When Law Fails Us: Lessons from Rabbinic Responses to Crimes We Cannot Punish for...
Sarah Zager puts #MeToo in conversation with the Talmudic discussion of the death penalty.
Pinhas’ Parts: Of Priests, Peace, and Disturbing the Piece
What was the covenant of peace God gave Pinchas? R. Shlomo Zuckier puts the pieces together to find out
A Time to Mourn: Aveilut as Minor Holiday
Ben Greenfield’s essay, winner of Hadar's annual Ateret Zvi Prize, explores why Hazal chose to situate Hilkhot Aveilut in tractate Moed Katan.
The Forgotten Mourners
What is the halakhic status of those mourning the loss of their parents-in-law? Aaron Ross, inspired by his personal experience, grapples with the lack of formal aveilut rituals for non-biological relatives.
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 Synagogues Reopen, May the Congregation Permit a Bar Mitzvah Boy to Make Up...
When Synagogues Reopen, May the Congregation Permit a Bar Mitzvah Boy to Make Up His Torah Reading? Moshe Kurtz weighs in.
After Lag: Two Readings on The ‘Self-Praise’ of Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai
Rabbi Josh Rosenfeld offers insight into the nature of the Jewish mystical tradition by examining some of Rashbi's stories.
Michael Broyde Responds Regarding Abortion, Halakhah, and Secular Law
What exactly did Rav Moshe Feinstein hold regarding our obligations toward secular law? Does Halakhah distinguish between the first forty days and afterward for gentiles? Michael Broyde responds to his critics.
Subjective Experience in Halakhah: Music During Sefirah as a Case Study
Judah Kerbel explores how differing approaches to listening to music during Sefirat ha-Omer balance the appropriate role for subjectivity in halakhic decision-making.
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.