People,Population,Policy,Planning,Palaver
25 bTammuz The future of the Jewish people is in copper mirrors! That is what I would tell several dozen world Jewish leaders who are convening right now in Jerusalem in order to figure...
Sacred or Superficial?
Encouraged by a number of my congregants, my wife and I recently visited the impressive ‘Sacred’ exhibition at London’s British Library. Billed as ‘the rarest and most exquisite sacred books and manuscripts presented and...
Yevamos 63 and Embracing the Normal
Most weary Daf Yomi travelers will admit that an interlude of aggada is a welcome respite from the rigors of Yevamos . Parts of Daf 63A, however, were personally jarring. They took me back...
Of Rabbis and Alibis
Since several commenters criticized my fellow contributor Yonason (pardon the Hebrew!) Rosenblum for omitting an individual’s rabbinic title, I thought I’d post a recent correspondence of mine with a JTA editor on the very...
On Making Money
Most of us tend to be impressed by talents that we completely lack: the ability to hit a fastball thrown at 100 mph, dunk a basketball, solve differential equations. Me? I’m fascinated by those...
Democracy and media manipulation
Surprisingly, a recent panel on Israel Radio at Haifa University did not draw the media attention it deserved. At that panel, Hanan Naveh, the chief editor on the Israel Broadcasting Authority’s news desk at...
Responding to (Some) Critics – Part II
Having successfully silenced critics of my piece “Who’s to Blame?,” I decided to do the same this week with respect to another post, “Negating the Past; Dishonoring the Present.” I began “Negating the Past;...
Older and Better
Last week we spoke about the steps we can take to avoid becoming prisoners of our bodies as we grow older. This week I’d like to examine the bright side of the inevitable physical...
Henry VIII and Yevamos
If you think you are having trouble with Daf Yomi these days, read what happened when both Henry VIII and the Pope tried to support their positions with citations from rabbinic treatment of yibum....
Name Abuse
Much in our world desecrates the name of G-d – in Hebrew, that is called “chilul Hashem.” Whether murder and mayhem in the name of religion or misbehavior on the part of religious individuals,...