Tradition Journal

30/10/2025

𝗨𝗻𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘁: 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗻? 𝗛𝗶𝗹𝗸𝗵𝗼𝘁 𝗗𝗦𝗧 - What happens when a year-round daylight savings time threatens to upend our early morning prayers and rituals? From Russia to America, Moshe Kurtz (linked in comments) explains how R. Feinstein navigated both the technical challenges and the broader values-based question that emerged from this conflict.

29/10/2025

Raphael Zarum, a contributor to TRADITION's special volume on the intellectual legacy of Rabbi Sacks, surveys the essays in that collection in this essay. Join us on Sunday, Nov. 2 for a special online "launch" of the book-length volume (registration link in comments).

A special edition of the journal Tradition dedicated to the ideas of Rabbi Sacks will be launched at an online event on Sunday

29/10/2025

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗟𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗮𝘆 - Our authors have been appearing on podcast, talking up important content from TRADITION and TraditionOnline. Alex Ozar, on the Torat JLIC (JLIC: The Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus) podcast discusses the Tradition Today Summit on materialism, and his own follow-up essay on "Orthodoxy, Wealth & Tackiness" (Spring 2025). Alex also discusses his work on the thought of R. Yitzchak Hutner, which is a teaser-trailer for an upcoming essay to appear soon in our pages.
Yehuda Halpert appears on Yaakov Wolff's Shtark Tank podcast, discussing (among lots of other interesting topics) our COVID+5 symposium which appeared.
Links to all these items in comment to this post.

28/10/2025

𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 "𝗩𝗲-𝗧𝗲𝗻 𝗧𝗮𝗹 𝘂-𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗿" 𝗯𝘆 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀 - With the arrival of the evening of 7 Heshvan tonight the recitation of "Ten Tal u-Matar" begins in Israel. Throughout the Diaspora the addition to the daily prayers, asking for "dew and rain," is delayed until the beginning of December. This halakhic curiosity, and the fact that in our era of frequent jet-setting, travelers sometimes find themselves caught between different practices, was examined in 1982 in the pages of TRADITION by Rabbi J. David Bleich: https://traditiononline.org/review-of-recent-halakhic-periodical-literature-sale-of-arms-cholent-recitation-of-ve-ten-tal-u-matar-by-travellers

27/10/2025

𝗜𝗳 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗚𝗼 𝗧𝗼 𝗪𝗮𝗿 - The recent deplorable remarks by a prominent Israeli rabbinic figure against Rav Tamir Granot, Rosh Yeshivat Hesder of Orot Shaul and father Amitai Granot z"l, who fell in battle in the defense of the Land and People of Israel in the early days of the war, are a source of pain and division, just as we are beginning to see the light at the end of the very long tunnel (figurative and literal) in which the nation has found itself these two years. That one who purports to speak for the Torah should instead wage verbal war against those who go to war for their brothers adds to Israel's tragedy. In light of this unfortunate affair, we republish R. Granot's essay (linked in comments) which appeared on TraditionOnline in March 2024, during an early phase of this lamentable dispute.

27/10/2025

Today, October 27, marks the seventh anniversary of the Tree of Life synagogue massacre, which claimed the lives of 11 shulgoers. To mark that traumatic event we re-publish Sarah Rudolph's review of “Bound in the Bond of Life” (linked in comments) – a collection of essays by Pittsburgh writers on the tragedy which resonates with the “recurring theme of connection its most powerful element – connections between people, between ideas, within and between varying beliefs and worldviews, between experiences.”

26/10/2025

𝗣𝗢𝗗𝗖𝗔𝗦𝗧: 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝗲 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗸𝗵𝗶𝗰 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 - We'll soon mark the 250th birthday of the renowned English novelist Jane Austen, and “Janeites” (as her fans call themselves) are aflutter worldwide. In this episode of the TRADITION Podcast Mali Brofsky chats with Yaffa Aranoff about her recent essay “The Perils of Gentle Selfishness: Jane Austen’s Emma and Halakhic Morality” (TRADITION, Winter 2025) – linked in comments. The conversation serves as a demonstration of engagement with “the best” in literature, showing how it can redound to our growth as thinking religious beings.

23/10/2025

George & Ira Gershwin's “Porgy and Bess” fuses opera, jazz, and spirituals to create a uniquely American sound. Drawing on Jewish liturgical melody, the Gershwins transformed sacred motifs into secular skepticism. Chaim Strauchler (linked in comments) reflects on how their work embodies both creative synthesis and moral tension in the pursuit of the artistic and spiritual “BEST.”

22/10/2025

Celebrate the release of a new issue of Tradition exploring Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ intellectual legacy! Join us for an online launch event featuring remarks by Gila Sacks and a conversation with contributing authors Rabbi Dr. Dov Lerner, Dr. Malka Simkovich, and Rabbi Dr. Raphael Zarum.
Sunday, November 2, 2025 | 12:00pm (Eastern) | 5:00pm (UK) | 7:00pm (Israel). Register here: https://traditiononline.org/r-sacks-intellectual-legacy

TRADITION, together with the Rabbi Sacks Legacy, has published its largest ever issue dedicated to the thought of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks zt”l—view the table of contents, volume introductions, sample chapters, and essay abstracts. Join is online for a special “issue launch” on Sunday, November ...

19/10/2025

𝗢𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲 𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥. 𝗦𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀’ 𝗙𝗶𝗳𝘁𝗵 𝗬𝗮𝗵𝗿𝘇𝗲𝗶𝘁 - 𝘙𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴. Join TRADITION, the Rabbinical Council of America, and The Rabbi Sacks Legacy for an online launch of our special issue on his thoughts as part of a series of events to be taking place worldwide in advance of Rabbi Sacks’ upcoming 5th yahrzeit. Sunday, November 2 at 12:00pm (Eastern) = 5:00pm (London) = 7:00pm (Jerusalem). The program will feature introductory remarks by Gila Sacks, and our editors in conversation with contributing authors Rabbi Dr. Dov Lerner, Dr. Malka.Simkovich, and Rabbi Dr. Raphael Zarum.

17/10/2025

Thanks to Mosaic Magazine for highlighting Sarah Rindner Blum's review of Ilana Kurshan's "Children of the Book" and their recent Tradition Podcast episode.

Children of the Book .

16/10/2025

𝗨𝗻𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘁: 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗲 - There is a fairly self-understood principle in halakha that it is forbidden to erase the Holy Name of God. What then are the implications for recordings found on our phones and laptops? With this new season on “Unpacking the Iggerot” (linked in comments) Moshe Kurtz shows us how R. Moshe Feinstein addressed questions that emerged with new technologies.