Conservative Judaism's evolution from a purely legal (halakhic) framework to a more expansive interpretive approach reveals deep tensions in how the movement understands sacred texts. At the heart of this shift lies a scholarly debate between David J. Fine and Alvin Kaunfer about when and how midrashic interpretation emerged as a central dynamic within Conservative ideology. Through textual analysis of their communications, Fine challenges Kaunfer's historical timeline, pointing to Abraham Joshua Heschel's 1956 "God in Search of Man" as evidence that midrashic terminology appeared earlier than previously thought. Fine contends that midrashic and halakhic processes are fundamentally identical, while Kaunfer draws important distinctions between Heschel's specific use of midrash as human interpretation of divine revelation and today's broader understanding of midrashic process in interpreting Jewish texts and culture. Their exchange illuminates how Conservative Judaism has expanded from early ideologues' focus on halakhic interpretation to embrace a more comprehensive midrashic framework that integrates both legal and narrative elements of Jewish tradition, while maintaining the crucial role of halakhic process.