Searching for the Vatican’s Menorah

Tzvi Sinensky on the lost Menorah, the Vatican theory, and the ideology of the search and mythology.

Gilgamesh and the Rabbis: Knowledge and its Price from Uruk to the Beit Midrash

What do Adam, Enkidu, and Reish Lakish all have in common? Eli Putterman explores.

Man is not God: The Limits of Imitatio Dei

David Fried clarifies the concept of imitating God through Rashi's oft-neglected reading of “It is not good for man to be alone”

Autonomy Comes Apart, the Mesorah Cannot Hold:Rav Soloveitchik’s Afterlife in the 21st Century

Levi Morrow reviews four new books that examine and apply the thought of R. Joseph B. Solovetichik of blessed memory. Image: below

The Directional Shaking of the Lulav: Bible, Mysticism, and Religious Polemics

Yaakov Jaffe traces the origins and evolution of the custom to shake the lulav in different directions.

Purim and Paul: The Torah Veiled and Unveiled

What do Paul, Purim costumes, and Purim torah all have in common? Yehuda Fogel delves into the meaning of hiddenness and its role in revelation on Purim.

Miriam’s Song and the Persistence of Music in Dark Times

Why did the women bring musical instruments out of Egypt? In her first Lehrhaus article, musicologist Rebecca Cypess draws a fascinating historical analogy between biblical and African-American slavery to shed light on the Exodus in Jewish tradition.

Does Lying Make You A Liar? On Truth And Truthfulness in Rabbinic Thinking

Alex Ozar catalogues types of truthfulness in rabbinic literature.

Hanukkah or Hanoch-ah: Illuminating the Origins and Trajectory of an Apocalyptic Holiday

In his latest for the Lehrhaus, Aton Holzer sheds light on the hidden roots of Hanukkah–exploring the political and theological meaning of the holiday from the Second Temple period through the Talmud.

“Miracles Do Not Happen at Every Hour”: Purim Drinking as anti-Christian Polemic

Eliav Grossman examines the Talmud's account of drinking on Purim, reading it as directed at Christian texts and traditions.