In the long annals of TRADITION (and upon the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field), never have the words “Super Bowl” appeared. Chaim Strauchler introduces the phrase into one of these sacred canons to probe the moving lines between sports culture and religious stricture. Seeing the resilience of Orthodoxy’s connection to popular culture in a yeshiva’s Super Seder, Strauchler asks how rising antisemitism affects the community’s feelings of apartness and “a part”-ness in the sports arena and beyond.

Bar and Bat Mitzva celebrations now include custom-designed logos that families splash across invitations, party décor, and swag. While past celebrations might have reached back to childhood, today’s logos often evoke consumer brands and corporate culture. Chaim Strauchler asks about what messages this sends to our children in these critical moments of spiritual and cultural transmission?

An opportunity to both differentiate from general society while acculturating to its happy materialism, yeshiva day schools' mid-winter intercession symbolizes much about contemporary Orthodox Jewish culture in America. Focusing on the idea of leisure, Chaim Strauchler asks how Yeshiva Week will be different this year. How will the ongoing war in Israel change how American Jews experience this break?

Israel very deliberately chooses names for its wars. As we prepare for the parsha of names and ancient hatred, Chaim Strauchler asks why we don’t similarly name the forms that antisemitism takes. A single name would ease communication, allowing us to better express what the “monster” is and how it might be fought. Reviewing three candidates for today’s legitimization of explicit Jew-hatred, Strauchler finds advantages and disadvantages for each sword by which the monster might be slain.