Commentary

As we reflect on ever-present evil by reading Parashat Zakhor this Shabbat amidst the shocking human tragedy of the war in Ukraine, Zach Truboff brings to light a derasha by Rav Moshe Avigdor Amiel written a century ago that speaks to this very moment.

Michah Gottlieb reflects on the recent discussion on biblical scholarship and its implications for Orthodox Jews, in light of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch's writings. 

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

As we approach a new calendar year, Ben Corvo's poem meditates retrospectively on this past Rosh Ha-Shanah and the darkness of everyday life.

As Juneteenth sparks another round of discussion of blacks and the American experience, Chaim Trachtman compares and contrasts the Jewish and Black experiences in America through the lens of Jason Mott’s Hell of a Book.

In his latest for Lehrhaus, Steven Gotlib considers Neo-Hasidism’s continued inroads into Orthodox thought and practice in his review of Contemporary Uses and Forms of Hasidut, the Orthodox Forum volume edited by Shlomo Zuckier.

Steven Gotlib reviews Roberta Rosenthal Kwall’s book Remix Judaism, which has an important message about navigating Jewish practice in the modern world for non-Orthodox and Orthodox Jews alike.

In this next installment in our Israel symposium, Erica Brown argues that for Jewish students after October 7, choosing secular college is just not the choice it used to be.

Howard Apfel reviews Sacred Training: A Halakhic Guidebook for Medical Students and Residents.

Steven Gotlib reviews Yehuda (Jerome) Gellman’s book on neo-traditional Jewish theology.