The Aleinu Prayer and the Pardes Story: Major Trends in Hekhalot Literature Research by Shlomo Brody

The prayer Aleinu, which plays a central role in the Rosh Hashana liturgy, first appears within the Hekhalot literature, a large corpus of mystical writings and experiences which emerged in late antiquity.  This literature, full of narratives of Sages ascending to the Heavens – including the famous Pardes story also found in the Talmud – [...]

What is Lost as We Eliminate the Impossible: Jews and Public Schools by Gidon Rothstein

Sherlock Holmes’ advice, “Eliminate the impossible; whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truth,” made a deep impression on me.  It seemed so logical, so unequivocal, so indisputable1.  In the years since I first encountered the epigram, I have realized some major weaknesses in its presentation; for our purposes, here, some of those weaknesses [...]

Enhancing Prayer – and Thereby Faith and Spirituality – in the Modern Orthodox World by Yaakov Bieler

                 At the recent ChampionsGate V national leadership conference sponsored by Yeshiva University,   the “Leadership Track” in which I participated, was dedicated to grappling with contemporary challenges to faith and spirituality in the Modern Orthodox Community. Aside from my professional interest in the topic concerning whether qualities so seemingly personal and idiosyncratic can be successfully [...]

New Tradition – 43:2, Featuring Debate Between Rabbis Eli Shulman and Michael Broyde on Women’s Hair Covering

Vol. 43, No. 2, Summer 2010

Editor’s Note: “He Thought She Was Drunk” by Shalom Carmy
Towards a Jewish Bioethic: The Case of Truth-Telling by Judah L. Goldberg
The Limits of Religious Optimism: The Hazon Ish and the Altar of Novardok on Bittahon by Daniel Stein
The Metaphysics of Property Interests in Jewish Law: An Analysis of [...]

Would We Recognize the Ten Plagues Today? by Gidon Rothstein

Thinking of the question raised in the title of this essay, we might instinctively answer, of course, because we’ve seen this movie so many times before. Were Moses to come today and tell us to do—well, whatever, really, but let’s leave it at abandoning the exile—we’d obviously do it.
But that’s a mirage, because it wouldn’t [...]

Law vs. Philosophy?: A Maimonidean Teleology of Halacha by Elliot M. Salinger

Indubitably, the הלכה is the force which affects us as religious Jews more than any other. Both in its study and practice, the הלכה has immense control over our day to day lives and long term beliefs, values, and decisions. Consequently, it behooves us to ask the question: what is the telos of the הלכה? [...]

From Our Archives: Writings of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook

Friday, August 13th (the 3rd of Elul) is the 75th yahrzeit of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, zt”l (1865-1935), a leading figure of religious Zionism.  In commemoration, we highlight several select essays from our archives that feature the writings, life, and legacy of Rav Kook. 
From the Pages of Tradition:  R. Abraham Isaac Ha-Kohen Kook:  Letter on Ahavat Yisrael by Shnayer [...]

From Where Shall Truth Be Found? by Gidon Rothstein

On two recent occasions, I have had the similar and unsettling experience of noting the importance of finding the truth, only to have listeners speak of the impossibility, or at least great difficulty, of that task, on even basic issues.
And, incidentally, I do not mean complex or debated truths, I mean ones that should be [...]

Homosexuality and Halakha: In Tradition and Beyond

In light of the public discussion surrounding the recent Statement of Principles on homosexuality and Judaism, penned by one of our regular contributors, Text & Texture is making available some of the Tradition articles that have been written about homosexuality and halakha.  Additionally, we include below an essay by Rabbi Michael J. Broyde and Rabbi Shlomo [...]

From Our Archives: Idolatry – A Prohibition for Our Time

In light of the Sefer Devarim’s repeated condemantion of idolatry, please see our featured archive article,
“Idolatry: A Prohibition for our Time” by Herzl Hefter (42:1, 2009)
- Shlomo Brody

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