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.
Holidays Reimagined: From Pesah To Purim To Post-Hurban Pesah
Shimon Laufer examines how Rabbinic understanding of the holiday of Passover influenced the holiday of Purim, and how one of the oldest manuscripts of the Mishnah hints that the converse may be true as well.
Humor: The Refuge of the Wise
Rami Reiner examines how our understanding of a Talmudic passage could change if we allow for the possibility of it being a comedy.
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.
Modern Technology Meets Tehum Shabbat
In honor of yesterday's Daf Yomi Siyum on Masekhet Eiruvin, Yaakov Jaffe describes how online maps and other technological tools have better enabled communities such as Boston/Cambridge to measure their tehum shabbat.
Rav Nachum Rabinovitch and the Art of Ancient Dyeing
Baruch Sterman, founder of the @Ptil Tekhelet Institute, tells the story of Rav Rabinovitch's pivotal role in the discovery of the tekhelet - and an episode of "The Worst Jobs in History," a 2004-2006 BBC series.
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.
When the Beggar Knocks
Avi Killip explores three Talmudic stories dealing with the feelings of discomfort that can be involved in helping the poor, even when we know it’s the right thing to do.
Wisdom and Human Pretention: The Riddle of Shlomo and its Resolution
Special for Sukkot, we are honored to publish this piece by Rav Nahum Rabinovitch zz"l, appearing first the first time in print. Special thanks to Elli Fischer for translating and Koren for permission to publish.
Return… Again? Theories of Twice-Baked Teshuvah
Lehrhaus founder Shlomo Zuckier examines the debate about whether we can repeat Teshuvah for the same sin.