If a tree falls in the forest with no one to hear it, how can we prove it made a sound—and, years later, that it even fell at all? If six million people are murdered, with few images to bear…
The Evolution of the Rophe: How the Power of Healing Transfers from God to Man in Jewish Tradition
As the followers of the world’s first monotheistic religion, the Israelites placed resolute emphasis on God’s omnipotence, especially within the domain of healing. The descendants of ancient Israel continued to observe Hebrew law and tradition, but refined their interpretations of…
Purim 5784: Our place in Jewish history
Upon a surface-level study of Megillat Esther, one quickly realizes that the Scroll of Esther — read twice a year on the evening and morning of the Purim holiday — is a book unlike any other in our literary canon.…
Upon Three Things…
There is a classic Jewish teaching that has become mainstream to such an extent that, I believe, it rarely gets the full contemplation it deserves. Yet, in our current day and age, when many of society’s building blocks are being…
My Six-Pointed Friend
The following poem and subsequent commentary were submitted by Hailey Zill, a third-year student majoring in World Arts and Cultures and Sociology. Hailey is passionate about all things art, Jewish, and travel but most importantly, she loves cats; she is…
Choosing to Intervene: Jewish Perspectives on End-of-Life Decisions
The following is an opinion piece submitted to Ha’Am by Rachel Fox who is a third-year Neuroscience student at UCLA. ——————— Our tradition teaches that all are made in the image of G-d, but provides little explicit guidance when it…
“Ben Gurion Looks at the Bible” Holds Wisdom for the Current Chapter of the Jewish Story
Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, was a socialist who rejected the Marxist belief that all important struggles are economic. Rather than believing that religion, nationalism, and moral ideals obscure economic struggles, he saw intellectual and moral struggle as important…
On Campus, Jewish Students Now Confront the Quintessential “Covenant of Fate”
When he delivered his essay Kol Dodi Dofek to an audience of American Jews on the eighth anniversary of Yom Ha’atzmaut in 1956, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik formulated his vision of post-1948 religious Zionism by referencing the terrors of Treblinka,…
Shavuot Customs and Modern-Day Lessons We Can Take From The Book of Ruth
Background on Shavuot: The Spring Harvest Festival The end of the Spring Quarter coincides with one of the most significant holidays in Jewish tradition: Shavuot. Shavuot celebrates the spring harvest festival and marks the acceptance of the Torah–the Jewish Book…
“Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother”: A Surprising Source for Modern-Day Motivation
Perform a quick search of “motivational quotes” on Google and you will be greeted with a large sample of internet wisdom. Like these: “Dreams don’t work unless you do.” “Nothing is impossible – the word itself says, ‘I’m possible.” With…