Dear Jew in the City, I read that until Talmudic times, Jewishness used to be passed on through patrilineal descent. Is that true? If true, why did it change? If false, why do people think that? Sincerely, Harry Dear Harry, Thanks for your question. We have discussed matrilineal descent before, so let’s recap that first. […]
Dear Jew in the City, Does a couple have to get divorced if they don’t produce children? Sincerely, Karen Dear Karen, Thanks for your question. Once again, I’m going to reiterate the distinction between halacha and halacha l’maaseh, i.e., between Jewish law and its practical application. Not everything you may see in the law codes […]
Mazi Pilip is a county legislator in Nassau County. She and Allison connected at an End Jew Hatred event. Ethiopian-born, Mazi was a participant in Operation Solomon (1991) as a child, which airlifted 14,000 Ethiopian Jews in jumbo jets to Israel. She moved to the United States in adulthood. Ethiopian Jews have a rich history […]
Thirty-six years ago, one fateful Sunday morning, my wife Rochel Leah suddenly passed away. I was 38 years old, and she was 36. We had 11 children together. I’m a Chabad rabbi; I always had faith in God. But I couldn’t comprehend this. Why would God take away a mother, a pillar of our community, […]
Dear Jew in the City, I feel like a bad Jew, what should I do? Sincerely, Joe Dear Joe, Thanks for your question. For the edification of readers, this question was received in response to the article “What’s the Difference Between Guilt, Regret and Feeling Like a Bad Jew?” In that article, I dismiss the […]
In November, our JITC Hollywood Bureau attended the Television Academy’s DEI summit where they told us to be brave and asked if they had missed any points. I was. They had. I explained that they had forgotten the Jews. An academic entertainment group at UCLA, Scholars and Storytellers, heard by impassioned speech and wanted me […]
