Holidays

Through a nuanced examination of interrelated minhagim, Nachman Levine shows how the custom of eating dairy foods, particularly blintzes, on Shavuot reenacts a collective initiation into Torah Study, allowing us to reexperience Revelation.

Ned Krasnopolsky explores the roles of meaning and obedience in matan Torah.

Avi Killip explores the narrative of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai through a work of poetry.

In an investigation of the question of saying Hallel on Yom Ha'atzmaut, Shimshon HaKohen Nadel draws on analyses of Shirat Hayam and the splitting of the sea.

Shmuel Lubin analyzes Rav Hutner's interpretation of the Passover Seder and expands on Rav Hutner's commentary surrounding the contrast of freedom and suffering.

Where is Yosef in the haggadah? Max Hollander suggests that through his absence, he is very present, teaching us about the importance of remembering the forgotten.

How should people contend with emotionally charged texts such as the ending of Megillat Esther? Tzvi Sinensky details methodological principles for engaging in textual dialogue, and applies these principles in an exploration of the nuances of the ending of Megillat Esther.

Tamar Weissman and Batnadiv HaKarmi explore R. Yonatan's introduction to Megillat Esther, per Masekhet Megillah in the Talmud, and its relationship to biblical history.

Yaakov Jaffe examines the different opinions about when mishloah manot should be given in Jerusalem when Shushan Purim is on Shabbat.

The biblical figure of Esther is often interpreted by traditional and modern commentators as a heroine of active leadership. Naama Sadan offers a novel perspective, according to which Esther confronts national crisis in female-coded ways, triumphing and saving her people through internally-focused activism.