With the upcoming Fast of Tisha B’Av, it is appropriate to note the recent publication of a biography and historical analysis of one of the great prophets of our faith, Jeremiah, whose teachings are the featured prophetic readings that morning and whose scroll, Eichah (Lamentations) is the centerpiece reading the previous evening at the start of the fast. more

He was one of the all time greats in Jewish thought and theology. Although a mystic he was venerated by non-mystics. According to Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, one of the first to translate his teachings, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto [Ramchal] “was one of the most brilliant thinkers of the past several centuries…his depth of thought and systematic mind are evident in all his works. more

With the Thanksgiving holiday now upon us I would like to bring to your attention a wonderful and most informative literary work entitled, “Thanksgiving: The Holiday at the Heart of the … more

Reviewed by Alan Jay Gerber Issue of March 20, 2009 / 24 Adar 5769 Recently I came across a very astute observation that will serve as the theme and tone for the Bookworm essays for the coming … more

Issue of August 20, 2010/ 10 Elul 5770 By Alan Jay Gerber In his classic study, “The Religious Thought of Hasidism” (Yeshiva University Press/Ktav Publishing House, 1999), Rabbi Norman Lamm … more

Editor’s note: With life in Russia increasingly under the gun, and with its Jews again in the crosshairs, we revisit this column from 2013. How ironic that a published history of the … more

In a recent sidebar to a most informative essay by Rabbi Yechiel Goldhaber in Hamodia, April 18, 2012, concerning the sinking of the Titanic, the following perceptive observation was made: “The Titanic sank deep into the ocean, not to be located for some eighty years. More important, it sank deeply into the conscience of the Jewish nation. more

The joyous festival of Chanukah is just ten days away and the joyous American feast of Thanksgiving is now upon us. However, these are hardly joyous times; events around us reflect an ever-present … more

Just the name, the Netziv, HaRav Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin zt”l, should give a shiver of awe and inspiration to any knowledgeable Jew. His life’s story, as reflected in “My Uncle The … more

With the increasing concern over worldwide violence against Jews, and of the political defense of such behavior, much debate has focused upon the origins of such conduct as well as to numerous strategies aimed at quelling it. This week’s column will survey the historical and theologically-based origins that are behind these actions. more