Dr. Barry Torch
@barrytorch.bsky.social
He/Him. Medieval and Renaissance Historian, Skeptical Optimist, Purveyor of Puns, and lover of Books, Fountain Pens, and Dogs. Settler on Treaty 13 Territory. Jewish. Queer.
Pinned
Dr. Barry Torch
@barrytorch.bsky.social
· Nov 26
Now that I have MANY more followers than I ever expected, I think an introduction is necessary! Hi! I'm Barry Torch. I have a PhD in History from York University in Toronto, Canada, in medieval/early modern Italian history and intellectual culture. 1/ independentscholar.academia.edu/BarryTorch
In my humble opinion, the worst part of peer review is the waiting. I love responding to comments to try be a better historian. And I totally understand and empathize with the Journal's administrative side, and getting a peer review done now is very slow. But still. I just hate waiting.
December 18, 2025 at 2:08 PM
In my humble opinion, the worst part of peer review is the waiting. I love responding to comments to try be a better historian. And I totally understand and empathize with the Journal's administrative side, and getting a peer review done now is very slow. But still. I just hate waiting.
Happy Hanukkah, BlueSky! #hanukkah #celebration
December 14, 2025 at 2:36 PM
Happy Hanukkah, BlueSky! #hanukkah #celebration
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
Nationalism is bad history with bad consequences.
There’s literally no reason for nationalism other than believing in some sort of superiority.
The moment your sphere of concern goes beyond people you actually know, you transition into an imagined community whose only claim to sociomoral priority is hierarchical.
The moment your sphere of concern goes beyond people you actually know, you transition into an imagined community whose only claim to sociomoral priority is hierarchical.
Stop printing lies in the newspaper. There need to be consequences for printing lies in the newspaper. He literally says and believes exactly this, several times per day and on camera.
December 11, 2025 at 5:56 PM
Nationalism is bad history with bad consequences.
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
The fact that the "fight antisemitism on campus" movement has in practice become a smokescreen to both promote Islamophobia and shut down higher education more broadly, is going to have such deleterious long-term effects on the safety of both Jews AND Muslims in this country.
October 23, 2025 at 12:24 AM
The fact that the "fight antisemitism on campus" movement has in practice become a smokescreen to both promote Islamophobia and shut down higher education more broadly, is going to have such deleterious long-term effects on the safety of both Jews AND Muslims in this country.
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
ok who did this? ☹️
October 22, 2025 at 9:52 PM
ok who did this? ☹️
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
Sending off an article to the editors for the peer review process to begin. Pray for me!
a witch is standing in front of a window and says " fly my pretties "
ALT: a witch is standing in front of a window and says " fly my pretties "
media.tenor.com
October 9, 2025 at 11:48 PM
Sending off an article to the editors for the peer review process to begin. Pray for me!
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
*screaming*
(This is US distributor. The Concordia UP pre-order page AND DISCOUNT CODE go live next month, when I'll start up the promo machine. But lookee that covvvver 🤤)
(This is US distributor. The Concordia UP pre-order page AND DISCOUNT CODE go live next month, when I'll start up the promo machine. But lookee that covvvver 🤤)
Illuminating Media
Reveals the hidden power of medieval manuscript decoration and its lasting influence today. The overlooked art of late medieval English manuscript illumination—its initials, borders, and non-figurativ...
press.uchicago.edu
October 9, 2025 at 1:09 PM
*screaming*
(This is US distributor. The Concordia UP pre-order page AND DISCOUNT CODE go live next month, when I'll start up the promo machine. But lookee that covvvver 🤤)
(This is US distributor. The Concordia UP pre-order page AND DISCOUNT CODE go live next month, when I'll start up the promo machine. But lookee that covvvver 🤤)
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
A new Early Medieval Europe virtual issue on Travel and Mobility in the Early Middle Ages, featuring five brilliant articles published over the past 20 years by Andy Merrills, Paul Dutton, Frank Riess, Ben Allport and Rebecca Thomas: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1...
Beyond migrations: travel and mobility in the early Middle Ages: Early Medieval Europe
Early Medieval Europe is an interdisciplinary medieval studies journal covering European history from the fall of the Roman Empire up until the 11th century.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 9, 2025 at 11:08 AM
A new Early Medieval Europe virtual issue on Travel and Mobility in the Early Middle Ages, featuring five brilliant articles published over the past 20 years by Andy Merrills, Paul Dutton, Frank Riess, Ben Allport and Rebecca Thomas: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1...
My article is due on Friday. #amwriting #nobodywantstoreadthis
October 8, 2025 at 11:56 AM
My article is due on Friday. #amwriting #nobodywantstoreadthis
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
OMG! Just look at that headline! "Indigenous Nations Plan Tariff-Free Trade Corridor Across US-Canada border"!!!
“We’re operationalizing our old corridors—taking ancient trade routes our elders told us about and articulating them in a modern context,” said Solomon Cyr, spokesperson for Standing Buffalo Dakota Nation.” — Love it when people take advantage of political opportunities.
Indigenous Nations Plan Tariff-Free Trade Corridor Across US-Canada border
“We’re not begging for crumbs anymore. We’re demanding what’s rightly ours."
www.motherjones.com
October 6, 2025 at 6:22 PM
OMG! Just look at that headline! "Indigenous Nations Plan Tariff-Free Trade Corridor Across US-Canada border"!!!
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
I wish that folks celebrating the attack in Manchester on the grounds that The Jews(tm) are killing Palestinians were able to appreciate this difference.
Israel sees itself as the embodiment of the Jewish people, and therefore, Israeli interests are the Jewish people's interests, and must come before local congregational concerns.
Diaspora organisations never claim such national, central role for themselves, and are therefore at a disadvantage.
Diaspora organisations never claim such national, central role for themselves, and are therefore at a disadvantage.
October 5, 2025 at 5:39 PM
I wish that folks celebrating the attack in Manchester on the grounds that The Jews(tm) are killing Palestinians were able to appreciate this difference.
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
Hmm… I wrote a piece about the epistemic erasure of Jews & my institution posted about it in a manner that doesn’t mention Jews—should I be happy they proved my point or upset…? 🤔
October 5, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Hmm… I wrote a piece about the epistemic erasure of Jews & my institution posted about it in a manner that doesn’t mention Jews—should I be happy they proved my point or upset…? 🤔
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
Muslims and Jews have a parallel problem: they both have religious concepts of unified global communities, “umma” and “am yisrael,” which do not map onto any empirical reality.
Even accounting for the radical disparity in numbers, with Muslims a far greater percentage of humanity, both communities
Even accounting for the radical disparity in numbers, with Muslims a far greater percentage of humanity, both communities
October 3, 2025 at 6:37 PM
Muslims and Jews have a parallel problem: they both have religious concepts of unified global communities, “umma” and “am yisrael,” which do not map onto any empirical reality.
Even accounting for the radical disparity in numbers, with Muslims a far greater percentage of humanity, both communities
Even accounting for the radical disparity in numbers, with Muslims a far greater percentage of humanity, both communities
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
As a visibly Jewish person, I always know that going to a synagogue means assuming a certain degree of risk. But now I know that if something were to happen to me, it wouldn't just be sad for my family, but people would try to exploit my death to push policies I deplore.
October 3, 2025 at 3:51 PM
As a visibly Jewish person, I always know that going to a synagogue means assuming a certain degree of risk. But now I know that if something were to happen to me, it wouldn't just be sad for my family, but people would try to exploit my death to push policies I deplore.
I really hope I can get this article published because, my god, the humanists of 1400s Rome were SO GLORIOUSLY petty and I love them all so much.
"I'm going to call your work awful and just like putting a sewer in front of a Greek temple. No, I won't refer to you by name, but EVERYBODY KNOWS."
"I'm going to call your work awful and just like putting a sewer in front of a Greek temple. No, I won't refer to you by name, but EVERYBODY KNOWS."
October 3, 2025 at 8:40 PM
I really hope I can get this article published because, my god, the humanists of 1400s Rome were SO GLORIOUSLY petty and I love them all so much.
"I'm going to call your work awful and just like putting a sewer in front of a Greek temple. No, I won't refer to you by name, but EVERYBODY KNOWS."
"I'm going to call your work awful and just like putting a sewer in front of a Greek temple. No, I won't refer to you by name, but EVERYBODY KNOWS."
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
In sincerity I did log on for a reason. A new issue of the Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies is out, edited by colleague/friend Marcel Elias. It's about how to do postcolonial medieval studies bigger and better. You'll like it. (I'm in there). Go read.
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/issue/...
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/issue/...
Volume 55 Issue 3 | Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies | Duke University Press
read.dukeupress.edu
October 3, 2025 at 1:31 PM
In sincerity I did log on for a reason. A new issue of the Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies is out, edited by colleague/friend Marcel Elias. It's about how to do postcolonial medieval studies bigger and better. You'll like it. (I'm in there). Go read.
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/issue/...
read.dukeupress.edu/jmems/issue/...
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
But none of that changes the fact Jewish peoplehood has always been at the center of Jewish identity, and that there was always an overarching concept of Am Yisrael that encompassed Jews in Minsk, Salonika, Baghdad, Cairo. Criticizing the state of Israel doesn't require rewriting Jewish history.
September 28, 2025 at 6:24 PM
But none of that changes the fact Jewish peoplehood has always been at the center of Jewish identity, and that there was always an overarching concept of Am Yisrael that encompassed Jews in Minsk, Salonika, Baghdad, Cairo. Criticizing the state of Israel doesn't require rewriting Jewish history.
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
May 5786 be the year we free ourselves—may it be a year of interdependence and community—may the genocide end—may our children know the sweetness of freedom—may we remember that all the children are always ours. L’shana tova, fam.
September 22, 2025 at 8:22 PM
May 5786 be the year we free ourselves—may it be a year of interdependence and community—may the genocide end—may our children know the sweetness of freedom—may we remember that all the children are always ours. L’shana tova, fam.
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
This Rosh Hashanah, I don’t pray to be “better".
I pray to be more whole.
More honest.
More connected.
More ready to see revelation in places I used to ignore.
I pray to be more whole.
More honest.
More connected.
More ready to see revelation in places I used to ignore.
September 22, 2025 at 7:05 AM
This Rosh Hashanah, I don’t pray to be “better".
I pray to be more whole.
More honest.
More connected.
More ready to see revelation in places I used to ignore.
I pray to be more whole.
More honest.
More connected.
More ready to see revelation in places I used to ignore.
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
This source sheet is on the idea of Shofar as both a cry and a wake up call:
www.sefaria.org/sheets/43316...
www.sefaria.org/sheets/43316...
The Shofar: Cry and Wakeup Call | Sefaria
www.sefaria.org
September 22, 2025 at 12:09 PM
This source sheet is on the idea of Shofar as both a cry and a wake up call:
www.sefaria.org/sheets/43316...
www.sefaria.org/sheets/43316...
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
Rosh Hashanah blessings be like
🍎 🍯
🍎 🍯
October 3, 2024 at 2:40 AM
Rosh Hashanah blessings be like
🍎 🍯
🍎 🍯
Reposted by Dr. Barry Torch
#Proofs !!
Happy that this piece is finally coming out soon, on #earlymodern 'Books for Greeks and Books for non-Greeks in Sixteenth-Century Venice'
#skystorians #bookhistory #classicalreception
Happy that this piece is finally coming out soon, on #earlymodern 'Books for Greeks and Books for non-Greeks in Sixteenth-Century Venice'
#skystorians #bookhistory #classicalreception
August 26, 2025 at 10:11 AM
#Proofs !!
Happy that this piece is finally coming out soon, on #earlymodern 'Books for Greeks and Books for non-Greeks in Sixteenth-Century Venice'
#skystorians #bookhistory #classicalreception
Happy that this piece is finally coming out soon, on #earlymodern 'Books for Greeks and Books for non-Greeks in Sixteenth-Century Venice'
#skystorians #bookhistory #classicalreception
#Writers and #Scriveners of BlueSky! I'm using an image in my article that I'm working on - a beautiful front page of a book. Is it possible to add a caption to an image in #Scrivener? Or will I need to export the file to Word (as if for submission) and add it there?
September 21, 2025 at 1:34 PM
#Writers and #Scriveners of BlueSky! I'm using an image in my article that I'm working on - a beautiful front page of a book. Is it possible to add a caption to an image in #Scrivener? Or will I need to export the file to Word (as if for submission) and add it there?