Jewish Thought and History

Joey Rosenfeld takes Kafka and Rav Nahman for a spin, on their timely drey-ing of the tops!

Before modern medicine, how did Jews combat outbreaks such as the coronavirus? Jeremy Brown introduces us to a long-forgotten wedding ceremony that was used as an antidote.

Zev Eleff explores the enduring legacy of the recently destroyed Beth Hamedrash Hagadol on Norfolk Street.

When we boil matters down to their essence, what is the underlying difference between a yeshivish and centrist Orthodox worldview? Tzvi Goldstein argues that it’s not Torah Umada, Zionism, or women’s roles; these are all symptomatic of a deeper debate about this world and the World to Come.

AJ Berkovitz explores the "life" of Jewish books, from authors to owners to outside the margins.

Yosef Lindell recounts the controversy surrounding different attempts at translating the Tishrei prayers.

In this timely piece, David Fried analyzes Maimonides' explanation of the ma'aseh merkavah in light of the Talmud's strictures on its teaching outlined in Hagigah. Fried's analysis reveals how Maimonides changed course from the Aristotelianism that he posited at other points in his career.

With Hoshanah Rabbah today and the theme of repentance in mind, Jack Cohen explores the role that outsiders play in one's teshuva process through an enigmatic midrash instructing one to return a person to themselves.

William Kolbrener offers insight into the intellectual underpinnings of the Rav's 1932 interview recently re-published by The Lehrhaus.

What was Alexander Hamilton's relationship to Judaism? In his review of a new book about Hamilton's Jewish world, Lehrhaus editor Yisroel Ben-Porat explores the arguments to be made for a "Jewish" founding father.