Yeshiva University President Rabbi Ari Berman’s Opening Shiur

YU President Ari Berman's opening address, comparing YU to a Sukkah! Shlomo Zuckier captures this historic moment in his notes.

Are Modern Orthodox Jews More Comfortable with Mysticism or Anthropomorphism?

This siddur, Yaakov Jaffe argues, is where to look to find out what Orthodox Jews believe.

A Jewish Story of Two Hurricanes

Rabbi Adam Starr reflects on his community's hurricane relief efforts, and what it taught him about Jewish unity.

A Religion Without Visual Art? The Rav and the Myth of Jewish Art

If Kant or Hegel had read Rambam or the Shulhan Arukh, they might have known that Jewish law does not actually proscribe the creation of images. But that was not the way of history. It is important to reclaim visual culture and aesthetics for religious Judaism so that beauty can be allowed to inspire halakhically bound actions, to color worship, and give meaning to our rituals.

“Turn it and Turn it, for all is in It:” Ilana Kurshan and the...

The most enjoyable feature of the book is the brilliant and creative integration of the daily Talmudic folio Kurshan studies with experiences of her life.

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein on What Makes America Great

Rav Moshe Feinstein does not praise the United States for not having fascists and communists, but for having a system of government that is particularly resistant to what came to be known as totalitarianism.

Netivot Shalom: A Mixed Blessing?

Those of us who feel deeply connected and indebted to Hasidism should ask ourselves a difficult and perhaps painful question: Is Netivot Shalom the sefer that we want to represent us to the rest of Am Yisrael?

On the Irrelevance of Biblical Criticism

Commentary by @Jerome Marcus: why biblical criticism directs our attention to the wrong way to read any good book, never mind The Good Book.

How Mendelssohn’s Torah and Philosophy Converge: A Study of “Anokhi”

How do Moses Mendelssohn and Revelation jibe? Judah Kerbel offers some perspective.

Mitzvah Merchants and their Made-in-America Toys

Zev Eleff examines some of the toys peddled around by mitzvah merchants and other fascinating features of Ultra-Orthodox culture.