The Coming Confrontation between Israel and Iran
Left unchecked, Iran will be able to place nuclear missiles in Syria.
October 9, 2017
The Talmudic Case of the “Wayward and Rebellious Son”
A passage that encapsulates the ethos of rabbinic Judaism.
A brief passage in the book of Deuteronomy presents the law of the “wayward and rebellious son,” whose parents may bring him before the elders of the city and testify to his bad behavior; after which the elders can sentence him to death by stoning. In the Talmud’s view, this punishment is justified because it prevents this child from growing into an adult who will commit truly heinous crimes; if executed now, “he will die innocent rather than die guilty.” The talmudic sages then go on to impose restrictions on who qualifies for this punishment: there is only a three-month age range during which the child is liable; he must demonstrate that he is, in the Torah’s words, “a glutton and a drunkard” by eating raw (or very rare) meat and drinking Italian wine; he must buy these foods with money stolen from his parents. But, writes Adam Kirsch, the rabbis don’t stop there:
October 9, 2017
While Anti-Semitism Flourishes under His Watch, Jeremy Corbyn Refuses to Acknowledge Its Existence
“Those who say they are against Zionism but not against Jews are speaking in riddles.”
The Crisis in Jewish Education, Praying with Laura Bush, and Reading Ezekiel with George W.
An Orthodox Jew’s life in the public arena.
The Talmudic Case of the “Wayward and Rebellious Son”
A passage that encapsulates the ethos of rabbinic Judaism.
Writing Fiction about Religion in a Post-Religious Age
Literature from the secular mudflats.