Ezra raised new leaders and engaged the members of the community to take active roles in their spiritual development. He raised many disciples, thereby broadening the base of the leadership and also ensuring continuity rather than dependence on him. Nehemiah tended to occupy center stage. He portrayed himself as an indispensable leader.
I’d like to focus on the articles by Menachem Kellner on Rabbi Elhanan Wasserman and Rabbi Aharon Kotler. These two 20th century luminaries cast Rambam into the mold of a Hareidi sage. When they read Rambam, they understood him in a way that Rambam himself would have found problematic.
Dr. Sperber is President of the Makhon haGavoah leTorah at Bar Ilan University. Author of numerous works in Jewish law, custom and theology, he was awarded the Israel Prize by the State of Israel in recognition of his monumental contributions to Jewish scholarship. This essay, which appeared in our journal Conversations (issue 3, winter 2009), is based on a lecture delivered by Dr. Sperber in Los Angeles in May 2008.
The biblical book of Eikha (Lamentations) provides an eye-witness account--by the prophet Jeremiah--of the period of the destruction of the First Temple in Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. Eikha is chanted on the Fast of Tisha B'Av, so this is an opportune time to gain deeper insight into the meaning and message of this prophetic work. Rabbi Hayyim Angel provides a framework for our understanding Eikha...and dealing with tragedy in general.
The Jewish Press has a bi-weekly feature in which several rabbis are asked questions relating to Jewish values, observance, customs. One of the respondents is Rabbi Marc D. Angel. Here are Rabbi Angel's responses to four recent questions from the Jewish Press.
The Jewish Press publishes a bi-weekly feature in which several rabbis are asked questions relating to Jewish observance and Jewish values. One of the respondents is Rabbi Marc D. Angel. Here are Rabbi Angel's responses to the first 4 questions in this series of articles.
Our view is that we always must keep conversations alive, rather than allowing those who dogmatically espouse one or the other side of a debate to shut down dissent or alternative viewpoints from within tradition.
Judaism includes the basic tenets of belief in one God, divine revelation of the Torah including an Oral Law, divine providence, reward-punishment, and a messianic redemption. The question for believing Jews today is, how should we relate to the overwhelming majority of contemporary Jews, who likely do not fully believe in classical Jewish beliefs? Two medieval models shed light on this question.
The text of an address by Senator Lieberman at Brigham Young University, on the role of religion in American life. Senator Lieberman was the Honored Guest Speaker at the 10th Anniversary Dinner (held in May 2017) of our Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals.
Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, a leading Religious Zionist rabbi in Israel, recently proclaimed that women should not be engaged in political life. His statement--bolstered by a group of other rabbis--has been sharply denounced by many Israelis, including other Israeli rabbis. One of the early proponents of women's involvement in positions of political leadership was Rabbi Benzion Uziel (1880-1953).
