From: Stephanie Dear Rabbi, My husband and I are expecting a birth soon, and we were wondering, if it will be a girl whether there are any special considerations or customs regarding giving a name. We are familiar with the name giving for a boy at the brit, but is there anything like this for[…]
From: Olivia Dear Rabbi, I want to educate my children properly, but I am having difficulty with the concept of the “yetzer hara” or evil inclination. On the one hand, attributing bad behavior to the “yetzer hara” avoids giving children the impression that they, in essence, are bad when they do something wrong. But on[…]
From: Leah and Feigie Dear Rabbi, We heard there’s a concept not to wear clothing of someone who has passed away. Does this always apply, and to what types of clothing? Dear Leah and Feigi, Jews are allowed to wear the clothing of a deceased person, but there has arisen a widespread custom – based[…]
From: Jeremy Dear Rabbi, I had a distant, elderly relative from my father’s side who I met once as a child and then once again as a young adult. The last time I remember thinking about her was when my father told me she passed away which was many years ago. Recently, I had two[…]
From: Allison Dear Rabbi, I need to give my daughter a Hebrew name. Someone I know said not only must the name be Hebrew but it must be Jewish as well. So on all these baby name websites that show Hebrew names for girls, many of them I like, he said I cannot use because[…]
From: C. Dear Rabbi, I am compelled to ask a question about my mother. She has been a person who during her lifetime has had periods of depression. As a child, I remember when her father had a heart attack and I was about 6 years old, she went through a severe depression that scared[…]
From: Anonymous Dear Rabbi, I have a sensitive question that I’m embarrassed to ask rabbis I know, so I thought to ask through this medium. I hope that’s OK. The question is like this: Thank G‑d I am expecting, and it looks like it will be a boy. Now my grandfather, unfortunately, is very ill[…]
From: Anonymous Dear Rabbi, I have been religious for some time now. In fact, I have been shidduch dating for what feels like too long. I’m wondering if my Hebrew name has anything to do with the delay. You see, growing up, in Sunday school, I used a particular Hebrew name, and that was the[…]
From: Manny in Denver Dear Rabbi, I have recently started saying kaddish for my father, of blessed memory, who passed away a short time ago. Since I have only a rudimentary Jewish background, I am finding it very difficult to recite the kaddish and pronounce it properly. Not only is this embarrassing, I feel awkward[…]
From: Stephanie in Tucson, AZ Dear Rabbi, This past Shabbat I was with my children in the shul playground and a boy came up to my son and started pushing him and wouldn’t let him down the slide. I asked him to stop and told him it wasn’t nice, but he wouldn’t listen. So I[…]