2 Behar (Leviticus 25, 1 – 26, 2) – “What has the matter of the Sabbatical year to do with mount Sinai?”

The Torah reading of Behar opens with a seemingly innocent statement in relation to the subject of the Sabbatical year but which demands explanation - “And the Lord spoke unto…

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Who is a “Kosher” Jew? Maimonides’ “13 Principles of Faith” as a Binding Orthodox and Theological Dogma

I want to respond to the article by Rabbi Professor Joshua Berman “Orthodox Rabbinic Exception to the Thirteen Principles of Faith: The Dynamics of Boundary Permeability”. My response here, which…

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Maimonides’ Philosophic Thought – Comments on the English version of Micah Goodman’s book on Maimonides

Introduction (Maimonides' Philosophic Thought) - Maimonides, who lived in the 12th century CE in the Islamic world (living in Spain, North Africa, Israel and Egypt), is without question the giant…

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Ha’azinu (Deuteronomy 32, 1 – 32, 52) – the interpretation of the Bible in the Jewish tradition

The Torah reading of Ha’azinu contains an extended poem (Deuteronomy 32, 1-43), which is termed by the Bible as a song (Deuteronomy 31, 19), and Moses according to the Biblical…

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Vayeilech (Deuteronomy 31, 1 – 31, 30) – the importance of study in the Bible and Jewish tradition

In the Torah reading of Vayeilech, there is a Biblical commandment that has disappeared in traditional Judaism of assembling (הקהל) all of the Israelites and even strangers among them once…

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