From: Jeremy Reissman Dear Rabbi, When parents name a child, why is it permitted to give the child a non‑Hebrew name, such as Yiddish or Middle Eastern names? Thank you. Dear Jeremy, Allow me to address your question in the broader context of name giving. One category of names regards those in transliteration, by which[…]
From: Michael Hartman in NY Dear Rabbi, I am sometimes in a situation either socially or at work where I want/have to give/exchange food gifts with non-Jews. Now I realize that they don’t have to eat kosher, but am I allowed to give them non-kosher food as a gift. It would seem that I can,[…]
From: Alex in Toronto Dear Rabbi, I understand that Chanuka is in the winter months because that’s when the world is darkest and Chanuka is about bringing light into the darkness. Are there other, more text-based reasons for Chanuka occurring when it does? Dear Alex, Surely, the fact that Chanuka, called the Festival of Lights[…]
From: Dave in Detroit Dear Rabbi, I’m not Orthodox, and I’m not even religious. I am getting interested in finding out more about Judaism, though. Some things make sense to me, others I’m working through. Some practices seem meaningful to me, others I’m still searching for meaning. However, I recently had an experience which was[…]
From: Aharon in Monsey, NJ Dear Rabbi, Why is the name of G‑d written in the siddur as two yuds? In my siddur – “Tefillat Kol Peh” – it is written as two ‘yud’s everywhere that I looked, with the exception of shirat hayam (the song at the sea). Why is this so? I suspect[…]
From: Balint in Grinall, Iowa Dear Rabbi, I have the following question that no one could answer yet: Why is honey kosher? I thought that the product of non-kosher animals was not kosher as well. Bees are not kosher, so why is honey kosher? I appreciate your time and hope you know the answer. Thank[…]
From: Daniel Branower Dear Rabbi, Why do many Torah observant Jews who live in Israel dress in a European style, as opposed to a more Mediterranean or “native” style? If the idea is that Jews are returning from exile to Eretz Yisrael, their ancestral home, why the adherence to the traditions and customs of the[…]
From: Bradley in Milton, MA Dear Rabbi, Can one play a game like Scrabble, Monopoly or Chess on Shabbat? Dear Bradley, Let’s start with Scrabble. Does the forming of a word by placing letters next to each other on a Scrabble-board transgress the prohibition against “writing” on Shabbat? In addition, since people keep score when[…]