MESORAH HERITAGE FOUNDATION

THE MESORAH HERITAGE FOUNDATION WAS CREATED TO RESPOND TO URGENT NEEDS THAT BECAME APPARENT IN THE POST-WORLD WAR II ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD. THESE NEEDS CONTINUE TO GROW, IN PART THANKS TO THE SCHOLARSHIP SPONSORED BY THE FOUNDATION. IN ADDITION, THE SUCCESSFUL WORK OF THE FOUNDATION HAS BROUGHT DEMANDS FROM SPEAKERS OF MODERN HEBREW, FRENCH, AND SPANISH TO MAKE FOUNDATION WORKS AVAILABLE IN THEIR LANGUAGES.THE NEEDS MET BY THE FOUNDATION ARE THREEFOLD: (I) A LARGE JEWISH PUBLIC, INCLUDING THOSE WITH A YESHIVAH EDUCATION, FIND IT DIFFICULT OR IMPOSSIBLE TO STUDY CLASSIC JEWISH TEXTS IN THE ORIGINAL ANCIENT HEBREW OR ARAMAIC; AND (II) THERE IS A GROWING NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO WISH TO STUDY THE JEWISH CLASSICS, BUT HAVE LITTLE OR NO KNOWLEDGE OF THE LANGUAGES IN WHICH THEY WERE WRITTEN. EVEN PEOPLE WHO SPEAK MODERN HEBREW FLUENTLY ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH BIBLICAL AND RABBINIC HEBREW OR ARAMAIC, THE LANGUAGE OF TALMUDIC TIMES AND MUCH POST-TALMUDIC LITERATURE. MODERN HEBREW IS MUCH DIFFERENT FROM THE HEBREW OF 15 CENTURIES AGO, AND ARAMAIC IS A FOREIGN, VIRTUALLY EXTINCT, LANGUAGE. (III) THERE IS A NEED FOR ORIGINAL WORKS BASED ON THE CLASSICS AND WORKS ON SUCH SUBJECTS AS JEWISH LAW AS IT APPLIES TO MODERN DEVELOPMENTS, THEOLOGICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL TEXTS, AND SIMILAR PROJECTS THAT SHED LIGHT ON TRADITIONAL JEWISH AND TALMUDIC SCHOLARSHIP AND PRACTICE. THE MISSION OF THE MESORAH HERITAGE FOUNDATION IS TO SELECT APPROPRIATE CLASSIC JEWISH WORKS OF RELIGION, LAW, LITURGY, CULTURE, AND SCHOLARSHIP THAT HAVE PREVIOUSLY BEEN UNAVAILABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC, OR THAT HAVE NOT BEEN AVAILABLE WITH A THOROUGH ELUCIDATION IN THE MODERN IDIOM. THE FOUNDATION ENGAGES HIGHLY QUALIFIED SCHOLARS TO TRANSLATE, ELUCIDATE, EDIT, AND PREPARE THE WORKS FOR PUBLICATION. OUR GOAL IS TO MAKE THESE WORKS ACCESSIBLE TO SCHOLARS, STUDENTS, AND LAYMEN IN A FORM THAT IS AUTHORITATIVE AND ACCURATE, WITH LITERARY GRACE, AND PLEASING AESTHETICS.ORIGINALLY THE FOUNDATION PRODUCED THESE WORKS IN ENGLISH, BUT IT HAS SINCE EXPANDED TO MODERN HEBREW, FRENCH AND SPANISH. THE FOUNDATION ALSO COMMISSIONS, IN ENGLISH AND OTHER LANGUAGES, ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPTS OF JEWISH SCHOLARSHIP, LAW, ETHICS, LITURGY, AND HISTORY.TO FULFILL ITS MISSION AND GOALS, THE FOUNDATION ENGAGES SCHOLARS AND EDITORS, 90-150 AT ANY GIVEN TIME, TO RESEARCH, WRITE, AND PREPARE THE WORKS FOR PUBLICATION. THE FOUNDATION'S CROWN JEWELS ARE THE COMPLETE 73-VOLUME ENGLISH AND HEBREW ELUCIDATIONS OF THE BABYLONIAN TALMUD. THE LATE LORD IMMANUEL JAKOBOVITS, CHIEF RABBI OF THE BRITISH COMMONWEALTH, DESCRIBED THESE EDITIONS OF THE TALMUD AS "THE GREATEST PUBLISHING PROJECT ACROSS THE LENGTH AND BREADTH OF JEWISH HISTORY." CURRENTLY IN PROGRESS IS A FRENCH-LANGUAGE ELUCIDATION OF THE BABYLONIAN TALMUD. ANOTHER MAJOR INDEED HISTORIC PROJECT IS THE 51-VOLUME ELUCIDATIONS, IN BOTH ENGLISH AND MODERN HEBREW, OF THE JERUSALEM TALMUD. THIS SEMINAL WORK, WHICH HAS BEEN VIRTUALLY A SEALED BOOK FOR NEARLY 1,800 YEARS, HAS NOW BECOME ACCESSIBLE TO MODERN READERS, TO LAY AND SCHOLARLY ACCLAIM.THE FOUNDATION'S VOLUMES OF THE TALMUD HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE FOR MANY TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE TO ENGAGE IN DAILY STUDY. ON NEW YEARS DAY 2020, 110,000 PEOPLE FILLED METLIFE STADIUM AND BARCLAYS CENTER TO CELEBRATE THE COMPLETION OF DAF YOMI, THE SEVEN-AND-A-HALF-YEAR CYCLE OF DAILY TALMUD STUDY. ORGANIZERS OF THE EVENT CREDITED THE FOUNDATION FOR ENABLING MOST OF THE ATTENDEES TO STUDY AND UNDERSTAND THE TALMUD, AND TO BE ACTIVE PARTICIPANTS, INSTEAD OF MERELY SPECTATORS. ALSO COMPLETED ARE ENGLISH AND HEBREW ELUCIDATIONS OF THE MISHNAH, WHICH IS THE BASIS OF THE TALMUD.THE FOUNDATION'S WORKS INCLUDE TRANSLATIONS AND EXPLANATIONS OF THE SABBATH, FESTIVAL, AND WEEKDAY PRAYER BOOKS IN HEBREW, ENGLISH, AND SPANISH AND ALSO IN TRANSLITERATED AND INTERLINEAR VERSIONS. THESE PRAYER BOOKS HAVE BECOME STANDARD IN SYNAGOGUES ALL OVER THE WORLD. THE FOUNDATION'S EDITIONS OF THE CHUMASH, THE FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES, IN ENGLISH, FRENCH, SPANISH, AND MODERN HEBREW VERSIONS, ARE ENORMOUSLY POPULAR AND ARE EXPOSING NEW POPULATIONS TO THE FOUNDATION'S WORK. THE FOUNDATION HAS ENABLED THE PUBLICATION OF MANY VOLUMES OF SCRIPTURES, WITH TRANSLATION AND COMMENTARY, THAT ARE POPULAR IN SCHOOLS, HOMES, AND SYNAGOGUES. INDEED, THEY HAVE BECOME THE STANDARD IN MOST SYNAGOGUES. ALL 24 BOOKS OF THE HEBREW SCRIPTURES HAVE BEEN COMPLETED WITH AN UNPRECEDENTED ARRAY OF CLASSIC COMMENTARIES. THE FOUNDATION HAS ALSO PREPARED A ONE-VOLUME ENGLISH TRANSLATION, WITH NOTES, OF THE ENTIRE 24 BOOKS OF THE HEBREW SCRIPTURES.OTHER MAJOR CLASSICS, NEVER BEFORE PRESENTED SO THOROUGHLY IN ENGLISH, ARE MULTI-VOLUME TREATMENTS OF MIDRASH RABBAH, SEFER HACHINUCH, AND KITZUR SHULCHAN ARUCH, AND RAMBAN ON CHUMASH. SEVERAL NEW PROJECTS ARE UNDERWAY AND OTHERS ARE IN THE PIPELINE. DURING THE LOCKDOWN IN RESPONSE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, THE FOUNDATION GAVE PERMISSION TO DOWNLOAD NUMEROUS TEXTS TO ENABLE SCHOOLS AND SYNAGOGUES TO ENHANCE THEIR VIRTUAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS. IN THE COMING WEEKA WORK BEGINS ON A 17 VOLUME SPANISH EDITION OF THE MISHNAH.THE FOUNDATION HAS GIVEN PERMISSION, FREE OF CHARGE, TO A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION TO PUBLISH BRAILLE EDITIONS OF FOUNDATION BOOKS. WE FEEL PRIVILEGED TO PROVIDE THIS SERVICE TO A COMMUNITY THAT CURRENTLY HAS NO ACCESS TO SUCH CLASSIC WORKS. IN RECENT YEARS THE FOUNDATION PRODUCED UNPRECEDENTED DIGITAL APPS FOR THE ENTIRE TALMUD AND THE DAILY SIDDUR/PRAYER BOOK AND A HOST OF OTHER WORKS. IT IS CURRENTLY FINALIZING AN APP FOR THE ENTIRE HEBREW SCRIPTURES AS WELL AS APPS FOR MANY OF ITS OTHER CLASSIC WORKS. THANKS TO THESE DIGITAL APPS, ONE CAN ACCESS MORE THAN A MILLION CROSS-REFERENCES SPANNING 2,000 YEARS OF HEBREW, ARAMAIC, AND ENGLISH SCHOLARSHIP, WITH JUST THE TAP OF A FINGER. THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF THE FOUNDATION'S USE OF STATE-OF-THE-ART TECHNOLOGY TO ADVANCE ITS MISSION OF MAKING SCHOLARLY WORKS EVEN MORE ACCESSIBLE TO LAYMEN, STUDENTS, AND SCHOLARS. THE MESORAH HERITAGE FOUNDATION HAS ENABLED THE PUBLICATION OF SEVERAL HUNDRED CLASSIC TITLES WHOSE IMPACT HAS BEEN DESCRIBED AS A REVOLUTION IN JEWISH AND SCHOLARLY LIFE. WHILE THE FOUNDATION IS PROUD OF ITS ACCOMPLISHMENTS TO DATE, AND AUSPICIOUS THOUGH THEY ARE, IT IS STILL ONLY THE BEGINNING, FOR THE WORK CONTINUES! AS WE WRITE, TEAMS OF ACCOMPLISHED SCHOLARS AND EDITORS ARE HARD AT WORK ON MORE ANCIENT AND MODERN JUDAICA CLASSICS.