Dear JITC- Who is allowed to be zealous like Pinchas? Are we allowed to use him as a model for extremist, vigilante behavior or is there a rule to cap zealotry? Thank you, C.T. Dear C.T.- Who is allowed to be zealous like Pinchas? Short answer: not you. The longer answer follows. Let’s review the […]
A couple weeks ago Chanale Fellig approached us explaining that a Tiktoker called Emma’s World had made a viral and very historically inaccurate video claiming libelous things about Jews and our ties to the land of Israel. She wanted to know if we were interested in setting the record straight. We said we must. The […]
Dear JITC- Israel is being accused of being genocidal murderers and war criminals. Are there sources that show that Jews love life and value universal humanity? Thank you, Ari Dear Ari- Thanks for your question. I don’t think it’s that Jews love life per se, I think it’s that God loves life. This is a […]
Dear Jew in the City- What does it mean that every soul was at Har Sinai but there are more Jews today then there were then? Thank you, Shanie Dear Shanie- Thanks for your question. You seem to understand that midrash to suggest that all the souls were there bodily but I don’t think that’s […]
Several times each day, we describe God in our prayers as a shome’a tefila, One who hears prayers. “Hear our voice, Hashem, our God…accept our prayers with compassion…don’t turn us away empty…Blessed are You, Hashem, Who hears prayer.” This blessing of the Amidah prayer paints a nice, neat picture of the relationship between our prayers […]
What’s the purpose of a miracle? There are of course many answers, including those that are specific to the particular miracle in question. For instance, I recently learned how Abarbanel (15th-century Portuguese commentator) explains the purpose of one particular miraculous moment in the Book of Judges. In Judges Chapter 13, a malach appears to the […]
