charliehall:
You keep bringing how Rambam and Sforno went to university. How about Rashi, Ramban, Ran, Rosh, Ba’al HaTurim, Rashba, Ritva, Mordechai, Rif, Beis Yosef, Rama, Ri Migesh, Rabeinu Tam, Ri, Rabeinu Bechaye, Rabeinu Bachye, Ibn Ezra, Rabeinu Gershom, Meiri, Shita Mekubetzes, Rekanti and the Rokeach to name a few? Did all those Rishonim go to university too?
To the contrary, you will understand and appreciate Chazal’s science more if you know something about Greek science.
I think here is where many of us will diverge in opinions. We do not believe that it Chazal’s ‘science’ requires us to understand greek anything. I’m pretty sure that is part of the point of Chanuka. Also I’ve never heard of Rabbi Lichtenstein or Rabbi Tendler.
However, it should also be pointed out that the YU/Touro/Bar Ilan models have clearly produced gedolim. For example, Rav Schachter and Rav Lichtenstein have undergraduate degrees from YU.
This is called the accident fallacy:
Rabbi Lichtenstein and Rabbi Schachter attended YU
Rabbi Lichtenstein and Rabbi Schachter are gedolim
The YU model clearly produces gedolim.
You have a tendency to overgeneralize. Two people that came out of YU you consider gedolim and that means that the YU model works? How many people come out of YU? How many of them are talmidei chachamim?
How many people come out of Lakewood? How many of them are talmidei chachamim?
I don’t think everyone who comes out of YU is not a talmid chacham. i don’t think everyone who comes our of Lakewood is a talmid chacham. But which model do you honestly think produces more talmidei chachamim?
That being said, I think its important to distinguish between a gadol and a talmid chacham. Very few people in this world would not call Rav Elyashiv a gadol. The same cannot be said for many of the Rabbis you have mentioned who have attended university.