I am regularly accused of being an apologist for the Orthodox community by those who have left observance and are angry, while simultaneously accused of being too negative by community insiders who don’t want to discuss the problems. I hope my analysis will not disappoint either group. I’ve always tried to approach issues with nuance, […]

Two Orthodox Jewish high school students, Zev Goldstein and Comy Kamish, from Skokie Yeshiva in Chicago were confused when they saw twenty dollar bills flying through the air last week in front of their school. At first they thought it belonged to a man who was running around scooping them up. They tried to return […]

Police are actively searching for a person who was seen dousing gasoline on the Yeshivah of Flatbush Joel Braverman High School building last night. The gas fueled a fire set by the arsonist, who was seen pouring gas on a fenced-off area. The suspect lit the fire before fleeing the school campus. While the fire, […]

Dear Jew in the City- Is secular education permitted according to Jewish law? Do parents have any responsibility according to Judaism to give their children the knowledge to be able to make a living and get around in the world? Thank you, Rebecca Dear Rebecca- Thanks for your question. I think that I – and […]

My eldest left for the Holy Land this week. She didn’t just go to learn for the year in seminary. She plans to make a life in the land of her forefathers. We do too, but she’ll get there first and be the most compelling reason we’ve ever had to get there sooner than later. […]

Over the last few weeks, I’ve answered question about the difference between Chasidim and Orthodox Jews, as well as on the women of Shtisel versus the women of Unorthodox. Last week’s questioner asked even more about Hasidic Jews and those on Shtisel [though while the answers are about Hasidic Jews, the characters of Shtisel are […]