From: Aaron Dear Rabbi, One of my sons, he’s 8, is really a source of tension at home. His behavior is totally unacceptable. And what’s worse, no matter how I punish him, it doesn’t help. He gets this rebellious spirit that won’t break. My wife and I are very disturbed by this, and are losing[…]
From: Melissa Dear Rabbi, I got into a situation which I knew I shouldn’t have been in. It’s not that I knew that would be the case beforehand. Maybe I wasn’t careful enough, but in any case, it wasn’t intentional. Anyway, despite the fact that I shouldn’t have been involved, after the fact, it seems[…]
From: Mordechai Dear Rabbi, Is there such a thing as special rocks from Mt. Sinai? I heard that there is an image of a bush ingrained in the stones of Sinai that are supposed to be reminiscent of the burning bush. Is there such a connection between Sinai and the bush? Have you actually seen[…]
From: Lenny Dear Rabbi, Would you please explain to me why the Land of Israel is considered more important in Judaism than other lands and why Jews consider their connection to it to be unique? Dear Lenny, Judaism considers the Land of Israel to be unique, and uniquely related to the Jewish People, for many[…]
From: Alicia Dear Rabbi, I have a question about the Jewish notion of time. We reckon the days by number, 1 through 7, where 1 is Sunday and 7 is Saturday. But most of the world uses names to identify the days of the week. That makes more sense to me. For one, names are[…]
From: Melissa Dear Rabbi, I am hosting my first Shavuot meal this year and I’d like to know what to prepare. I know each holiday has its own special cuisine and featured foods, but I thought the basis for Shabbat and Holiday meals was always meat or poultry. My sister said that Shavuot is different[…]
From: Mordechai Dear Rabbi, I have trouble accepting the idea that everything comes from G‑d, and that even the bad things that happen in life are for the best. Would you please elaborate on this idea for me and how one can actually integrate this idea into his life? Because, to be honest, I think[…]
From: Jackie Dear Rabbi, Like everyone, I mess up sometimes and do things I know I shouldn’t be doing. The problem is, rather than doing teshuva and relying on G‑d to forgive, an inner voice convinces me that after what I’ve done, it would be a chutzpa to serve G‑d. And that rather than getting[…]