Trajectories of Tradition: King David on Skin Lesions and Tent Impurities
AJ Berkovitz traces the reception history of a Midrash Tehillim that seems to equate the reading of Psalms with Torah study, offering a fascinating case study of how tradition evolves.
The Pregnant Sotah: A Case Study in the Ethics of Abortion
Yisroel Ben-Porat grapples with whether the case of the pregnant Sotah has implications for the debates surrounding abortion.
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.
Letters to the Editor: Responses to Jeff Fox on Football
Yoni Zolty and Jordan Soffer respond to Jeff Fox's recent article on football and halakhic values.
American Football: A Case Study in the Limits of Halakhah and the Claim of...
Jeffrey Fox examines whether watching football is problematic from a Torah point of view.
Sexual Assault: A Torah Analysis and Its Modern Implications
Rena Kosowsky compares the treatment of sexual assault in the Bible and the Talmud, and explores the implications of what that means for how we should address it today.
Confronting Biblical Criticism: A Review Essay
Marc B. Shapiro reviews a new edited volume by Yoram Hazony, Gil Student, and Alex Sztuden that offers a traditional defense of revelation in light of modern biblical criticism.
Nine Crazy Nights?
Outside the Land of Israel, we add an extra day to several holidays. Michael Kurin wonders: why not on Hanukkah?
Demystifying R. Eliezer Waldenberg on Sex Reassignment Surgery
Tzvi Sinensky carefully examines the Tzitz Eliezer’s view on sexual reassignment surgery.
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.
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