June 1, 2023

ALT+SHIFT: Alfa Beta Talmudi

Ruth Calderon captivated Israel and the Jewish world with her maiden Knesset speech in which she taught a piece of Talmud, and offered a plea that Gemara take a greater role in Israeli civic life. Her book of aggadic analyses furthers this goal by encouraging secular Israelis to look more into texts which animated their ancestors; religious readers who are already familiar with many of these texts will be similarly rewarded for their openness by encountering Calderon’s sensitive and often insightful readings. Yitzchak Blau reviews “Alfa Beta Talmudi” in this week’s Alt+SHIFT.
May 30, 2023

New and Noteworthy Books

TRADITION’s seasonal roundup of noteworthy new titles in Jewish studies and learning, with offerings on religion vs. reason, classic rabbinic texts in new translations, old age in Medieval times and halakha in modern Israel, various posthumous volumes from our community’s leading rabbis and scholars, and more.
May 28, 2023

Rabbi Lamm Memorial Volume – Open Access

As we observe today's third yahrzeit of TRADITION's founder, Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm z"l, we are pleased to announce that the entire contents of our Rabbi Lamm Memorial Volume are now available open-access at TraditionOnline.org.
May 23, 2023

REVIEW: Great Biblical Commentators

The arrival of Avigail Rock's book in an English translation is occasion to revisit Yosefa (Fogel) Wruble's review of the original Hebrew edition, "Parshanei HaMikra" (2021), and to remember the legacy of an outstanding educator z"l, taken from us too soon. The book provides a broad historical perspective on biblical exegesis and makes the commentators come alive as sages who questioned and provided responses to spiritual dilemmas that occupy our minds and hearts until today.