State of the Nation
Understanding the Political Atmosphere in Israel Before and After October 7
Aviva Kessock
BY AVIVA KESSOCK The decisions made in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, affect every Israeli’s immediate and lasting future. In Israel, citizens vote for a party, and each party receives seats…
The Protection of Nationhood
Meira Lutch
BY MEIRA LUTCH Operation Lone Star—one of the most contentious immigration-control mechanisms in modern American history—was launched by Texas Governor Greg Abbott in March 2021. The operation was designed to…
Arts & Culture
Dance in the Jewish Tradition: From the Torah to the Twenty-First Century
Gabriella Friedman
BY GABRIELLA FRIEDMAN The invigorating passion and animation that an ensemble of dancers embodies onstage is an awe-inspiring experience that most residents of the New York area, myself included, have…
Tanakh
Korahite Judicial Philosophy
Jacob Shayefar
BY JACOB SHAYEFAR Korah makes an interesting point. As the Midrash relates, Korah began his assault on the authority of Moses with a halakhic argument. He asserts that in any…
Symposium
Remaining an Or L’Goyim in a Post-October 7 World
Gila Grauer
BY GILA GRAUER October 7 was a day that will never be forgotten, not by Israelis nor by Jews all over the world, who all united to mourn the tragic…
Shining Our Light Unto the Nations Through Jewish Teachings
Adin Linden
BY ADIN LINDEN Jewish history is rife with enemies, from the Egyptians to the descendants of Amalek, a lineage that is seen as the greatest enemy of the Jews and…
Between Separating Ourselves and Seeing Ourselves in Others
Yael Burgess Eisenberg
BY YAEL BURGESS EISENBERG When a gentile came before Hillel and said he would convert to Judaism if Hillel could teach him the entire Torah while standing on one foot,…
Our God-Given Light: Its Meaning and Basis in Jewish Tradition
Raanan Vanderwalde
BY RAANAN VANDERWALDE There is a Jewish belief that it is our role to shine a light unto the nations. Many of us are familiar with this idea and shape…
The Dangerous Narrative of the Jewish “Debt to Society”
Ocean Timmins
BY OCEAN TIMMINS I believe the world has a deep antipathy towards the Jewish people, implicitly baked in over thousands of years of hatred taking various forms. There is a real…
The Purpose Embedded in Every Nation
Lir Yissar
BY LIR YISSAR The struggle to understand how God could choose just one nation, and give such purpose and responsibility to one nation, has been a persistent question for Jews…
Poetry
Vast as the Stars and Sand
Elishama Schwartz
BY ELISHAMA SCHWARTZ Some of us lounge with verdant backyards and homey porchesOthers are squeezed by neighboring skyscrapers and smokeButEither waysometime in winter,I’ll be comforted by the beam of the…
The Sacrifice
Naomi Ruttenberg
BY NAOMI RUTTENBERG Deep within evil lies a thought worn of timeIt eagerly accepts a grant of evilThe sacrifice?You know itA scapegoat lit on fire subject to a rhymePoetry cursed…
The Ascent of the Fallen
Sarah Baron
BY SARAH BARON We are lost and foundFree yet also constrainedMany fall by the dayLost ones float up to the skyMore and moreInnocent livesLone soldiersOff the plane they emerge as…
Forever
Raphael Unger
BY RAPHAEL UNGER I was quietI would not speak,I thought that no one would remember me,Me and my little idiosyncrasies. If you’re quiet,then who will care to listen—To look and…
Creative Writing
Right Before His Eyes
Ari Unger
BY ARI UNGER Jacob wore a tightly buttoned plaid shirt. He had a thin, carefully trimmed mustache, and nicely pressed slacks. He sat on the couch, which was carefully covered…
Book Club
“If Only My People…” Zionism in My Life
Gideon Rosen
BY GIDEON ROSEN “And I will give you as a light for the nations so My salvation will reach the edge of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6) In his book, “If…