Timely Thoughts

Given the duration of the pandemic, should we suffice with waiting to return to normal, or are there hard-fought lesssons we can reintroduce even once the pandemic passes? Lehrhaus Consulting Editor and Director of Education at Sefaria, Sara Wolkenfeld, uses our recent experiences to gain new perspective on what tefilla, minyan and shul are really all about.

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

Bezalel Naor explains what is philosophical about the erstwhile halakhic observances of the Shavuot holiday.

Can we solve the growing problem of materialism in the Orthodox community? Tzvi Sinensky explains how Rabbi Norman Lamm’s Sukkot sermons shine some light on the matter

"Ha lahma anya" is one of the first paragraphs recited at the Seder - and its strange features have been baffling commentators for centuries. Elli Fischer adds his reflections to the mix.

It has been six years since Rav Aharon Lichtenstein passed away. In reviewing a 2018 collection of essays by Rav Lichtenstein’s students, Alan Jotkowitz reflects on what we have lost and the void that remains.

Alan Jotkowitz shares insights into Rambam’s Hilkhot Teshuvah

Aryeh Klapper analyzes Rav Shaul Yisraeli’s classic work on civilian casualties in Halakhah.

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.

In this next installment in our Israel symposium, Erica Brown argues that for Jewish students after October 7, choosing secular college is just not the choice it used to be.