Culture

These poems present Dephy's reflections on memories, relationships, and the self.

In his latest for the Lehrhaus, Steven Gotlib reviews the recently published collection of essays, Strauss, Spinoza, and Sinai: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith, which tries to answer: is there a philosophical defense of Orthodoxy in the modern world?

The question of whether or not your writing is Jewish is not up to you, because writing ultimately belongs to the reader. Krauss’ avatar answers Ozick perfectly: “Jewish literature would have to wait, as all Jewish things wait for a perfection that in our hearts we don’t really want to come.” In the end, perhaps all we can do is kvetch and vacillate between different answers to the question of what is Jewish literature—because, of course, the answer was never the point.

Award-winning poet Yehoshua November offers his thoughts on the connection between mystical intimacy and poetry.

Aryeh Klapper recreating a patriarchal voice.

With the emerging Kneset leadership bringing together a broad range of political parties, consider Zach Truboff's review of Rav Shagar's writings (in honor of his upcoming yahrtzeit), which argue that Religious Zionist thought must transcend the old binary of Left and Right.

As the haftarah of Parashat Shelah approaches, Abe Mezrich presents a poem that traces an intriguing textual connection between Rahab and Jocheved.

Shira Hecht-Koller and Aaron Koller explore the worship of the Kohen Gadol through the voice of Ishay Ribo.

In an enlightening new essay, Ilan Fuchs reviews Hayyim Rothman's recent book, No Masters but God: Portraits of Anarcho-Judaism, and uncovers what some of the most radical 19th century Orthodox political thinkers had to say about religion, statehood, and Jewish utopia.

Eli Rubin reviews Alan Rosen's The Holocaust’s Jewish Calendars: Keeping Time Sacred, Making Time Holy.