Biographies

From the Greeks and Romans to 19th century Reform Jews and today’s pundits, the death of Orthodox Judaism has been...

Among the many legends about the Vilna Gaon is that he invited the Maggid of Dubno to come to him...

Many pious Jews undertook voluntary exile to atone for sin and improve character. The legendary Gaon of Vilna, Rabbi Eliyahu...

Rabbi Tzvi Ashkenazi, the Chacham Tzvi, spearheaded the campaign to uproot all vestiges of the false messiah Sabbatai Zevi and...

Messianic beliefs die hard and even survive the death of obviously failed dead messiahs. Such was the case with Sabbatai...

Abraham Joshua Heschel penned a classic description of Jewish life in the shtetl, portraying its rich spiritual life and scholarship.

One should never confuse Jews with Judaism. No matter how disappointed you are in Jews, it should in no way...

When the Church excommunicated Martin Luther it made him more famous. What does Judaism say about excommunication? The answer has...

Was a Jew appointed the King of Poland? A fascinating legend says yes. Whether this is true or not, the...

Rabbi Meir Shapiro, founder of Daf Yomi, once turned down an enormous sum of money to follow his true calling...