Humash

Malka Simkovich hunts for Jewish texts in some unlikely places.

The Talmud speaks of a mysterious passage on Bilam authored by Moses. What is it?

David Fried argues that the question of Moses seeing the face of God reveals the tragic choice Moses made in choosing between his own spirituality and that of his people.

Tzvi Sinensky explores the Talmudic version of the Roman myth of Narcissus

Dan Jutan locates a fascinating meta-narrative within Rashi's commentary.

In this thought-provoking piece, Aharon Frazer traces the approach to power and privilege in the Torah from Genesis through Deuteronomy, and offers a framework for the ethical use of power in our own times.

Yisroel Ben-Porat grapples with whether the case of the pregnant Sotah has implications for the debates surrounding abortion.

Tamar Weissman shows how the Druze minority in Israel remarkably resemble the biblical Kenites.

Leah Sarna argues that this is the Passover to tell the stories of enslaved Jewish women: of the victims of October 7, who were and likely still are subjected to sexual violence, and of the heroic women in the era of the Exodus, who fought to ensure the perpetuation of the Jewish people.

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.