The Elliot Resnick Show

When did people start making schlissel challah? Why do women light multiple Shabbos candles when the Gemara says to light one? Why do we say "Shalom Aleichem" at Kiddush Levanah when according to Shulchan Aruch we should say "Shalom Alecha"? Rabbi Dr. Zvi Ron, author of Jewish Customs: Exploring Common and Uncommon Minhagim, answers these fascinating questions and more.

Professor Bryan Caplan, a bestselling author and economist at George Mason University, discusses some of his most controversial books, Don't Be a Feminist, The Case Against Education, Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids, and Build, Baby, Build.

Rabbi Ben Packer, director of the Jerusalem Heritage House, returns to give an update on the Israel-Gaza war. Why is Israel giving free food to its enemy? Should Israel establish Jewish settlements in Gaza? Was giving the Sinai Desert to Egypt a mistake? Why did Israel respond with a whimper after Arabs set Yehoshua's tomb on fire the other week? Will a true Jewish leader ever take charge in Israel? If yes, how? Rabbi Packer answers these questions and more.

Liberals (and a handful of conservatives) believe dropping the atom bombs on Japan in August 1945 was immoral. But what was the alternative? Could the U.S. have won the war in a less bloody fashion? Could American and Japanese lives have been saved? Mike Cote – a highly knowledgeable historian whose articles have been published by National Review and The Federalist – discusses these fascinating questions and more. Mike Cote's website: https://rationalpolicy.com Cote's articles discussed on this podcast: "Dropping the Atomic Bombs Was Good, Actually" "The Seafloor Is Now a Theater of War – and America Is Not Prepared"

Mrs. Sarah Karmely is a Mashhadi Jew who was born in India, grew up in England, married in Italy, and now lives in America. An author, teacher, marriage counselor, and international lecturer, she started becoming frum after her husband suddenly became totally paralyzed and then just as suddenly – and inexplicably – started talking and walking only after hours after receiving a beracha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

Yeshiva University has a long history of tolerating extreme left-wing views and activities on campus (while showing little tolerance for extreme right-wing views). To cite just two examples: It employed a transgender professor for 15 years and continues to employ a Bible(!) professor who advocates ignoring the Torah's views on homosexuality. Can YU therefore continue to call itself a Torah institution? Jonathan Gross, formerly a rabbi in Omaha, Nebraska (who sold chametz to Warren Buffett), and today a civil rights attorney, joins the program to discuss this question. Books by Rabbi Jonathan Gross: AI Vey: Jewish Thoughts on Thinking Machines Values Investing: An Omaha Rabbi Learns Torah From Warren Buffett One of the books YU banned from its Seforim Sale: Kahane on the Parsha: Over 100 Divrei Torah on War, Faith, and the Future of the Jewish State The subject of Elliot Resnick's canceled lecture: America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust

When you speak to young children, end your sentences with a period, not a question mark. So advises Mrs. Rebecca Masinter, a mother of six and the author of a weekly parenting column based on the parsha. (She's also a great-great niece of Reb Elyah Lopian.) Among her other pieces of advice: Project confidence in front of your children, don't be afraid to be different, trust your intuition, hold off on the cell phone, and don't rush to bring you kid to an "expert." You're the expert when it comes to your child, she argues. Mrs. Masinter's website: www.mothersguidance.com Book mentioned in the interview: Bad Therapy: Why the Kids Aren't Growing Up

Is Christianity an enemy of Judaism or its "daughter religion"? Rabbi Dr. Moshe Miller, a professor at Touro College, discusses his new book on the views of Rav Yaakov Emden, Rav Yaakov Ettlinger, Rav Esriel Hildesheimer, and Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch on non-Jews and Christianity. Rabbi Miller's book: Samson Raphael Hirsch's Universalism and the German-Jewish Quest for Emancipation

Is Candace Owens an anti-Semite? Should we be joining the name-calling brigade? Do we want to destroy a force for good over one issue? Does calling people anti-Semitic accomplish anything, even when we're right? book mentioned in the episode: America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust

Avi Ciment – a proud Modern Orthodox Jew, inspirational speaker, and son of the first Shomer Shabbos mayor in America – diagnoses some of the problems in his own community. Among the issues he addresses: texting on Shabbos, homosexuality, talking in shul, and the divine authorship of the Torah. Avi Ciment's book: Real Questions, Real Answers

In wake of the horrific attacks of Oct. 7, more and more people regret not paying closer attention to the warnings of Rabbi Meir Kahane. But not YU. In a stunning display of intolerance and vindictiveness, its Seforim Sale is once again categorically refusing to sell Kahane on the Parsha. Write to its CEO, Yosef Silver, to protest: ysilver@TheSeforimSale.com. Buy the banned book here: Kahane on the Parsha Also banned: Revolution or Referendum Uncomfortable Questions for Comfortable Jews

Chazal advocate early marriage and frown upon divorce. Yet, several so-called frum organizations and community leaders are now discouraging early marriage and encouraging divorce. Rabbi Hillel Handler – a longtime activist who testified in Congress in support of the nomination of Robert Bork to the Supreme Court in 1987 – addresses this scandal.

A popular corporate speaker who once caught Bill Gates' attention when he refused to lecture on Shabbos, Kivi Bernhard is the son of a distinguished South African rabbi, a judo medalist, and the author of Leopardology: The Hunt for Profit in a Tough Global Economy. He's also a proud Jew, which has helped him become a highly successful businessman.

Did frum Jews – and rabbanim – in America fail their brethren during the Holocaust? Yes, according to Zalman Alpert, a longtime reference librarian at Yeshiva University and an expert on the topic. In this wide-ranging interview, Alpert discusses the Holocaust, Lubavitch, unfortunate developments at YU, self-hating Jews, the rise of "sectarianism," and more. book mentioned in the interview: America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust – by Elliot Resnick

Did frum Jews – and rabbanim – in America fail their brethren during the Holocaust? Yes, according to Zalman Alpert, a longtime reference librarian at Yeshiva University and an expert on the topic. In this wide-ranging interview, Alpert discusses the Holocaust, Lubavitch, unfortunate developments at YU, self-hating Jews, the rise of "sectarianism," and more.

It sounds too good to be true, but New College, a woke institution of higher learning in Florida, is in the process of becoming conservative/classically liberal thanks to Governor Ron DeSantis. Can this be just the first of similar transformations around the country? Bruce Abramson, PhD – the author of several books and New College's recently-hired dean of admissions – thinks so. He also believes that the new New College is a perfect fit for motivated Jewish students looking for an intellectually curious pro-Israel campus.

What can we do about the recent rise in anti-Semitism? Clearly the growth of America's Muslim population isn't helping matters (it's doubled since 9/11 thanks to our immigration policies), but no one seems interested in tackling this issue. So will the problem get worse? Do Jews even belong in America? Dov Hikind, founder of Americans Against Antisemitism, addresses these questions and more. guest's website: https://americansaa.org.

Israel needs a Kach prime minister now more than ever. So is there a movement to lift the ban of Kach? Yekutiel Ben-Yaakov – who served as chief of operations for Rabbi Meir Kahane (and his son) – says no such movement currently exists, but he argues that it may be unnecessary. Circumstances are pushing Israelis into seeking Kahane-like solutions almost against their will, he says. Revolution or Referendum – Rabbi Kahane's last book Kahane on the Parsha

What's the object of war? Should America care about Israel's war against Hamas? Do we want it involved? Should Israel target Arab civilians? How innocent are civilians after all? Listen to an interesting array of arguments and quotes from such people as the Netziv, Rabbi Meir Kahane, Ze'ev Jabotinsky, William Tecumseh Sherman, and Winston Churchill.

Should Israel reduce Gaza to rubble? Reestablish Gush Katif? Kick the Arabs out? Rabbi Ben Packer – director of the Jerusalem Heritage House and co-director of Young Jewish Conservatives – discusses these questions and more. Rabbi Ben Packer's Facebook page Arutz 7 article by Elliot Resnick