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Shabbos: A Personal Contract
Shabbos (Shabbat) as a "sign." The delight of Shabbos. More than just a part of our lives. The value of Shabbos.
The Reason For Shabbos
Some of the reasons that Hashem gave us the gift of Shabbos (Shabbat/Sabbath). Spiritual benefits and physical rest.
Find a Place to stay and/or eat for Shabbos
Links to websites that can help you find places to eat and/or stay for Shabbos.
The Weekly Portion of Torah
How to study the Weekly Portion of the Torah. Preparing for Shabbos. A Deeper Understanding of Reviewing the Parshah. When to Study the Parshah.
Preparing for Shabbos
How the Children of Israel prepared for Shabbos in the Desert, and how we prepare for Shabbos today. Shopping for Shabbos. Cooking and Cleaning. Personal Preparations. Final Preparations.
Erev Shabbos (Friday) Check-Off List
Erev Shabbos To-Do List. Organize your Fridays! Print out and attach to your refrigerator or bulletin board, and check off each item as its done.
Lighting Candles
The Procedure and Blessing for Lighting the Sabbath Candles
Friday Night Kiddush
Declaring the holiness of Shabbos by honoring it with a cup of wine.
Washing for Challah
Beginning the Sabbath Meal. (Challah is the special Shabbos bread.)
Benshing (Birchat Hamazon)
The Grace after Meals
Sholosh Seudos
The Third Shabbos Meal
Havdalah
Remembering Shabbat as it ends
After Havdalah
The Blessing after the Wine
What
is Being Jewish?
Judaism is not a "quick-fix"
religion. It takes total immersion, and it lovingly encompasses all
of a person's life.
What
Does Judaism Believe?
The religion of life. The primary
beliefs of Judaism are touched upon here, and some major myths about
Judaism, G-d, and life in general are debunked.
The
Path of Repentance
How to repent. Repenting a bit at a time.
What if you sin again? Sinners that go to Heaven.
The
New Moon, and the Power of Judaism
The importance of the New
Moon in Judaism. How it was inaugurated in ancient times, and how it
was set for the future. A beautiful Midrash that speaks of the power
of Judaism in the spiritual realm. The relationship and difference
between Shabbat and the Holidays.
Why
Did G-d Create the World?
What purpose do we have in life?
Why are there two worlds, this one and the next?
Does
Judaism Believe in Satan?
Is there a guy in a red suit and a
trident? Is Satan, if he exists, a rebellious angel? Does Satan
bother us? If so, why? This article should be read after the above
article, Why
Did G-d Create the World?
Torah:
The Blueprint of Creation
What the Torah means to us and the
world. Why study Torah? How to combat the Evil Inclination.
What's
the Point of Prayer?
"G-d, I don't ask You for much."
Is that a compelling prayer? * The most important creation in all the
universe. * How is life like a wedding feast? * What does prayer
accomplish?
Partners
In Torah
Find a personal trainer for your Torah study! Run by
Torah Umesorah, this is available all over North America. This is the
program with which I am involved.
Learn
Hebrew
Links to online websites with programs and games for
learning Hebrew and other Jewish subjects.
Aleph-Bet
Chart
Learn to read Hebrew in just a few lessons! It's worth
your time.
A Beginner's Reading List
Two reading lists for those who wish to learn about Judaism.
Your
First Visit to a Synagogue
What to expect in a synagogue,
what to do there, and how to find one to go to.
Coming soon, Hashem willing:
Becoming Religious: Where do You begin?
You were raised Christian, but you just found out your mother is/was
Jewish (which means that you are). What now?
Sudden
Changes: Is Orthodox Judaism Driving Our Family Apart?
Is
your child becoming Orthodox? Are you worried that you will lose your
child, or that your family will be torn apart? What can you do about
this?
Sudden
Changes: How Do I live With My Parents?
For the Baal Tshuvah
Son or Daughter. How do I explain that I don't want to hurt anyone?
How to keep a happy family life after Tshuvah.
Is
Judaism a Cult?
Jewish parents worry, when their children
become Orthodox, that perhaps their children are joining a cult. How
can we demonstrate that Judaism is not a cult?
Bris
Milah: The Covenant of Circumcision
Why that part of the
body? How is circumcision a completion of the human male? Why don't
women have a comparable Commandment?
Circumcision
and Your Child's Health
Is it safer to have a doctor or a
Rabbi circumcise your son? The difference between the two, and which
it is better to use.
An
Exchange of Holiness: Redeeming the Firstborn Son
The special
status of "firsts." An act of gratitude. Firstborn and
priests. Why a Redemption?
Pidyan
Haben: How to Redeem Your Firstborn Son
Who Gets
Redeemed? When is the Redemption Performed? The Amount of
the Redemption. Preparing for the Ceremony of the
Redemption. The Ceremony of the Redemption.
The
Bar and Bat Mitzvah
How does a boy become "bar
mitzvahed" and a girl "bat mitzvahed?" What ceremony
is needed? What does the term mean? What is the history of it? What's
the purpose of it? The right and wrong ways to do it.
The
Jewish Wedding
The special status of a bride and groom. What
a Jewish wedding really accomplishes. What you should expect to see
at a Jewish wedding, and their reasons. The two parts of a Jewish
marriage, and the entire procedure.
How
to Dress and Act at a Jewish Occasion
Is it okay to bring a
friend? Expected dress, and a little about the reason for this
expectation.
About
the Jewish Marital Laws
A beginners guide to Taharas
Hamishpachah, the Jewish Marital Laws. The Holiness of the Laws,
and some basic instructions on how to keep those Laws, as well as
some books for suggested reading on the subject.
The
Shivah Call: Comforting the Mourner
What do I do? What do I
say? The importance of visiting a mourner. The Laws to keep at the
home of a mourner.
Connections Are Never Lost
Can the living help the dead? What can you do for those you have loved who are no longer here?
Birchas Hachamah - The Blessing of the Sun
Only Once in 28 Years! The Purpose of the Blessing; About Saying the Blessing; When to Say the Blessing; Who Should Say the Blessing
One of these days, hopefully sooner than later, I hope to have articles about the following subjects as well:
Bris Milah (Covenant of Circumcision), The
ceremony and celebration.
Kiddush for a girls' birth
First haircut for a boy
Anything else I may have forgotten.
Part
One
What does "Torah" mean? And what do "Tanach,"
"Halachah," "Mitzvah," "Mezuzah," and
"Tefillin," mean? Why do some people write G-d"
instead of spelling it out in full? How does Kosher work?
Part
Two
What is Shabbos/Shabbat? Why don't Jews believe in jesus?
How does the Jewish Calendar work? Why are Jewish Women allowed to
wear wigs?
Men
and Women in Judaism
Is a Wife the property of her husband,
in Jewish Law? Does a Man "Inherit" his Brother's Wife When
the Brother Dies? Does Judaism Consider Women Unclean or Disgusting?
Why won't Men Touch Women?
Good
and Evil
Does Judaism believe that the world is in a Conflict
Between Good & Evil?
What's
With Those Kosher Symbols Anyway?
Are those O's and U's
really necessary? What are they for? Do Rabbis really bless the food?
A lot of hate groups talk about this, without any understanding of
the subject. Here's the truth.
Halloween
and Jews?
Are Judaism and Halloween compatible? Can it fit
into Jewish life?
Who
is a Jew, According to the Torah?
Is being Jewish passed
along by the father or the mother? Has that ever changed? What made
our ancestors Jewish? Where in the Torah does it say what makes a
person Jewish? Did the Rabbis change this Law?
Was
King David Jewish?
Does Halachah (Jewish Law) consider King
David a Jew, or has Jewish Law changed since then? What is the
Torah's definition of a Jew? Were Abraham and Sarah Jewish? Did
Abraham know the Torah? Were there converts in Biblical times? Did
Ruth convert? Did Moses marry a Gentile woman?
Judaism:
Race, Religion, or Ethnicity?
Is being Jewish related to
being part of a race or a religion? Is it cultural? No matter what
position you take in this matter, this is probably not the answer
you're expecting.
Life, the Afterlife, and the Soul
The
Soul, and What Happens After We Die
The soul is not what you
think it is. The multi-faceted nature of the human spiritual
essences. What happens to those spiritual essences after death? What
goes where, and what comes along with them? Is there such a place as
Hell? Is there an Afterlife?
The
Messianic Era and the World to Come
How long will this world
last? What do we mean by the resurrection, and when will it take
place? What is the World to Come, and what will it be like? What will
the Messianic Era be like, and when will it happen?
The
Afterlife
Is the Purpose of Life to Aspire to the Afterlife?
A brief restatement and outline of the timetable of the future. The
advantage and purpose of this world and the Next World.
Body
and Soul
Why does Judaism Forbid Cremation? What is the
Relationship Between the Body and the Soul?
On
the Nature of Free Will
Does Judaism believe that people have
free will? What does "free will" really mean, according to
Judaism? Where does the Torah mention free will?
The Jewish G-d: What's He Like?
G-d:
Judge or Teacher?
My response to a letter I received which
said: "The traditional Jewish G-d is too vindictive, vain, and
controlling." The truth is that Jews and Judaism consider G-d
loving and kind. Read his letter and my response.
Why
does G-d Care About the Little Things?
Does G-d really care
if we rip toilet paper on the Sabbath? Does G-d watch us to see if we
are doing sins? Isn't it enough to have a Jewish heart?
The
History of the Exodus and the Receiving of the Torah
What
really happened in Egypt and afterwards. This also has a
capsule history of the Children of Israel from Noah until The Second
Temple.
The
Jewish History Timeline Chart
A brief chart of the time line
of Jewish History, with major events from Creation until the birth of
the Bal Shem Tov (1698), with both the Jewish and Gentile dates
listed for each. A glance at the names of the eras of Jewish History.
How
Old is the Torah?
Showing that the Torah is at least 3,313
years old. The Periods of Jewish History (in brief). Tracing the
Torah back to Moses. Who are the Samaritans, and how do they help
prove our case? The Torah was created by Hashem 2,000 years before
Creation.
Scripture
Only, Please: Asking Questions
The relationship between the
Written Torah and the Oral Torah. How not to ask a
Rabbi questions.
The
Indispensable Oral Law
How to understand the Torah. Why do we
have an Oral Torah? Is it necessary?
Why
Did Hashem Create an Oral Torah?
Why did it need to be oral,
and not written? Its unique properties. The details it contains.
Context and changing idioms. The personal touch.
The
Oral Law and Our Own Opinions
Is every opinion about the
Torah valid? Are there guidelines to interpreting the Torah? Do we
need to follow established precedence? What to do in case of doubt.
Where did the Oral Law come from?
How
the Torah was Taught and Transmitted
Part 1: From Moses to
Joshua.
How Moses taught the Torah to the Generation in the
Sinai Desert. What Hashem taught Moses, and what Moses taught the
Children of Israel. The types of sections in the Scrolls of the
Written Torah. The system of Elders and Leaders. The Sanhedrin and
the Lower Courts. The Mosaic Ordination. Who wrote the Written Torah?
Moses hands over the leadership of the Torah Nation to Joshua.
How Do We Know Our Tradition is Correct?
Should we simply accept the Tradition as true? Who owns the
Torah? Who recorded the Torah? How was the Torah taught? How the
Rabbis felt about the Tradition. Where is all that information from?
Has
Judaism Changed?
Has Judaism taken ideas from Gentile
cultures? What about styles of clothing? Are the Laws of Judaism
still followed?
Sacrifices
and the Holy Temple
Since Jews live by the Torah, and the
Torah commands us to offer sacrifices, why don't we still offer
sacrifices today?
Rebuild
the Temple?
The Holy Temple was built, destroyed, and built
again. Then it was destroyed again. The Prophets said it would be
rebuilt yet again, for a third and final time. Why don't we rebuild
the Holy Temple now?
Haven't
Rabbis Changed the Laws?
The nature of the Rabbinical
debates. Our authority to decide Jewish Law.
What
Can't Jewish Law be Altered?
Do People Change? How have we
Jews differed? Have we ever fit into the dominant societies? Is
Judaism Archaic? Judaism is not static.
The
Platforms of Some of the Jewish Denominations
People keep
asking me about the difference between the various movements. Here's
the answer in brief.
The
Origins of the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox Movements
An
article by Lawrence Keleman in Jewish Action magazine, Summer
1999.
Please note that I did not write this article. The author,
Mr. Lawrence Keleman, was a member of all of these movements at one
time or another. None of the claims made in this article are Mr.
Keleman's. For every statement he makes about any group he quotes
sources from that very group. So when he tells you what the
Reform say, he is telling you what Reform leaders have written in their very own
books and periodicals.
Can
We Fulfill All the Commandments?
Did you know that there
really is no such thing as the "Ten Commandments?" The
"Commandments" mean something else. Is it true that a
person cannot fulfill all the Commandments of the Torah? If this is
true, what does it mean to each of us? Here's the surprising answer.
How
the Mitzvos Protect Us From Sin
The Physical versus the
Spiritual within us. Why Jewish women are like the Priests in the
Holy Temple.
Shatnez:
Forbidden Mixtures of Clothing
Are all mixtures forbidden?
Which are, and which aren't. How prevalent is this problem? Do people
still keep this prohibition? How to have your clothing checked for
shaatnez.
The
Mitzvah of Tefillin
What Tefillin are, and a little bit about
how they are made. Understanding the Mitzvah. Some of the Laws about
wearing Tefillin. How to put on Tefillin, with pictures to help.
Tzitzis:
What Are Those Strings Jewish Men Wear?
About Tzitzis:
four-cornered clothing and Jewish Law. How we have Standards in all
our actions. How to remember G-d and the Commandments. The blue
thread.
Mezuzah:
The Jewish Lightning Rod.
What is that little box on the
doorposts of Jewish homes? How a Mezuzah is made. What a Mezuzah
looks like (includes a gif of a Mezuzah scroll). Who may write a
Mezuzah. What sort of door needs a Mezuzah? How to affix a Mezuzah on
your door, and the blessing to recite. Where to buy a Mezuzah. The
protection a Mezuzah offers.
Becoming
Jewish.
For non-Jews who want to convert to Judaism. The pros
and cons, how to do it, and what you need to know, as well as links
and contact information for Rabbis who help with conversions in
various parts of North America. Plus a link to a page with
Hebrew-language tutor software.
They
Say You Can't Choose Your Family...
What if your spouse
doesn't want to convert with you? Must you choose Judaism over your
family? What if you feel you won't fit in because you don't have
children?
Teenage
Converts
A Christian teenager wrote me about the problems he
has with his parents because he wants to become Jewish. Here is his
letter and my answer with my advice on the subject.
Non-Orthodox
Conversions: Are They Valid?"
Some Fundamentals. What
conversions are valid? Other requirements. Isn't sincerity enough?
How to Find a Rabbi or Synagogue
Websites with lists of or search engines for Rabbis and/or synagogues.
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More Holiday Gateways under construction. And Hashem willing, we hope to eventually develop a gateway to the joys of keeping Sabbath the Jewish way.
And don't
forget to visit
Kressel's
Korner
where you can read about numerous women's issues.
And of course, my
Online and offline resources for learning more about Judaism.
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