From: Joel Dear Rabbi, How do we “know” that the Torah was given by G‑d at Sinai and not man-made? And even if it was given by G‑d, how do we know that all the teachings ascribed to the Torah were given by G‑d as opposed to the rabbis having made much of it up?[…]
From: Simeon Dear Rabbi, I came across your response Lunar Liturgy on the meaning behind the practice of sanctifying the new moon, which I found very interesting. I was wondering if you could elaborate on the details of the service regarding how and when it’s done. Thanks. Dear Simeon, Kiddush Levana, the Hebrew term for[…]
Esav Complex From: Gabe Dear Rabbi, I don’t understand why Jacob was allowed to deceive Isaac to get the blessing that belonged to Esav, and why he was allowed to take that blessing. Furthermore, what was he doing dressing up as Esav, which certainly seems to indicate that he knew he was doing something wrong?[…]
From: Jonathan Dear Rabbi, I read that G‑d remembers good deeds for thousands of generations. However, bad deeds are carried onward for three or four generations. This infliction on those who are yet unborn or on those who are not directly responsible for the bad deeds does not seem right to me. Perhaps you could[…]
From: Jack Dear Rabbi, Maybe my wife is more spiritual than I am, but she’s always encouraging me to be observant because of the World to Come, whereas I say that if I’m going to do something it’s because it will benefit us in the here and now. Would you please help clarify this for[…]
From: Adrian Dear Rabbi, Is the observance of the eighth day of Chanuka related to the way in which outside of Israel festivals are observed for two days? Dear Adrian, This is an interesting suggestion. But although the day is certainly a special day, for reasons I’ll write below, it doesn’t seem to be for[…]
From: Tami Dear Rabbi, I’ve heard a question about how many days Chanuka should be – since the oil burning the first day wasn’t a miracle, we should really only light for seven days. But I don’t remember the answer. Could you please “illuminate” this for me? Thanks “a latkes”. Dear Tami, A good question[…]
From: Menashe Dear Rabbi, The ba’al teshuva movement seems to be successful in connecting non-observant people, particularly student-aged, to Judaism. On the other hand, unfortunately, there are young people raised in the system that are disconnecting. Are there methods that the established religious community could learn from the ba’al teshuva movement to keep kids from[…]