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"Luke Ford reports all of the 'juicy' quotes, and has been doing it for years." (Marc B. Shapiro)
"This guy knows all the gossip, the ins and outs, the lashon hara of the Orthodox world. He’s an [expert] in... all the inner workings of the Orthodox world." (Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff) LATEST POSTS:
- Robert Putnam: The Man Who Counted What America Lost
- W. Bradford Wilcox: The Sociologist Who Tells America to Get Married
- Peter Moskos: The Cop Who Talks to People
- Julius Krein
- Ryan Burge: The Numbers Man in the Empty Church
- Emily Oster: The Economist in the Delivery Room
- The Most Ridiculous Story Ever Told
- Tanner Greer
- Economist Tyler Cowen
- Richard Reeves: A Life in Institutions
- Jake Adelstein: The Reporter Who Became His Story
- Jim Goad (1961-2026)
- Moira Greyland
- Robert Oscar Lopez: The Inconvenient Witness
- Two Ledgers: Decoding the Gurus and the Price of Talk
- The Pervert’s Progress: Costin Vlad Alamariu and the Making of Bronze Age Pervert
- Curtis Yarvin: A Life Against Democracy
- Mark Helprin: Against the Current
- Mark Brandt: The Man Who Asked Who Else Is Prejudiced
- John T. Jost: The Psychologist of Acquiescence
BEST POSTS:
- * The Enlightenment Wasn’t Enlightened (6-23-26)
* Mr. Burge Draws The Line (6-23-26)
* 'Improving on Democracy' (6-17-26)
* People Leak To People Who Are Fun (6-11-26)
* Why Does Australia Produce So Many Great Journalists? (6-11-26)
* Steve Wynn and the Press: Power, Litigation, and the Contest Over Las Vegas (6-3-26)
* Sheldon Adelson and the Journalists (6-3-26)
* The Vigilant Animal: Thinkers Who Reject the Myth of Human Gullibility (6-2-26)
* The Cost of Refusing the Misunderstanding Myth (6-2-26)
* Show Me How It Travels (6-2-26)
* The Norm Explainers (6-2-26)
* Centering Marginalized Voices (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Washington Post put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What would it look like if the Financial Times put its reader first? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for the Los Angeles Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* What It Would Mean for The New York Times to Put the Reader First? (6-1-26)
* Why Wembanyama Lives on the Perimeter (5-31-26)
* The Emotional Palettes Of San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco & Sacramento (5-27-26)
* The Administrative Capital: Sacramento Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* San Diego - The Quiet Republic (5-27-26)
* The Quiet Bar: San Diego Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* SF v LA Legal Culture (5-27-26)
* Why Talent Travels Poorly Between San Francisco and Los Angeles (5-27-26)
* San Francisco and Los Angeles as Rival Models of Urban Access (5-27-26)
* Social Cliques in New York, 2026 (5-25-26)
* Social Cliques in San Francisco, 2026 (5-25-26)
* The Rival Courts of Washington (5-25-26)
* The City of Private Rooms (5-25-26)
Category Archives: Haredi
A Convert Laments
I’m tired of all this Jewish lamenting over the latest conversion bill. I’m a convert to Orthodox Judaism and a well respected one at that! Like Jewish philosopher Jacob Stein, you’d be hard-pressed to find any Orthodox Jew who has … Continue reading
Posted in Conversion, Haredi, Orthodoxy
Tagged american jews, conversion program, jewish identity, Jewish Journal, orthodox conversion, orthodox judaism, panties in a knot, second intifada, statue of jesus
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How The Orthodox Deal With The Non-Orthodox
Orthodox rabbi Marc B. Shapiro blogs: In general, there have been some real changes in how Orthodoxy deals with the non-Orthodox, and Adam Ferziger has recently published a valuable article on the topic. In reading the article, I was surprised … Continue reading
Posted in Haredi, Marc B. Shapiro, Orthodoxy
Tagged conservative synagogues, introductory prayer, jewish learning center, Marc B. Shapiro, orthodox synagogues, temple chai
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When In Doubt, Call Your Opponents Racists
Whenever I hear the charge of “racism” these days, I’m immediately suspicious because I’m so used to the accusation being tossed around without evidence. I’m also tired of Jews using their putative Orthodox status to lobby for non-Orthodox positions. I’m … Continue reading
Posted in Ashkenazim, Haredi, R. Brad Hirschfield, Sephardim
Tagged Conservative Judaism, jewish theological seminary, lengthy bio, liberal jews, orthodox judaism, orthodox rabbi, rabbinic ordination
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Rabbi Avi Weiss’s Bridge Too Far On Female Orthodox Rabbis
Rabbi Avi Weiss miscalculated. He thought he could get support on this issue without talking to anyone. His approach was the opposite of Chana Henkin‘s. She created a limited semicha (rabbinic ordination) for women to rule on Jewish law. She … Continue reading
Posted in Chana Henkin, Haredi, Orthodoxy, R. Avi Weiss, R. Yosef Kanefsky, YCT
Tagged chief rabbi, family purity, marc angel, orthodox rabbis, purity laws, rabba, rabbi avi weiss, rabbi weiss, s bridge, semicha
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Chosen For A Mission
I talked to this bloke in Israel today. He was raised secular and then became chareidi (ultra-Orthodox Jew) for about 25 years (from approximately 1973 to 1998) and then became a nowhere man, neither secular nor religious. His story reminds … Continue reading
Posted in Haredi, Orthodoxy
Tagged driven leaf, eastern religions, kitzur shulchan aruch, milton steinberg, orthodox jew, orthodox judaism
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Has The RCA Developed Backbone Over Conversions?
Currently the RCA accepts the determination of Israel’s Chief Sephardic Rabbi Shlomo Amar about which conversions he will accept. I don’t expect the RCA will change its approach as long as Rabbi Basil Herring runs the show. He’s too weak. … Continue reading
Posted in Conversion, Haredi, R. Basil Herring, R. Shlomo Amar, RCA
Tagged basil herring, rabbi shlomo amar, rocking the boat, sephardic, soloveitchik
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Failed Messiah Profiled
Samuel G. Freedman writes in the New York Times: Leaders of the Chabad movement declined to speak on the record about Mr. Rosenberg, but in general, they say he has exaggerated the degree of messianism in the movement and that … Continue reading
Posted in Blogging, FailedMessiah, Haredi
Tagged american jewry, Brandeis University, failed messiah, Jewish Journalism, orthodox circles, samuel g freedman
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A Jewish Divorce Heads To Goyisha Court
A.B. emails: Dear Luke: The Agudath Yisrael continues to employ Moses Kolodny part-time in its archives despite the fact that this man is assisting his daughter to seriously violate halocho by taking her estranged husband to court. he has been … Continue reading
Posted in Agudath Israel, Divorce, Haredi, Jews
Tagged false charges, jewish divorce, kolodny, mesirah, Monsey, order of protection
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