Humash

Joshua Shapiro explains how close readers of the Biblical text can find a unifying theory for reason behind the ten plagues.

There’s a miniature kaf at the beginning of the parashah. As Gabriel Slamovits explains, what the diminished letter says about how Abraham mourned for Sarah fits well with a prominent teaching of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, zt”l.

Ezra Sivan probes the Sabbath and the Torah's call to love God.

What does the makeup of the altar drainage pipes tell us about the nature of holiness? Shlomo Zuckier explores!

This week's Parashah introduces us to the city of Shechem. Tamar Weissman examines the various appearances of this city throughout Tanakh, explaining that while it is a city of rupture, it is also one of covenant and fraternity.

Eliezer Finkelman discusses the meaning of perfect repentance.

Shlomo Zuckier on the mechanics of a midrashic motif.

As we prepare for Passover, enjoy these three poems by Bruce Black meditating on the past, present, and future of our Exodus.

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

In its opening verses, Parshat Shoftim describes a judicial system that enshrines pursuing Tzedek, or justice, as a core value. Benjamin Barer unpacks a Gemara in Sanhedrin that provides three distinct conceptions of the obligation to pursue justice, suggesting how we might build a more sacred society.