Category Archives: Hirhurim

Is It Permitted To Evaluate Your Teacher Honestly?

DF posts: "Very often "halacha" is just common sense. [Except in matters of ritual, where it is frequently the opposite.] In this case, Dr. Meir quotes the Chafetz Chayim to say you can use surveys if it’s constructive, and that … Continue reading

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The Responsa Of Louis Ginzberg

Rabbi Gil Student writes: R. Mintz discusses a number of responsa of this leader of the Conservative movement in the early twentieth century and acknowledged talmudic expert. R. Mintz advances the theory that Prof. Ginzberg was trying to balance the … Continue reading

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Equality In Shul

I think people who feel secure with themselves find most shuls to have a large amount of social equality, about as much as is desirable. For those with a chip on their shoulders, Jewish life revolves around the rich, blah, … Continue reading

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Papal Infallibility And Its Parallels In Orthodox Judaism

Rabbi Gil Student writes: There is a review in the new issue of First Things of a book by a Protestant scholar on papal infallibility (link – subscription required). To my surprise, mainly due to my ignorance of Catholic history, … Continue reading

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Using Torah For Secular Songs

Orthodox rabbi Gil Student blogs: The Forward has an article about a recent trend of mainstream Israeli singers using passages from the Bible and other religious texts in songs (link). While it is not clear to me how much of … Continue reading

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