Latest Essays
The Sacrifice of Isaac in Context: Recovering a Lost Ending of the Akedah
The Sacrifice of Isaac in Context: Recovering a Lost Ending of the Akedah
The earliest version of the birth and sacrifice of Isaac account questioned the identity of the boy’s father and concluded with Abraham sacrificing him to God.
U’Netaneh Tokef: Repentance, Prayer and Charity Cancel the Decree?
U’Netaneh Tokef: Repentance, Prayer and Charity Cancel the Decree?
A linguistic analysis of וּתְשׁוּבָה וּתְפִלָּה וּצְדָקָה מַעֲבִירִין אֶת רֹעַ הַגְּזֵרָה, “But repentance, prayer and charity cancel the harsh decree.”
Embracing Academic Torah Study: Modern Orthodoxy’s Challenge
Embracing Academic Torah Study: Modern Orthodoxy’s Challenge
The study of biblical criticism cuts to the very meaning of the value system of Modern Orthodoxy, i.e. forging a distinctive synthesis of modern culture with traditional values.
Marrying Your Daughter to Her Rapist
Marrying Your Daughter to Her Rapist
Are the Torah’s laws perfect or do they reflect biblical times and can adapt as society develops? The punishment of a rapist is a good test case for thinking about morally problematic biblical laws.
Deuteronomy: Religious Centralization or Decentralization?
Deuteronomy: Religious Centralization or Decentralization?
Deuteronomy’s centralization of worship (in Jerusalem) is commonly seen as increasing the power of the cult. However, it is also part of Deuteronomy’s laicization program, which shrinks the power of priests and Levites, and extends covenantal holiness requirements to all Israel.
A Theological Revolution in Deuteronomy
A Theological Revolution in Deuteronomy
Unlike the Priestly writers for whom sacrifice and rituals are needed to maintain the divine presence in the Tabernacle, the Deuteronomists stress God’s transcendence and the obedience of the heart and soul.
The Purification of a Niddah: When Silence Matters
The Purification of a Niddah: When Silence Matters
Immersing in the Priestly Text: In support of Dr. Rabbi Zev Farber's contention in “The Purification of a Niddah: The Torah Requirement” that the Torah does not require women to immerse after niddah in order to become pure.
