Features

Off the Shelf: Challenging and rewriting the biblical text

By Rabbi Rachel Esserman

Ever really look forward to a book and have a mixed reaction after finishing it? That’s what occurred while reading “Smashing the Tablets: Radical Retelling of the Hebrew Bible” edited by Sara Lippmann and Seth Rogoff (Excelsior Editions). I find different int…

Jewish Resources 5/23/25

By Reporter staff

A variety of Jewish groups are offering educational and recreational online resources. Below is a sampling of those. The Reporter will publish additional listings as they become available. 

Roundtable will hold the virtual course “History of the Jewish Ghetto: Venice, …

On the Jewish food scene: What am I...

By Rabbi Rachel Essserman

“What am I...” I’m betting many people can fill in the rest of that phrase. For those who can’t, it should read, “What am I, chopped liver?” I’ve said and heard that more times than I can count, but today for the first time, I wondered where it came f…

Off the Shelf: BU historian explores the death of Jesus

By Rabbi Rachel Esserman

Although many people believe the question of who was responsible for the death of Jesus had long been put to rest, disagreements about that issue have occurred in recent months, for example, with complaints that a bill against antisemitism would make it impossible f…

Off the Shelf: Rituals, religious and secular

By Rabbi Rachel Esserman

What exactly is a ritual? Wendy A. Horwitz contemplates that question in the introduction to her book of essays, “Milkweed and Honey Cake: A Memoir in Ritual Moments” (Red Lightening Books). The difficulty for Horwitz is that most definitions see ritual as a rel…