Dear JITC- How do we know that God created the world out of kindness? How do we know that God doesn’t lie? Thanks, Jake Dear Jake- I must confess that this is one of the more interesting questions I’ve received, as well as one of the more challenging in that if one assumes the worst […]

Dear JITC- I was told by my rabbi that the fifth book of the Shulchan Aruch is seichel, but what sources tell us that we should use seichel (our common sense)? Thanks, Malky Dear Malky- If you want to see a source that we should use common sense, look no farther than the Torah itself. […]

Dear Jew in the City- Since the election, it is clear that both political sides doubt each other’s integrity. It made me think about the requirements for Jewish leaders according to Torah. What kind of qualities did leaders have to have to sit on the Sanhedrin or be a judge? Thank you, Steve Dear Steve- […]

Dear Jew in the City- Are there any Torah sources to counter anxiety? To live in the present and not worry about the future? The election outcome is making me nervous. Thank you, A.C. Dear A.C.- Thanks for your question. When I was 18, my life was profoundly changed by the book Gateway to Happiness […]

Dear JITC- Is there a problem with trick-or-treating according to Judaism? If so, why? Thanks, Jamie Dear Jamie- Thanks for your question, though I don’t know how relevant it will be this year. Thanks to the global pandemic, I suspect there will be far less trick-or-treating this year than in the past, and I certainly […]

Dear Jew in the City- How does Judaism know which experts to trust on controversial topics such as masks and vaccines? I understand that the Jewish approach is to guard our lives by taking care of our health, but what if there are different medical opinions? Thank you, Boruch Dear Boruch- Thanks for your question, […]