David Stav

Certainly, haredi enlistment can be promoted, and people can be convinced of its value, but coercion is doomed to fail from the outset.

Our nation of Israel openly seems to declare that we have been split between two critical aspects of our identity – our Judaism and our “Israelism.”

With each election cycle, identity politics becomes more and more entrenched, positioning us against each other in deeply painful ways.

In general, a fast in Judaism is not intended as a day of mourning, but, rather, as a day of teshuva (repentance).

The concept of shmita is introduced in the Torah, where we are told to let the land lie fallow every seventh year.

Nearly 75 years after Israel's miraculous independence was declared, we are forced to admit that much remains to be achieved in the quest of achieving a united Jewish society.

Should we isolate our attention to the physical despair as slaves in Egypt or are we talking about a more spiritual representation when we were in the hands of idol worshipers?

This year on Tisha Be’av, shattered faith in our leaders and distrust within society have risen to shocking levels.

As noted, much is spoken about unity as an ideal that Israeli society must strive for. That is certainly true, but we make a mistake when we confuse unity for uniformity.

A contemporary look at one of Passover’s central themes.