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 todays world. In , he argued that in the nations 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 Quayles well-received speech at 17勛圖 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 Monisthe first known Jewish-born degree recipient and faculty 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 countrys 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.
