Compassion for the Sinner – A Personal Story
Typically I post when I feel I have an answer. On a high level, I’ve written about things why good things happen to bad people and how there can be seeming evil in the...
Author: tostien
Reading Torah in Context & Problematic Verses
Introduction Every now and then, an email or meme mocks words from the Torah, preying on the unlearned. Sometimes, the writer shows themselves to be extremely unlearned as in the case of the alleged...
Lancaster, PA Kosher Vacation (Hershey, Dutch Wonderland, etc.)
Introduction Lancaster, Pennsylvania as well as Harrisburg make for great vacation for younger children. Our family went when our oldest was about six years old, but there’s plenty to do for up to about...
Unbroken Chain Slides – Passover Seder & Jewish Claim to Truth
Jewish Timeline I wrote an earlier article showing the unbroken chain from the Exodus in Egypt (circa. 3300 years ago). The article takes us through the end of the biblical era (circa. 2500 years...
Les Miserables, Lord of the Rings … and Torah?
Les Miserables Last year, the Maccabeats, best known for the most popular mainstream Chanukah song since Adam Sandler, released their Passover music to Les Miserables: It fits all too well, but this shouldn’t be...
Chief Rabbi Yaakov Yosef of New York – Stepping Stone to Torah Democracy
I picked up my latest book in a very different manner than normal. Rabbi Yonah Landau walked up to me in shul, as the gabbi [leader guy] and asked if he could make an...
Approach of Torah Jews to the Modern State of Israel & Army Service
Synopsis I write this article after a gathering of 300,000 – 600,000 Jews in one place to protest recent army service. This is not to be minimized, though very non-understood. Why are so many...
Six Days of Creation – A Modern Reconciliation with Science
This is the last in a thread of posts which began with a review of R’Meiselman’s book on Torah and Science, followed by a discussion of the dispute between R’Meiselman and Nosson Slifkin, and...
Six Days of Creation – Broad Philosophical Answer
This is a continuation in the series on Rav Meiselman’s book on Torah and Science and the Controversy between R’Meiselman and Nosson Slifkin. It also might be helpful to see what a modern physicist...
Slifkin v. Meiselman – Making Sense of the Controversy
This is part 2 in a series on Rav Meiselman’s latest book. For the full book review, see part 1. Road-Map to These Articles In my review of Rav Meiselman’s book, the purpose was...