Open Search form

Jewish Law - Halacha

Apply for a Blog

Sharona Margolin Halickman

Jul 6, 2018, 8:37 PM

Guess who was not involved in the sin of the spies?

When we speak about Chet HaMiraglim, the sin of the spies, we mention that Yehoshua and Calev were the only two of the twelve spies who did not bring a false report and they were therefore not punished as...

Harvey M. Lederman

Jul 5, 2018, 9:41 PM

The Jewish angle for this triathlete

Illustrative: Competitors make their way from the finish area at the London Marathon in 2010. (Tom Hevezi/AP)

If my motivation flags, I think of Maimonides and his scorn for those who don't exercise

Nathan Lopes Cardozo

Jul 4, 2018, 2:00 PM

The Search for God

The Greatness and the Present Setback of Halachic Living Taken from a chapter in Jewish Law as Rebellion. A Plea for Religious Authenticity and Halachic Courage. Urim Publications, 2018 There is little doubt that Halacha greatly complicates life for the...

Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden

Jul 3, 2018, 3:16 AM

One Orthodox rabbi can make a huge difference

One Orthodox rabbi can make a huge difference, even if he can't change Jewish Law on his own. At least, he makes people say: what a great person he is. That is the most important Commandment a Jew can...

Avrohom Gordimer

Jul 2, 2018, 11:15 AM

Ethiopians and Wine: Not so Fast, Rabbi Cardozo

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo's Scandalous halachic decisions: Ethiopians and wine pushes many hot buttons. Exuding an overdose of self-confidence and much dismissiveness, this article exhibits an extremely erroneous understanding of Halacha. Rabbi Cardozo argues that the prohibition on stam yaynam -- non-Jewish wine --...

Menachem Creditor

Jul 2, 2018, 11:12 AM

Redemption in a Mighty Jewish Rumpus

The past seventy-two hours have offered an amazing array gifts of comfort and inspiration to this rabbi's heart. No verbal description could possibly do the experience justice. But here goes: I'm at Camp Ramah in Northern California, my third summer...

Andy Blumenthal

Jul 1, 2018, 3:20 PM

Naked before G-d

Praying, fasting and mourning the Temple's destruction on the Ninth of Av, Tisha B'Av. (Leeor Bronis/Times of Israel)

At the Western Wall, where we bare our souls before our Maker, Marisa Papen instead displayed haughty flesh

Jun 30, 2018, 12:41 AM

OCD and halakha: The Orthodox rabbi’s challenge

One of the great privileges of my budding career in the rabbinate has been the opportunity to study with the Center for the Jewish Future (Yeshiva University), and to complete their Continuing Rabbinic Education (CRE) programs in areas including...

Sharona Margolin Halickman

Jun 27, 2018, 10:31 PM

Do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God

In the Haftara for Parshat Balak (Micha 5:6-6:8), we read the prophecy of Micha which recalls some of the ways in which God protected B’nai Yisrael during the forty years that they spent in the wilderness. One of the...

Jun 27, 2018, 7:06 PM

Agunot must not be sacrificed on the altar of reform

A new bill was passed recently in the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Justice Committee amending the law regarding the jurisdiction of the Israeli rabbinical courts. The amendment will grant the rabbinical courts international authority to adjudicate the divorce proceedings of...

Load more