Who The Heck Is That Guy? With Akiva Weisinger: A Misfit Torah Production
By Akiva Weisinger
Akiva Weisinger goes through the Jewish Library telling who the heck is that guy, what he does, and when you'd use his book. Come for the Torah, stay for the Ibn Ezra jokes.
The Zohar is discussed. Stories of young firebrands getting shut down are told. Hearts are warmed. Things get a little raunchy. The limits of rationalism are probed. The word "theosophy" presents some trouble. Promised edits never arrive. The significance of sea monsters is discussed. Gaps appear between vocabulary and pronunciation. Davidic improprieties are pondered. Communal priorities are thought over. Paths forwards are hesitantly pointed towards.
The relationship between religion and truth is pondered. The Ralbag is introduced. A joke about Maimonidean esotericism is clumsily made. An article is promoted. Stories are rationalized, naturalized, and reinterpreted. The podcast becomes PG-13. Some wacky comments of The Ralbag are read. Light misogyny and body shaming is awkwardly handled. Death stares become literal. Exhortations to never give up are made.
The Baal Haturim is discussed, and defended. Our host's origin story is recounted. Codes are explained. Diagrams are needed but not provided. Names of siblings are revealed and interpreted.
The Ramban is discussed. Diversity is extolled. Sephardic and Ashkenazi learning styles are oversimplified. Genius is asserted. Pulp Fiction is quoted. The moral decay of strongmen is analyzed. Rainbows are directly observed. Christopher Lee is mentioned positively.
Ibn Ezra is discussed. Stars are railed against. Riddles are puzzled over. Palindromes are given and taken on faith. Bovine-based insults are explicated. Hamilton is invoked and millenials are pandered to. The nature of inconsistency and doubt are probed.
In our latest episode, Akiva talks about the Rashbam, what makes his commentary so out there, why Artscroll censored a rishon, and why Jack White's solo albums suck. Ancient Crimes are re-examined and new evidence is considered.
