The tragic events of September 11th, 2001 shook the world, permanently changing the lives of millions of people.

In the wake of 9/11, the Jewish community has looked to its tradition for guidance on how to react to these horrific attacks, both intellectually and in practice. Contending with Catastrophe: Jewish Perspectives on September 11th reflects two aspects of the Jewish tradition.

Jewish law, and its response to the families of many individuals who went missing in light of this tragedy. Each essay provides us with an accumulated perspective of how the Beth Din of America addressed the many cases.

Jewish ethics and theology. How should we, as a community and as individuals, respond to the presence of evil or the occurrence of tragic events? Each essay in this section offers a different perspective and response.

Contributions by: Rabbi J. David Bleich o Rabbi Zalman Nechemia Goldberg o Rabbi Chaim Jachter Rabbi Norman Lamm o Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein o Mr. Milton Moshe Markovitz Rabbi Yona Reiss o Rabbi Gedalia Dov Schwartz o Professor David Shatz o Dr. Avi Shmidman Rabbi Ben-Tzion Spitz o Rabbi Mordechai Willig and Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef