Question: What does the “faithful” mean in the phrase said before the Shema prayer – “El melekh ne’eman” – “Mighty, King, Faithful” ? The word “faithful” is also at the end of the first... 

Question: Why are ancient Jewish Kings permitted to marry up to 18 wives and not more? Answer: Thank you for your excellent question! In the Torah (Deuteronomy 17:17), it says, “And he shall not take many wives for himself, in order that his heart... 

Question: My husband and I, who are not Jewish, have been in deep discussion about religion lately and have decided to explore Judaism, mainly because it makes no sense to follow any other religion. Other religions were made up by man to fit their lifestyle.... 

Last Wednesday, I blogged a story that had Israel dropping equipment for an attack on Iran at an airfield in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. What none of us can really be sure about is whether to believe the report. Here are some expert opinions and I will follow... 

Question: Did the Israelites carry idols with them across the Red Sea? What’s the source for that? Answer: Thank you for your excellent question. There is some disagreement. For sure there was only one idol crossing, if there was any at all. There... 

Question: Can you tell me what traditional Jewish opinion on women Rabbis is? I know that certain branches of Judaism do not allow it. How come? Could you give me any scripture references from the Torah? Answer: We must understand that although commonly... 

Is anti-Semitism the litmus test? An opinion column in today’s Globe and Mail suggest that, Since anti-Semitism is now symbolic of all racism and persecution, denouncing it can act as a sort of shortcut to prove compassion: I oppose anti-Semitism,... 

As a coda to the discussion about the woman arrested for wearing a tallit at the Western Wall, , this little Torah nugget came through my Facebook from my friend Simon. This, he writes, “opinion [was] expressed almost 300 years ago in R. Yom Tov... 

Recently, the Rabbinic Assembly, the organisation that represents Conservative rabbis, issued a statement, signed by 300 members, asking that Nazi rhetoric not be used in political discussions. The JTA reported they included examples such as “Southern... 

“We are all mediators, translators.” -Jacques Derrida There have been three distinct moments since I began learning in the Jewish legal tradition that have significantly altered my perspective on the goals and intent of what we apply the...