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Aug 17, 2026, 6:23 PM

In Defense of Ethical AI Use: A Response

Rabbi Rachel Barenblat recently published a thoughtful essay on her blog, Velveteen Rabbi, called “The words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart (or: why I refuse AI)”⁠. She offers seven reasons she chooses not to use...

Jaclyn S. Clark

Aug 10, 2026, 3:48 PM

I argue with an AI at midnight. It’s the most Jewish thing I do

When AI agents went rogue and followed each other into mischief, they exposed a problem older than computers. An ancient Jewish method could have stopped them

Aug 6, 2026, 6:21 PM

Book review – Foundations and Concepts in Lomdus

For many students of Gemara, there comes a moment when the discussion on the page begins to reveal something deeper. The give-and-take of the Talmudic sugya, the unit of discussion, yields an underlying conceptual architecture in which legal principles,...

Aug 2, 2026, 9:43 AM

Babel in the Nine Days

The Sanhedrin's written ruling is dated 6 Menachem Av. Hold that date for a moment before anything else. Three days before Tisha B'Av. Inside the nine days when we do not build, do not celebrate, do not so much as...

Hande Gençünal

Aug 2, 2026, 4:54 AM

Shin, The Letter Two Sources Tell Differently

In Kabbalistic tradition, letters are never treated as mere linguistic tools. Among the twenty-two letters, Shin (ש) carries some of the most layered readings. But those layers don't always agree with each other, sometimes they pull against one another,...

Jul 30, 2026, 4:03 AM

A Court Cannot Summon the Messiah: On the Limits of the Sanhedrin’s Authority

A reconstituted Sanhedrin has issued a ruling asking Heaven to reveal the Mashiach and rebuild the Temple. But the classical sources draw a sharp line the court has crossed. When a reconstituted Sanhedrin issues a formal ruling that asks Heaven...

Jul 25, 2026, 9:47 AM

Pigs are widely regarded as among the most intelligent domesticated animals. Photo © Mercy For Animals (MFA), Los Angeles, USA, 2011. Licensed under CC BY 2.0. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

How One Forbidden Animal Became the Symbol of Kashrut This article continues the series: Fins and Scales, Hooves and Cud Kashrut Through the Lens of Information Theory: The Hidden Logic of Redundancy If every fish with scales also has fins, why does the...

Jul 24, 2026, 6:04 AM

Book review – The Koren Tanakh of the Land of Israel: Deuteronomy

Imagine reading Shakespeare without knowing anything about Elizabethan England. Much of the language, humor, politics, and cultural references would be lost. The same is true of the Torah. Without understanding the world in which it was given, readers inevitably...

Jul 22, 2026, 10:57 AM

Fins and Scales, Hooves and Cud, Part II

Why split hooves and chewing the cud? Why these specific biological criteria? Photo: A male bighorn sheep (ram), a kosher land animal. © Jwanamaker, 2013. Licensed under CC BY 3.0. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

What We Still Don't Know About Kashrut In Part I of Fins and Scales, Hooves and Cud, I explored a question that is easy to overlook. If every fish with scales also has fins, why does the Torah mention fins at...

Jul 21, 2026, 6:56 AM

The Courtyard Stands Open: Why Jews Must Teach the Nations Now

In the days when the Temple stood in Jerusalem, a vast Court of the Gentiles welcomed those drawn from the nations. This outer courtyard formed part of Hashem's design. Sincere seekers could bring offerings to any Israelite citizen standing...

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