Tradition Journal

07/07/2025

With the upcoming arrival of our Summer issue we are pleased to make TRADITION 57:1 (Winter 2025) fully open access. Read the whole issue online now.

With the upcoming arrival of our Summer issue we are pleased to make TRADITION 57:1 (Winter 2025) fully open access. Read the whole issue online now

03/07/2025

Today we conclude TRADITION’s yearly tradition of offering up endorsements for summer reading from our editorial board and reveal the winner of our contest to predict our picks for a free subscription to our journal. See link in comments....

01/07/2025

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡’𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 – 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗜𝗜
Today we present our second installment in TRADITION’s yearly tradition of offering up endorsements for summer reading from our editorial board (linked in comments).

29/06/2025

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡’𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 - TRADITION continues its yearly tradition of turning to our esteemed editorial board for endorsements for summer reading. Some of the picks could have easily been predicted, others are quite surprising, all are worthy of your attention. Read the first of three installments today on TraditionOnline (linked in the first comment).

26/06/2025

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: 𝗢𝗳 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 - An old newspaper discovered in a piano bench prompts Chaim Strauchler to open a time capsule of Orthodox American Jewish life. Read his final installment of TRADITION Questions (linked in comments).

24/06/2025

𝗪𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 - Enter our contest to correctly predict our editors' picks for recommended summer reading. Details at the link in comments (deadline by candlelighting this Shabbat).

For the sixth year running, TRADITION will continue its tradition of turning to our esteemed editorial board for endorsements for summer reading. Some may be amused to think of a seaside read with the 29 tomes our team chose – but that’s what you get from TRADITION’s thought leaders—sometime...

24/06/2025

If you were to shadow an Israeli Religious Zionist community Rabbi, what would you learn about the unique opportunities and challenges of being a religious and spiritual leader in Israel? In “Siha al ha-Sheila” (“Discussing the Question,” Maggid Books), R. Ori Lifsh*ts provides readers with a refreshingly honest depiction of his interactions with community members, along with a detailed description of how he answered the various halakhic questions that arose. Johnny Solomon reviews...

If you were to shadow an Israeli Religious Zionist community Rabbi, what would you learn about the unique opportunities and challenges of being a religious and spiritual leader in Israel? In “Siha al ha-Sheila” (“Discussing the Question”), Rabbi Ori Lifsh*ts provides readers with a refreshin...

22/06/2025

Yitzchak Blau’s recent review of Shai Held’s “Judaism Is About Love” (Spring 2025) gives Nathaniel Helfgot an opportunity to consider God’s attributes of jealousy and vengeance, how that can be squared with His essence as a God of mercy and compassion, and the challenge this presents us, tasked with imitating and following in His ways.

Yitzchak Blau’s recent review of Shai Held’s “Judaism Is About Love” (Spring 2025) gives Nathaniel Helfgot an opportunity to consider God’s attributes of jealousy and vengeance, how that can be squared with His essence as a God of mercy and compassion, and the challenge this presents us, t...

20/06/2025

𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝘃𝗼𝗱𝗮 𝗭𝗮𝗿𝗮 – As the Daf Yomi begins the study of Massekhet Avoda Zara, read Prof. David Berger's review essay, "Perspectives on Avoda Zara" (TRADITION, Spring 2019), which examined Goshen-Gottstein's "Same God, Other God: Judaism, Hinduism, and the Problem of Idolatry" – linked in the first comment below.

19/06/2025

𝗨𝗻𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘁: 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝗳 𝘁𝗼 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗔𝗹𝗹 - Can one make a siyyum on a single page from the Talmud? In our final installment of this season’s “Unpacking the Iggerot,” Moshe Kurtz analyzes R. Moshe Feinstein’s remarkably flexible approach to what can qualify for such a celebration and the values that informed his noteworthy responsum.

Can one make a siyyum on a single page from the Talmud? In our final installment of this season’s “Unpacking the Iggerot,” Moshe Kurtz analyzes R. Moshe Feinstein’s remarkably flexible approach to what can qualify for such a celebration and the values that informed his noteworthy responsum.

18/06/2025

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 - For the sixth year running, TRADITION will continue its tradition of turning to our esteemed editorial board for endorsements for summer reading. Some may be amused to think of a seaside read with the 29 tomes our team chose – but that’s what you get from TRADITION’s thought leaders—sometimes surprising suggestions, but always reading worthy of your attention. 𝘚𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳.

18/06/2025

𝗣𝗢𝗗𝗖𝗔𝗦𝗧: 𝗥𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗮𝗺 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶𝘃𝗮 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆
The Tradition Podcast brings together Marc Herman and Ahron Adler to discuss aspects of their common work on Maimonides. Among other topics, they consider differences in approach to Maimonidean research carried out by academicians as opposed to a rabbinic educator who benefits from certain academic methods, and how Adler synthesized traditional “yeshiva style” learning with academic tools in his new book, reviewed by Herman recently in TRADITION.

The Tradition Podcast brings together Marc Herman and Ahron Adler to discuss aspects of their common work on Maimonides. Among other topics, they consider differences in approach to Maimonidean research carried out by academicians as opposed to a rabbinic educator who benefits from certain academic....