Bereishit

The father heard the voice of God, Elli Fischer explains, but the son ends up with the blade on his neck.

Ezra Sivan reexamines the relationship between Rachel and Leah.

Yitzchak Etshalom comments on the relationship between Lavan and Yaakov.

R. Yitzchak Blau analyzes the 2018 book, Was Yosef on the Spectrum?

Jacob is described in Rabbinic thought as a pursuer of truth, but many have questioned whether this aligns with the simple reading of the text. Gavriel Lakser argues that a close reading shows that it does, even if he made some mistakes along the way.

Does the Torah support a universalist or ethnonationalist political orientation? In this timely essay, Ezra Zuckerman Sivan explores the meaning behind key stories in Genesis through the framework of the Aleinu prayer.

Did Rabbeinu Bahya mention a lightning rod centuries before it was discovered? Yaakov Taubes takes us on a journey through science, magic, and religion to help explain this medieval commentator’s cryptic comment about the Tower of Babel.

Jerome Marcus on the Akeidah: It's not about ethics vs. divine command, but about Hashem versus Elokim!

In an original analysis of one of the most famous stories in the Torah, Maier Becker calls into question many long-held assumptions about this week's parasha and proposes a new reading based on the interpretations of traditional exegetes.

Mark Glass puts the Akeidah in conversation with the surrounding narratives of the book of Genesis.