Over a period of 30 years, Rav Yosef Karo wrote of his encounters with a divine messenger, an angel which identified itself as the living essence of the Mishna. The most public manifestation took place on an extraordinary night of Shavuos in Salonika in 1533.
19th-century critics dismissed the mystical journal as a complete fabrication, but ground-breaking research and archaeological evidence have vindicated its authenticity.
The personal side of his halachic decision making is clearly evident throughout his numerous responsa, whereas the Printing Press allowed his Shulchan Aruch to become available across the Jewish world, despite various omissions – when publishers cut introductions to save space !
Timestamps:
00:00 – Printing omissions and errors in early Jewish texts
00:32 – Introduction to History for the Curious
01:12 – Episode dedication and sponsorship
01:40 – Return from Radin and introduction to Part 2
02:33 – Pronouncing Rabbi Yosef Karo’s name and the episode’s main topics
03:07 – The Maggid Mesharim: Rabbi Yosef Karo’s private spiritual diary
03:37 – What is a Maggid?
05:23 – How Rabbi Yosef Karo’s Mishnah study led to revelation
06:10 – The Maggid’s guidance on Torah study and daily life
08:02 – Other rabbis associated with Maggidim and heavenly revelations
08:32 – The contents of the Maggid Mesharim
09:25 – Using the Maggid’s teachings in public sermons
10:24 – Practical halachic rulings attributed to the Maggid
14:09 – Why Rabbi Yosef Karo recorded the Maggid’s words
14:35 – The famous Shavuot-night revelation in Salonica
16:24 – How the group recognized the Maggid’s voice
16:51 – Can heavenly revelation influence halachic decisions?
18:46 – The Maggid’s authority outside practical halacha
19:30 – Chronological problems created by early editors
21:00 – Claims that the Maggid Mesharim was a forgery
24:37 – Manuscript evidence supporting the work’s authenticity
26:07 – Why Rabbi Yosef Karo did not cite the Maggid in his main legal works
26:30 – Joy, fear and fasting on Rosh Hashanah
29:30 – The three major authorities behind the Shulchan Aruch
31:09 – Resolving contradictions between the Beit Yosef and Shulchan Aruch
32:11 – The first printing of the Shulchan Aruch
33:39 – Missing introductions and mistakes made by printers
34:22 – Early editions and the monthly Shulchan Aruch study cycle
36:40 – The Rema’s additions to the Shulchan Aruch
38:15 – Rabbi Yosef Karo’s responsum concerning decorative images
40:30 – A disputed religious image on a gold object
41:32 – Rabbi Yosef Karo’s strict response and textual reasoning
43:15 – Eyewitness descriptions of Rabbi Yosef Karo and his yeshiva
44:20 – A modern controversy about truth, plagiarism and academia
46:48 – Aseret Yemei Teshuvah: confronting truth and reality
48:28 – Closing thanks, listener feedback and the next episode