Rosh Hashanah is the day when we gaze upon the sunset of a year gone by; a year filled with so much universal pain and upheaval; a year riddled with so much chaos, turmoil and tribulation; a year in which yet more lives were devastated by the treacherous arm of terror; a year in which[…]
Dear Rabbi My grandfather passed away a while back and my grandmother wants to give his several pairs of shoes, all in good condition, to a charity shop. I was once told you can give away clothing but never shoes. Is this another Jewish superstition? Raymond Dear Raymond, It’s not about not being allowed[…]
Dear Rabbi Last year I spent Pesach at a hotel in Israel and got to watch enviously as so many people were enjoying all the rice concoctions while I had to sit idly by and enjoy my more bland Ashkenazi diet. Is there any way I can switch to becoming Sephardic next year? Julie-Ann […]
Dear Rabbi Would it be permissible for one to walk to a football match on Shabbat if they didn’t carry anything or break Shabbat in any way and picked up their ticket at the ground? James Dear James, And what if you are a Chelsea supporter and after you arrive, you watch them lose,[…]
Dear Rabbi Is there a law concerning drinking wine after the burial of a family member? I have seen this done and wonder whether there is a source for it? Ronnie Dear Ronnie, There is a custom to give mourners some wine after the burial. The source is the verse in Proverbs (31, 6),[…]
Dear Rabbi I am not Jewish but I wonder if it is true that Jewish people do not get out of bed in the morning without washing their hands first? How are you supposed to do this unless you have a sink next to your bed? Yvonne Dear Yvonne, You’ve obviously never visited a[…]
Dear Rabbi I attended a synagogue recently for a Bar Mitzvah. I noted how some of the Jews rock when they pray. Why? Vera Dear Vera, We don’t just rock – we roll! Some of the suggested reasons are as follows: 1. There is a verse in Psalms (35:10) which says, All my bones[…]
Dear Rabbi I have a large storage shed which is used to store bicycles. Does it require a mezuza? David Dear David, The guiding principle for this is that if the storage area has a door frame (however thin) or a structure with two uprights and a lintel then it requires a mezuzah. The[…]
Dear Rabbi Why does the Torah refer to converts as strangers? Doesn’t this imply inferiority? Are they not considered fully-fledged Jews upon conversion? Dasa Dear Dasa, In Judaism, a convert is called a “stranger” for two reasons: because he comes a foreign culture and foreign beliefs, and because he comes outside the socio-ethnic and[…]
Dear Rabbi 1) You once claimed that you have a family-tree going all the way back to King David. This is a very strong claim. Could you provide some evidence for this? 2) You once also ridiculed the assertion that there would have been records of Israels tribes in the temple. As you regard this[…]