Timely Thoughts

Just in advance of the shloshim for David Ellenson, the former president of Hebrew Union College, Jonathan D. Sarna pays tribute to a man whose life, work, and friendships spanned the Jewish denominational divide.

Tzvi Sinensky argues compellingly for a new way to understand the relationship between Shir HaShirim and Pesach in times of quarantine.

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

Aton Holzer explores the changing nature of Jewish interactions with Rome from Maccabees through the Rabbinic period.

Yosef Lindell argues that the explanatory Kinot model, where fewer prayers are said but they are delved into in more depth, should be adopted for reciting Selihot.

Yakov Ellenbogen reviews Susan Weingarten's Haroset: A Taste of Jewish History.

Ranana Dine explores the depictions of suffering in haggadot.

Is true forgiveness possible? Michael Kurin explores the doubts raised by prominent twentieth century philosophers and considers how Jewish tradition offers a radically different conception of repentance and forgiveness, one that enables people to alter their reality vis-à-vis God and one another.

Sruli Fruchter examines the story not often told about Noah—the trauma inflicted by immense responsibility amidst immense destruction.

Stu Halpern weighs in on the eternal wisdom Torah u-Madda offers the world during the fraught times in which we live.