Aish HaTorah

Thank you so kindly for your thoughtful response. As I read it, it made me think of something I've been meaning to ask of you or any Christian who cares to respond. Why do you suppose the Church changed the Shabbat being on Saturday (Friday sunset to Saturday sunset) as directed by Scripture to Sunday instead?

All of this talk! And you've missed the key to it all! What you need, my friends, is a Yente! For a modest fee, she will see to all your matchmaking needs.

For the sake of conversation... ...May I ask you: Is the purpose of your church (individually or collectively) the same as that of the synagogue? Has this changed over time, or does it remain the same? I am referring, specifically, the the local warehouse (or the idea of warehouses, collectively) and not the larger mission of LDS evangelism, etc. Let me give you an overview of the synagogue as well as synagogue life so that you may better assess what similarities and differences they may have with your warehouse. (I sincerely hope that I am using that term--wardhouse--correctly. It didn't seem right to say "building." Even before the destruction of the Second Temple, perhaps even in early Biblical days, there were already rudimentary synagogues in ancient Israel. It clearly became the central institution for the cultivation of the faith during the Babylonian captivity. The restoration under Nehemiah and Ezra left a large Jewish Diaspora outside the Holy Land, and that Diaspora increased in succeeding ages. Its central institution was the synagogue. Here the Jews gathered to pray together, but that was not its most important function. The mitzvah (commandment) to pray, we believe, is incumbent upon every individual Jew, three times a day--morning, afternoon, and evening--and there is relatively little difference in the prescribed order of prayer between the service as said in public in the synagogue and the version of it that is prescribed for the individual. The central function of the synagogue is to cultivate a value perhaps more important than prayer to Jewish faith--study of the Torah. On Shabbat (the Sabbath) as well as on festivals (Feasts of the L-rd) people gather in the synagogue to hear a reading of a passage from Torah and to be led in the understanding of its interpretation. This is enshrined in the central act of public worship in Judaism on every major occasion. The Scroll of the Torah, which is written in prescribed ancient form by hand on parchment made of the skin of a (kosher) animal, is taken from the Ark and an appropriate section is read. On the Shabbat, the cycle of readings from the Torah comprises a consecutive reading of the Five Books of Moshe in the course of the Sabbaths of the year. A complementary section from Prophets, known as the Haftarah, is also read on Shabbat and Festivals. The synagogue is a Beit K'nesset (House of Assembly), a Beit Tefilah (House of Prayer), and a Beit Midrash (House of Study). How do you see the building in which you worship? I know that it is an important gathering place for you. Do you see it functioning in the same way? Are there differences? Thank you kindly! Shalom, shalom.

Ok, so I am not LDS, and I must preface this by apologizing for posting here when the thread is directed at Saints in the US. I do not mean to disregard or cause offense. I chose to weigh in because this is a topic that is of extreme importance to me as an American, as a Jew, and as a Rabbi with a decent sized congregation. Jews, particularly American ones, have a longstanding aversion to guns. According to a 2005 American Jewish Committee study, Jews have the lowest rate of gun ownership of among all religious groups, with just 13 percent of Jewish households owning firearms (compared to 41 percent for non-Jews) and only 10 percent of Jews personally owning a gun (compared to 26 percent). This is a point on which I strongly take issue. I am pro-gun, pro-self defense, pro-concealed carry. I carry everywhere I go, including the synagogue, and I was a firearms instructor for many years. So why do I feel this way and step away from the majority of Jewish sentiment in the US? There is famous Talmudic dictum: "If someone comes to kill you, rise up and kill him first. This statement from the Talmudic sage rava is derived from a Mishnah passage that permits a homeowner to kill an intruder in self-defense if the trespasser arrives in the night. Some Jewish gun proponents have argued that since the Torah commands self-preservation, acquiring the means for that preservation is also a religious requirement, with some going so far as to suggest that gun control laws prevent Jews from exercising their religious obligations. More than this, we know that דוד המלך (King David) protected his flock, and so, too, shall I. I will do what is necessary in order to keep my congregants safe. Just my .02

So there is my thing. I am unabashedly conservative in my thinking (politically, morally, fiscally), and I should, by all rights, be against a show that has pushed toward the Left for a very long time. But I find it quite engaging. I am a big Baker fan...He was my Doctor growing up (Yeah...I guess that ages me), and I also enjoy the newer doctors. Interestingly, it was Tom Baker who first suggested that his replacement, when he regenerated, should be a woman. It never happened then, obviously. I am a Jodie Whittaker fan from other things in which she has appeared, so I do not overtly dislike her. I'm glowingly getting used to 13...... ...although, as a Rabbi, some of the Islamic stuff I have to look past.

Answer me this... ...Are you a Whovian? Do you know what that is? Surely there must be some of you who have been bitten by The Doctor.

When I clicked on this thread, I must say, it was nothing that I was anticipating. I, too, have fridge horrors. Mine involve something to the effect of, "I'd really like a snack, but that jar of left-over gefilte fish from last Passover isn't looking too promising." EDIT: Let it be known to all, however, that I am something of an avid Star Trek fan.

I'm just curious... I think most Jewish parenting can be neatly summed up with two words: Worrying and Anxiousness It's true! I could probably also throw in a little passive aggressive and carefully selected wording to everything they say. Especially Jewish mothers. The following is a letter I found some time ago. I did not write it, but I think is wonderfully sums up how it is to grow up with and then leave the home of a Jewish mother. It is called "A Letter From a Jewish Mother to Her Son on Chanukah... Dear Darling Son and That Person You Married, Happy Chanukah to you, and please don't worry. I'm just fine. Considering I can't breathe or eat. The important thing is that you have a nice holiday, thousands of miles away from your ailing mother. I've sent along my last ten dollars in this card, which I hope you'll spend on my grandchildren. G-d knows their mother never buys them anything nice. They look so thin in their pictures, poor babies. Thank you so much for the birthday flowers, dear boy. I put them in the freezer so they'll stay fresh for my grave. Which reminds me -- we buried your Grandfather last week. I know he died years ago, but I got to yearning for a good funeral, so your uncle Mordecai and I dug him up and had the services all over again. I would have invited you, but I know that woman you live with would have never let you come. I bet she's never even watched that videotape I sent you of my hemorrhoid surgery, has she? Well son, it's time for me to crawl off to bed now. I lost my cane beating off muggers last week, but don't you worry about me. I'm also getting used to the cold since they turned my heat off and am grateful because the frost on my bed numbs the constant pain. Now don't you even think about sending any more money, because I know you need it for those expensive family vacations you take every year that I'm never invited to go on. Give my love to my darling grand-babies and my regards to whatever-her-name-is -- the one with the black roots and blonde highlights who stole you from my bosom. Happy Chanukah, Mother

What a beautiful parsha is Bo! When we invite the L-rd G-d of heaven to come into our heart and our life, we feel His abiding love and shalom. He attends us daily and nurtures within us a deeper love for Him and for all His children.

Prayer is, indeed, the key... Supplication is an invitation to the Almighty, blessed be He, to intervene in our lives, to let His will prevail in all our affairs; it is the opening of a window to Him in our will, an effort to make Him the L-rd of our soul. We submit our interests to His concern, and seek to be allied with what is ultimately right. Our approach to the holy is not an intrusion, but an answer. Between the dawn of childhood and the door of death, we encounter things and events out of which comes a still small whisper of truth, not much louder than stillness, but exhorting and persistent. Yet, too often, we listen to our fears and our whims, rather than the gentle petitions of G-d. The purpose of prayer is not the same as the purpose of speech. The purpose of speech is to inform; the purpose of prayer is to partake. I realize that I am somewhat late in joining this dialogue, but I couldn't very well let all these Pentecostals and non-denominational Christians steal all the limelight! We Jews have to poke our noses into things. In all earnestness, I pray the G-d of Israel instills in you His wisdom and His shalom.

I'll stick with Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

But surely you know of our propensity for Chinese food! A Jew is practically walking in sin if he does not visit a Chinese restaurant on Christmas! I'm fairly certain it was the 11th commandment...

And...it's kosher, to boot!

May your day be filled with joy and rejoicing in G-d's majesty and love!

Grateful am I in Your presence, Almighty G-d, who lives and endures, for You have returned my soul to me with compassion. Abundant is Your faith. In these still, quiet moments I am not asleep, and not yet awake. In the threshold of day and night, with the mixture of darkness and light, my body is once again coming to life. I am reborn, each day, from the womb of Your compassion. May all of my actions be worthy of the faith You have placed in me. With words of thanks I’ll greet the dawn.

If I may ask, from where does your desire to become a part of the Jewish people come? Is it something that you have always felt/experienced? Have you had a conversation with any rabbis (Chasidic or Conservative or Reform?). For the record myself, I am not here to persuade you are anyone to become a part of anything. I love the LDS people, and I am mindful of what I say and do here. I am always willing to share my beliefs out of love, and will readily do so when asked, but I do not wish to dissuade anyone from their walk with HaShem. May the L-rd G-d of Israel bless you in your journey, my friend!

Shalom, Thank you kindly for asking this. I know some things about LDS theology from my time spent here previously, as well as my own personal studies, but I certainly cannot (and, indeed, would not) claim to be any sort of expert. However, I believe it would be quite difficult to reconcile any Kabbalistic teachings with what I know of LDS dogma. The Chabadniks are their own special breed. I spend a number of years studying among them during my time at yeshiva to become a rabbi, but I am not a part of that movement. They are good people, and their pursuit of Torah is quite admirable, but some of their ideas I simply cannot abide. They are also the most "missionary" of all Jewish religious groups, but they restrict their efforts to bring secular or humanistic Jews back into Judaism.

I can be that at times. Mostly I suffer from a sort of droll loquaciousness. Ask my children and they will confirm this. They also ask me if I read the Bible to reminisce.

Shalom and thank you, my friend. Hopefully you are keeping warm up there!

As we say, when you have two rabbis in a room, you have three opinions!

Thank you most kindly! Aish actually means "fire" in Hebrew. Aish HaTorah means Fire of Torah. As to the Tevye bit...alas, he never did, and he is kvetching to this day! I have heard it said that his son (Chiam Topol) is playing Tevye on Broadway in Fiddler on the Roof, but I don't know if that is true.

There is another rabbi? That's pretty exciting!

Shalom, my friend. Thank you for asking. It's good to see you! I am not, in fact, involved with Chabad, per se, nor am I a chabadnik. I have studied a great deal at one of the Chabad centers here, and I consider many of the rabbis there my friends. Some of my congregants have playfully called me "rebbe" instead of rabbi...I guess they find it a more playful title.

Shalom, my friends. I am back after a long number of years and trials and tribulations. Suffice it to say, some of you may remember me (for good or ill), and many of you do not know me. One of the things that has changed since last I was among your good selves is that I have completed my training to become a rabbi. I love you and I am happy to be among you again. We do not always agree on things, but we can certainly discuss things in love. As the great prophet Isaiah said, "Come then, and let us reason together." I pray the Almighty, blessed be He, grants you a day of fullness and love. It is a great day to be alive! G-d, it is true, before You there is no night, and the light is with You, and You make the whole world shine with Your light. The mornings tell of Your mercy, and the nights tell of Your truth, and all creatures tell of Your great mercy and of great miracles. Each day You renew Your help, O G-d! Who can recount Your miracles? You sit in the sky and count the days of the devout, and set the time for all Your creatures. Your single day is a thousand years, and Your years and days are unbounded. All that is in the world must live its life to an end, but You are there, You will always be there... You, G-d, are pure, and pure are Your holy servants who three times ever day cry, "Holy," and sanctify You in heaven and on the earth. You, G-d, are sanctified and praised. The whole world is filled with Your glory for ever and ever.

And now that I'm here, I'm off to bed! Be back tomorrow. Sleep well, my friends.