February 12, 2024

REVIEW: Reclaiming Dignity

Sarah Rindner, reviewing the much-discussed “Reclaiming Dignity: A Guide to Tzniut for Men and Women” by Bracha Poliakoff and Anthony Manning (Mosaica Press), suggest the book prods one to observe that tzniut is something of a paradox. It testifies to the power of outer appearances while also insisting on the importance of the internal, objectifying women and also emphasizing their inner worth. Its excess is problematic just as is its absence. Read Rindner review from TRADITION’s recent issue.
February 8, 2024

Alt+SHIFT: Guide to Haredi Society

Prof. Benjamin Brown surveys both the history and contemporary role of Haredi society. In a comprehensive and sweeping volume, he provides chapters on Mitnagdim, Hasidim, and Sefardim, and also draws distinctions between mainstream Haredim, moderates, and extremists. Yitzchak Blau, suggests that although some of the material may be well-known to followers of the Haredi world, Brown adds new details and fresh insights.
February 5, 2024

Winter 2024 Issue Arrives

TRADITION vol. 56 no. 1 (Winter 2024) has arrived with a special section of reflective essays on the current crisis in Israel and the Jewish world. Subscribers will soon receive their issue in the post and have full access to content online. See the issue highlights and access some open-access content.
February 1, 2024

TRADITION QUESTIONS: Bar Mitzva Logos

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?
January 30, 2024

The Jewish Religious Experience from Halakhah, Aggadah and Kabbalah

TRADITION and Hakirah are proud to partner in publishing “The Jewish Religious Experience from Halakhah, Aggadah and Kabbalah: Two Series of Lectures by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik,” based on the notes of Rabbis Robert Blau and Yaakov Homnick. Click here for more info and to order your print copy.
January 28, 2024

AUDIO EDITOR’S NOTE: The Abnormal Matzav

Writing from Israel, our editor Jeffrey Saks considers the war’s challenges for our religious community, the heartening reality of Jewish unity, and some sharp questions it all poses for our way forward. Listen to this Audio Editor’s Note accompanying TRADITION’s forthcoming Winter 2024 issue, with special content related to the ongoing war in Gaza.
January 25, 2024

Alt+SHIFT: Panim el Panim

Yonatan Feintuch’s “Panim el Panim” makes a major contribution to the growing world of aggadic study. He shows how paying attention to halakhic and aggadic context enhances aggadic interpretation and reveals that literary sensitivity to intertextuality, leitwort, and word-plays enriches our reading. Beyond a literary reading, Feintuch outlines varying models for how an aggadic text can impact on the legal discussions in the Talmud.
January 22, 2024

How Long Were We in Egypt?

How many years were the Children of Israel in Egypt? With this week’s Torah reading about the Exodus, follow along as we do the math and consider Daniel Langer’s suggested solution to an age-old question in his recent TRADITION essay, “Solving the Chronological Problem of the Bondage in Egypt” (Summer 2022)—now open access.
January 18, 2024

TRADITION QUESTIONS: Yeshiva Week at War

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?