The Tekiah Gedolah Shofar Blast
Question: I have read that the sequence of the trumpet sounds on the Feast of Trumpets was first made about 300 CE in Rosh Hashanah 34. It does give a certain sequence of the shofar sounds, but the...
View ArticleAshkenazic Jews
Question: I have been looking into my ancestry and just found that we are German Ashkenazic Jews. I don't really understand what that means. I have read that Ashkenazic Jews aren't of the Promise to...
View ArticleRibis Interest on a Car Lease
Question: Is there a problem of violating the Jewish law against charging or paying interest when leasing a car from a Jewish owned leasing firm? Would it be better to avoid any questions and lease...
View ArticleUmbrella in the Sukkah
Question: Is it OK to open an umbrella inside the Sukkah? I know that covering the Sukkah with something plastic/weather resistant changes invalidates the Sukkah. But what about opening an umbrella or...
View ArticleWhat is a Sukkah?
Question: What is a sukkah? Answer: A sukkah is a booth roofed with tree branches, plant stems or leaves. The Torah requires us to live in a sukkah on the seven days (outside Israel: eight days) of the...
View ArticleEtrog
Question: Where in the Torah does it specify that we should use an Etrog (citron) during the holiday of Sukkot. I always thought the Torah referred to a citrus but not specifically a etrog. Answer: The...
View ArticleNoah Born Circumcised
Question: I read on your site that Noah was born circumcised. Can you tell me specifically in Torah where that is? Answer: It isn't explicitly in the text, but it can be found in the Midrash on...
View ArticleThe Generation of the Flood: Why Water?
Question: Why was the generation of Noah punished by water and not by fire or any other way? What is the idea or connection between God's selection of flood as we all know God punishes us measure for...
View ArticleUnderstanding the Tower of Babel Episode
Question: I am confused by these following verses in Parasha Noah: G-d descended to see the city and the tower, which the children of men had built. G-d said: "Behold, they are a single people, all...
View ArticleChallenging to Get to Prayer
Question: I am 54 with many changes going on, physical and mental. I go to therapy sessions. I also have a challenging past. Sometimes I can't go out to go to Shul (synagogue), it takes everything for...
View ArticleI Don’t Want to Have Children
Question: I'm in an orthodox Jewish girls high school and I had made a decision that I really don't want to have kids. I've worked with kids a lot and I have a lot of experience with babies and young...
View ArticleWhy did Lot go to Sodom?
Question: If Abraham knew that Sodom was such a bad place why did he allow his nephew Lot to go there? Also why is it that the Torah uses such a phrase as "separate from me" instead of just go that way...
View ArticleDid Abraham Make a Treaty While Sleeping?
Question: It is said that God made a promise/covenant of the halves in a dream. Why is an agreement signed wherein one party is asleep and the other is awake? Answer: That is a very interesting...
View ArticleAbraham’s Plea for Sodom
Question: Why did Abraham stop negotiating with God on the destruction of Sodom and Gemorrah at 10 righteous men? Answer: The sages say that Abraham extrapolated from Noah -- in the time of Noah there...
View ArticleWhy Choose Abraham and his ancestors?
Question: Out of all the people of the ancient world, why did Gd choose Abraham as the ancestor of the 'chosen people'? And why did he chastise the Israelites through death so often? Answer: There is...
View ArticleAbraham’s Circumcision - Why did he wait?
Question: If Abraham kept all the laws of the Torah (as the sages say in the Talmud) and even the one that the Rabbis gave us later why wasn't he circumcised until 100 years old? Answer: You're asking...
View ArticleUnderstanding the Sacrifice of Isaac
Question: Can you direct me to any texts debating whether Abraham failed G-d's test when he was willing to proceed with the sacrifice of Isaac? Answer: You will not find any real source material...
View ArticleUnderstanding the Sacrifice of Isaac II
Question: What is the importance of the akeidat Yitzchak (binding of Isaac) in Judaic thought? Answer: Let us put this event in the context of Abraham's life. Abraham was called "Ish Ivri" ("man of the...
View ArticleEliezer’s Repeated Story
Question: In the Torah portion of Chayei Sarah the story of Eliezer and Rivkah (Rebecca) is written twice. What are the differences and why is Eliezer's name not mentioned? Answer: Hi! Thank you for...
View ArticleShoveling Dirt on the Coffin
Question: Why do family and close friends cover the coffin with a few handfuls of dirt at a funeral? Answer: A rabbi once told me of an experience he had in the greater NY area. He was called in to...
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