R’ Eliezer Knew More Science than R’ Yehoshua
According to the Torah Temimah...
Wisdom from a Venice Beach Vagabond
He told me that according to a Muslim poet, children do not truly belong to their parents. Instead, parents are the vessel through which children flow into the world.
Two Different Tracks: Women and Tefillin vs. Women and Torah
Women learning Torah is becoming increasingly permissive, but women wearing tefillin is becoming increasingly stringent.
Video Mocking Rabbinic Sermons Was in Bad Taste
Spontaneity and quirkiness have their place but a sermon is neither the time nor place for either of those.
Modern Racism
Categorizing all black people as one large group where the acts of one black person in Florida somehow tell us something about a different black person in Seattle is racist.
Ruminations on Meditation
Many great Jewish thinkers have described Jewish prayer as a form of meditation.
When a Heretic Speak Heresy Against Heretics
For deviating from the orthodox scientific position, Nagel has been abused, maligned, outcast, and insulted.
Privacy and Government Snooping in Jewish Law
There is standing prohibition in Jewish law against sharing anything revealed in private conversation.
Will the Real Haredi Feminists Please Stand Up?
Ruth Colian is running as a Haredi woman for political office.
What Do I Tell My Children (About the Boys)?
What do we do when we want to be mad at God but we also want God to make it all better? Indeed, what do we do?
What Kind of Life Shall We Choose?
Dvar Torah for Nitzavim Vayelech.
What Should We Say On Billboards for God and Judaism?
The Pope is saying that actions are far more important than faith. This is particularly ironic coming from Catholicism.
Creative License When Interpreting the Bible
When we are dealing in non-legal matters, we are no longer concerned with precedent.
Lessons Orthodox Judaism Can Learn from Mormons
Both communities value using books to study their texts, and digital devices are a less preferable way for younger people to study.
We Are Going in the Wrong Direction
For some, guilt by association is actual guilt. For these people, who you know and with whom you associate determine your credibility.
Man-Made Meat? A fence for Wisdom is Silence
The proper response for almost the entire population of planet Earth to these eternal questions about man-made meat is “I am not qualified to render an opinion on this matter.”
Haredi Censorship of Torah
Certain books are excised from the subscription, in order to reinforce an imaginary history where nothing was inconsistent with Haredi Judaism.
Can People Live Longer than 120 Years?
The Talmud is making a general statement for which there are more exceptions that situations where the rule applies.
On the Shoulders of (Imperfect) Giants
In order to truly appreciate Torah, one must be a master over one’s spirit as well.
Modesty Messages from a Mormon
Mormons are expected to be chaste in every possible way and this can be particularly difficult for young men.
New Republic Article on Feminism from Zion Is All About the Stakes
The article argues that while naturally aligned with their fellow orthodox Jews, women from the modern orthodox community in Israel are finding themselves aligned with secular feminists.
Why Do Rabbis Make Jokes at Serious Times?
It’s even more strange when the jokes come at our holiest times of the year.
Was Assimilation the True Enemy of the Maccabees?
If the Syrian-Greeks were not pushed out of the land, Judaism would have been lost.
The Proper Response to the ASA Boycott of Israel
What data was the ASA using to justify its boycott?
Why Do We Celebrate Chanukah?
Megilas Taanis simply proclaims the 25th of Kislev a holiday and it is forbidden to mourn for 8 days. The text does not give a reason for the celebration.
The People Are Looking for Answers
A rabbi who writes controversial things becomes international news.
Monsey Kosher Market ‘Integration’ Great Idea, Terrible Execution (Video)
It’s really not that different than the situation in Israel with the charedim. Both situations need insiders to make the change happen.
My Favorite Nelson Mandela Quote
The world lost a great man last week.
Life is in Its Struggles: Dealing with the Tough Questions
When the "offensive" statements in our Talmud were stated, no one thought they were offensive.
What’s Wrong With the Star-K Kosher Phone?
A kashrus agency should be concerned with one thing and one thing only: the kosher status of our food.