Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo is the Founder and Dean of the David Cardozo Academy and the Bet Midrash of Avraham Avinu in Jerusalem. A sought-after lecturer on the international stage for both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences, Rabbi Cardozo is the author of 13 books and numerous articles in both English and Hebrew. He heads a Think Tank focused on finding new Halachic and philosophical approaches to dealing with the crisis of religion and identity amongst Jews and the Jewish State of Israel. Hailing from the Netherlands, Rabbi Cardozo is known for his original and often fearlessly controversial insights into Judaism. His ideas are widely debated on an international level on social media, blogs, books and other forums.
To what is one’s most fundamental commitment: to a tradition or to God? To what extent can these two be separated from one another and to what extent can the distinction serve as a guide in a religious crisis?
In one of its most fascinating narratives, the Talmud (Shabbath 88a) draws attention to the problem of religious coercion. The passage reports how God threatened the Jews standing at Mount Sinai and delivered an ultimatum. Lifting the mountain and holding it over their heads, He pronounced: “If you accept the Torah, fine; if not, there […]
There is one law in the Jewish tradition that no doubt has puzzled many of its scholars: that which prohibits the Jew from mixing milk with meat. Its source is found in the Torah (Shemoth 23:19, 34:26; Devarim 14:21), but no clue is provided as to its meaning.
The public is invited to attend the 5772 / 2012 Jerusalem Lecture Series "Judaism, Heresy and Secular Philosophy" Professor Yehuda Gellman will speak on the topic of The Dawkins Delusion: A Response to Richard Dawkins' Book, The God Delusion
Reprinted at the request of many who attended Limmud Conference, Warwick, UK, December 2011; Original printing in Israel’s Hebrew weekly Makor Rishon newspaper, December 2009 Don’t be shocked. But I need to be honest. I am contemplating taking off my kippah. No, do not worry. I have no intention of becoming irreligious, or even less religious. Far from it. In fact, I want to become more religious and have come to the conclusion that my kippah prevents me from doing so.
There is nobody like our God! Who is like our God? Few prayers are more perplexing than the one called “Ein Keloh-enu.” This famous song-prayer is sung at the end of the morning prayer. But it makes little sense. In fact, it seems more than just odd. We first sing “Ein Keloh-enu” (There is nobody […]
The public is invited to attend the 5772/2012 Jerusalem Lecture Series “Judaism, Heresy and Secular Philosophy” Professor William Kolbrener will speak on the topic of “Milton, Paradise Lost, and Me: Is Our Paradise Lost? Desire, Skepticism and Belief” Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 8:00 PM Yad Harav Nissim, 44 Jabotinsky Street, Jerusalem
In Education
We often ask whether the Jews constitute a race; a people; a religion; a cultural entity; a historic group; or a linguistic unit. But we do not ask what we are spiritually; who we are morally; what we owe the world and what our mission is.
Part Two of Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo’s article, Judaism: The Art of Bold Ideas, which appeared in print today in the Jerusalem Post. Read it now on the JPost’s website here.
Part one of Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo’s article, Judaism: The Art of Bold Ideas, printed recently in the Jerusalem Post, can be read on the JPost’s website here. The Jerusalem Post will print part two this weekend.
Throughout the centuries, historians, philosophers and anthropologists have struggled with the notion called Israel more than with nearly any other topic. While attempting to place Israel within the confines of conventional history, they experienced constant academic and philosophical frustration. Any definitions they suggested eventually broke down due to serious inconsistencies. Was Israel a nation, a […]
The public is invited to attend the 5772/2012 Jerusalem Lecture Series “Judaism, Heresy and Secular Philosophy” Professor Ephraim Meir Will speak on the topic of “The Crisis of Jewish Identity and Franz Rosenzweig” Wednesday, November 30, 2011 at 8:00 PM Yad Harav Nissim, 44 Jabotinsky Street, Jerusalem