Judaism and Secular Law

Two letters to the editor provide alternative perspectives on the question of what Jewish law wants American abortion law to be.

Avi Helfand on when law trumps religious liberty, and for good reason.

Steven Bayme reviews Joseph Kaplan’s diverse collection of essays on the history and future directions of Modern Orthodoxy in America.

Did the Founding Fathers derive their biblical values from the Hebrew Bible, or just the Old Testament? Yisroel Ben-Porat reviews "Proclaim Liberty Throughout the Land."

Ari Elias-Bachrach examines the Israel Cheif Rabbi's recent decision not to bury the mother of a get-refuser.

Jeremy Brown comments on the history and necessity of vaccination in the Jewish community.

Laura Shaw Frank contributes to the Lehrhaus Symposium on the recent OU statement regarding female clergy.

Michael (Avi) Helfand on a recent court case with implications for American Jews as members of both a religious and a minority community.

This article was written and accepted for publication in the summer of 5783/2023 and scheduled to appear after the holidays. Because of the outbreak of Israel’s “Iron Swords” war with Ḥamas following the murderous attack on Israel on Shabbat/Simḥat Torah (7 October, 2023), we agreed that publication needed to be postponed. Now, five months into the war with no end in sight, we are nevertheless witness to renewed political tensions, public demonstrations, disagreements and paralysis in appointing judges and the President of the Supreme Court, together with resumption of talk of the “judicial reform.” Despite the continuing tragedy of the war in the south and warfare in the north, a review of how our sources treat the separation of powers and majority rule may help us avoid repeating some of the mistakes of the pre-war political and ideological divisions in Israel and contribute to a more reasoned consideration of the issues.

Yishai Schwartz responds to Michael (Avi) Helfand on the matter of American law, religious liberties and get-torture.