In "Rav Soloveitchik’s New World View," the author reviews Western philosophy, explaining that it fails to answer philosophical questions raised by modern mathematics. In a reading of The Halakhic Mind, he then demonstrates that, from his youth, the Rav felt that the key to dealing with man's encounter with the infinite lies in the dalet ammot shel halakhah. In "Historical Revisionism by the Families of Rav Kook’s Disciples" the author describes how some children of Rav Kook's students sought to distance their fathers from their teacher to ensure that their fathers' works would be accepted in Haredi circles and their reputations would remain intact. In "Rav Hildesheimer’s Response to Ultra-Orthodoxy" the author analyzes an historical document to contrast two responses to the then-budding Reform movement: that of a group which came to be called the Haredi camp, with the more moderate response of Rav Hildesheimer. In the chapter from the book on the Hazon Ish, "The Gaon of Vilna, the Hatam Sofer, and the Hazon Ish: Minhag and the Crisis of Modernity," the author argues that the Hazon Ish, considered by many to be the father of the modern Haredi movement, was not acting in response to modernity, but was motivated by a desire to find each law's intent and to follow the letter of the law. In the timely article in the Minhag section entitled "Our Salty Tears: The History and Significance of an Interpretation of Dipping in Salt Water at the Seder," the author bears out the Hazon Ish's skepticism of minhagim, showing how hallowing practices of the past sometimes distorts the reasoning behind a custom. Our Jewish History section includes the essay "Adversity and Authorship as Revealed in the Introductions of Early Hebrew Books," which recounts how, in fact, adversity was often the catalyst for the genesis of these works. In "A Tour of the Osler Library of the History of Medicine through Jewish Eyes," we get a glimpse of great Jewish doctors who, throughout history, dedicated themselves to curing the ills of all mankind. In "Teaching Musar at the FBI," a rabbi involved in kiruv explains how, at the request of the FBI, he helped those employed in the difficult job of law enforcement by giving them spiritual tools. In the other article, "Why is there no kosher meat or poultry that is certified humane?" the issue of our obligation of ve-halakhta bi-derakhav is raised. This mitzvah, which obligates us to perform acts of hesed, is also the subject of a detailed Hebrew article on the mitzvah of bikkur holim. In the Jewish Law section, "Parve Cloned Beef Burgers: Health and Halakhic Considerations" applies ancient halakhic principles to the technology of the future, while a letter to S. Y. Agnon from a rabbi, describing the rabbi's attitude towards the idea of human possession by a reincarnated soul, shows how some ancient beliefs resist the advances of science. In our Talmud Torah section, "In Search of Nimrod: Nimrod and Esau as Parallel Figures" merges modern methodology with traditional Biblical sources in an attempt to understand Hazal's attitude toward Esau. "Reinterpretation and Resistance to the Mitzvah of Tefillah" argues that the mitzvah that the Rav so often expounded upon, and that he said "was redeemed" by Rambam, was not considered of Biblical origin even by great Rishonim who followed Rambam. In "Apprehending the Divine through the Religious Act: Rabbi Yaakov Anatoli’s Introduction to Malmad Ha-Talmidim," we see how an almost forgotten medieval scholar from Provence toiled to define a religious philosophy.

Hakirah: The Flatbush Journal of Jewish Law and Thought

Religion & Spirituality

Zelcer, Heshey

Reichman, Edward

Goldman, David P.

Brown, Benjamin

Friedman, Cary A.

Student, Gil

Heller, Marvin J.

Henkin, Eitam

Dysert, Anna

Zelcer, Malky

Judaism

Hakirah

An innovative thinker who applies classical Jewish texts to contemporary life questions, and a pioneer of the Jewish internet, Rabbi Gil Student has been exploring the big and small Jewish questions to wide acclaim. In Search Engine, he examines Jewish life in this era of social media and mobile technology through the lens of Jewish law, surveying topics in accessible and engaging ways, and offering depth and breadth to the novice and the expert. With the back-and-forth of proof and counterproof, early and late commentaries are brought to bear on both the what and why of contemporary issues.Rabbi Gil Student is the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of TorahMusings.com. He writes frequently in Jewish newspapers and magazines, serving as a regular contributor to Jewish Action, The Jewish Link of New Jersey, The Jewish Echo, and The Vues. Rabbi Student serves as Director of Halacha Committee of RAA, on the Editorial Board of the Orthodox Union's Jewish Action magazine, and as the magazine's Book Editor.

Search Engine: Volume 2: Jewish Leadership

Kodesh Press

Search Engine: Finding Meaning in Jewish Texts

Kodesh Press L.L.C.

Strauss, Spinoza & Sinai: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith

More than three centuries after Baruch Spinoza’s excommunication from the Jewish community of Amsterdam, his legacy remains contentious. Born in 1632, Spinoza is one of the most important thinkers of the Enlightenment and arguably the paradigm of the secular Jew, having left Orthodoxy without converting to another faith.\nOne of the most unexpected and provocative critiques of Spinoza comes from Leo Strauss. 
Strauss grew up in a nominally Orthodox home and emigrated from Germany to the United States in the 1930s. He taught at the University of Chicago and was one of the most influential political philosophers of the twentieth century until his death in 1973.\nThough Strauss was not an Orthodox Jew, in a well-known essay that prefaced his study of Spinoza, he critically examines modern philosophy's challenge to traditional religion. There he argues that while the Enlightenment had failed to decisively refute Orthodoxy, at the same time, Orthodoxy could only claim to believe its core tenets were true but could not claim to know they were true. Strauss leaves the question at an impasse; both the Enlightenment and Orthodoxy rest on axioms that neither side can fully prove or fully refute.\nCuriously, Strauss never asks Orthodox Jewish thinkers if his approach to defending Judaism against the claims of the Enlightenment is the same as theirs. This volume poses the question to a group of serious Orthodox Jewish thinkers in an attempt to find out if Orthodoxy has a better answer to the questions raised by Strauss than the one Strauss advanced on its behalf.\nThe seventeen essays in this volume use a variety of approaches, drawing on traditional primary Jewish sources like Scripture, Talmud, and Midrash; medieval rationalists like Maimonides; Enlightenment-era Orthodox sources; Jewish mystical writings like Kabbalah and Chasidut; modern philosophical movements including postmodernism and analytic philosophy; and contemporary Jewish Bible interpretation. While the answers differ, what unites these essays is the willingness to take Strauss’ question seriously and to provide “inside” answers, that is, answers given by Orthodox Jews.\nMuch of modern thought tries to square the circle of how to live in a world without belief. The better question is whether it is possible to recover authentic religious belief in the modern world. This volume is an Orthodox Jewish attempt to answer that question, one that no serious person can approach with indifference.

Bloom, Jeffrey

Goldstein, Alec

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Student, Gil. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Student, Gil