Commentary

Wendy Amsellem While I greatly enjoyed reading Chaim Saiman’s thoughtful essay, “The Market for Gedolim: A Tale of Supply and Demand,” nothing about it made...

Chaim Saiman analyzes how the Torah's two introductions to the revelation at Sinai correspond to two perspectives on the nature of halakhic civil law.

Lawrence Kaplan I read Chaim Saiman’s essay, “The Market for Gedolim: A Tale of Supply and Demand,” with growing excitement and admiration. Saiman’s shift of...

William Kolbrener calls for an end to Rav-polemicizing so that all interested parties might finally take his legacy and teachings at full-depth.

Zvi Grumet responds to Matt Williams, defending his data and the social media tools used to obtain it.

Tzvi Sinensky responds to Lawrence Kaplan and continues the discussion on Mendelssohn and Jewish law.

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.

Esther Lindell reviews “The Haggadah about Nothing,” Rabbi Sam Reinstein’s not-too-serious exploration of how the Haggadah relates to Seinfeld, the ever-popular 90s sitcom.

Responding to results from the recent Pew survey, Hillel David Rapp argues that we can limit Orthodox attrition by addressing the bifurcation of Jewish and general learning in high school.

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