Schiller, Fartaytsht un Farbesert
One of our readers with an impish sense of humor sent me a link to a recent performance by the Jewish People’s Philharmonic Chorus of Schiller’s Ode to Joy in Yiddish. [WARNING: It is...
Truth Means More Than Numbers
Despite the great efforts of great rabbinical leaders and explicators of Jewish thought and belief, every generation has seen Orthodoxy lose the fealty of numbers of young people during their lives, meaningful demographic losses....
Of Labels and Fables
In European Union countries, the words “Product of the West Bank (Israeli settlement)” will now replace “Product of Israel” on labels of foodstuffs, cosmetics and other consumer goods produced by Jewish-owned enterprises in Yehudah...
When in Doubt… Mesorah
For every halachic point made by those who resist the female rabbinate, Open Orthodoxy will counter with one they claim is in favor of a female rabbinate. But, in one arena of Jewish experience, an arena which is of equal standing to halacha, OO has no answer.
Denominational Déjà Vu
In 2001, I predicted that the Conservative movement would soon enough “halachically” approve what halacha forbids in no uncertain terms. [It did so 5 years later.] I perceive precisely the same Conservative approach to halacha in what bills itself today as “Open Orthodoxy.”
Gender and Judaism: A Sophisticated View From Within
by Sarah Rindner Recent debates about women and the Orthodox rabbinate yielded a range of interesting, impassioned and also banal observations by various Jewish professionals and laypeople. Although sociological and legal arguments abound, a...
How To Address the Spiritual Doubt of a Nation
This morning Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks delivered the Thought for the Day on BBC Radio 4 on ‘Reconciling the two faces of religion’. Transcript below. Yesterday I found myself deep in cognitive dissonance. With...
Who Needs Orthodox Women Leaders? We Do.
True Orthodox Women leaders are needed today, as they have always been. These women spurned the isms of the day, drawing thousands closer to Torah and Judaism.
Yoatzot: An Exchange
Shoshanna Jaskoll submitted a characteristically passionate article for consideration, this time on the hot-button issue of yoatzot halacha, women trained in hilchos nidah who serve as information intake points, advisors, and more in a very sensitive area....
Agudah Convention Session on a Difficult Topic
The closing session of Agudath Israel of America’s recent 93rd national convention was dedicated to the subject of young people who have chosen to leave the Jewish observance in which they were raised. Three...