Halacha

Safed Rabbinical Court may close this fall despite strong local demand

Several rabbis wrote a letter to the chief rabbi opposing the decision, and the Rabbinical Courts Administration said it is doing everything "in its power" to stop the closure, the report said.

|ByLEO FEIERBERG BETTER
Buildings in old city, Safed, Northern District, Israel.
Ultra orthodox jewish men protest against the jailing of yeshiva students who failed to comply with an army recruitment order, at the home of Supreme Court Deputy President Noam Sohlberg in the settlement of Alon Shvut, June 3, 2026.

The rabbis attacking Israel’s courts are attacking Religious Zionism - opinion

The very ethos of Religious Zionism is integration: to bridge the sacred and the worldly, and to play an integral role in building the State of Israel.

|ByELAD CAPLAN
'Spirituality can grow without diminishing anyone,' says the writer.

Parashat Tazria-Metzora: Turning lemons into lemonade

These parashot deal at length with a unique phenomenon described in the Torah – tzara’at, which are marks or changes that appear on the walls of a house, on clothing, or on the body.

|ByRABBI SHMUEL RABINOWITZ
An illustrative image of a Passover Seder plate.

Make this year’s seder meaningful when tables are smaller - opinion

We are a link in a chain that stretches back over three millennia, a chain that has endured exile, persecution, and upheaval, yet has never been broken.

|ByJONATHAN LIEBERMAN

The Amazing Customs of Lel HaSeder

APRIL 1, 2025ByMARK FISH

Permitted or Prohibited? The Debate Surrounding Soft Matzot

APRIL 1, 2025ByDAVID BERGER

Halachot of Erev Pesach on Shabbat

MARCH 27, 2025ByMARK FISH

Pesach in a hotel: Halachic guidelines and practical considerations

MARCH 26, 2025ByMARK FISH

Rising Antisemitism: 30 young Rabbis from 13 countries start training program

FEBRUARY 20, 2025ByMARK FISH

Jewish burial amid tragedy: Halachic questions surrounding the return of hostage bodies

With the bodies of hostages set to return home, Jewish law raises complex questions—when to mourn, how to bury, and what to do when the remains are incomplete.

FEBRUARY 19, 2025ByMATHILDA HELLER
The Jewish Cemetery on the Mount of Olives

Nechama Goldman-Barash: A guiding light for women's voices in Halacha

Jerusalemite of the Week: Nechama Goldman-Barash has become a guiding light regarding the Jewish laws of gender, sexuality, marriage, and more.

FEBRUARY 16, 2025ByAARON REICH
Nechama Goldman-Barash.

A Valentine’s Day gift that lasts: The case for a halachic prenup – opinion

Celebrate love this Valentine's Day by committing to mutual respect and security with a halachic prenup.

FEBRUARY 14, 2025ByPNINA OMER
An engaged couple show their halachic prenuptial agreement after signing it.

Rabbi Yoel Pinto in a Special Meeting with Rabbi Meir Mazuz

FEBRUARY 6, 2025ByDAVID BERGER

IDF soldiers’ wives at risk: The urgent case for conditional divorces

The Israel-Hamas War has increased the risk of women becoming "chained" in their marriages because they can't get a Jewish divorce.

JANUARY 25, 2025ByEVE YOUNG
THE POSSIBILITY that a woman whose husband is in the IDF reserves can become ‘chained’ became an increasing problem after the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas War.