Make Learning, Not War
I don’t know about you, but until President Trump’s trip to the Middle East last month, I had never heard of a “sword dance.” Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, you’ll recall, were...
A Tale of Two Testimonies
“Gentlemen! Start your engines!” Or, maybe better, “In this corner, heavyweight champion…!” Neither phrase was actually blasted from a loudspeaker on either June 8, when ex-FBI director James Comey testified before the Senate Intelligence...
Another Open Orthodox Rabbi Opens Up to Intermarriage?
It just happened again. Another popular YCT graduate has opened up to intermarriage. In a new article entitled Intermarriage Isn’t Good, or Bad, Rabbi Aaron Potek writes: Will any particular interfaith couple successfully raise...
The Good and Not So Good News
Borough Park is part of the district that includes much of Harlem, which would not necessarily be bad if we had a Congressman who cared as much about BP as he cares about Harlem. But we do not.
Science and Scientism
A high school science teacher in Wellston, Ohio was the focus of a front page New York Times story last week. James Sutter was subtly lionized by the report’s writer, who sympathized with the...
Are Some Open Orthodox Rabbis Rethinking Resistance to Intermarriage?
I really can’t believe that I’m writing this. It is not the first time that Open Orthodox rabbis have gotten involved with a non-traditional position on intermarriage (please see here and here). However, the...
Why My Husband Won’t Be Seeing Wonder Woman
By Alexandra Fleksher Last Shabbos, Wonder Woman came up quite a lot. Friday night dinner with guests, Shabbos lunch at guests, and at kiddush after davening. Men were the ones who brought it up....
Agudath Israel Letter to U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley
Please click on the link below to access a PDF of a letter from Rabbi Zwiebel, Agudath Israel of America’s executive vice president, to Ambassador Haley. Letter to Ambassador Nikki Haley — 6-13-17...
Signs of Hope From the Muslim World
Noting that we live in times of extremes has become a platitude. It seems that the middle has dropped out of so much of our conversation, and that the extremes dictate the discussion. Sadly,...
The Public Image of the Orthodox Jew
A recent interview I was privileged to participate in, about the public perception of Orthodox Jews, can be accessed here.