Our mind has evolved to grasp the world as having absolute rules and definitive purposes. In our day-to-day life – things must have well-defined locations, events must occur at well-understood times, movements have clear directions. The reasons for this tendency are easy to explain. For millions of years, our survival has been depending on a […]

(Original version in Hebrew: http://hofesh.org.il/articles/halacha/talmud_logic/talmud-logic.html, using http://www.daatemet.org.il for many resources) “New generations are inferior to older ones” – this is a common idea in Judaism, somewhat reversing the known facts of human and cultural development. According to this idea, the ancient sages are said to be “closer to God” in spiritual power, so they surely […]

This week Israel lost one of its leading singers and actors – the late Arik Einstein. Apart from being extremely talented, Mr. Einstein – especially in his recent years – was almost the embodiment of “religious morality”: He was known for his modesty, his avoidance of big money, his pleasant attitude toward everyone else, and […]

This morning I watched the Israeli Channel 2 morning program. The interview that caught my attention hosted two known figures, Dov Halbertal and Emily Amrusi, allegedly representing “left” and “right”, eagerly discussing “from both sides of the fence” the future of the Jewish nation and the State of Israel. Two people who believe that some […]

“Religion is the opium of the people” is one of the most frequently quoted sayings of Karl Marx. Religion and economy don’t mix well, like oil and water. Together, they tend to form a vicious circle: Religion promotes poverty, which promotes religion. It takes a great leader, someone like Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, to pull a […]

“Religious media” is much like “religious university” – sort of oxymoron. The purpose of media in general and newspapers in particular is to convey information and opinions about the world around us. Religiously-oriented media and newspapers often convey information and opinions, but about another world. Want some examples? Sure you do. Here are some references […]

The Wailing Wall is considered as one of the most sacred Jewish places. Historically it is said to be the western wall of the ancient Jewish temple, known also as the Western Wall “It is a remnant of the ancient wall that surrounded the Jewish Temple’s courtyard, and is arguably the most sacred site recognized […]

Once upon a time there were priests. They served the public in “holy” places, mediating between the audience and the divine gods. This is how they actually made their money. This was their “job”. And the legal and educational systems made sure that this should be a steady job. Priests were to stay “pure”. At […]

So the Israeli elections are behind us, or so it seems. The media is super-busy with coverage, providing occupation for tens of local analysts and commentators, not to mention hundreds of comedians and other jokers making fun of our elected representatives, often rightfully. Most of the statistics we hear about refer to allegedly “important” things: […]

Whad’ya know, it’s election time again in Israel. And in election time, the rules of nature change. While nearly everyone tends to look at things from the traditional “political left and right” point of view, it seems that almost every major political party tends to place at least one religious figure in its list of […]