Posted on Mar 22, 2015 |
Question submitted to “Ask the Rabbi” by: Name: Joanne City: Hemel Hempstead, England Full Question: “All the way through the Old Testament, the Jews are awaiting the arrival of a Messiah. Then Jesus arrives, performs miracles, etc. and many Jews follow him. Why did the rabbis not accept Jesus as the one that they had been waiting for and advise their people to all follow him?” Rabbi Tully Bryks responds: You are correct that we have waited long and hard for the Mashiach (Messiah) to come. His coming is a basic tenant of Jewish faith! There are several reasons why we are still waiting and the vast majority of Jews never accepted Jesus as the Mashiach. Here are just a handful: The Torah (Bible) and the Navi (Prophets) describe many rules for how to evaluate a prophet. One of the key rules for the Mashiach (and any prophet) is that he may not change any law of the Torah. Even if he changes just one law, regardless of how many miracles he may have performed, we are not allowed to follow him/her. The prophesies describing the Mashiach state clearly that the Mashiach would bring the final redemption, including a utopian society with total peace for all people and even animals, whereby “Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall man learn war anymore” and “the lion will lie down with the lamb.” Unfortunately, the past two thousand years have been plagued by constant violence, war and even attempts at genocide. Aside from bringing about world peace, the Mashiach will also bring about the rebuilding of the Beis Hamikdah (Holy Temple). Yet, the 2nd Beis Hamikdash had not even been destroyed by the Romans until 35-40 years after they killed Jesus. So his arrival was a little too early to be considered the Mashiach. Along those lines, the prophets go on to say that the Mashiach will gather all of the Jews back to the land of Israel. It took around 1,900 years since the death of Jesus for the Jews to finally have a state again in Israel. And even today, the majority of Jews still do not live in Israel. The prophesies also state that when the Mashiach comes, “all of the nations will worship the one true G-d,” bringing unity to the world. However, not only do the nations still lack unity in their faith of G-d, there are thousands (perhaps millions) of people who believe in multiple G-d’s or no G-d at all! The prophesies further state that when the Mashiach comes, prophecy will return. Today, the only people claiming to be prophets are typically the ones found in insane asylums. The prophesies further state the Mashiach would be a direct descendant, on the father’s side, from Kind David. For those who believe that Jesus did not have a father, then this would be impossible....
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Posted on Mar 20, 2015 |
Question submitted to “Ask the Rabbi” by: Name: Lee City: Lafayette, LA Age: 57 Profession: Computers Full Question: “Is there an understanding of the calendar date that Abraham went with Isaac for the sacrifice of Isaac? I was wondering if it corresponded to the date of the Exodus from Egypt, but can find nothing in Scripture?” Rabbi Tully Bryks responds: Akeidas Yitzchak (the binding of Isaac) took place in the year 1676 BCE. The Exodus from Egypt and the subsequent National Revelation at mount Sinai took place over 300 years later in the year 1313 BCE. As you may know, Avraham (Abraham) faced 10 major Divinely ordained tests and he successfully passed them all. According to most authorities, the test of being commanded to sacrifice his own beloved son, was the most difficult of all of the tests. The test, however, is called “Akeidas Yitzchak.” Perhaps one explanation is that this test was a test of Yitzchak (Isaac) as well, as he was already 37 years old at the time. And according to the Medrash (insights from the Oral Torah), when Avraham was preparing to tie Yitchak to the alter, Yitzchak asked his father to make sure to secure the ropes tightly, as he did not want to inadvertently flinch and potentially blemish the...
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Posted on Mar 19, 2015 |
Question submitted to “Ask the Rabbi” by: Name: Baila City: Columbia, Missouri Age: 17 School: Public school Full Question: “During Purim, why do we have to hear each word of the Megillah twice? Also if one doesn’t understand Hebrew very well, why do they still have to hear each word of the Megillah twice?” Rabbi Tully Bryks responds: There are several explanations behind the double Megillah reading. I will provide one of the more straightforward answers, provided by the famed commentator Rashi (see Talmud Megillah 4A): Just as the Jews at that time called out to G-d both night and day to save them from potential extermination, we call out our thanksgiving both night an day, as personified by the Megillah. This explanation is consistent with one of the reasons that we don’t recite Hallel (Songs of Praise) on Purim, as the Megillah serves the function of Hallel. With regard to the Hebrew language question, it is permitted to hear the Megillah read in any language that you understand. But you would not fulfill your obligation if it was read in French and you only understand English. Hebrew is different. Even if you don’t understand a word of Hebrew, you still fulfill your obligation, as the Hebrew language has a unique power to it. As such, for someone who does not understand Hebrew, the ideal would be to hear the Megillah read in Hebrew, while following along to yourself with an English translation. In this way, you would obtain the unique spiritual benefits of hearing the words in Hebrew and still get to fully understand everything that was...
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Posted on Mar 18, 2015 |
Question submitted to “Ask the Rabbi” by: Name: Kelly City: Lynchburg, Virginia Age: 29 Profession: Counselor Full Question: “Why is one of the requirements of the Nazarite vow for a man not to cut their hair? What is the significance of side curls?” Rabbi Tully Bryks responds: A Nazir is someone who obligates himself to refrain from certain material pleasures that are normally permitted. The prohibitions include: No grapevine products, including alcohol, grapes and raisins No haircuts or shaving No coming in contact with Tumah (impurity) that derives from dead bodies As a general rule, becoming a Nazir is frowned upon in Judaism, as we believe that G-d gave us this world to enjoy! To help bring this point home, after completes their vow of being a Nazir (the default length is one month), the Nazir must shave off all his hair and then bring a Korban Chatas (a sin offering), in recognition that it was not ideal. However, if taking a vow to become a Nazir will protect someone from a sin, then it would be permitted and even commended. The example given by the Jerusalem Talmud Nedarim (vows) 29A is a case when one witnesses a woman going through the Sotah process (the result of infidelity). One possible explanation is that at such a juncture, he may be enticed to sin as well. By immediately taking a Nazarite vow, he will be less likely to succumb to his temptations. And this would provide an answer to your hair question as well, since by having to shave off all of his hair at the culmination of his 30 days, he would now be in a less likely position to get entangled with infidelity himself. Regarding your second question about Peyos (side curls), the Torah commands men “not to cut off the hair on the side of your heads.” There is a difference of opinion as to how far down the side this prohibition extends. A common interpretation is that the prohibition extends down to the joints near our ears, which is why observant men typically don’t have very short sideburns. Others, including many in the Hassidic community, understand that it extends much further, which is one of the reasons for the custom of Peyos. There is much symbolism to this practice as...
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Posted on Mar 14, 2015 |
Question submitted to “Ask the Rabbi” by: Name: Shevi Lebovics City: London Age: 20 Profession: Social Programme Coordinator Full Question: “This is not a wishy woshy question, its just a simple Halachic question: I work in a care home and I run the programme for the elderly. Part of my job requires me to find someone to lien on Shabbos for the homes shul. Some people do it voluntarily for free, however some ask for payment. I faintly remember learning that there is a problem to pay someone for a job that they do on shabbos. Is that true? If yes, is there a way to go about it?” Rabbi Tully Bryks responds: You are correct that Jewish law prohibits earning money on Shabbos (the Sababth). So what happens in your case when you need someone to Lein (read the Torah) or many other jobs that observant Jews accept such as a Synagogue rabbi or Chazzan (cantor)? As long as the job requires work PRIOR to the onset of Shabbos, which all of these jobs do (preparing the Torah portion, preparing a sermon or preparing the Prayer tunes), then it can be done. The ideal would be to stipulate that you are specifically paying the person for the efforts which they exert prior to Shabbos, but are not paying them for anything they do on Shabbos...
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Posted on Mar 13, 2015 |
Question submitted to “Ask the Rabbi” by: Name: Leanne City: Pompano Beach, Florida Full Question: “Can you please tell me if gambling is a sin. I like to play bingo and sometimes the slots. I now have a greater understanding of the whole Torah, but I cannot find the answer to that question in the Torah” Rabbi Tully Bryks responds: Although gambling is not expressly addressed by the Torah itself, regular gambling is prohibited by Jewish law as a form of stealing. One common explanation is that both parties expect to win and certainly didn’t want to lose. As such, when one party does lose money, even though they had verbally agreed to the terms, it is still considered theft according to the Jewish law, since they never really wanted to part with their money. Based on this rationale, some would permit gambling under certain circumstances. Here are three examples: Gambling in a Casino – If someone wins money gambling in a casino, we don’t need to worry about the losses to the casino, since they come out ahead overall. The problem is that most people lose money at a casino. So the potential way around this would be for a person to stipulate a specific amount of money that they are prepared to spend (lose) for a fun day (or hour) at the casino. Just as it is common for people to pay $50-$100 for a good day at an amusement park, or $20 for a hour or two of fun playing arcade games, it would be reasonable for a person to proclaim that they are willing to spend $50 for the joy of playing games with all of the frills associated with a casino (the stipulation must be sincere). Such a person would have to stick with their preset daily spending, no matter what. It is worth noting that even though such a strategy would address the theft concern, many authorities would still prohibit gambling in a casino due to the negative overall environment and damage that is done to society. Unfortunately, it is often poor people who lose the most, and gambling addictions have destroyed families. Purchasing a Lottery Ticket – If a person is sad every time they don’t win, then it could be a problem. But if a person focuses on who is being helped by the lottery, such as schools or hospitals, and is perfectly happy to spend (or donate) that $1 towards helping that particular cause, then even the loss could be considered a gain and not theft. Bingos and Raffles to support Tzedakah (charities) – If a person’s main focus is supporting the institution and any incidental winnings are looked at merely as a side benefit, then this would be the least problematic of all all forms of gambling. It is worth noting that if a person wishes to deduct their...
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