Talmud and Halakhah

Yakov Nagen's Soul of the Mishna contains a wealth of readings that combine academic, literary, and spiritual perspectives on the Mishnah, writes Richard Hidary. Read the full review of the book, now accessible to an English-speaking audience, in our latest at the Lehrhaus.

Yaakov Jaffe responds to David Stein's earlier call to revamp the standard day school Talmud curriculum.

William Gerwitz explains the scientific knowledge needed to fully understand the Jewish calendar.

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.

Sarah Zager puts #MeToo in conversation with the Talmudic discussion of the death penalty.

Can individual autonomy be reconciled with the practice of Halakhah? It can and must, insisted Rav Nachum Rabinovich zz"l. In honor of Rav Rabinovich's sheloshim this past Thursday, David Silverstein explains.

How successful is the new book, Reclaiming Dignity: A Guide to Tzniut for Men and Women, at setting forth a new Torah-based vision for modesty? Laurie Novick offers a careful review, carefully considering both the personal essays and halakhic/hashkafic analyses set forward in this important work.

A response to Yosef Bronstein's study on Halakhah's engagement with societal norms

David Polsky meticulously explores officer immunity in Halakha and compares it with the American legal standard of qualified immunity.

In response to Tzvi Sinensky's earlier essay, Andrew Bennett presents Jewish legal scholar Robert Cover's and noted antisemite Carl Schmitt's thoughts on elu ve-elu.