of Jews being abandoned by their supposed "allies"

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 10, 2025 29:12


    So many Jews have deluded themselves that they wre building "alliances" only to discover on October 7 that they had been building on sand

    What is the Oldest Source for the "Three Weeks"?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 9, 2025 25:33


    Daniel fasts out of consternation at Cyrus' stop-order re: the building of the Second Templehttps://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    הַפְטָרָה פָּרָשַׁת בָּלָק תשפ"ה - Will some Jews choose to remain in חוּץ לָאָרֶץ in the Messianic Era?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2025 25:12


    Is the Messianic Utopia only for the Jews? Or for all mankind?

    Quaker Ger Tzedek: Warder Cresson of Philadelphia and Jerusalem (1798-1861)

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2025 56:08


    The Famous Trial in 1849: Is conversion to Judaism an indication of mental insanity?

    פָּרָשַׁת בָּלָק תשפ"ה - Parshas Bil'am and the Current War in Gaza

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2025 26:29


    Contrast the two stories: a.) The King of Arad b.) Bil'am, the lethal rhetoric, and the בְּנוֹת מוֹאָבhttps://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    Katz Analyzes the current situation inthe Middle East: The Connection between Drafting the בני תורה and the possibilities of peace with Syria?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 7, 2025 33:25


    Acc.to current reports, the Syrians may be willing to recognize Israel's annexation of the Golan Heights(!), just as Israel is cracking-down on the Haredi Draft. Sighhttps://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

    רס"ג והמשיח - The Reasons for Saadia Gaon's Messianic Speculation in the 10th Century Abbasid Caliphate

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 6, 2025 53:06


    What was the historical context for Saadia's prediction that משיח would come in 965 CE

    הַפְטָרָה פָּרָשַׁת חֻקַּת תשפ"ה - Was Yiftach a Shofet? Or was he a general?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 1, 2025 25:40


    Was he a shofet over כְּלַל יִשְׂרָאֵל? Or was he just a big shot (רֹאשׁ וּקְצִין) over the area of עֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּן?https://thechesedfund.com/rabbikatz/support-rabbi-katzz-podcast

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