The Orthodox Moment

My latest article "The Orthodox Moment" has been published in the February issue of First Things and is also available on their website. A short excerpt from the article:

"With the increased numbers, visibility, and confidence of Orthodox Judaism comes a profound challenge: The Orthodox world must decide how to engage decisive issues from within the commitment to tradition and continuity of Jewish law that defines Orthodoxy. A source of anguish to many in the Orthodox community is the role of women in religious life. Whether Halacha permits the ordination of female rabbis remains the subject of heated contention. Other issues on which the Orthodox world is divided include interfaith dialogue, academic study of classic Jewish texts, and the debate between dedicated full-time Torah study or pursuit of a secular profession. Many of these fall into the meta-question: How and in what way can Jews lead a life true to Torah while engaging the larger society and culture?"