Ask the Author: Reuven Chaim Klein
Answered Questions (2)
Reuven Chaim Klein
As I already noted earlier, I learn in Yeshivas Mir in Yerushalyim, which takes up most of my time and energy. I also give a weekly shiur on the Midrash Pirkei D’Rabbi Eliezer to a group of English-speaking men here in Beitar Illit (these shiurim are available for free at TorahDownloads.com), so that requires preparation and research as well. Once in a while I contribute to various journals, including the semi-academic Jewish Bible Quarterly, as well as several established rabbinic journals such as Kovetz Hamaor, Kovetz Kol HaTorah, Kovetz Chitzei Gibborim, and others. I recently joined a training program called Ohr LaGolah for aspiring Jewish leaders. For my next book, I would like to write more about topics in which academia and Torah intersect. I was thinking of writing about the history of avodah zarah (idolatry) — a topic which, believe it or not, has a lot to do with ancient world history and even archeology, as well as Tanach and Gemara.
Reuven Chaim Klein
As you might realize, I have been a full-time Yeshiva student for more than a decade, so naturally my interest in this topic came about while sitting in the Beis Midrash learning Gemara. To be more precise, we were learning the beginning of Maseches Nedarim and on the very first page, the Pirush HaRan writes that Lashon HaKodesh is different from all other languages because all other languages are simply “an agreement of the nations.” That got me thinking: Can it really be true that all other languages are just a social contract, given that Hashem created the languages at the Tower of Babel? Then I wondered, In what way is Lashon HaKodesh different from all other language? And finally, I thought to myself, Why is it called Lashon HaKodesh anyways? So I set out to answer these questions, and in my quest came up with more and more questions. In the end, I realized that I had accrued a wide range of information about our beloved Hebrew language — and especially its history— and that nobody from the Orthodox community had ever written a comprehensive work on that topic. So I compiled everything I had and prepared it for publication.
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