Tzaddik ve-Ra Lo: Revisiting the Problem of Evil in Chaim Grade’s My Quarrel with...
Marina Zilbergerts presents the philosophical questions posed by Chaim Grade's “My Quarrel with Hersh Rasseyner,” and compares his arguments to those of other major thinkers such as Voltaire, Rousseau, Dostoevsky, and Nietzsche.
Reclaiming the Musical Past: Leon Modena and Salamone Rossi in Context
Rebecca Cypess considers the life and work of the Italian Jewish Renaissance composer Salamone Rossi, his rabbinic supporter Leon Modena, and the controversies over 17th century polyphonic music in the synagogue.
Rudolph Kastner and How History Becomes Midrash
Chesky Kopel looks at the various tellings and retellings of the controversial deal that Rudolph Kastner made with Nazi leadership in Budapest and argues that they represent a modern-day Midrashic presentation of the history.
With Liberty and Presents for All
Through an analysis of Hanukkah ads, Yael Buechler explains how Yiddish newspapers used the Old Country language to acculturate Jews to the New Country.
Daniel Deronda and Fate and Destiny: Reflections on Zionism and Feminism
What do you get when you read George Eliot’s Daniel Deronda alongside Rav Soloveitchik’s Kol
Dodi Dofek? A cross between Zionism and feminism, argues Eileen Watts.
Rabbi Norman Lamm and His Crusade for the Jewish Home
Zev Eleff explores how the Jewish family anchored Rabbi Norman Lamm's sermons and thought during the destabilizing 1960s.
The Utility of Ambiguity
Dina Brawer explores "certainty" and "doubt" in rabbinic tradition.
Who Will Defend Maimonides? Rav Soloveitchik on the Mishneh Torah and the Guide
With the aid of some new primary sources, David Curwin offers a fresh view of the Rav's embrace of Rambam and his most important writings.
Finding Meaning in Determinism: How Jewish Thinkers Reconcile the Contradiction between Determinism and Human...
Natan Oliff looks at the various ways Jewish thinkers have found meaning in determinism.
Sarah Schenirer and Innovative Change: The Myths and Facts
Did elite rabbinic figures jumpstart Bais Yaakov, or was it a grassroots women's movement? Leslie Ginsparg Klein explains.