Joshua Mitchell has made a strong case that religion has returned to public life. In American Awakening: Identity Politics and Other Afflictions of Our Time, he argues that growing numbers of Americans are harried and oppressed by unaddressed guilt and shame. The recession of Christianity as . . . . Continue Reading »
I consult the Talmud and not Anselm when thinking about how to live, and my Christian friends do the reverse. First Things has always hosted and will continue to host these parallel inquiries. Continue Reading »
If muscles and speed is how your community says you ought to flourish, the frail among us will be absorbed into a spectating mass useful only as an audience for a mighty few. Continue Reading »
The two days of discussions began with a frank acknowledgment that religion has all too often been a source of, or a pretext for, conflict in today’s increasingly interdependent world. Continue Reading »
Being a member of a religious minority forces one to both navigate the majority culture’s expectations and consider the boundaries of a unique identity. Continue Reading »
The future of Yeshiva University depends on more than court case outcomes. Continue Reading »
When I was twenty-four, I spent several weeks sleeping on the floor of the Brussels Salvation Army, waiting to start a French course. I was on my way to mission work in Burundi. I shared a room with a half dozen other men from various backgrounds. One, named Gershom, was a Romanian Jew, who had . . . . Continue Reading »
The New York Times reports an alarmingly high fail rate for children in Hasidic schools, and though the Times is biased, the truth of the claim desperately demands discussion. Continue Reading »
The upcoming Jewish High Holidays offer insight into the rapid, derisory media communication forms of today. Continue Reading »
What makes a text sacred? There are many answers to this question, but I learned mine from the Jewish tradition in which I was raised. Continue Reading »
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