Varieties of Jewish Experience
By Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein
Ktav Publishing House
New Jersey, 2011
334 pages
When Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein speaks, people listen. In this latest collection of his articles, he addresses many of the issues that rose to the fore over the past two decades and remain relevant today—sexuality, leadership, da’at Torah, spirituality, the erosion of yirat Shamayim and more. With his characteristic blend of Talmudic expertise, philosophical depth and unwavering confidence in the importance of nuance, Rabbi Lichtenstein dissects each issue and shows us how to look at it properly. We learn not only what he thinks, but his methodology—how to think ourselves. His sentences are complex, but only because they carry so much meaning and precision. And his command of language and literature lends his prose the power of poetry. His careful studies speak from both his mind and his soul, reflecting not only the vast intellect of the Brisker tradition but its boundless heart as well.
Rabbi Gil Student writes frequently on Jewish issues and blogs at TorahMusings.com.