Jay Michaelson

Dr. Jay Michaelson [@jaymichaelson] is Associate Editor of Religion Dispatches and the author of five books, most recently "Evolving Dharma: Meditation, Buddhism, and the Next Generation of Enlightenment" (North Atlantic, 2013). He holds a J.D. from Yale and a Ph.D. in Jewish Thought from Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

(A)theologiesSeptember 16, 2010

Political Consequences of a Judging God: A Yom Kippur Reflection

By Jay Michaelson

Yom Kippur is a curious holiday. Widely known, among Jews and non-Jews alike, it is one of the few Jewish holidays also widely observed among the non-observant—probably out of guilt, but possibly out of a vague sense that this is an important day, and fasting is an important thing to…

Politics/LawAugust 20, 2010

The Anti-Defamation League Jumps the Shark

By Jay Michaelson

There was a fair amount of surprise when ADL went on record opposing the construction of a progressive, moderate, multifaith dialogue-oriented Islamic center two blocks from Ground Zero in Manhattan. Wait a minute, my (non-Jewish) boyfriend asked me, did they drop a letter from their name? Are they the Defamation League now?

Sexuality/GenderJuly 29, 2010

Does the Bible Really Call Homosexuality an “Abomination”?

By Jay Michaelson

If by “abomination,” we mean a cultural prohibition—something which a particular culture abhors but another culture enjoys—then the term makes sense. But in common parlance, the term has come to connote something contrary to the order of nature itself, or God’s plan.