Saving Non-Jews on Shabbat: Two Perspectives on the Development of a Sensitive Halakhah

Jonathan Ziring explores the innovative nature of different Halakhic rulings permitting violating Shabbat to save non-Jewish lives.

First Fruits: A Selection of Poems on Mishnah Bikkurim 3

In honor of Shavuot 5784, Dalia Wolfson presents five new bilingual poems that explore the themes of the third perek of Mishnah Bikkurim and contemplate their possible inversion.

Voices from Outside the Cave: Women and the Story of Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai

Kate Rozansky explores the life of Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai through the prism of the women in his life.

Pesah as Zeman Simhateinu: What Does it Mean to Rejoice Over Victory?

Judah Kerbel discusses why we say an abbreviated Hallel on the last six days of Pesah and contemplates what that says about the war in Israel; self-defense is a must, as is gratitude toward God, but we also hold space for the losses on the other side.

Buying Jewish Whiskey

Last year, Nathan B. Oman, a Latter-day Saint and law professor, bought hametz from the members of Chaim Saiman’s synagogue before Passover. This is his story—a profound meditation on the nature of religious law and legal fiction — with an introduction by Chaim Saiman.

Is Silence Complicity?: An Analysis of Shtikah Ke-Hoda’ah from Classic Halakhah to Current Events

Moshe Kurtz explores the different meanings of silence in Halakhah in light of recent political events

Bulbasaur & Bishul: An Adar-Fueled, Unnecessarily In-Depth Analysis of a Nonsensical Halakhic Question

In a rare piece of Lehrhaus Purim Torah, Mark Glass explores—with surprising halakhic rigor—whether the Pokémon named Bulbasaur’s use of a Solar Beam attack would constitute cooking on Shabbat.

A Philosophical Reflection on the Halakhification of Warfare

Alex Ozar explores wartime law in the Rambam.

The Jewish Leap Day: A Halakhic Analysis of a Calendar Conundrum

The secular calendar has its leap day on Feb. 29. On the Jewish calendar, our leap day is 30 Adar I, since Adar in a non-leap year always has 29 days. Yaakov Taubes explores all of the Halakhot pertaining to this unique day.

Thoughts on a Death

In this personal reflection, Phil Lieberman addresses the unique pain that accompanies the loss of an abusive parent and considers the uneasy coherence of this pain with Jewish traditions of mourning.