Judaism and Politics

Raphael Jospe and Zach Truboff write regarding recent articles that have driven conversation.

Our traditional longing for the rebuilding of the Beit Ha-Mikdash elides uncomfortable questions about the dramatic differences between sacrificial worship and our current models of serving God. Meir Kraus argues that the time has come to engage in this difficult conversation, especially in light of the growing religious-political movement to restore Jewish presence on the Temple Mount. Kraus also proposes an “alternative vision” for a future Temple era.

Joshua Leifer’s new book illustrates the collapse of several paradigms that long sustained American Jewish life. In his review, Steven Gotlib notes that Leifer’s search for a viable, non-separatist, traditional Judaism overlooks several existing models of Jewish life and practice.

Yitzchak Blau and Michael Broyde respond to recent articles that have driven conversation.

Chaim Trachtman shows how a careful examination of debates between Shammai and Hillel challenge our preconceived notions about them.

  Zach Truboff In 1933, as the month of Elul approached, the Jewish people faced a frightening array of dangers. That year, Hitler consolidated power as...

In this essay, Weinberg reflects on the symbolic significance of tefillin and its message for our Jewish future.

With a novel reading of Josephus and Gittin, Shana Schwartz proposes that the tragedy of the second hurban and the mystery of subsequent Jewish survival may be understood by reference to the physiological knowledge available in classical antiquity.

Wendy Zierler interprets a 2015 poem by the late Haim Gouri, reflecting on the challenges of aging, and on the complex and often mournful relationship between the Jewish people, their history, and their literature.

  Mark Glass I. It is fair to say that Sefer Vayikra is not known for its narratives. It is devoted, for the most part, to the...