Joshua Berman, at The Blogs

Sep 22, 2024, 5:07 PM

When we appeal to God as victims of rape

Illustrative: A soldier kneels next to the Israeli flag during the a ceremony marking Memorial Day, at the site of the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re'im, where revelers were brutalized, murdered and kidnapped during Hamas's October 7 massacre in southern Israel, May 13, 2024. (AP/Leo Correa)

Until now, pre-Rosh Hashanah penitential prayers evoked suffering that echoed a bygone era. After October 7th, it's as if they were written for us

Jan 7, 2024, 3:01 PM

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Lessons from our soldiers’ last letters

The final letter of First Sgt. Adi Leon, z"l (Screenshot: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

As our fallen heroes reflected on the possibility of death, their words teach us about purpose and meaning in life

Dec 24, 2023, 4:05 PM

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Is this war a divine punishment?

People hold photographs of Israelis held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, as they attend a protest calling for the government to find a solution to have the hostages released, outside Military Defense Headquarters in Tel Aviv, December 19, 2023. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Are we prepared to stand before God as Jews always did in times of trauma and affirm that our suffering stems from our deeds?

Jul 27, 2023, 2:38 PM

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Healing means hearing the other side’s pain

Pro-government demonstrators hold a protest in support of the judicial overhaul, at Tel Aviv's Kaplan Street, on July 23, 2023. (Jack Guez/ AFP)

Consider how fast the coalition revoked the 'reasonableness' clause and see a history of discrimination and humiliation writ large

Jul 25, 2023, 1:56 PM

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Crushed by denial: Zion in the Book of Lamentations

From 'The Prophet Jeremiah,' by Michelangelo.

When everything you believe comes crumbling down, and you still can't get past your beliefs, that is when you are susceptible to destruction

Jul 24, 2022, 3:29 PM

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Messengers from the Russian moral abyss

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets people after his speech at the concert marking the eighth anniversary of the referendum on the state status of Crimea and Sevastopol and its reunification with Russia, in Moscow, March 18, 2022. (Ramil Sitdikov/Sputnik Pool Photo via AP)

At our Shabbat table, cousins of mine embarking on their new life in Israel shared chilling accounts of a country that resembles prewar Germany

Apr 8, 2022, 5:37 PM

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Leading the people back to Egypt

Minchah prayers at the Sphinx. (courtesy, Sandor Joffe)

Guiding Bible-themed tours to the land of the Pharaohs, I’ve gained an unexpected appreciation for Egyptians – modern and ancient

Sep 12, 2021, 4:06 PM

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No apologies, just a kiss

Joseph recognized by his brothers, by Léon Pierre Urbain Bourgeois, 1863 oil on canvas, at the Musée Municipal Frédéric Blandin, Nevers

No person in the Bible ever asks another for forgiveness and no one ever grants another person forgiveness. But why?

Jul 22, 2021, 1:11 PM

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The birthplace of egalitarian thought

Throughout the ancient world, the truth was self-evident: all men were not created equal. Sinai changed that

Apr 18, 2021, 1:45 PM

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A Satmar rebbe for a Shabbos

Hassidic man in Brooklyn, NY. September 27, 2020 (iStock)

Invited to Williamsburg to speak about orthodoxy and biblical criticism, I discovered a world of incredible beauty – and searing pain

About Me

Joshua Berman is a professor of Bible at Bar-Ilan University and is the author of Ani Maamin: Biblical Criticism, Historical Truth and the Thirteen Principles of Faith (Maggid).