Reply To: Anyone use Soncino Gemara?

Mission accomplished!

@ Geordie613, you got a laugh out of me !

Sorry, you missed the live feed!

I suspect that 5ish’s name was inspired by Oorah, but who knows?!

@ Joseph, sorry, I just can’t resist: Smooth, no complications, B”H. Mom and baby are doing well!

In tribute:

After leaving yeshiva, my father z”l learned daf yomi, possibly 7 cycles. He had a daily chavrusa, I’m not sure before or after Shacharis. And he had a daily shiur in the morning, which he NEVER missed. He also was a faithful attendee to a large nightly shiur on the daf that has developed in Boro Park. I know he reviewed the gemara a number of times throughout the day. He definitely reviewed it on the train during his commute to and from work.

Like many in his field, my father carried an attache case… which was basically empty, aside from his lunch! But there was ALWAYS a Gemara in there. I didn’t look at the publishing date, but I would say it’s fair to assume he purchased the Soncino translation as soon as he could afford it! He likely was always looking for resources to enhance the clarity of whatever he was learning.

My father had degrees in Mathematics, Physics and Operations Research. Let’s just say he was blessed with high intelligence. Therefore, I’m sure the latin abbreviations were not a problem. He did move on to the Artscroll as it became available, for a number of reasons.

(The fact that it is a concise, literal translation leaves the Soncino edition vulnerable to being learned incorrectly, despite the expertise of the translators and Editor. Our Mesora is that the oral Torah was meant to be learned orally, passed down from father to son, Rebbi to talmid. It was only written down because it was in danger of being forgotten once we were in Golus. There are cryptic passages, and there is much room for confusion, in order to ensure that it will always need to be learned from a Rebbi, with mesorah).

My family was resigned to the fact that with the proliferation of the Artscroll edition, my father’s Soncino Shas had finished its mission on this Earth. I figured there’s a big world out there, so I kept it in the back of my mind, trying to think of a way to offer it to an appropriate place. One day, the YWN coffee room popped into my head: There are often discussions here that demonstrate that some very learned people, with diverse backgrounds come here to chill.

It is my fervent hope that this Shas will continue to be learned according to the guidelines of our mesora.

Have a refuah shelaima 5ish.

May you have much Hatzlocha, and Siyatta D’shmaya in your learning.