All Essays — Daf Aleph

Weekly Ramban Series, Parsha

Why does the Torah prohibit eating certain birds? The Ramban (Vayikra 11:13) observes that there exist two classes of triefe birds: (i) predatory birds and (ii) birds which live only in uncivilized habitats, such as deserts for example. To explain why these birds should be excluded from the Jewish diet, the Ramban meditates — tersely and profoundly, as only he is capable — on the notion and experience of eating…

Mar 18
Mar 18 Between Wisdom & Election: Leo Strauss On The Binding of Isaac

Editorial, Machshavah

For those who have heard of him, Leo Strauss generally suffers from a negative reputation. To some, he is a political philosopher who rejected modernity in favor of classical antiquity. To others, he was the father of the Iraq war. To yeshiva students, Strauss is the heretic who disgraced the Mishneh Torah and made eternal The Guide of the Perplexed. However, I would like to study Strauss in another light…

Jan 28
Jan 28 How To Study The Beginning Of The "Guide Of The Perplexed:" Thoughts On Maimonides’ Philosophy Of Language

Machshavah

Like most other books, the Guide of the Perplexed is a book of words. Unlike most other books it is a book about words. Maimonides, in his Introduction to the First Part, claims to have two goals. The first goal is to explain the meaning of various terms occurring in the books of prophecy. The second purpose is to explain obscure parables occurring in the books of prophecy…

Jul 31
Jul 31 Epicurus: The Happy Apikores

Machshavah, History

Epicurus (341-270 BCE), one of the greatest thinkers of Ancient Greece, was known for his theory of the atomic universe, radical ethical philosophy, and his epistemology which included only material objects. However, perhaps less well known is Epicurus’ appearance in the thought of Chazal…

Dec 24
Dec 24 Asarah B’Teves: Seeking God Where He Is Found; Calling Out To Him When He Is Close

Fast Days, Asarah B'Teves

It is customary to read chapters 55-56 of Isaiah as the haftarah for Mincha on a public fast day. Asarah B’Teves is no exception. These chapters of Isaiah are a true anthem of teshuvah and repentance, and the immortal words of the prophet therein apply equally to all fast days, and all times of serious introspection and repentance...

Dec 7
Dec 7 Why Was Chanukah Established For All Time?

R. Moshe Shure

Chanukah

The Gemara in Shabbos (21b) poses a famous question: Why do we celebrate Chanukah? Why was this holiday established? Rashi there explains the Gemara’s intent with this question as wanting to know for which miracle, specifically, Chanukah was established to commemorate...

Oct 17
Oct 17 Free Will (Conclusion): The Implications Of Free Will In The Life Of Man

So far in this series we have discussed the differences between Human and Divine knowledge, and addressed the contradiction at the center of our topic, namely, how can Man possess Free Will when God knows all that will happen in the future?...

Oct 2
Oct 2 Free Will (Part 3): How Can It Be That God Knows Everything, Yet Man Has Free Will?

We can now turn to address the question that lies at the heart of any discussion of Free Will — how can it both be true that God knows the future, and that humans have free choice to act how they choose? Rambam poses our problem as follows...

Sep 13
Sep 13 Rav Shagar on Being Religious as Being Weird and Avant-garde, with A Note About Academic Bible Scholarship

Levi Morrow

Editorial

So apparently men wearing skirts is getting more and more popular (hold onto your hats, because this essay is going to end up talking about academic Bible scholarship). Just a few years ago, however, it was considered avant-garde...

Jul 27
Jul 27 Free Will (Part 2): Understanding and Defining ‘Knowledge’ in Regards to Both Man and God

We begin at the start of Rambam’s discussion of Free Will in Yesodei HaTorah. God, explains Rambam, has total comprehension of His absolute existence...

Jul 24
Jul 24 Free Will (Part 1): A Brief Introduction

The topic of Free Will, or Bechirah Chofshis, in a religious context almost always begins with a seeming contradiction: How can it both be true that God knows the future, and that humans have free choice to act how they choose?...

Jul 18
Jul 18 The Real Reason(s) The Second Temple Was Destroyed

R. Moshe Shure

Tisha B'Av

Everyone is taught that the Second Temple was destroyed due to the sin of sinas chinam, baseless hatred of one another. This comes from a Gemara in Yoma (9b) which says as much explicitly...

May 25
May 25 Rav Shagar On Revelation & Covenant In The Giving Of The Torah

Levi Morrow

Shavuos

In a derashah called “Regarding the Name of the Father” published in “She’arit Ha’emunah,” Rav Shagar discusses Shavuot and Pesah as representing a basic tension between revelation, on the one hand, and identity and tradition on the other hand...

May 16
May 16 Rav Shagar On Money, The Soul, & Capitalism

Levi Morrow

Parsha, Purim

In light of Vayikra 27, to be read as part of this week’s torah portion of Behar-Beḥukotai, and which discusses the monetary evaluation of different types of people (men, women, children, etc.), I thought it worthwhile to present a translation of part of a sermon Rav Shagar gave for Purim in 2002.

Apr 24
Apr 24 Still No Solutions To The Problems With Chassidus — A Response

R. Moshe Shure

Chassidus, Editorial

I shall be blunt: the response to my essay contained nothing of substance, but was instead full of somewhat snide remarks, something unbefitting an elder talmid chacham.

Apr 14
Apr 14 Counting As Recounting: Reading The Sefirot Along With Sefirat Ha'Omer

Dr. Hillel Broder

Sefiras HaOmer

It is a curious, perhaps historic oddity to note the contemporary cultural and textual prominence of the sefirot — alternately defined as divine essences, attributes, or emanations — within the ritual engagement of sefirat ha’omer.

Apr 7
Apr 7 The Paradox Of Liberty: Free To Do What?

Elan Teichman

Pesach

Freedom, however, is not the last word. Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. Freedom is but the negative aspect of the whole phenomenon whose positive aspect is responsibleness.

Apr 6
Apr 6 A Guide Through Pesukei D’Zimra: An Introduction