Category Archives: Torah

My Beard Bothers The World

In February 2008, I read an essay in Commentary magazine by the clean-shaven Rabbi Meir Soloveitchik on the role of the beard in Judaism. It laid out the reasons for why the beard (as opposed to the clean-shaven look) was … Continue reading

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Did Rabbi Avi Weiss Invent Women Saying Kaddish?

Kaddish is the memorial prayer traditionally said only by men. Left-wing Modern Orthodox shuls allow women to say kaddish, while right-wing Modern Orthodox shuls usually don’t allow women to say this prayer publicly. I’m listening to a Torah in Motion … Continue reading

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Torah Talk Redux

Greg Leake emails: Hi Luke, it seems I have been subject to an examination. Rabbi Rabbs, you are an honest man, and your problem is that you live in a world where other men are not. Rabbi Rabbs, you said … Continue reading

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The Torah Doesn’t Believe In Handouts

Leviticus 19: 9 ” ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time or … Continue reading

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You Can Believe In God And Be An SOB

In a 2001 lecture on Numbers 22-23, Dennis Prager says: Balaam goes on with Balak’s dignitaries. Balaam tells Balak I can only say that God tells me. It is possible to believe in God and wish that God will allow … Continue reading

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