Halacha

IDF's ‘Operation Roaring Matzah’: Keeping Passover, ensuring security for army and country

“If we need to do Seder in the tank, we will be happy to do so,” E asserts. “We will drink grape juice and sing all the songs together – “Mah Nishtana?” and “V’hee She’amda.”

Soldiers are ready for anything - including Passover.
A general view of Jerusalem's Old City shows the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in the foreground and the Dome of the Rock, located on the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, in the background June 24, 2019

Western Wall debate must not overshadow prayer, unity during times of war - opinion

Smartphone shows a missile alert, in Mishmar David, Feb. 28.

Shabbat under fire: Navigating Jewish law, missile alerts in Israel during war - opinion

 Timna Park tabernacle.

Parashat Teruma: Religion in partial measures


Halachic State vs Caliphate: How do Jewish extremists differ from Islamist extremists? - opinion

Each fundamentalist movement presents to its followers a vision of a state of religious law between the river Jordan and the sea - a Halachic State or an Islamic Caliphate.

A scene from the documentary series The Jewish Underground,

Rabbanit Chana Henkin: Advancing women as Jewish law authorities

From her home in Jerusalem and the Nishmat campus south of Katamon, Rabbanit Chana Henkin has helped advance the role of women in halachic leadership and created the role of yoetzet halacha.

 Rabbanit Chana Henkin

Hannibal Directive in Jewish law

The Hannibal Directive is just one more reminder of the dangerous consequences of well-intentioned but ultimately misguided prisoner exchange policy.

 HOW FAR should the government go to ‘bring home its boys’?

It's time to acknowledge women's Torah knowledge - opinion

The High Court of Justice ruling is significant in that it is a critical recognition of women’s education, knowledge, and integration into the sphere of Torah and Halacha.

 THE WRITER converses with students in the Midreshet Lindenbaum Beit Midrash in Jerusalem.

Israeli public ready for relaxation of conversion laws - poll

The much-politicized issue of Jewish conversions has seen Israel’s left and right-wing debate the merits of halachic conversion and what should be considered a legitimate conversion for decades.

 President of the Supreme Court of Israel Esther Hayut and all fifteen justices assemble to hear petitions against the reasonableness standard law in the High Court in Jerusalem, on Tuesday, September 12, 2023.

Majority of Israelis feel deeper connection to Diaspora Jewry since October 7 - poll

The sense of solidarity has strengthened within the Haredi sector – 78%, the religious sector – 84%, former Soviet Union immigrants sector - 75%, and immigrants from other countries - 85%.

Olim attend an event marking 25 years of the great aliyah from the former Soviet Union,  in Jerusalem in 2015. Do we no longer have the resolve to save Jews?

What is the real meaning of unity in Israel these days? - opinion

You can’t open a newspaper, listen to the news, or scroll through social media without reading about the way the people of Israel have come together to fight for survival.

 BEIT MIDRASH LE’MAASEH: Men and women from across the political spectrum and the religious scale sit around one table.

Over 15 IDF soldiers pronounced dead in Gaza without bodies

Pronouncing a person’s death is one of the most sensitive, religiously complex issues faced by the Military Rabbinate.

 An IDF soldier salutes the grave of a fallen soldier at the Har Herzl military cemetery ahead of Israel's Remembrance Day, April 23, 2023.

Should Israeli hospitals treat Hamas terrorists? Jewish law explains

It ultimately remains difficult to justify prioritizing national resources for an enemy like Hamas when an Israeli citizen needs it at that moment.

 HAMAS MONSTER Yahya Sinwar, instrumental in the Oct. 7 attacks, was the recipient of lifesaving brain surgery at Israel's Shamir Medical Center in 2004.

Israel-Hamas war: The moral maze of hostage deals

NATIONAL AFFAIRS: Jewish teachings, Benny Gantz made clear, informed his decision to support the Israel-Hamas deal to save hostages held in Gaza.

 Thousands gather as families of hostages vow to not return home until their loved ones are freed.