Articles

Parashat Vayigash: Framing and Reframing The same reality can be seen as tragedy or providence, depending on how we frame it. Joseph’s reconciliation with his brothers reveals how reframing doesn’t just provide comfort – it’s a tool that shapes our experience and choices By Lior Tal Sadeh

Simon Frug: The Missing Link between Judah Leib Gordon and Bialik He was a revered genius who wrote in Russian, Yiddish, and Hebrew, and had a profound influence on Bialik – yet his name has almost disappeared. Who was that great forgotten poet? An interview with Dr. Velvl Chernin By Noa Sorek

Parashat Miketz: A Life for a Life When is it permissible to sacrifice one life to save many? A tragic shipwreck, an ancient Tosefta, and Joseph’s test of his brothers all converge on one answer By Lior Tal Sadeh

A Jewish Journey Through Hungary While Jewish communities were expelled from Spain and England centuries ago, Hungary’s Jewish presence endured almost without interruption. Historian Dr. Katherine Aron-Beller reveals the rich tapestry of bourgeois integration, Hasidic mysticism, and tragic resilience that makes Hungary essential for understanding European Jewish history By Gilad Halpern

Parashat Vayeshev: On Compromise Judah proposed a compromise: don’t kill Joseph, sell him into slavery instead. His brothers agreed. Some compromises aren’t virtuous – they’re morally catastrophic. When does compromise become sin? By Lior Tal Sadeh

What Does Moses Have to Do with the Hasmoneans? Professor Avigdor Shinan explains why you can’t learn almost anything about the Hasmonean period from the Sages, but you can from Moses By Avigdor Shinan

Between Two Worlds Hayim Nahman Bialik stood on the threshold of traditional Jewish learning, caught between devotion and doubt. His poetry reveals a complex relationship with Torah study that went beyond simple nostalgia – and offers a model for navigating tradition and modernity that still resonates today By Alex Stein

The Hit Man Uzi Hitman, the cheerful children’s TV host, wrote and composed hundreds of songs that became so embedded in Israeli culture it feels like they’ve always existed. This is the story of a songwriter who refused to pick a genre and ended up defining a country’s sound By BAC Staff

Parashat Vayishlach: Fear Meets Embrace We often carry the memory of harm we’ve caused far longer than those we’ve hurt. Jacob’s reunion with Esau – and a revealing slip of the tongue – illuminates the psychological cost of unresolved guilt and the redemptive power of facing those we’ve wronged By Lior Tal Sadeh

The Lost Literary World of Judeo-Arabic For centuries, Arabic was the language of Jewish intellectual life, scholarship, and daily conversation. Yet this rich tradition – spanning groundbreaking Torah translations, philosophical treatises, and intimate letters – remains largely unknown. Professor Miriam Goldstein explores why recovering Judeo-Arabic literature is essential to understanding Jewish history By Alex Stein

Five Things You Didn’t Know About Brit Milah Circumcision is identified more than anything with Judaism – but its origin is much more distant. Dr. Yael Escojido shares five surprising facts about the ancient custom that crosses cultures and religions By Noa Sorek

Parashat Vayetze: Between Expectation and Reality Jacob waited seven years for Rachel and they felt like mere days. But when she needed him most, he failed her. How do we make the reality of love as sweet as its anticipation? By Lior Tal Sadeh

Parashat Toldot: When Flawed Ancestors Offer Hope We grew up hearing about Jacob the righteous and Esau the wicked. But the Torah itself tells a different story – one where our ancestors are deeply flawed people. A Los Angeles rabbi working with former addicts and criminals shows why that matters By Lior Tal Sadeh

The Rabbinic Imagination When the rabbis wrote about Alexander the Great, King Herod, and the fall of Jerusalem, they weren’t trying to record history – they were creating literature. Prof. Amram Tropper reveals how ancient sages transformed historical events into sophisticated narratives that carried their own messages By Alex Stein

The God of Descartes and Newton Religion, science, and the myth of the struggle between them – a conversation with Prof. Yemima Ben-Menahem By Noa Sorek