Land and Sea, Natural and Supernatural in the Book of Jonah
September 24, 2009 by Daniel Reifman
Filed under Holidays, Tanach
Land and Sea, Natural and Supernatural in the Book of Jonah
by Daniel Reifman
Like many texts that have been incorporated into the liturgy, the book of Jonah seems inseparable from the time it is read in the synagogue: the afternoon of Yom Kippur. As the day draws to a close, our thoughts turn to the final [...]
On (Not) Understanding the Reasons Behind Rabbinic Prohibitions: The Case of Teaching Shehiyah
August 26, 2009 by Daniel Reifman
Filed under Education, Halakha, Talmud
On (Not) Understanding The Reasons Behind Rabbinic Prohibitions: The Case of Teaching Shehiyah
by Daniel Reifman
Teachers of Halakhah are often torn between conflicting agendas: on the one hand, to ensure that students have mastered all the laws relevant to contemporary observance, on the other hand, to familiarize them with a sense of the background—both the history and [...]