The recent deplorable remarks by a prominent Israeli rabbinic figure against Rav Tamir Granot, Rosh Yeshivat Hesder of Orot Shaul and father Amitai Granot z"l, who fell in battle in the defense of the Land and People of Israel, are a source of pain and division, just as we are beginning to see the light at the end of the very long tunnel (figurative and literal) in which the nation has found itself these two years. That one who purports to speak for the Torah should instead wage verbal war against those who go to war for their brothers adds to Israel's tragedy. In light of this unfortunate affair, we republish R. Granot's essay which appeared on TraditionOnline in March 2024, during an early phase of this lamentable dispute.

Today, October 27, marks the seventh anniversary of the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre, which claimed the lives of 11 shulgoers. To mark that traumatic event we re-publish Sarah Rudolph's review of “Bound in the Bond of Life” – a collection of essays by Pittsburgh writers on the tragedy which resonates with the “recurring theme of connection its most powerful element – connections between people, between ideas, within and between varying beliefs and worldviews, between experiences.”