Jewish History
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Ability to Persevere
How is perseverance connected with self-control or hard work (Mesirut Nefesh) or repentance (Teshuva)? How we can acquire it and develop it? How do you connect perseverance with all the Jewish history? How do you apply perseverance in Jewish life?…
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Overview of Jewish Practice
I am a Jew from Turkey who is very interested in the Jewish traditions and their place in our lives. Yet, all I know about is the Kiddush and lighting candles on the Sabbath. Due to living in diaspora I…
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Noah’s Children
Who were Noah’s children? Did he have any? How did the world become populated after the flood (he only took animals on the ark, right? – not a wife or kids or anything?)? I’m having trouble constructing genealogy of Judaism.…
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Sarah Related to Abraham
How was Abraham’s wife Sarai related to him? I have heard that she the daughter of his brother Haran. Is it right? That is correct. She was his niece, but raised with him in his father’s home like a sister,…
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Length of a Generation
What is the time period that the word generation refers to? Is it 100 years, 1000 years, longer? The term “generation” (“Dor” in Hebrew) is used in a Biblical and Talmudic sense in many different contexts. There are two primary…
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Faith Under the Nazis
How did the Jewish people retain their religious beliefs under Nazi rule? Your question is a very powerful one. I think that religious beliefs and faith are often stronger than physical bodies and minds. In fact Victor Frankl wrote a…
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Abraham’s Mother
What is the name of Abraham’s Mother? The name of Abraham’s mother is ‘Amasloee’ (Babylonian Talmud, Baba Basra 91a). Yours sincerely, Ari Lobel
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Forgiving the Horrors of the Third Reich
Do I still have to apologize for the things that happened during the Third Reich? Isn’t there something like forgiveness within your religion? People who keep on bugging someone with the things he has done, beyond apologies are considered as…
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Maimonides’ Letter of Martyrdom
I would like to get information on Maimonides’ (The Rambam) Igeret Hashmad (Letter of Martyrdom). Thank you for your question. I’m quoting the following from the preface of a translation of this work in my possession by Rabbi Avraham Yaakov…