In February and March 2024, the has continued to make a significant impact across the media landscape, with multiple new publications, podcasts, and other contributions.
In The Wall Street Journal, Director Rabbi Dr. Meir Soloveichik a deeper understanding of the iconic painting Washington Crossing the Delaware, and on the 25th anniversary of The Matrix, he on the meaning and relevance of the 1999 sci-fi classic for today’s world. In , he argued that in the nation’s response to the explosion of antisemitism since October 7, nothing less than the future of the free world is at stake. And in , he explored how the president of Argentina captured, in a single moment, what the Western Wall is all about.
Deputy Director Rabbi Dr. Stuart Halpern co-authored , a unique Haggada that collects primary sources and essays to highlight the impact of the Exodus story on American history. For Presidents’ Day, writing for , he examined a Revolutionary-era Hebrew prayer for George Washington. And in , he previewed videos the Straus Center produced with on “The Hebraic Heroes of America.” For Purim, Dr. Halpern published timely articles in (selected as a worthy read by ’s daily roundup), , and , and he joined the new podcast to discuss his edited volume Esther in America published by the Straus Center.
Senior Scholar Dr. Tevi Troy returned to ’s Take One Daf Yomi podcast for Bava Kamma 104 to discuss agents in presidential administrations. In , he placed the looming rematch between Biden and Trump in the context of previous rematches in the history of presidential elections. And in the , he reconsidered former VP Dan Quayle as model for the 2024 GOP running mate pick and discussed Quayle’s well-received speech at app University in 1989. Dr. Troy also taught a class on “Jews and the American Presidency” for the .
Program Officer Yisroel Ben-Porat joined to discuss his fall 2023 article in Tradition on the enigmatic early eighteenth-century figure, “Rabbi” Judah Monis—the first known Jewish-born degree recipient and app member at Harvard.
Finally, Associate Director Dr. Neil Rogachevsky argued in that citizens of the Jewish state must recover the single-minded attention to security that typified their country’s early days. And Straus Scholar Rebecca Guzman (SCW ‘26) reflected in on her trip to Israel in January as part of a Straus Center solidarity mission.
