The Mitzvah of MacArthur

Ever since my return from studying abroad at IBEX this last spring, I've retained an interest in modern Hebrew religious literature. The website ArtScroll.com helps to keep this fond feeling alive. Today I paid an overdue visit to the site and noticed something rather profound: AN 18-MINUTE-A-DAY LEARNING PROGRAM The advert runs like so: Even if you have a regular learning program, A Daily Dose will add more learning and excitement to your day - every day! Each hardcover, beautiful volume of Daily Dose will provide four weeks of provocative and enjoyable learning. Over the course of the coming year, ArtScroll plans to publish the initial cycle of this series in thirteen four-week volumes - plus a fourteenth volume focusing on the Festivals. Each new volume will be released in time. Each day's learning program includes: A Torah Thought for the Day Mishnah of the Day Gems from the Gemara A Mussar Thought for the Day Halachah of the Day A Closer Look at the Siddur Question for the Day Taste of Lomdus (once a week) This seemed curiously similar to something else that I've seen before . . . . in fact, it's sitting on my dorm shelf! Just check out the similarities in the selling points: Take a tour through the Bible with pastor-teacher John MacArthur - unleashing God's truth, one verse at a time. The MacArthur Daily Bible takes a portion of the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs for each day of the year, with daily comments that guide and inform you as you read through the Bible in a year. John MacArthur's insight maximizes the benefit of each day's reading. If a commitment to daily Bible reading never worked for you before, this is the answer. With John at your side, there'll be no such thing as a tough portion of Scripture. The parallel descriptions run on the verge of random hilarity. I almost expected the ad for the Daily Dose of Torah to read "Unleashing the Torah, one verse at a time."