From: Melissa Dear Rabbi, I keep Shabbat but I feel that the nitty-gritty halachot take away from the beauty of Shabbat in that they make people more worried about how to open a can on Shabbat then to actually truly observe it. I have seen people actually embarrass others by calling them out on little[…]
From: Bart Dear Rabbi, Jerusalem isn’t mentioned in Islam’s “Koran,” but I don’t think it’s mentioned in the Five Books of Moses either. I’ve heard it argued that the Koran’s omission of Jerusalem shows a lack of connection between Islam and Jerusalem, but can’t the same be said of Judaism? Dear Bart, Jerusalem is mentioned[…]
From: David Dear Rabbi, We are told that G‑d is perfect. How do we know that? If G‑d is perfect, then how did He create an imperfect world? Rather, since His creations are imperfect, doesn’t that show that He is imperfect? Dear David, This is a great question! It is one of the things that[…]
From: Todd Dear Rabbi, What is Parashat Zachor, what does it have to do with Purim, and why is it read on Shabbat and not on Purim itself? Thanks for your time. Dear Todd, It is a positive Torah commandment to remember and verbally recall the wicked attack perpetrated by the people of Amalek against[…]
From: Isaiah Dear Rabbi, I have found recently that I have been craving for a walk in nature and have found an overwhelming sense of inner peace when I meditate on a place from memory. My question is why do I always find a connection to G‑d through nature? Dear Isaiah, In our age of[…]
From: Yarin Dear Rabbi, There is a certain life decision which I am facing and I just don’t know what to decide. What’s more, it’s not entirely dependent on me, but also whether I’ll be accepted even if I apply. Ultimately, I feel I’m procrastinating starting the process because I’m afraid I’ll be rejected, and[…]
From: Miriam Dear Rabbi, The Torah relates how Miriam and Aaron criticized Moses for marrying a Cushite woman. Since Cush is in Africa, and I think it’s considered to be Ethiopia, does this mean that the Torah would prohibit or discourage marrying a dark-skinned person? I can’t accept that the Torah would have such a[…]
From: Allison Dear Rabbi, All of the “celebrations” surrounding the New Year made me ponder whether there’s a particularly Jewish approach to calculating time. I know Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, but is there a Jewish number of years? Also, I was wondering whether there are Jewish months, or even Jewish days for[…]