The Brewing Modern Orthodox Schism

Last month, The Wall Street Journal published a story detailing how efforts to liberalize the Catholic Church may eventually lead to a "schism." While the piece is specific to Catholicism, similar discussions are occurring within Modern Orthodoxy, a stream of Judaism practiced by approximately 5% of American Jews. The Modern Orthodox movement is closely associated with the late Talmudic Master Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, who understood that strengthening Jewish identity could be achieved by synthesizing religious halakha (traditional Jewish law) with modern secular thought.