Author: David Rutman

Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David sat next to each other on the Saban Theatre stage on May 4, reminiscing about the four best “Seinfeld” episodes. They were taping the “Rushmore Podcast Live” podcast, where legendary Hollywood agent Ari Emanuel and his co-host Ben Persky interview the greats in every industry. Ultimately, all of them decided […]

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy entered common usage through the Septuagint, a Jewish translation of the Bible into Greek. These names are rough translations of ones used in early Rabbinic literature and are in fact rooted in the Jewish tradition.‌ In this older system, each name corresponds to the theme of the book. The […]

I’ve noticed a few schools encouraging the graduating class to create a time capsule. A newspaper headlining a major moment of that year may be included. Perhaps a trendy piece of clothing or something representing an inside joke. But what if the time capsule included items that represented the students’ values? Perhaps a Magen David […]

It has been a busy time for combatants and spectators in the campus free speech wars. As I was drafting a comment about the University of Michigan, we got word that Northwestern University President Emeritus Morton Schapiro canceled his plan to deliver an invited address and receive an honorary degree from Georgetown University Law School, […]

Sorry to go all-out Dickensian this week, but for global Jewry, it surely is both “the best of times” and “the worst of times.” Not a tale of two cities, but a story of two realities—one sanguine; the other ominous. The Jewish State of Israel is a global phenomenon. Yet, its very existence—and envy over […]

It has been a busy time for combatants and spectators in the campus free speech wars. As I was drafting a comment about the University of Michigan, we got word that Northwestern University President Emeritus Morton Schapiro canceled his plan to deliver an invited address and receive an honorary degree from Georgetown University Law School, […]

We arrived in Morocco feeling a bit anxious. With everything happening with Iran and throughout the region, many of us wondered: was it safe to be here now? Yet the StandWithUs Jewish Heritage Mission to Morocco generated tremendous interest and filled up almost immediately. In fact, there were additional people who wanted to come, who […]

In 1835, the Chatam Sofer, Rabbi Moses Sofer, received the following question: Regarding the shochet (ritual slaughterer) Michael Raab, who serves in a local village. He met a well-respected man, the honorable Rabbi Michael Pashkez from your esteemed congregation. Raab mocked Rabbi Pashkez by telling him that his wife had given birth to a son, […]