ABSTRACT
This contribution focuses on the role of the concept of idolatry in the discourse of some contemporary orthodox rabbis on the Internet who belong to the Religious Zionism movement in Israel – the most important centre of contemporary orthodox Jewish life. Does the concept of idolatry, either as literary rhetoric or theological conviction, have traction in modern and contemporary contexts? Beginning with an overview of the attitude towards idolatry in Rabbinic Judaism in different and changing historical and socio‐religious contexts, from the Bible, the Second Temple era to late antiquity, medieval Rabbinic Judaism, and Modernity, the attitude towards this concept in the modern world is assessed through the medium of internet responsa, a relatively new phenomenon of the past two decades.
