Pondering Yemot Ha-Mashiah

Here's a question from Zahava Rothschild, an an attempt at one way of addressing it:

Nobody really knows what will be in the times of Mashiach, so people have all kinds of dreams of what life will be like when he comes. But if the Rambam is right, and the world stays as it is with just a general knowledge that Gd exists, then isn't that giving false hope to all those people that have incredible dreams of techiat hameitim and flying on eagles wings and gan eden life and everyone being healthy, etc.? It doesn't seem fair to give the Jews false hope after all that they've experienced!

This question is based on the very elemental problem that, at least as I understand our mesorah, it doesn't teach anything definitive - either descriptive, prescriptive, or proscriptive - about the future. Yes, we read the beautiful nevu'ot of Yishayahu etc., and we daven for the geulah, tehiat ha-meitim, shivat tzion, the re-building of the Beit Ha-Miikdash, and the re-institution of korbanot. But the nevu'ot and midrashim about the future, for all their glory, seem rather nebulous, and perhaps allegorical (for example, according to some interpretations of "al kanfei nesharim") -- and so they inspire hope, but they leave open the question of whether things in yemot ha-mashiah will be literally or figuratively according to their contents. Similarly, in our davening, we include bakashot based on the hopes that Tanakh and Hazal have given us, but since the sources are rather vague, so too are our bakashot open to individual interpretation. Finally, I do think it's relevant that, in a religion whose very foundation is a legal system that dictates our behavior in myriad ways, we do not have any halakhot about the undefined future - this, to my mind, underscores the unclear nature of it.

So, in our own lives, what we have to go on is hope, which is a very personal thing, and which is based not only on sources but also on one's theological/emotional bent. I imagine that for Rambam the rationalist, it made the most "sense", based on the sources available, to envision yemot ha-mashiah in natural - rather than supernatrual - terms, whereas the available sources seem to have led the parshanim with more emotive or Kabbalistic tendencies to the conclusion that there would, in fact, be other-worldly elements to yemot ha-mashiah. The reason all of this does not give me, personally, false hope, is twofold: (1) Since we cannot *know* about the future, my hopes, based on one or another interpretation, are valuable in and of themselves, and so they cannot be "false"; they give me inspiration, they remind me to be a better Jew, and there is nothing false about that; (2) Since, according to all understandings, yemot ha-mashiah will B"H be a wonderful time for the world and for Jews, if it turns out that my particular understanding of what it would look like was wrong, I don't think I will have lost anything by imagining it in my own version; it will, G-d willing, be wonderful regardless of the specifics. I know this answer is not satisfying on the level of what we can "know" - but I think that is precisely the point about this future period: we cannot know, and so we dream.

One final note: until very recently in historical terms, no one could have imagined the precise way in which Medinat Yisrael would be established and shivat Tzion, in its incipient form, would begin. People davened for it, probabaly had dreams about it, but surely no one predicted it to be exactly as it ended up occuring. And yet, despite the internal and external struggles in the State, it is a glorious thing, truly a nes galui be-yameinu. Did it happen through a man on a white horse, or literally on the wings of eagles? No, it happened through international negotiations, diplomacy, wars, sweat, and tears - but as religious Zionists, we believe that all that comprises our part, with Hashem's help, in bringing the geulah - and that, to my mind, is no less amazing than anything obviously supernatural that could have happened.

Ripping off tags on Shabbat-Daniella Grodko

Can you rip off tags on Shabbos? Thanks!
Daniella Grodko

Response from Mrs. Sinensky:
The potential issue here is makeh b’patish (putting the final touches on an object), as one might view the removal of clothing tags as "finishing" the product.
The Shulchan Aruch paskins that you cannot remove fringes left over from the weaving process because of makeh b'patish. If you think about, though, removing a price tag is different than removing fringes--the price tag is not attached to the garment as part of the manufacturing process and the fringes are. The price tag is actually added AFTER the garmnet is completed! So when you take the fringes off, you are completing the garment. When you take the price tag off, you are taking something off that was added to the garment AFTER it was already completed. Based on this, ripping tags off of clothing on shabbat would not be a violation of makeh b'patish.
What about ripping?
R' Shlomo Zalman Auerbach says that you do not violate ripping on Shabbat because the tag was never intended to be permanently attached to the garment.
So bottom line: One can rip tags off of clothing on Shabbat

Challenge for all you bloggers: Based on what I wrote, why would it be a problem for you to rip the seems in a slit of a skirt on Shabbat?

An inspiring quote from the Rav by Zahava Rothschild

Here's a really interesting exerpt from Abraham's Journey by Rav Joseph Soloveitchik. I find that the way it is written and the thoughts that it provokes are realy inspiring. We don't always think of holiness as the true instigator behind our deeds. I think that these words that the Rav writes subconsciously resonate in every action and thought that the Jews experience."Kedushah fascinates; man in all his aspirations, hopes, visions, dreams and yearning is out to realize the idea of holiness, to find Gd and cling to Him. Kedushah has a strange quality; it frightens people, but it also pulls and attracts them. It is daunting with regard to those who refuse to think, to feel, to delve within themselves, to understand the mystery of man and his strange destiny. However, for those blessed with sweep of imagination, depth of perception, breadth of thought, and boldness of character, kedushah is the most fascinating experience, pulling them unconsciously and instinctually to the Creator. At times, it is hard to protect oneself against the onslaught of kedushah; it is hard to run away from the Creator, who trails behind man and challenges him to come back."

Brachah on Crispix

Another question from Rivka:

What ברכה do you say on Chex, since the 2 sides are technically 2 different ברכות?

First, I assume you mean Crispix, which is half rice & half corn, please let me know if I'm wrong. Generally for mezonos issues, it's easy. Anything with even a minority of the five major grains gets a mezonos (כל שיש בו...). However, even though we make a mezonos on rice, it is not one of those grains. The next thing we would do in a mixture is to see which is the majority, but over here it is really half & half (see story below), so the common recommendation is to make a mezonos on the rice side, take a bite from there & then make a ha'adama on the corn side.

Rabbi Eliyahu Soloveichik (a Rebbe at Landers College and the son of Rav Aharon Soloveichik)was once researching this question, and called the company and asked for the precise proportion of the two sides of the Crispix. The receptionist to whom he asked the question placed him on hold to go ask her supervisor. After a few moments she returned and said "You should make two blessings".

Student Comment to Women & Mitzvot

I just read Rabbi Rothstein's article about women and mitzvot, and it definitely made me think. This is an issue we've all dealt with, specifically my class, an the twelfth grade as a whole as we learn the issues of women and halacha. I definitely think some parts of the article should be included in the part of the curriculum as another view on women's roles in Judaism. It seems weird to me to say that we can figure it all out based on the reason we're exempted from tefillin and from that to talmud torah, but i guess it's an accepted way to learn that. Also it feels really strange to me to say that women's inherent rejection of defined roles that makes them exempt from certain mitzvot, bcause the point of mitzvot is that we have to do them just because we have to, and even if you're a person who doesn't like being told what to do, well you have to anyway. It seems to me like in Judaism women have had to figure out their own role because their is not defined by the Torah, not the other way around. Also I found the whole discussion of the mitzvah of talmud torah very interesting (and relevant to the issue of bitul torah we were discussing today, rabbi) but in the end I was even more perturbed by the fact that women are excluded from it. If the whole mitzvah is really about transmitting torah to the next generation, that makes me sad that women are not chosen to participate in it or receive it, especially because the one realm everyone agrees women rule in is the "raising children" category, so it's interesting that here specifically they're not obligated. I have to think more about this because there are so many issues involved, but I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed the article and I think more people should read it.Thanks for posting it,

Rachel Weber

Student Questions

One of the main things we hope to accomplish with this blog is to give you all an outlet for the questions many of you have that we unfortunately don't usually have time to discuss in class. By sending them to questions@maayanot.org, we will have the chance to think about, discuss & research the questions & respond either here, through e-mail or in person. We've already gotten some questions, including a bunch from Rivka Herzfeld. We will be addressing them one by one - I'll start here. Rivka asked:

If a כהן marries and has a child with someone who is forbidden to him, why is the child punished? He didn’t do anything wrong, and it seems unfair that someone should be penalized for something his father did.

This is a hard question. We know that Judaism does not believe in vicarious liability ("לא יומתו אבות על בנים...איש בחטאו יומת"). The question can be expanded to anyone with restrictions based on their birth status, for a ממזר to עמלק. The question is also true in the reverse - why should we reap the benefits of the actions of אברהם אבינו, or כהנים be privileged because אהרון earned the כהונה?

Without fully answering the question, I hope to make it a bit easier to deal with and quote an excerpt from an article I wrote a while back for the Purim edition of Ma'ayanei Torah:

Perhaps the key to understanding this issue is the following distinction: Children are not punished for their parents’ actions. This is both intuitively unfair, and refuted by the pasuk cited above. However, no one disputes that the actions of parents can affect the circumstances into which their children are born, and in which they grow up. As an extreme case, a pregnant woman who smokes crack will harm her innocent child. The same with parents who choose to waste all there money on lottery tickets rather than properly feed their children, or who abuse their children. Actions have consequences that extend beyond the actors themselves to the people around them. It's still not "fair", but it at least puts it into a framework that is more recognizable. עמלק's children are condemned through no fault of their own, but that is just an inherited status based on the decisions made by their ancestors, the same way that our status as Jews is based on our parents response of נעשה ונשמע, or Avraham finding Hashem. Your circumstance won't determine whether or not you get to עולם הבא, just the challenges you'll have to face to get there.

A Letter from Rabbi Zev Reichman to His Congregation

Dear Friends,
I am writing to you at the end of a day that was truly thrilling and
inspiring. On my flight to Israel, I read the edition of Time
Magazine with the picture of the Star of David on the cover. It was
more than merely depressing. The magazine strongly implied it
believed that Israel would not survive. The article claimed that
there was no solution to Israel's problems. Between terrorists like
Hamas who try to attack us wherever we are and the fact that there
are more than five million Arabs in the land between the
Mediterranean and the Jordan, the magazine claimed that Israel cannot
survive as a democracy.
Today I experienced why the article is wrong.
I began the day in Alon Shvut. Rav Rimon and I joined Gabi Nachmani
from Livnot Ulihibanot and we set out to go south to give some love
to our soldiers who are fighting so bravely in Gaza. Rav Rimon has
invested tens of hours in this project. For the last week he has
constantly been on the phone with soldiers to try and determine what
they really need. He has heard from many units that they are cold.
Israel has historically waged its wars in the summer. The last war
in Lebanon was in July. The Six Day War was in June. Even the Yom
Kippur War was in October. Israel is not conditioned to a war during
winter. The soldiers in Gaza are reporting that they are very cold
at night Rav Rimon then found out that pairs of thermal, polartec
gloves and undershirts, as well as thermal neck warmers would really
make a difference for the soldiers. He found the manufacturer and it
turns out that the maker of these products has a son who is serving
in Gaza. This man, Aharon Gantz, was so moved by what we wanted to
do that he provided the products to us at cost. Our shul sponsored
the purchase, and Rav Rimon and I went with Gabi this morning to pick
up 1,000 pairs of thermal gloves, (the army typically only buys these
gloves for the most elite units), 1,000 pairs of thermal neck
warmers, 80 thermal socks, and 80 thermal undershirts. Aharon was
most moved by the fact that a shul in New Jersey would subsidize a
gift of such utility for soldiers. He said to me, "This is the nice
part of our nation. In times of crises we all come together.
Nothing can stand in the way of this unity. This strength is what
will defeat all our enemies."
We then headed down to Gaza. Gabi found a way for us to avoid the
military police and through back roads we arrived at a base about a
kilometer away from Gaza. When we arrived there we found the officer
in charge of logistics and we told him that we had brought gifts for
the soldiers - gloves, neck warmers, special cards with chapters of
Tehillim on them and packages that the children in our shul packed.
He was very happy with the gifts. He told us to follow him and he
actually took us to the staging grounds where the soldiers are
entering and leaving Gaza, about 400 meters from the fence that
Israel has broken through to enter Gaza city. We spent almost 4
hours with the hundreds of soldiers who are entering and leaving Gaza.
As we arrived, a group of thirty soldiers returned from Gaza. They
had been inside for 10 consecutive days. That is ten days with no
showers or changes of clothing. Ten days dodging mortars and
snipers. Ten days conquering territory and avoiding mines. For the
tankists it is ten days of not leaving a tank. Imagine what it would
be like to spend ten days in a row in a car without the ability to
leave it. Now imagine ten days in a tank. These soldiers were dirty
with sweat and mud. Many had battle paint on. The officer gathered
them and Rav Rimon and I spoke to the troops. The Rav gave them
words of encouragement. He pointed out that each of them is engaged
in a mitzvah activity protecting the Jewish people from enemies. He
pointed out how many miracles our nation is receiving. For example
think of the story of the soldier who woke up in the middle of the
night in a school and noticed a chord and saved 150 of his friends
and so many other stories that we must be thankful for. He then
introduced me to the soldiers. He pointed out that I had come from
the US in order to convey our community's love for the troops. I
spoke with the soldiers about the great unity that now fills our
nation. How in Englewood, New Jersey, in our shul our kids gathered
on Shabbat and each child prayed for one soldier. I told the
soldiers how we all bless them and pray that Hashem send his angels
to protect them and lead them to success. I told the soldiers how
God is one and whenever we become one here below we merit feeling the
presence of the One above. Finally we hugged each soldier and
thanked him for protecting all of us through his service. We then
started to hand out all our goodies. The soldiers were ecstatic.
They were so thankful for the gloves and the neck warmers. They
eagerly took our tehillim cards and chocolates, which now helping to
sweeten a very difficult time for thousands who are fighting for our
state. Undoubtedly, the favorite gift of all was the packages from
our kids. The handwritten cards were the most precious item. Each
handwritten letter meant so much. Soldiers told me they treasure
those simple displays of caring. As one told me, "The most wonderful
thing is the handwritten note. When we see that Jews elsewhere in
the world care and are writing to us it warms our hearts. This gives
us the strength and support." We could not leave. We spent hours
with the soldiers talking and davening, learning with them and giving
out thousands of thermal items, but we also were receiving a great
deal, more than words can ever describe.
We then went to Sderot. In Sderot, two officers came to meet us.
These soldiers are with a unit of paratroopers of very young
soldiers. They are still in their first year of army service. They
never expected to be sent into hostile territory. However, they are
deep inside Gaza and this unit of eighty soldiers has already had
five wounded members. One of their members, their commander, was
wounded by a mine. When the others went in to evacuate him, one of
the soldiers was hit with a sniper's bullet from a hamas terrorist.
The bullet penetrated his ceramic bullet proof vest and entered his
chest. They thought they had to do a surgery on him in the field
because they did not think he would survive long enough to arrive at
a hospital. In the end he was airlifted to Tel Hashomer and operated
on there. There was a great miracle. While the bullet broke through
the vest, it ended up flying through his body and missing his heart
and lungs. The bullet left his body and he is recovering nicely.
These boys are very young and are having a difficult time. For them
we got gloves, neck warmers, socks, and undershirts. Since they
still have two years of army service they wil certainly use these
gifts well after this war ends. They repeated their invitation to
Rav Rimon and me. When the war ends they plan to make a large party
of thanks to Hashem. They want us to come and speak at that meal
when the warriors will be honored.
We met with other units and we helped them as well.
Finally we loaded the car with fifty pies of pizza and headed back to
the front. We arrived at a base of paratroopers and tankists who
were returning from Gaza. By now it was dark out. We started to
distribute the pizzas to the soldiers; it became a yom tov. There
was such joy! Soldiers, who are really just kids, they are nineteen
and twenty years old, surrounded us and asked us to sing and dance
with them. They all had tehillim they had taken from Breslov
chassidim and they wanted to dance and declare that "Yisrael betach
bahashem, Israel trust God, ezram umaginam hu, He is their help and
protector, anachnu maaminim bney maaminim, we are believers sons of
believers, viain lanu al mi lihisha'ain elah al avinu shebashmayim,
and we have no one to rely on, we can only rely on our father in
heaven." Rav Rimon then jumped on a van and gave the soldiers a
short talk of encouragement. He then introduced me. I turned to the
soldiers and told them, "Today was Rav Rimon's birthday, he did not
even realize it but when he did, he said to me, `my present was
getting to spend an entire day running from group of soldiers to
group of soldiers to give them gifts and encouragement!'" When the
soldiers heard that they all burst into song. They pulled Rav Rimon
into a circle and from their depths of their being they sang
together, "Yisrael betach behashem ezram umainam hu anachnu maaminim
bney maaminim viain lanu al mi lihisha'ain ela ela al avinu avinu
shebashamayim!"
So let Time Magazine claim that Israel has no future. They have not
experienced Jewish unity. When Am Yisrael is together, when soldiers
are singing and dancing of their faith, we will survive, we certainly
will.
Zev Reichman

Our First Comment!

I posted this under the original post, but by now I wonder if anyone will see it, so I'm putting it here as its own post. Remember, you can comment by e-mailing questions@maayanot.org. Please let us know if we can post it with your name.

A pircha between hillel's situation and modern day America, is that the goal today is to "fix" the American economy, and so the solution needs to address the sources the crisis. Simply “bailing out wall street” can not be the only action taken for a long term solution. Hillel was forced to do what he did - there was no way to really address the root of the problem.

It is interesting that article raises how Hillel's solution and today's bailout are not "ideal" and were only instituted to be pragmatic. This reminds me of the gemara we did in your class, where Rava paskins that a “rodef achar rodef” is patur from paying for anything he might have damaged while chasing the rodef, because if he were to be chayav, people would not want to stop a rodef. I love when the Halacha accomadates for us being human. To me it really shows the greatness of the halachic system.

-Aviva Novick

On the Mitzrim, Not the Jews?

I don't have time to get into it in great depth, but just to plant an idea before Shabbos: I think that the first three מכות also targeted the Jews. Ibn Ezra first entertains the idea (he says that straight through, the Jews were spared from the harsher ones, but subject to those not as bad - an opinion I don't really understand). Can you figure out what in the text gives that impression, or think why that might be the case? If it's not true, how else would you explain the answer to the first question?

Have a great Shabbos.

(click the title for an audio bonus)

Thoughts on the Ballet "Coppelia"

As per Ms. F's suggestion, I went to see "Coppelia" on Motzei Shabbat. It was amazing in many respects--the dancing, the costumes, scenery, music, acting. The second act really impact me. In this act, a toymaker tries to make his toys come alive by "drawing the life" out of a young boy who attempted to sneak into his workship, and uses the boys life-force it to animate a doll. The "doll" (a dancer who does a fantastic job of playing dead) slowly comes to life, little by little. She picks her head up, then it drops down again. She picks it up again. Then she straightens her arms, etc. You see the whole process, until she is dancing around using her entire body and range of motion. While I was watching it, it struck me that this scene depicts exactly what God does for us every morning. He "brings us to life" and is the one responsible for every single part of us working in the complex and amazing way that it's supposed to. Watching this scene refreshed my appreciation of God's role in my daily physical functioning, and re-inspired me to take modeh ani, asher yatzar, elokei neshama, and birchot hashachar more seriously. This trip to the ballet also reminded me that we can gain something from every experience that we have in our lives, even when we enter into that experiences for the sole purpose of taking a break/having a vacation!

ויקם מלך חדש

For many of you, tomorrow will be the most historic day of your conscious lives. How old were you on 9/11/2001? I have to admit that until that day, I hadn't experienced much history either. I remember once, I must have been in college or graduate school, arguing with my friends about the most historic event that we had experienced, and the best we could come up with was the death of Princess Diana. When the Twin Towers were destroyed, I first appreciated what a ברכה it was to have lived in such trivial times.

Tomorrow is the evidence that historic doesn't have to mean tragic. No matter what your thoughts on the election, or even the president-elect, from at least one perspective, Barack Obama's inauguration is a glorious day for this glorious nation. At a Shabbos meal this week, I got into an argument with a virtual stranger. He was telling me how naive I am about America, and that it's just a matter of time before the latent anti-semitism that lurks deep in the hearts of the over-whelming majority of our neighbors reaches the surface. I argued that America is fundamentally different than any other nation in history, and that with the exception of fringes on the extreme, is sincerely accepting of all. As an example, I cited everyone who kept warning before the election that Obama would lose unless he were up by 10-12% due to the "Bradley Effect" - white voters who would not vote for a black man, but feel guilty enough to lie about it to pollsters. Straight through election season I thought that there would be no such effect because today's America had effectively chased racism to the fringe. Contemporary America has turned the page on its most shameful chapter, and can tomorrow celebrate what it has become, no matter what kind of President he turns out to be.

And we get to see it live.

Women & Mitzvos

The title is a link to an article that I read and greatly enjoyed over Shabbos. Rabbi Gidon Rothstein gives an entirely different take on the exemption of women from מצוות עשה שהזמן גרמא from those I have seen in the past. In supporting his thesis, he also uses it to explain the ברכה of שלא עשני אשה. His analysis emerges naturally from a close reading of the sources, and manages to be compelling without apologetics. Especially for those of you in my Halacha classes, who know how underwhelmed I am with the explanations we discussed in class, I highly recommend reading this (it reads shorter than it looks). He references other writings on similar topics that I look forward to reading. Faculty & students alike, I'm curious what you think about it.

Mrs. Appel's Reading & Movie List

• Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You'll Go
• For an interesting dialog about contemporary (or at least, 1990s) Orthodoxy: Haym Soloveitchik, "Rupture and Recontstruction: The Transformation of Contemporary Orthodoxy", in Tradition 28:4 (1994) -- along with Dr. Isaac Chavel's response and Dr. Soloveitchik's response to Dr. Chavel, the latter two published in Torah U-Madda, January 1, 1997
• Heschel, The Sabbath
• The poetry of Leah Goldberg
• Chaim Potok, The Chosen
• Thornton Wilder, Our Town
• Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird
• David Ben-Gurion's speech declaring Israel's idependence, recording: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJObtrw_E6g&feature=related

Movies:

• Schindler's List
• Life is Beautiful

Mrs. Kraft's Reading List

For thinking about Judaism on a deeper level and to be inspired at the same time:
1. Living Inspired by Rabbi Akiva Tatz
2. World Mask by Rabbi Akiva Tatz
3. The Thinking Jewish Teenager's Guide to Life by Rabbi Akiva Tatz

For the very intellectually sophisticated reader dealing with issues of faith in G-d:
1. Forgive Us, Father-in-Law, for We Know Not What to Think: Letter to a Philosophical Dropout from Orthodoxy by Rabbi Shalom Carmy
2. Faith and Doubt by Rabbi Norman Lamm

On why bad things happen to good people:
Kol Dodi Dofek (Hebrew) or Fate and Destiny (English translation) by Rav Solovetichik

Just good and enjoyable (and secular) reading on having the correct perspective and being productive, etc.:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey

For Inspiration:
Just One Word. Amen by Esther Stern

To increase your kavanah in tefila:
Pathway to Prayer by Rabbi Mayer Birnbaum
The Art of Jewish Prayer by Rabbi Yitzchok Kirzner
Rav Schwab on Prayer by Rabbi Shimon Schwab

פרשת שמות

The title is a link to an amazing resource - yutorah's page for the parsha this week. They construct it each week, and have an enormous amount of shiurim, audio and text, on all subjects. In the coming weeks, we plan to construct a list of Torah resources on the web that will remain on the side of the blog.

In the meantime, as there is no Stream this week (I think), I want to share a couple of thoughts about the parsha.

• After consistently referring to the baby in the basket (Moshe) as the ילד (child), it says that בת פרעה heard the cries of the נער (youth). Rashi quotes the midrash that Hashem miraculously made Moshe's infant cries sound older. What was the purpose of this נס? Perhaps, we can explain that with the decree that all newborn Jewish boys be drowned in the Nile (and we know there were many newborn Jewish boys), the sounds of crying, drowning infants were almost commonplace at the river; background noise that would not have penetrated even the compassionate בת פרעה. Only the unusual sound of an adolescent cry made her think twice. Looking back, the notion that even the desparate cries of babies could be so routine that they become inaudible seems horrifying, as many barbaric practices in world history do in hindsight. I wonder what future generations will think of us? Who are our world's crying babies? Whose desparate pleas fall on deaf ears today?
• Reviewing the Parsha with my head already on vacation, I was struck by a certain passage. When defending themselves to Paro, the heroic midwives defend themselves with a statement that would serve us well to remember as we head to our various exotic & less exotic destinations: כִּי לא כַנָּשִׁים הַמִּצְרִיּת הָעִבְרִיּת - The Jewish women are not like the Egyptian women. As integrated as we are into our American culture, with all of the benefits - of all types - that we get from it, it's important to keep in mind that we are different, and that should be evident for all to see.

Rabbi Besser's List

I think I'm going to enter my list piecemeal, to allow me to give it some more thought, and talk a bit about why I'm recommending the books that I do, without having a post so long that no one reads it. I'll start with four.

• As a Driven Leaf (Milton Steinberg) - I add my vote to the others but attach a warning: What makes the book so wonderful (in addition to the issues of faith & doubt highlighted by Mrs. Goldberg) is what scares me a bit too. It is the fictionalized story of a real historic figure -Elisha ben Avuyah (Acher) - a Tana who became a heretic. For the first half of the book, the primary characters are Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Meir, Bruriah, Ben Azzai etc. Many of the Talmudic figures we study every day, and getting to know them in a real-life way is thrilling. And much of the story is based on legitimate sources. The disclaimer is, that it's not real-life. The gaps filled in by the author dwarf the actual historic content, making the finished product truly fictional. That said, the glimpse into their lives, the very readable style, the big issues raised in an intriguing but not ponderous way, and just the wonderful drama make this a book you will love.
• A Return to Modesty (Wendy Shalit) - This is unlike any other "Tzniut" book you'll ever read. Ms. Shalit's story makes the book so unique. She grew up non-observant, and what drew her to Orthodoxy was the appeal of the rules of tzniut. Therefore, with no pre-existing agenda, she lived the secular system, straight through the typical University campus and found it wanting, and found what was missing in classic Judaism's halachik and philosophical view of women. Using all sorts of data (very much including womens' magazines), she makes the case that modern sensibilities about gender relationships are doing major damage to women, and that the formula to repair that damage lies in the roots of our tradition. You can disagree with her at the end, but her perspective is eye-opening. (Disclaimer: I'm not endorsing the cover, which was not chosen by the author, and was removed from my copy).
• Turbulent Souls (Stephen Dubner) - The memoir of a successful journalist, raised as a fervent Christian, who lapsed into a secular adulthood tracing his Jewish roots.
• The Geography of Bliss (Eric Weiner) - I read it on Ms. Socken's advice, and though it took me a bit to get in to, I ended up enjoying it a lot. A reporter for NPR travels to the happiest and least happy countries on Earth to see what lessons about happiness he can learn. The chapters that spoke most to me (though I doubt many of you will choose the same ones) were Iceland (which contains what I consider to be the single most important line of the book - I won't give it away) & Thailand.

I'll give some more a different time, but I have midterms to grade. Please let us know what you think of the blog so far, submit questions you would like to see addressed or helpful suggestions at questions@maayanot.org.

Chazal & the Economic Crisis

Speaking of interesting articles in the Wall Street Journal, while I'm not sure I agree with everything inside, this was a fascinating modern application of an ancient Takana. (The title is a hyperlink to the article.)

Interesting article about Antisemitism in Europe

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123180033807075069.html

Special Guest Submission: Ms. Socken's List!

• (non-fiction) The Geography of Bliss, Eric Weiner
• (non-fiction) Amusing Ourselves to Death, Neil Postman
• (novel) The Alchemist, Paulo Coehlo
• (film) "Amazing Grace" (2006) trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6Cv5P9H9qU
• (extremely brilliant "short film") http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42E2fAWM6rA

Ms. Gordon's List

• As a Driven Leaf - Milton Steinberg
• Jewish Matters - Articles by different authors on different topics (God, Faith, Tzniut, Prayer etc.)
• Exodus or Mila 18 - Leon Uris
• O Jerusalem - Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre
• Anything by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks (Chief Rabbi of England)
• Anything by Rav Aharon Lichtenstein (Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Har Etzion and Posek of Maayanot)
• Lonely Man of Faith - Rav Yosef Dov Soloveichik
• The Modest Way - Rav Ellensohn's book on Tzniut. Has all opinions and sources with English translations.
• Jewish Literacy - Rabbi Joseph Telushkin
• The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
• Movie: Hiding & Seeking

Mrs. Knoll's Reading List

• East of Eden - John Steinbeck
• The Chosen - Chaim Potok
• Mrs. Knoll's response to the Frumteens moderator to his attacks on Maayanot teaching Gemara to women:

Mrs. Goldberg' List

• As A Driven Leaf - Milton Steinberg - Questions of Faith
• Books by Daniel Gordis - About Israel
• Song- Unanswered Prayers - Garth Brooks - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDc9qNPD94Q

Rabbi Prince's Reading List

• All books by Rabbi David Aaron
• All Books by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan
• All Books by Nechama Lebowitz
• Discover by Rabbi Dov Moshe Lipman
• By His Light – Essays of Rav Aharon Lichtenstein
• Ner Uziel - By Rabbi Uziel Milevsky
• Off the Derech – by Faranack Margolese
• תורה לדעת – Rabbi Matis Blum
• הררי קדם - "Harerei Kedem I & II" by Michal Zalman Shurkin
• On Repentance: The Thought and Oral Discourses of Rabbi Joseph Dov Soloveitchik
• A Student's Obligation: Advice from the Rebbe of the Warsaw Ghetto
• The Promise – Chaim Potok

Mrs. Sinensky's Reading, Movie, Game & Activity List

• The Matrix (movie)
• Redemption, Prayer, Torah Study in Tradition 17:2, R' Soloveitchik (my favorite Rav Solovetchik article)
• Wit, Margaret Edson (play that's fun to analyze)
• Halachos of Brachos, R' Forst (super-practical, well organized, clear, comprehensive book about Brachot. Great to learn with a friend!)
• Set (the game-great for sharpening your Gemara skills. Someone once told me that it should be renamed the "tzad hashaveh" game!)
• Watch your favorite T.V. show and write down all the "hidden" messages that you can pick up on
• Abraham's Journey, R' Soloveitchik (Essays about the life and character of Avraham Avinue. I read it on Pesach and couldn't put it down!)
• The Sabbath, Heschel (A book that will change your perspective on and appreciation of Shabbat and Chagim)

Mrs. Schapiro's Reading List

• Orthodox Forum Series (several books on timely topics such as feminism, relating to non-Jews, relating to non-traditional Jews, etc. Sometimes the Enlish is difficult but there's always http://www.dictionary.com/)
• Me'am Lo'ez, translated by Aryeh Kaplan (Enlish translation of pesukim and various midrashim on Tanach)
• If You Were God, Aryeh Kaplan

Mrs. Cohen's Reading & Movie List

• Awakenings (inspirational movie)
• My Left Foot (inspirational movie)
• Kol Dodi Dofek, ed. Woolf (one of Rav Soloveitchik's most famous articles--must read!)

Mrs. Bieler's Reading List

• Articles from the Tradition journal
• Articles from the Journal of Halakha & Contemporary Society
• The Phantom Tollbooth, Juster & Feiffer

Ms. Wolf's Reading & Movie List

• Hiding and Seeking (movie)
• The Lonely Man of Faith, R' Soloveitchik
• As A Driven Leaf, Milton Steinberg (historical fiction based on the Gemara)
• Exodus, Leon Uris (historical fiction about Israel)
• Mila 18, Leon Uris

Ms. F's Reading List

• The Source, James Michener (historical fiction about the Crusades)
• Sabbath Shiurim, Rabbi M. Miller
• Shiurei HaRav, Epstein (lectures of Rav Soloveitchik)
• http://www.tanach.org/ (awesome Parsha material from R' Menachem Leibtag)
• http://www.vbm-torah.org/ (more awesome Parsha material from Yershiva Har Etzion a.k.a "Gush")
• A Return to Modesty, Wendy Shalit (discussion of Tzniut from a secular perspective)
• The Magic Touch, Gila Manolson (about negiah)

Mrs. Ausubel's Reading List

• Permission to Believe, Lawrence Kelemen (Approaches to the Existence of God)
• Permission to Receive, Lawrence Kelemen (Approaches to Revelation)
• Lights Along the Way, Twerski (commentary on Mesillat Yesharim-how to work on yourself)

Mrs. Billet's Reading List

• 9 Questions People Ask About Judaism (Telushkin & Prager)
• To Pray As A Jew-selected chapters (Chaim HaLevi Donin)
• Holy Brother (Carleback stories)