Holidays

  Rebecca Cypess As the only musical instrument used in modern Jewish liturgy, the shofar possesses a humble form. Halakhah forbids the modification of the shofar’s...

In this poem, Avi Schild reflects on the source of the blasting cry we hear on Rosh Hashanah.

Yiscah Smith explores the conceptions of teshuvah presented in the writings of the Piaseczner Rebbe and the Ba’al Ha-Tanya, identifying in them a novel approach to personal growth that speaks to contemporary Jews.

A new poem by Hannah Butcher-Stell, for the Days of Awe.

R.A. Alpert argues that the differences between Hamas and the Zealots outweigh the similarities.

A new poem and introductory essay by Ben Corvo, in memory of his father.

Yaakov Jaffe examines how the form in the Kinnah "Shavat Suru" gives us insight into its broader meaning.

With a novel reading of Josephus and Gittin, Shana Schwartz proposes that the tragedy of the second hurban and the mystery of subsequent Jewish survival may be understood by reference to the physiological knowledge available in classical antiquity.

David Polsky explores the similarities and differences between Hamas and the Jewish Zealots at the time of the destruction of the Second Temple.

Zvi Grumet suggests that when read in sequence, the kinot of R. Elazar Ha-Kalir—often seen as the ones most difficult to understand—offer a powerful theological narrative from despair to hope.