Dear Jew in the City- It seems a little scary to fear God. How am I supposed to have a good relationship with a Being of Whom I’m terrified? Thanks, Maddy   Dear Maddy- Thanks for your question, which is not an uncommon one. The problem here boils down to one of linguistics. I’ll illustrate. […]

Dear JITC- When learning about Akeidas Yitzchak (the Binding of Isaac), my daughter asked me what I would do if God asked me to sacrifice her like he asked Avraham to sacrifice Yitzchak. How do you respond to such a question? Best, A.S. Dear A.S.- I’m going to say that, should God command such a […]

Dear Jew in the City- If I told anyone I was in a relationship with someone that really, really loved me and I was happy in my relationship, and I’d even die for it, people would be really happy for me. If I told them I’d never met him, but he’s always watching me, they’d […]

Dear Jew in the City- With a spot opening up the Supreme Court, abortion is in the news a lot these days. This got me thinking – is Judaism pro-life, pro-choice or some combination? All the best, Ruby Dear Ruby- Sometimes they’ll ask me to field a question and I’ll decline on the basis that […]

Dear Jew in the City- Two people have told me that July 4, 1776 was on the 17th of Tammuz. Wikipedia confirms this. Does that indicate something negative about America? Sincerely, J.S. Dear J.S.- Thanks for your question. Rav Salman Mutzafi (a student of the Ben Ish Chai and the author of Siddur HaRashash), Rav […]

Hi Jew in the City- Why don’t Orthodox Jews shake hands with members of the opposite sex? Thank you, Lloyd Dear Lloyd- This is a slightly-loaded question in that it makes a number of assumptions and you’re going to meet people who may not live up to those expectations. I agree with the basic premise, […]