Cantillation: Some Observations – Part 1

William Gewirtz explores the value of cantillation.
Berkovits _ Judaisim

Judaism in a New World: The Pain, the Paradox, and the Prayer

Dov Berkovits reflects on his father, Eliezer Berkovits's legacy, his philosophy and attitude toward halakhah and the Jewish people.

Yes, We Needed Another Modern Orthodox Prayer Book: A Review of the RCA Siddur

Yosef Lindell Introduction and History of the RCA Siddur If anyone had asked me a year ago whether the Modern Orthodox community in the United States...

Yatziv Pitgam: Poetry as Talmud Commentary

How should we understand Yatziv Pitgam, the enigmatic poem recited in the Haftarah for the second day of Shavuot? Tzvi Novick’s close reading reveals it to be a paean to the Torah and those who study it.

Letters to the Editor: Shadal, Hazarat Ha-Shatz, and Modern Orthodox Outreach

Today, we share letters to the editor by Ephraim Chamiel, Steven Gotlib, and Moshe Kurtz.

Jeremiah Lockwood’s New Cantorial Blues Album, Kol Nidre, is a Yom Kippur Dream

Hillel Broder reviews the latest release from Jeremiah Lockwood.

What role should young children play in the post-COVID synagogue?

Yaakov Jaffe argues that kids would be better served by coming to shul for the beginning of the Shabbat davening rather than the end.

Do Children Belong in Shul?

Moshe Kurtz explores halakhic and hashkafic considerations surrounding bringing young children to shul.

Beginning the day with Halakhah or with Spirituality?

Yaakov Jaffe examines how the order of our morning Tefillot can shape the way we approach our day.

Aleinu and Genesis: Against the Twin Idolatries of Universalism & Ethnonationalism

Does the Torah support a universalist or ethnonationalist political orientation? In this timely essay, Ezra Zuckerman Sivan explores the meaning behind key stories in Genesis through the framework of the Aleinu prayer.