Lessons from a Failed Rally
The failure of the rally shows that the adoption of the cause du jour as a new “Jewish value” no longer holds traction. This is not really a new lesson.
Category: General
Why Reversal of Roe v. Wade is Welcome
Rabbi J. David Bleich [Editor’s note: It is not every day that we are privileged to get a perspective on a current issue from one of the gedolei Yisrael that deals masterfully with both...
Emor – Crime and Punishment
The first of the Torah’s two cases of imprisonment – that of the mekalel, the blasphemer, is in the parshah (Vayikra, 24:12). The second is in parshas Shelach (Bamidbar 15:34), regarding the mekoshesh eitzim,...
An Arch of Titus Moment in Greece
The story is attributed to many people. Could be that all of them are true. Someone gets out of a cab in Rome, walks over to Titus’ Arch, and shakes his fist. “Titus, Titus....
Kedoshim – Skin in a Zero-Sum Gam
Although, in the end, all tattooing is forbidden by halachah, one opinion in the Mishna (Rabi Shimon ben Yehudah in Rabi Shimon’s name) sees the prohibition as referring specifically to tattooing the name of an...
Dr. Marvin Schick – A Second Yahrzeit Appreciation
Today, Sunday, June 1st marks the 2nd yahrtzeit of our former Cross-Currents contributor, Dr. Marvin Schick Z”L.
Metzora – Not Just the Kitchen Sink
I once witnessed an amusing exchange between a mother and her four- or five-year-old daughter. The former, trying to do some cooking with the child underfoot, told the little person, “You need to leave...
Why To Shed Tears for the Ukraine
Natan Sharansky got my head and heart to work in synch again, regarding the terrible tragedy unfolding before us in the Ukraine. It didn’t start off as a dilemma, but as an email a...
Putin, Explained
It couldn’t be simpler. Putin is a despotic tyrant without conscience, who seized upon perceived Western weakness to enlarge his empire. All true – but there is much more than that. As the saying...
Bishalach – A Decisive Divorce
Shalach, the root of the word of the parshah’s title, is used elsewhere regarding the exodus from Mitzrayim (e.g. shalach es ami). So are the words yetziah (e.g. Shemos, 20:2) and geirush (e.g. ibid...
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