by R. Gil Student Few things animate the intellectual discussions of the yeshivah world more than a debate on the best way to learn Gemara. Each yeshivah, and sometimes each shiur within a yeshivah, has its own unique method to understanding the text and commentaries, and its own approach to balancing the competing needs of breadth and depth, speed and ...

• Trump hears from bullied student, issues guidelines on school prayer, federal funds for religious entities https://www.jns.org/trump-hears-from-bullied-student-issues-guidelines-on-school-prayer-federal-funds-for-religious-entities/ • Aleph expands alternative sentencing program to African American community https://jewishchronicle.timesofisrael.com/aleph-expands-alternative-sentencing-program-to-african-american-community/ • R. Dr. David Shabtai – IS IT PREFERABLE FOR A SHABBAT OBSERVANT PHYSICIAN TO TRADE SHABBAT CLINICAL DUTIES WITH A NON-OBSERVANT COLLEAGUE? – Parshah Perspectives on Modern Medicine: Shemot – Medical ...

Last year, we hosted a series of the Biblical Maimonides on the book of Exodus, by R. Alec Goldstein. Only the first post remains online. The series has been edited, updated and published in book format: link Rabbi Moses son of Maimon, known in Hebrew as Rambam and English as Maimonides (1135-1204), is one of the great luminaries of Judaism whose contributions ...

by R. Gil Student Review of: The Oral Law: The Rabbinic Contribution to Torah sheBe’al Peh Publisher: Maggid Press By Rabbi Chaim H. Schimmel Is there any value in trying to understand the origins and development of the Oral Torah? The Five Books of Moshe were dictated by G-d to Moshe and the remainder of the Bible was written by various ...

• Scholar Says Religious Expression Faces ‘Open Hostility’ on Some Campuses https://thetablet.org/scholar-religious-expression-hostility-on-campuses/ • Ancient Eliyahu Hanavi Synagogue in Egypt Rededicated http://thejewishvoice.com/2020/01/16/ancient-eliyahu-hanavi-synagogue-in-egypt-rededicated/

• Landmark case sees woman obtain get after launching private prosecution against husband for coercive control https://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/landmark-case-sees-woman-obtain-get-after-launching-private-prosecution-against-husband-for-coercive-1.495362 • Fascinating story – The granddaughter of a Cambodian princess had a bat mitzvah – Jewish Telegraphic Agency https://www.jta.org/2020/01/14/culture/the-granddaughter-of-a-cambodian-princess-celebrated-her-bat-mitzvah • Lots of data in different articles – Millennials search for meaning and authenticity when it comes to Judaism https://www.jns.org/millennials-search-for-meaning-and-authenticity-when-it-comes-to-judaism/ • Most millennials, Gen ...

If you are an American Orthodox Jew, please take this brief online survey on the political views of American Orthodox Jews: https://bit.ly/ortho-political-2020b. This survey is completely anonymous and is open to all persons age 18 or older. This survey is sponsored by and conducted by Nishma Research, an independent research firm that is run by Orthodox members of our community. Nishma is doing this ...

• Gun applications in New York Jewish community spike to nearly 1,000% after Hanukkah attack https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/gun-applications-in-new-york-jewish-community-spike-to-nearly-1-000-after-hanukkah-attack • Kashrus Officials Meet for Annual Conference https://collive.com/kashrus-officials-meet-for-annual-conference/ • Why Orthodox Jews Have Been Hesitant to Adopt Outside Their Community, and Why They Shouldn’t Be https://mosaicmagazine.com/observation/politics-current-affairs/2020/01/why-orthodox-jews-have-been-hesitant-to-adopt-outside-their-community-and-why-they-shouldnt-be/ • Agudath Israel files brief in support of Michigan case on state aid to religious schools https://www.jns.org/agudath-israel-files-brief-in-support-of-michigan-case-on-state-aid-to-religious-schools/

• Avital C-G – When the tuition bills add up, some Orthodox consider aliyah https://forward.com/life/438095/when-the-tuition-bills-add-up-some-orthodox-consider-aliyah/ • Civil Court Can’t Order Wife to Accept an Orthodox Jewish Husband’s “Get” (Divorce Document) https://reason.com/2020/01/04/civil-court-cant-order-wife-to-accept-an-orthodox-jewish-husbands-get-divorce-document/ • Lawsuit against Orthodox synagogues, rabbis dismissed https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/local_news/lawsuit-against-orthodox-synagogues-rabbis-dismissed/article_091368be-33ac-11ea-988c-bf1c6e209a42.html • YU Celebrates Torah Learning With Many Siyums Near and Far https://blogs.yu.edu/news/yu-celebrates-learning-with-many-siyums-near-and-far/

by R. Gil Student I. The Subway Vigilante I’ve been thinking lately about Bernhard Goetz, who 35 years ago famously shot four teenagers trying to mug him (link). Goetz, called the “Subway Vigilante” by the media at the time, raised a national debate regarding taking the law into your own hands, and probably helped create a climate that successfully demanded ...