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45-504: A 2006 list, "An Annotated Bibliography Of Translations And Commentaries", placed these volumes in "Texts with Talmudic Translations" in second place, right after ArtScroll . The series is published by Moznaim Publishers. The Living Torah is a 1981 translation of the Torah by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan . It was and remains a highly popular translation, and was reissued in a Hebrew-English version with haftarot for synagogue use. Kaplan had

90-762: A Hebrew version of the commentary and have begun both an English and Hebrew translation of the Talmud Yerushalmi ( Jerusalem Talmud - the Hebrew/Aramaic side of the page, as well as the pagination, is based on the Oz Vehadar edition), Midrash Rabbah and other classical sources. ArtScroll has also produced the "Elucidated Mishnah", a work similarly clarifying the Mishnah -text, and expanding thereon in an appended commentary and footnotes; see Mishnah § Commentaries . In 2003, ArtScroll published

135-463: A Sephardic Haggadah published by ArtScroll, written by Sephardic Rabbi Eli Mansour, the book Aleppo , about a prominent Sephardic community in Syria , and a Sephardic prayerbook. In translations and commentaries, ArtScroll accepts midrashic accounts in a historical fashion, and at times literally; it disagrees with textual criticism . Page "X" of the preface to ArtScroll's first publication set

180-427: A cookbook by Susie Fishbein entitled Kosher by Design: Picture-perfect food for the holidays & every day . The cookbook contains both traditional recipes and updated versions of traditional recipes. All the recipes are kosher and the book puts an emphasis on its food photography. Since publication, the book has sold over 400,000 copies from 2003 through 2010, and Fishbein has become a media personality, earning

225-420: A new depth of thought that comes from the subtleties of a finer understanding." ArtScroll publications are best identified through the "hallmark features" of its design elements such as typeface and layout, through which "ArtScroll books constitute a field of visual interaction that enables and encourages the reader to navigate the text in particular ways." The emphasis on design and layout can be understood "as

270-404: A pattern defined by the late Rabbi Hersh Goldwurm, "a Monsey, N.Y., scholar who died in 1993." The total cost of the project is estimated at US$ 21 million, most of which was contributed by private donors and foundations. Some volumes have up to 2 million copies in distribution, while more recent volumes have only 90,000 copies currently printed. A completed set was dedicated on February 9, 2005, to

315-593: A perspective appealing to many Orthodox Jews, but especially to Orthodox Jews who have come from less religious backgrounds, but are returning to the faith ( Baalei Teshuva ). Due to the makeup of the Jewish community in the US, most of the prayer books are geared to the Ashkenazic custom. In more recent years, ArtScroll has collaborated with Sephardic community leaders in an attempt to bridge this gap. Examples of this include

360-642: A respectable level. There are dozens of cases where prepositions are misunderstood, where verb tenses are not perceived properly and where grammatical or linguistic terms are used incorrectly. Words are often vocalized incorrectly. These observations, it should be stressed, are not limited to the Bible text but refer to the talmudic, midrashic, targumic, medieval and modern works as well. Rabbinical passages are removed from their contexts, presented in fragmentary form thus distorting their contents, emended to update their messages even though these new ideas were not expressed in

405-417: A strategy on the part of the publisher to achieve a range of cognitive as well as esthetic effects." The name ArtScroll was chosen for the publishing company to emphasize the visual appeal of the books. Mesorah Publications received widespread acclaim in response to its ArtScroll line of prayerbooks, starting with The Complete ArtScroll Siddur , Ed. Nosson Scherman, 1984. This work gained wide acceptance in

450-590: A widely available English-Hebrew Torah translation and commentary in the U.S. and other English-speaking countries. A 2018 review of Hebrew-English Chumashim said that ArtScroll's Stone Edition Chumash , often called The Stone Chumash , is "the most successful Orthodox replacement for the" Hertz Chumash . Mesorah has a line of Mishnah translations and commentaries, and a line of Babylonian Talmud translations and commentaries, The Schottenstein Edition of The Talmud Bavli ("Babylonian Talmud"). The set of Talmud

495-844: Is probably an annotated Hebrew -English siddur ("prayerbook") ( The ArtScroll Siddur ). Its Torah translation and commentary, a series of translations and commentaries on books of the Tanach ( Hebrew Bible ), and an English translation and elucidation of the Babylonian Talmud have enjoyed great success. Other publications include works on Jewish Law , novels and factual works based on Jewish life or history, and cookbooks. The popular demand for ArtScroll's translations of classic Jewish works (e.g., Mishnah; Talmud) largely coincided with preexisting market demands, unappreciated to an extent, for English editions characterized by both high-fidelity translations as well as accompanying commentary in

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540-880: Is unable to read the Targum Onkelos , which is written in Aramaic , one can fulfill Shnayim mikra ve-echad targum , the obligatory weekly reading of the Torah twice in Hebrew and once with translation, with The Living Torah' s translation. A Russian language translation of The Living Torah has been published. The work is also noted for its detailed index, thorough cross-references, extensive footnotes with maps and diagrams, and research on realia , flora , fauna , and geography (drawing on sources as varied as Josephus , Dio Cassius , Philostratus and Herodotus ). The footnotes also indicate differences in interpretation amongst

585-499: The Aramaic / Hebrew Vilna Edition text, and the corresponding page consists of an English translation. The English translation has a bolded literal translation of the Talmud's text, but also includes un-bolded text clarifying the literal translation. (The original Talmud's text is often very unclear, referring to places, times, people, and laws that it does not explain. The un-bolded text attempts to explain these situations. The text of

630-677: The Library of Congress , and the siyum (celebration at the "completion") was held on March 15, 2005, the 13th yahrzeit of Jerome Schottenstein, at the New York Hilton . The blue-covered Hebrew Talmud set, which like the English counterpart is 73 volumes, has a HasKaMa (approbation) from a Bobover Rebbe, Grand Rabbi Naftali Halberstam . A French language set was begun. Mesorah and the Schottenstein family have also printed

675-650: The Orthodox Jewish community, and within a few years became a popular Hebrew-English siddur (prayerbook) in the United States. It offered the reader detailed notes and instructions on most of the prayers and versions of this prayerbook were produced for the High Holidays , and the three pilgrimage festivals Passover , Sukkot and Shavuot . They are also well-known for their range of interlinear translated prayerbooks and machzorim , of which

720-454: The commentators , classic and modern . The Living Torah was "compiled by the author in the short period of nine months." The Living Torah was later supplemented by 3 volumes of The Living Nach : Early Prophets (1994) and Later Prophets (1995) for Nevi'im, and Sacred Writings (1998) for Ketuvim. These follow Rabbi Kaplan's format and approach, and were prepared posthumously: the former two by Yaakov Elman ( Yeshiva University );

765-701: The Cleveland campus. In addition to teaching his students, Gifter delivered a shiur (Torah lecture) on the Minchas Chinuch on Fridays in Jerusalem , attracting many Torah scholars. Notes from that shiur were eventually compiled in a sefer (book) called Pitei Mincha . When Sorotzkin died in 1979, Gifter was sent back to the United States to lead the Cleveland campus and the Israeli branch closed. From that point on, Gifter moved into small quarters in

810-471: The English language generally uses Ashkenazi consonants and Sefardi vowels. The two major differences between the way Sefardi and Ashkenazi Hebrew dialects are transcribed are as follows: As such, the following transliterations are used: Dikduk (grammar) is anathema in many Jewish circles, but the translation and presentation of texts is, to a large extent, a philological activity and must be philologically accurate. The ArtScroll effort has not achieved

855-582: The English translation appear extensive notes including diagrams. ArtScroll's English explanations and footnoted commentary in the Schottenstein Edition of the Talmud are based on the perspective of classical Jewish sources. The clarifying explanation is generally based on the viewpoint of Rashi , the medieval commentator who wrote the first comprehensive commentary on the Talmud. The Schottenstein Edition does not include contemporary academic or critical scholarship. The overall guidelines follow

900-470: The English vernacular. Such editions are used even by American yeshivah graduates–who have had the benefit of exposure to Hebrew and Aramaic from a young age–inasmuch as it is often easier to effortlessly parse through the material in their native language in place of what may at times be a tedious endeavor of self-translation. In certain cases, reading the Judaic texts in one's native English can even "trigger

945-497: The Talmud also contains few prepositions, articles, etc. The un-bolded text takes the liberty of inserting these parts of speech.) The result is an English text that reads in full sentences with full explanations, while allowing the reader to distinguish between direct translation and a more liberal approach to the translation. (This also results in one page of the Vilna Talmud requiring several pages of English translation.) Below

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990-411: The Torah community." The Mesorah Heritage Foundation box printed on the inner page of ArtScroll publications lists Rabbi David Feinstein 's name first. Mesorah Publications is the "parent" company of ArtScroll; the name Mesorah was not part of ArtScroll's publications for the first book published, Megilas Esther (1976). ArtScroll publishes books on a variety of Jewish subjects. The best known

1035-619: The United States. Only his bride came; the family chose not to abandon their community in its time of greatest need. The Gifters married in Baltimore, with Mrs. Gifter's family still in war-torn Lithuania. One of the witnesses at Gifter's wedding was Bernard Lander , then a rabbi in Baltimore and later founder of Touro College . Shortly thereafter, Gifter was appointed to the pulpit of the Nusach Ari Synagogue in northwest Baltimore. In addition to his rabbinic position, Gifter

1080-796: The design has been patent protected. While many Conservative synagogues rely on the Siddur Sim Shalom or Or Hadash prayer books and Etz Hayim Humash , "a small but growing number of North American Conservative Jewish congregations ... have recently adopted ArtScroll prayer books and Bibles as their 'official' liturgical texts, not to mention a much larger number of Conservative synagogues that over recent years have grown accustomed to individual congregants participating in prayer services with editions of ArtScroll prayer books in their hands." The shift has mainly occurred among more traditionally minded Conservative congregants and rabbis (sometimes labeled "Conservadox") "as an adequate representation of

1125-698: The floors with him." ArtScroll publications, such as the Stone Editions of Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) and Chumash (Pentateuch) use many more transliterated Hebrew words than English words, compared to editions such as the Tanakh of the Jewish Publication Society . This reflects a higher use of untranslated Hebrew terminology in Haredi English usage. ArtScroll's transliteration system for Hebrew transliteration for readers of

1170-467: The following goals for his translation, which were arguably absent from previous English translations: Kaplan's work has been hailed as one of the best English translations of the Torah because of his inclusion of the rabbinic elucidation of the text. Rabbi Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg , a prominent legal decider for the Orthodox community, is reported to have said that the translation is so good that if one

1215-550: The largest publisher of Jewish books in the United States. After decades of being headquartered in New York, ArtScroll moved to New Jersey in 2020. Among other things, ArtScroll's headquarters in Rahway is notable for their in-house green screen studio used for the production of Inside ArtScroll videos made available online , as well as non-ArtScroll videos such as Mishpacha interviews and other "films that are broadcasted to

1260-551: The more traditional liturgy they seek to embrace." Since the advent of ArtScroll, a number of Jewish publishers have printed books and siddurim with similar typefaces and commentary, but with a different commentary and translation philosophy. In 1993, Mesorah Publications published The Chumash: The Stone Edition , a translation and commentary on the Chumash arranged for liturgical use and sponsored by Irving I. Stone of American Greetings , Cleveland, Ohio . It has since become

1305-498: The publication committee shortly thereafter. He began by donating funds for the project in memory of his parents Ephraim and Anna Schottenstein one volume at a time, and later decided to back the entire project. When Jerome died, his children and widow, Geraldine, rededicated the project to his memory in addition to those of his parents. The goal of the project was to, "open the doors of the Talmud and welcome its people inside." The text generally consists of two side-by-side pages: one of

1350-411: The recent trend of most Haredi press omitting images of women from their magazines or newspapers, ArtScroll continues to publish pictures of women in their books. When someone authoring a biography to be published by ArtScroll requested that pictures of women be left out, ArtScroll "basically told him to go fly a kite, [and] we sent him to an adam gadol [a prominent Torah scholar ] who basically washed

1395-549: The sobriquets of "the Jewish Martha Stewart " and the "kosher diva ". ArtScroll has realized the books' salability by extending beyond its traditional Orthodox Jewish market into the mainstream market, including sales on Amazon , at Barnes & Noble and Christian evangelical booksellers , in Williams Sonoma stores, and in supermarkets. Works published by Mesorah under this imprint adhere to

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1440-698: The students' dormitory, eschewing his on-campus residence. He purportedly did this due to his distress out of feeling compelled to live in golus (the Jewish diaspora ). For many years, Gifter led the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (presidium and leadership council) of Agudath Israel of America . He maintained a relationship with his first faculty position at Ner Israel Rabbinical College, returning to Baltimore annually to visit his daughter and son-in-law and friends. Gifter died in 2001, having suffered numerous ailments for many years prior to his death. He

1485-682: The texts themselves, misvocalized, and mistranslated: i.e. misrepresented. Mordechai Gifter Mordechai Gifter (October 15, 1915 - January 18, 2001) was an American Haredi rabbi. He was the rosh yeshiva (dean) of the Telz Yeshiva in Cleveland . Gifter studied in yeshivas in Lithuania , and held several rabbinical positions in the United States. Gifter was born in Portsmouth, Virginia to Yisrael and Matla (May) Gifter. He

1530-504: The third by Moshe Schapiro, M.H. Mykoff ( Breslov Research Institute ), and Gavriel Rubin. ArtScroll ArtScroll is an imprint of translations, books and commentaries from an Orthodox Jewish perspective published by Mesorah Publications, Ltd. , a publishing company based in Rahway , New Jersey. Rabbi Nosson Scherman is the general editor. ArtScroll's first president, Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz (July 13, 1943 – June 24, 2017)

1575-507: The tone: A long paragraph includes " No non-Jewish sources have even been consulted, much less quoted. I consider it offensive that the Torah should need authentication from the secular or so-called 'scientific' sources." Frequently coalescing to give voice to ArtScroll's worldview is, in the words of Scherman, "a heavy combination of mussar and chassidus that we incorporate into our commentary" such as commentary by Hasidic Rabbis Tzadok HaKohen and Yehudah Leib Alter . Despite

1620-520: The two continued producing commentaries, beginning with a translation and commentary on the rest of the Five Megillot ( Song of Songs , Ecclesiastes , Lamentations and Ruth ), and went on to publish translations and commentaries on the Torah , Prophets , Talmud , Passover Haggadah , siddurs and machzors . By 1990, ArtScroll had produced more than 700 books, including novels, history books, children's books and secular textbooks, and became

1665-411: The yeshiva. He eventually became engaged to Bloch's daughter. In 1939, prior to his wedding, Gifter returned home to the United States to visit his parents in Baltimore. He planned on returning to Lithuania for his wedding and to resume his studies. When it became obvious that he would be unable to return due to the political climate of the late 1930s, Gifter arranged for his bride's family to join him in

1710-440: Was appointed an adjunct lecturer at the expanding Ner Israel Rabbinical College headed by Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman . He was the first native Baltimorean to lead a congregation in the city. In 1941, Gifter moved to Waterbury, Connecticut and assumed a rabbinic pulpit in that community. In 1944, Gifter moved to Cleveland , Ohio to join the faculty of his alma mater, the newly re-established Rabbinical College of Telshe , which

1755-562: Was approached by Zlotowitz who had helped him write copy for brochures and journals in the past, and they collaborated on a few projects. In late 1975, Zlotowitz wrote an English translation and commentary on the Book of Esther in memory of a friend, and asked Scherman to write the introduction. The book sold out its first edition of 20,000 copies within two months. With the encouragement of Rabbis Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman , Mordechai Gifter , Moses Feinstein , Yaakov Kamenetsky , and others,

1800-554: Was completed in late 2004, giving a 73 volume English edition of the entire Talmud. This was the second complete translation of the Talmud into English (the other being the Soncino Talmud published in the United Kingdom during the mid-twentieth century). The first volume, Tractate Makkos, was published in 1990, and dedicated by Mr. and Mrs. Marcos Katz. Jerome Schottenstein was introduced by Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm to

1845-462: Was eulogized by Dovid Barkin , among others. Gifter was survived by his wife, three sons and three daughters. As a leading Haredi scholar, Gifter frequently addressed controversial topics. In one lecture, he sharply berated Haskel Lookstein for his condemnation of Elazar Shach 's criticism of Adin Steinsaltz . Gifter was a prolific writer. As a young man he authored articles on some of

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1890-453: Was moved from Telshe, Lithuania to Cleveland. The original school and Telshe community were almost completely destroyed by the Nazis and Lithuanian militia. In 1964, he was appointed as dean together with Boruch Sorotzkin . In 1977, Gifter brought 20 students from Cleveland to Israel and opened a branch of the college in the town of Kiryat Ye'arim (Telz-Stone), leaving Sorotzkin in charge of

1935-791: Was raised in Baltimore, Maryland , where his father owned a grocery. He attended the Baltimore City Public Schools, at the time being known as Max, and received his religious education in after-school programs. He had a younger brother and sister, and both predeceased him. As a young man, Gifter studied in the Rabbi Isaac Elchonon Theological Seminary in New York City , under the tutelage of Moshe Aharon Poleyeff and Moshe Soloveichik . His uncle, Samuel Saar (Yehudah Leib),

1980-534: Was succeeded by his oldest son, Rabbi Gedaliah Zlotowitz , whose name is listed secondarily in new publications as general editor, after that of Rabbi Scherman. In 1975, Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz , a graduate of Mesivtha Tifereth Jerusalem , was director of a high-end graphics studio in New York. The firm, ArtScroll Studios, produced ketubot , brochures, invitations, and awards. Rabbi Nosson Scherman , then principal of Yeshiva Karlin Stolin Boro Park ,

2025-520: Was the dean of the seminary. At the time, Avigdor Miller , also a Baltimore native, was learning in RIETS. On Saar's advice, Gifter traveled in 1932 to Lithuania on the same boat as Miller to study in the Telshe Yeshiva . Gifter was immediately accepted for admission and placed in advanced classes. He developed a strong bond with Zalman Bloch, the mashgiach ruchani (spiritual supervisor) at

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