Rabbi Bleich on Kinyan
Frum attorneys, kiruv people, Partners in Torah mentors, law school profs – you need to see Rabbi Bleich’s latest contribution to Tradition. Kinyan is a leitmotif of so many sugyos, but does not have...
What about Blowing the Esrog on Shavuos?
From the Sacramento Bee: The month preceding the “Ten Days of Awe” begins with a thorough housecleaning to get rid of anything with leaven, which is likened to sin in the Torah. It also...
Solo Wrestling
Struggles – even failures – are inherent elements of what, with determination and perseverance, can become an ultimate victory.
Reality is No Obstacle
The recent Emmanuel litigation revealed a major flaw in Israel’s judicial system. In most suits against governmental authorities, the Supreme Court, sitting as the High Court of Justice (BaGaTZ), is a court of original...
Clueless at The New Republic
Marty Peretz’s diatribe against R Ovadia Yosef and fundamentalist Jewish oppression of women is not worth reading, save to remind us that even very bright people write very silly things when they comment about...
The California Governor’s Race, Rebbi and Antoninus, and Israeli Ingenuity
California voters face an unusual choice in the coming gubernatorial election. Interestingly, a recent Daf holds the key to the way frum voters are likely to go. Elections are often a choice between tweedle-dee...
Great Expectations
Thoughts of consequence can sometimes arise from the most mundane experiences, even a headache. Opening the medicine cabinet one day, I was struck by a sticker on a prescription container. “Not for use by...
The Burqa Quandary, Continued
Three weeks ago, I wrote about the quandary posed for Torah Jews by the bans on the wearing of the burqa being debated in Europe. Not surprisingly, the Orthodox world has spawned its own...
Kids of Courage, the Commonality of Disability, and Elul
The one hundred and thirty children and young adults with whom I spent a few days share two things. They are all Jewish, and they all contend daily with serious and debilitating illness. Many...
A View From Afar
To name the Muslim country where she lives would compromise her security; the authorities there do not look favorably on citizens who communicate with Jews. Her husband is a Hindu and she, although born...