Rabbi Azriel Schreiber
855 answers
Whenever possible, JewishAnswers.org tries to include the name of the author on every post. However, at certain times, we make significant changes to the answers posted. In that case, we will often sign the post with our generic “pen name” – Rabbi Azriel Schreiber. This “pen name” may also be used when a writer declines to have his name published.
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The Eight Levels of Charity
What are the eight levels of charity referred to by Maimonides? Maimonides lists the eight levels in descending order in Hilchos Matnos Aniyim 10:7-14: a) Giving a poor person work so he will not have to depend on charity b)…
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Giving Loans
What is the Jewish view about loans to the poor or to the community? Lending money to someone in need, even without waiting to be asked, is the highest form of charity. A person who makes such a loan should…
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The Exile of the Shechina
What is meant by the “exile” of the Shechina? The idea that the Shechina (the Divine Presence) goes into exile with the Jewish people is found in the Talmud (Megillah 29a, in the name of R.Shimon b. Yochai). The “exile”…
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The Age of Jerusalem
How old is Jerusalem? Jerusalem (probably) is mentioned in the Egyptian “execration texts” and the Tel-el-Amarna letters; the latter date from 3500 years ago and the former from even earlier. Malki-Tzedek, king of Shalem (Jerusalem) in Abraham’s time (3700+ years…
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The Golan in the Bible
Is the Golan mentioned in the Bible? Golan (a city) is mentioned in the Torah (Deut. 4:43) as being in the region called Bashan. This region was formerly ruled by the Canaanite king Og; it was conquered by the Israelites…
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The Distance from Egypt to the Promised Land
What is the distance from Egypt to the Promised Land? It depends on where the boundaries of the Promised Land are; according to some views, its southern border is actually adjacent to Egypt, and in any case it’s very close…
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The Names of Egypt
By what names was Egypt known? The Hebrew name of the country is Mitzrayim (meaning something like “two domains”); the “dual” form of the word reflects the ancient division of the country into “upper” and “lower” parts. “Egypt” (Aigyptos) is…
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War and Conquest in the Torah
Why does the Torah condone war and conquest? Though the Torah is timeless, it particularly addresses the people who lived at the time it was given (“the Torah spoke in human language”). In this context, war was a fact of…
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Wars of Extermination in Biblical Times
Did the Jews fight wars of extermination in Biblical times? The Jews were commanded to fight specific wars of annihilation against the Canaanites and the Amalekites; but even in those wars, terms of surrender were offered first, and no one…