My Father’s Passover and Ours
An essay of mine about what the experiences of two Jews during the Holocaust on Pesach might have to teach us about the present appeared in the Wall Street Journal on erev Shabbos. It...
The Karpas Conundrum
The essay below was originally published in The Jewish Observer in 1988. Questions, questions everywhere. At the Seder, that is. There are the proverbial Four, of course, but they lead to a torrent of...
Parshas Tzav – The Illness That Was Egypt
The korban todah, or “thanksgiving” offering described in the parsha (Vayikra 7:12), according to the Gemara (Brachos 54b), citing Tehillim 107, is the proper response to one of four categories of danger (though other...
Why I Am Not Yanky Kanievsky
Silly, you say. I’m not Yanky because my grandfather is not R. Chaim, shlit”a. You’re showing your age. Today, you can be whatever you want, just by identifying. If I wanted to, I should...
A Most Meaningful Mineral
The word “sacrifices” used for korbanos, the mainstay topic of parshas Vayikra, is a misnomer. Korban doesn’t carry the meaning of “giving up something.” Its most accurate, if awkward, translation would be “bringer of...
British Jews are not silent. No one should be.
[Ed. note: This is an expanded version of an editorial that first appeared in the Intermountain Jewish News] Mike Pompeo, the former Secretary of State, on his last day in office, declared China’s persecution...
“Bloc”-Headedness
An article I wrote for Forward about how chareidi Jews are vilified by some for simply exercising their democratic right to vote appears here.
Parshas Vayakhel – Not All Donations Welcome
Sometimes money amassed through questionable means is donated to good causes like charities or educational institutions. Perhaps the donors’ subconscious, or even conscious, intent is to somehow render their ill-gotten gains “kosher” in some...
The Supreme Court Conversion Ruling Is Something No Orthodox Rabbi Can Support
The Israeli Supreme Court ruling which affirmed citizenship under the Law of Return for those who undergo domestic non-halachic conversions was condemned by Orthodox leadership pretty much across the board, from Tzohar to Agudah...
NBC-Think about the Equality Act
A column I wrote for NBC-Think about the Equality Act, a piece of legislation that could have dire consequences for religious institutions, can be read here.