The previous reviewer clearly has no idea of the intent of this podcast. It is Rabbi Ben Newman's own personal daily reading which is in conjunction with a group of people reading and commenting online on the Ammud Yomi Facebook page. If you look, there are classes here as well, in addition to some hevruta sessions. But yes, most of the recordings are a simple straight reading of the Aramaic with Professor Daniel Matt's English translation. Rabbi Newman is an ordained rabbi and has a Masters in Jewish Studies, having studied at the Jewish Theological seminary, The Reconstructionist Rabbinical college, Yeshivah University, and The Academy for Jewish Religion. It's fine if this isn't for you for whatever reason, don't listen. But there are many who find this free resource quite useful. To call it a shame is itself a shame. The previous reviewer obviously has some personal problem with the public dissemination of kabbalistic texts. If you are interested in simply hearing a page of Zohar in the original Aramaic and in the beautiful English translation from Professor Matt, this podcast is for you! If you would like to hear a class in Zohar, there are 5 or 6 classes available on this podcast as well.
