Howling Hounds and Golden Calves
Whether or not they happen to own dogs, some politicians have an affinity for dog whistles, at least the political type. That term plays on the fact that dogs can hear frequencies inaudible to...
Defending the Traditional Beis Medrash Curriculum – at YU and Everywhere Else
Why can’t a yeshiva education be more utilitarian? After years of learning, with intense focus on abstract conceptualization and only minor focus on practical Halacha, talmidim emerge with apparently quite little to show. They have...
Pharoah and the Jews: a Case Study in Anti-Semitism
It’s possible to read the story of the Exodus repeatedly, yet fail to notice that the same lies that Pharoah told about the Jews over 3300 years ago are the same ones circulated today. If you think BDS is something new, or that there is a problem of “occupation,” it’s time to acknowledge the reality of hatred.
Weekly Digest – News and Essays In and Out of Orthodoxy
Will Orthodox Israelis’ revolt against the chief rabbinate spur a domino effect? – Frightening efforts to “take down the Chief Rabbinate”, orchestrated by a familiar cast of characters, many of whom have close ties with...
Blame Terrorists, Not Songs
Some politicians and pundits – including several writers in Haaretz – seem misguidedly intent on extending blame for Jewish terrorism across Orthodoxy, even to the charedi community and its Torah educational system. And several...
Prominence ≠ Importance
When President Obama called the recent U.S. military announcement that all combat roles will now be open to women a “historic step forward,” the image that came to mind was of someone marching resolutely...
ISIS, Rabbi Shlomo Einhorn, and Kiddush Hashem
The Law of Unintended Consequences as applied to your wife deciding to paint a few rooms is that when they put your seforim back in place, you will never find what you are looking...
Weekly Digest – News and Essays In and Out of Orthodoxy
Rabbi Yosef Weiss z”tl Divrei Hesped at RIETS for Rav Yosef Weiss zt’l Articles and Shiurim of Rav Weiss zt”l The New ‘Orthodox Rabbinic Statement on Christianity’ – An Analysis (Aside from the statement seeming...
What the Vatican Said and Why We Should Care
Within a few hours, the headlines all screamed the same message. The Vatican had declared that Catholics should not try to convert Jews. I knew that this could not be correct. Catholics could never...
Happy Meals, Jewish Style
There’s something – and something Jewish, as it happens – to be said for willfully denying ourselves foods, at least at times. An article I wrote for the excellent site simpletoremember.com, about eating Jewishly,...