Klein@9 and the Essence of Judaism
It was quite disheartening. Initially, in response to a woman giving a dvar Torah at the conclusion of a Shabbos morning minyan on the YU Wilf (men’s) Campus, RIETS administration stated that this practice...
No “Enough” Here
Have you ever noticed the FedEx arrow? The next time you see one of the company’s trucks, look closely at the “Ex” part of it. In particular, at the white space between the two...
Notes From Johannesburg
A visit to Johannesburg began with elation in the company of a thriving Torah community, and ended with a mussar shmuess from some refugees from Zimbabwe. I’m not sure that there is anything like...
Seeing Through the Eyes of the Other
Indiana Republican Congressman Todd Rokita is calling on the House of Representatives to condemn “Nation of Islam” leader Louis Farrakhan. Most of us are familiar with the racist demagogue Mr. Farrakhan’s more memorable rantings,...
Rolling Up Our Sleeves for Passover Preparation – A Response to Rabbi Haim Ovadia
(This article first appeared in the Forward. Readers can view Rabbi Menken’s bold and valiant comments in the Forward version of the article.) Passover preparation has always been a heavy-duty task. For thousands of...
No, Mr. Lauder, Israel is not Descending into Theocracy
A piece I wrote for Forward about Ronald Lauder’s recent op-ed in the New York Times can be read here.
Open Orthodoxy Update, Parshas Tzav
Another update on the journey of Open Orthodoxy, and its universal rejection by every reputable Orthodox body.
Tone-Deaf Jewish Marketing
I began haphazardly collecting the advertisements a number of years ago. The first, which appeared at the end of Tammuz in a Jewish periodical, touted an eatery. It was apparently aimed at carnivores troubled...
YU’s Policies About Women — A Reply to Deborah Klapper
(This article originally appeared in Times of Israel.) I was dismayed to read Deborah Klapper’s blog post, Yeshiva College’s policies about women matter to us all, in which the author reprimands Yeshiva University for not...