Tag Archives: Judaism

Translating the Bible for Our Era

Posted on May 30, 2017 by

My latest blog post for The Jewish Journal: What difference does a translation make? If we take the Torah seriously, a lot. Whether we believe it was given by God to Moses, or only that it’s the foundational text of our identity … Continue reading →

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The Fifth Question

Posted on April 22, 2016 by

Are you the same person today as you were yesterday? If so, how do you know? And what does it even mean for you to be “the same person” as you were yesterday? Therein lies a tale. It leads us … Continue reading →

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What Is Faith in God?

Posted on November 2, 2015 by

What does it mean to have faith in God? It’s not a simple question. Lately, I’ve been wrestling with The Tenacity of Unreasonable Beliefs, a book that tries to analyze religious belief from a psychological perspective. The author, Solomon Schimmel, … Continue reading →

Posted in Epistemology, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Philosophy | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

What Do You See?

Posted on October 1, 2015 by

Look at the ink blot. What do you see? The ink blot is used in what’s called a “Rorschach test.” The picture is supposed to be neutral, and not to look like anything in particular. What you see in it … Continue reading →

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Maimonides and Keeping the Commandments

Posted on August 5, 2015 by

By N.S. Palmer “God rewards those who perform the commandments of the Torah and punishes those who transgress its admonitions.”1 The Jewish sage Maimonides called that an essential tenet of our faith. But there’s something a little odd about it. … Continue reading →

Posted in Epistemology, Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Modern Orthodoxy, Philosophy, The Times of Israel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Turning Around Spinoza’s Challenge

Posted on July 23, 2015 by

By N.S. Palmer Spinoza meant it as a taunt. But it might hold one of the keys to Jewish survival. Depending on where you sit, Baruch de Spinoza is either the founder of modern Jewish philosophy or Judaism’s deadliest critic. … Continue reading →

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Is the Messiah Coming?

Posted on July 13, 2015 by

By N.S. Palmer Is the Jewish Messiah coming? Yes. But it’s complicated. Belief in a Messiah is central to the Jewish tradition. Maimonides listed it as a key principle of Judaism: “I believe with perfect faith in the coming of … Continue reading →

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