U-shemor Nafshekha: The Curious History of the (Supposed) Mitzvah to Maintain One’s Health
What does the Torah mean when it says to "guard your nefesh (soul)"? Lehrhaus editor David Fried reevaluates the common understanding of a Torah mandate for healthy living.
Liturgical Repetition: When Singing Becomes Sacrilegious
With the High Holidays approaching, a time iconic for its songful liturgy, Moshe Kurtz scrutinizes the practice of cantors repeating words during davening.
From Polemic to Pandemic: The Past, Present, and Future of Hazarat ha-Shatz
Post-pandemic proposals to omit hazarat ha-shatz on a permanent basis have been soundly rejected by halakhic authorities. Is this due exclusively to halakhic considerations, or are additional factors at play? Yosie Levine contends that Ashkenazic rabbinic opposition to 19th-century attempts to eliminate hazarat ha-shatz may still be shaping halakhic discourse today.
The Pitfalls of Excessive Rabbinic Honorifics
What is the appropriate way to address a rabbi? Moshe Kurtz offers a thoughtful perspective on lay usage of rabbinic titles.
“Justice has not Been Done”: Officer Immunity and Accountability in Jewish Law (Part 2)
David Polsky meticulously explores officer immunity in Halakha and compares it with the American legal standard of qualified immunity.
“Justice has not Been Done”: Officer Immunity and Accountability in Jewish Law (Part 1)
David Polsky meticulously analyzes Halakhic sources on the use of force by officers of the law.
Halakhah Meets Non-Traditional Approaches to Ensuring COVID-19 Vaccination
Sharon Galper Grossman and Shamai Grossman examine the halakhic permissibility of vaccine mandates by governments and employers.
Permission to Forbid: New Gezeirot in the History of Halakhah
Are today's rabbis allowed to initiate new prohibitions? Aryeh Klapper analyzes a responsum on the issue of halakhic innovation regarding new technologies.
The Unique Obligation of Healthcare Workers to Receive the COVID-19 Vaccine
Sharon Galper Grossman and Shamai Grossman examine Halakhic sources regarding whether physicians and other healthcare workers have a greater requirement to receive the COVID-19 vaccine than the rest of the population.
Streamlining Services: What Can we Learn from High Holidays 5781?
Many synagogue goers found the abbreviated High Holiday services we recently concluded quite appealing. Need we eventually go back to the way it was before coronavirus? Not really, argues Moshe Kurtz, surveying the substantial halakhic support for shortening the services every year.
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