Dear Jew in the City, Why does Hashem need our prayers, especially when He already knows what we want and need? Why is prayer so important? Sincerely, Rachel   Dear Rachel, Thanks for your question. Unfortunately, you’ve got things backwards. God is complete and perfect; we’ve got nothing to offer Him that He “needs.” Sure, […]

Dear Jew in the City, Did the Jewish people have any pre-battle prayer in biblical times? Best, Asher Dear Asher, Thanks for your question. Before I answer it, I’d like to address prayer more generally. I once heard a rabbi say that we shouldn’t take Israel’s battles against Muslim countries lightly. This is because we […]

Dear Jew in the City, What is tashlich? Does it really have to be done by a pond with ducks? Do we really have to throw bread in the water? Sincerely, Noah   Thanks for your question, Noah. Tashlich is a prayer typically recited on Rosh Hashana afternoon, intended to help guide us in the […]

Dear Jew in the City, What does it really mean to do teshuvah and how do we do it properly? Sincerely, Noah Dear Noah, Thanks for your very timely question. Taking a page from the sage Hillel, I’ll explain teshuvah “on one foot.” When my oldest child was young, he had a toy car that […]

Dear Jew in the City, I saw that the Shema was trending recently. Can you tell me a little bit about this prayer? Sincerely, Jonah Thanks for your question, Jonah. There’s a lot to say about Shema. For starters, did you know that it’s a mitzvah? I don’t mean that it’s a mitzvah to recite […]

“Ma, there’s a fire!” is not what I wanted to hear as I was preparing for Passover by self-cleaning the oven. This was followed shortly by an explosion as the oven’s glass door shattered, leaving glass and burn marks all over the kitchen. Thankfully no one was hurt (except the flooring, which bears the marks […]