February 6, 2023
Published by Jeffrey Saks at February 6, 2023
For close to two decades, the Polish-Jewish journalist and religious intellectual Hillel Zeitlin sought in vain to establish fraternal societies for the spiritual and ethical revival of the Jewish people. “On Select Redeemers,” his final manifesto from June 1939 is a stirring testimony to his resolute faith in the power of individual prayer to affect history. The document, which is presented here for the first time in English, is now open access to our readers appearing in an annotated translation by Jonatan Meir and Samuel Glauber-Zimra.
February 2, 2023
Published by Tradition Online at February 2, 2023
In this week’s Alt+SHIFT installment Yitzchak Blau profiles the columns and commentary of Eden Abitbol, whose writing opens a window into Haredi yeshiva life, its struggles and unique culture – both the manifest and suppressed components of how bachurim seek and maintain individuality within the yeshiva’s regimented collective atmosphere.
January 30, 2023
Published by Tradition Online at January 30, 2023
TRADITION 55:1 (Winter 2023) has begun to arrive in our readers’ mailboxes, and is available online with your login for subscribers. This issue of our journal of Orthodox Jewish thought features a number of items sure to dominate conversation this season with essays on the origin and impact of the Talmud page layout, Jewish responsibility to strengthen democratic society and norms, questions about above-ground burial, a bundle of important book reviews, and more.
January 29, 2023
Published by Jeffrey Saks at January 29, 2023
Today (January 29) marks the 120th birthday of Yeshayahu Leibowitz -- one of the most iconoclastic and controversial Jewish thinkers of the 20th century. Read works from the pages of TRADITION penned by Leibowitz and about him which remind us that he remains a compelling, original voice for those attempting to understand Jewish life, philosophy, and polity in Israel during the better part of the twentieth century.
January 26, 2023
Published by Jeffrey Saks at January 26, 2023
The mass of Israelis trekking to Uman for Rosh Hashana includes secularists, National Religious types, Sefardim, Haredim, and Hasidim of nearly every variety. In his interesting book, Dr. Moshe Weinstock analyzes this phenomenon and provides important insight to help understand how the pilgrimage is a reflection of trends in Israeli society. Yitzchak Blau poses questions about it in this week’s Alt+SHIFT.
January 22, 2023
Published by Tradition Online at January 22, 2023
Michael J. Harris joins the TRADITION Podcast to discuss his recently published essay, “Resultant Moral Luck and Jewish Tradition,” asking if we should judge people by their intentions, for good or for ill, or by the results of those intentions? He discusses the many significant sources within rabbinic literature that can be brought to bear on this important topic in Moral Philosophy.
January 19, 2023
Published by Tradition Online at January 19, 2023
Surveying a recent issue of the Hebrew periodical “Deot,” Yitzchak Blau continues to “translate” contemporary Hebrew commentary on communal concerns in our Alt+SHIFT series. In this installment he looks at writers who question the effectiveness of merging conservative cultural thought and Religious Zionism.
January 17, 2023
Published by Jeffrey Saks at January 17, 2023
TRADITION 54:3 (Summer 2022), with a special section on Jewish Universalism, has just been released as an open-access issue. Also in this issue: The curious case of Prozbul's disappearance and reemergence; cannabis kashrut questions; R. Esriel Hildesheimer on women's Torah education; the relationship between fear and trust in Tanakh and classical commentaries; and book reviews. Peruse the Table of Contents and start reading this particularly engaging installment of the Journal of Orthodox Jewish Thought.
January 15, 2023
Published by Tradition Online at January 15, 2023
TRADITION’s seasonal roundup of noteworthy new titles in Jewish studies and learning, with offerings on the case for Orthodoxy, the philosophy of the Siddur and of the Shalosh Regalim, 13th-century Jewish moral lessons, and more.