What is Shibboleth?
Shibboleth is Yale University’s sole undergraduate journal devoted entirely to Jewish thought and ideas – religious, political, cultural, literary, and philosophical. We write about things like why Hebrew schools are ruining Judaism, how Philip Roth was really a Zionist after all, why theocracy is great, and how in the world Nietzsche came to be translated into Yiddish. The articles in the magazine are broad in scope, diverse in religious and political leanings, and often iconoclastic.
More fundamentally, Shibboleth is a kind of club. All of those who write for the magazine are editors, and all of the editors are writers. We have biweekly meetings where the whole editorial staff comes together to schmooze about the articles and the ideas within them, help one another with our writing, and try to grow and learn without getting into too many fights. The result is a tight-knit group of undergraduates with a shared passion for Jewish issues, writing, and discussion, and a familiar, friendly forum where we can all come together to discuss them.
What’s It Like to Write for Shibboleth?
Shibboleth is a big commitment, but the gratification far outweighs the onus. The editorial staff meets twice a week for an hour, and every session is devoted to reviewing and critiquing one of the articles for the upcoming issue. Each editor is responsible for writing one full-length article per-semester (in addition to reading and editing everyone else’s), so everyone has an equal role and stake in the issue being successful. Over the course of the semester, each article is workshopped and revised, and then peer-reviewed and revised again over break, so that working together, we can be sure to put out the best product possible.
Experientially, it’s fun to watch the group grow tighter over the course of the year, and see how everyone contributes a bit of their own personality to the banter that characterizes the meetings. The people in Shibboleth are friends that you know you can come to with your existential concerns and nerdy jokes, sure of being met with just the right mix of wit, sarcasm, and warmth.
How to Join:
If you’re interested in joining, seek us out at the Yale extracurricular activities bazaar, or at the Slifka Center’s bazaar immediately following; we’ll be at both. Or, you can just send us an email at shibbolethmagazine@gmail.com – make sure to include your name, email, and phone number. At that point, we’ll get in touch with you, and we’ll figure it out from there!
Who’s in Charge of Shibboleth?
All members of Shibboleth are editors, but the buck stops at two editors in chief, chosen every year from among the ranks. This year’s EICs are Yishai Schwartz (’13) and Richard Kahn (’13).