Those interested in the interaction of religion and state have been captivated these last few weeks (in the way train wrecks draw our attention) by the byzantine delays in elections for the Israeli Chief Rabbinate—which for the first time in its history is doubly vacant with neither Ashkenazi nor Sefardi Chiefs. Jeffrey Saks examines a chapter in Rabbi Soloveitchik’s biography, and his flirtation with the position in the early 1960s, which reminds us just how far we are from the Rav’s vision of what a Chief Rabbi might be.

Tomorrow (3 Tammuz) marks the 30th yahrzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson zt”l. In his memory, read an archived TRADITION essay published 60+ years ago for the 150th yahrzeit of his forebear, the Ba’al HaTanya—founder of Chabad Hasidut. Irving Block considered the character of the “Benoni” and his role in the psychological theories of Chabad.

TRADITION wraps up this year’s installment of our Editorial Board’s selections for recommended summer reading. Read the final round of endorsements – and discover the winner of our contest to predict the most picks!

TRADITION continues its yearly tradition of turning to our esteemed editorial board for endorsements for summer reading. Some of the picks could have easily been predicted, others are quite surprising, all are worthy of your attention. Read the first installment today on TraditionOnline.

As the current of modernity continues to rage, the lessons of Jonathan Ziring’s “Torah in a Connected World” will only become more relevant. Tamar Koslowe’s review argues that as an entire generation of Jews is growing up alongside the technological revolution, confronting how technology affects our religious lives is prudent: “The reader walks away more knowledgeable and motivated to thoughtfully consider these questions. More than any particular elucidation of halakha, Ziring asks the reader to, at the very least, think critically about the technological changes that are transforming lives across the globe.”

Win a TRADITION subscription by picking our picks! We continue our yearly tradition of turning to our esteemed editorial board for endorsements for summer reading. Some may be amused to think of a seaside read with the hefty tomes our team chose – but that’s what you get for turning to TRADITION-niks for their reading picks of works of Torah, Madda, Torah u-Madda, or enlightening literature. Before the series launches, you can enter to win a subscription to our print journal by predicting the titles most likely to appear on this year’s list.