Finnegan’s Awakening: An Excerpt from Fragments of a Future Scroll
An excerpt from Fragments of a Future Scroll by Reb Zalman.
March 2, 2026
Teiku
A dilemma was raised before the Sages: Whose approach is preferable—Rabbi Zeira’s or Rabbah bar Rav Mattana’s? Rabbi Zeira is sharp and raises questions, Rabba bar Rav Mattana is balanced and offers solutions. What was the Sages’ conclusion? Teiku! The dilemma shall stand unresolved.
In Talmudic Aramaic, teiku means, simply, “let it stand.” It is the word the Sages used to indicate an unresolved question or point of debate. Some also suggest that the word is an acronym for the phrase, “Tishbi (or Elijah the prophet) will resolve all difficulties and questions.” That is, Elijah—who, according to tradition, will return to announce the Moshiach—is the only one who can adjudicate the issue.
Teiku signals humility in the midst of dispute—inviting us to zoom out, to acknowledge the limitations of our perspectives, and to hold space for opposing viewpoints. Teiku also reminds us that sometimes we need to let certain questions stand unanswered—at least for the time being. It is this openness to intellectual uncertainty and exegetical polyphony that offers us the space to respectfully disagree and collaboratively imagine a more expansive resolution.
It is in this spirit that we decided to name this column Teiku—a space for bold and creative explorations of Jewish texts and practices.
Teiku is curated by Ayin contributing editor, rabbi, and scholar Shaul Magid.
Foreword to Reb Zalman’s Fragments of a Future Scroll
Rabbi Tirzah Firestone's foreword to Fragments of a Future Scroll by Reb Zalman.
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From Lamentation to a New Jewish Vision
What might this story—of chutzpah, betrayal, prophecy, power, violence, vision, destruction, and rebirth—have to offer us this Tisha B’Av?
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The Distance We Have to Travel: Snapshot of an Intergenerational Jewish Conversation after October 7th
Letters between an American rabbi and her daughter in the wake of October 7th and the war in Gaza.
April 15, 2025
Goddard College: A Requiem
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July 5, 2024
“What Else Could This Be?” Excerpt from The Place Of All Possibility
How do we responsively relate to the world, to each other, to ourselves, if everything is in a process of constant change?
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Who Owns the Holy Land? Thoughts on Homeland, Rights, and Ownership
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December 21, 2023
What are we praying for?: Reimagining the Third Temple in Jewish Thought and Politics
Author’s note: This text was completed before Hamas’s attack on October 7th. It is noteworthy that Hamas named its attack ...
December 15, 2023
An Invitation to Shapeshift: A Talmudo-Poetic Conversation on Post-Activism with Báyò Akómoláfé
Editor’s Preface The following is an after-image of a recent conversation between Dr. Báyò Akómoláfé and Rabbi Nate DeGroot. Báyò ...
October 2, 2023
The Bush Is Still Burning: An Interview with Arthur Waskow Celebrating His Ninetieth Birthday
Arthur Waskow (b. 1933) was born and raised in Baltimore. He graduated from Johns Hopkins University, and went on to ...
September 13, 2023
Zionism and the Sacramental Danger of Nationalism: Susan Taubes on Israel
Editor’s Preface Few people know the name Susan Taubes. That will soon change. Elliot Wolfson’s new book, The Philosophical Paths ...
June 2, 2023
The No-State Solution: A Conversation with Daniel Boyarin
For nearly a half century, Daniel Boyarin has been one of the most influential and prolific scholars of rabbinic culture, ...
February 2, 2023
Paradigm Shift & Jewish Law
In the first installment of Teiku, scholar Shaul Magid explores Zalman Shachter-Shalomi’s Paradigm Shift Judaism as a kind of avera lishma—a sin for the sake of heaven.
December 29, 2022