Seeking halachic guidance in a time of war

What can our tradition teach us about military ethics and the questions facing Israel today? The prospect of Israel facing many months, if not years, of protracted battle against Hamas and Hezbollah in urban settings raises many strategic and ethical dilemmas. We’ll need to fight decisively against ruthless enemies while acting in a way that […]

Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin speaks with Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon

At the same time that there are questions, we also clearly see Yad Hashem.

An inside look at the sacred work of the IDF chevra kadisha’s women’s unit

Meet Israel’s warriors on the home front—IDF wives who exhibit extraordinary faith while juggling housework, jobs and toddlers

When the need for help is transparent, the Jewish community generally rallies and swings into action. But what happens when it’s not so obvious?

  I live with my parents and my children on a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and Sydney Harbor. The weather is temperate, never cold and hardly ever hot. The beaches are pristine; people dream of their next saltwater dive and their property values. For thirty years I was ten thousand miles from this Eden […]

In our time—perhaps more so than in previous eras—we need tzenius, writes Rabbi Reuven Brand, in the following symposium. “To live the rewarding and meaningful lives we seek, we must commit to living inwardly.” But upholding the value of modesty in the Instagram generation is no simple feat. While the writers of the essays that […]

I am not alone in my struggle to connect to tzeniut.

We, as adults, may be failing to model the messages we transmit to young people

Call me shallow, but I’ll spend hours deciding what to wear.

We crafted an approach that centers around the student’s self-image, as well as the image he or she wishes to convey to others.

Tzenius is a gift to our generation. To appreciate this gift, we need to understand its meaning. 

Modesty is discretion. It’s knowing what to share and what to keep hidden.

Tzeniut does not demand of us to stop or to hide. “Hatznei’a lechet im Elokecha”—we are enjoined to walk with tzeniut, to not lose sight of our inner world as we boldly forge forward.  

How does one balance having a public platform without letting it affect them personally? 

Even given my very open, sharing self, some things just shouldn’t be shared; it’s a matter of respecting my own privacy. You don’t want to wake up with a “vulnerability hangover.”

Low-cost and free modest attire makes tzeniut an attainable goal

A unique collection brings 2,000 years of Jewish life alive

Public visibility, and certainly celebrity, risk both disorienting our relationship with G-d and tainting the realness and connection we might otherwise achieve with others.

Lab-grown meat: Can it be kosher? Is it pareve or fleishig? Rabbi Genack illuminates this new food technology.

Misconception: When making hard-boiled eggs, there is a halachic requirement to boil at least three eggs at a time.

Maximize the flavorful seasonal produce that abounds in summer, keeping your preparations simple enough to relax and enjoy these moments before summer is gone.

Where have all the Jewish theologians gone? 

To find his own path to G-d, every Jew must search the Torah and examine his life experiences with open eyes.

The Jewish State: From Opposition to Opportunity; HaAretz Asher Areka: Mitzvat Yishuv Eretz Yisrael (Hebrew); Famous Gemaras: The Gemara’s incredible stories come to life

It’s the simplest of questions: “Mah shlomcha?—How are you?” But when your country is at war, how can you give the usual answer?

I’ve been with the OU since 1999 and I don’t remember a time as challenging as this.

For those looking to relax this summer with a more intellectually stimulating volume than the stereotypical beach read, OU Press recommends picking up one or more of the following books.