Julie Andrews made it into a famous song – the notion that whenever I feel afraid I make out that I don’t fear the future. In “The Sound of Music”, Julie’s response to fear was to hold her head erect and whistle a happy tune so that no-one would suspect …

THE JEWISH COUNT-DOWNS The countdown to Shavu’ot is the 49 days of the Omer. Beginning on the second evening of Pesach we formally count the days that link the two festivals. Not that this is the only count-down in Jewish practice and philosophy. Every time we are on the road …

WILL ELIJAH BE COMING THIS PESACH? Such is the fascination of Pesach that four out of every five Jews will sit down to the Seder. No matter how far some may seem to be at other times from the traditional practices and observances of the Jewish heritage, Seder night will …

  WILL ELIJAH BE COMING THIS PESACH? Such is the fascination of Pesach that four out of every five Jews will sit down to the Seder. No matter how far some may seem to be at other times from the traditional practices and observances of the Jewish heritage, Seder night …

EREV PESACH ON SHABBAT – A CALENDRICAL PUZZLE Pesach is exciting, colourful and demanding.  No other festival imposes such obligations on the Jewish home.  No other festival pries so much into every nook and cranny of the house. No wonder so many Jewish housewives – and their husbands – tend …

HEAVEN & HELL. Q.  What do Jews believe about heaven and hell? A.  Judaism does not prefer the afterlife to this life. Samson Raphael Hirsch says, “The purpose of God’s rule does not consist in death and destruction, but in the advancement of life and having men develop and unfold …

THE ROSH HASHANAH SEDER. On Rosh Hashanah evening many people put an array of “simanim”, symbolic foods, on the table – not just apple and honey but other foods too, which are tasted one by one as their meaning is explained. The apple and honey signify our prayer for a …

HOW TO TREAT A CONVERT. Q.  How should we treat a convert – to Judaism, and away from Judaism? A.  The convert to Judaism must be treated with respect and love.  This rule is supported by the verse, “You shall love the stranger (‘ger’), for you were strangers in the …

MISREPRESENTATION IN BUSINESS. Q.  What is the Jewish perspective on a business exaggerating or misrepresenting its worth both in terms of its good will and the service or product it provides? A.  There are several leading Jewish researchers and writers on business ethics such as Dr Meir Tamari and Rabbi …

THE 21 DAYS. The fast of Tishah B’Av is the culmination of the Three Weeks, which are known as “Bein Ham’tzarim” – “Between the Straits”. This is based on a verse from Echah 1:3, “All her (Israel’s) pursuers caught her between the straits“. One view is that the verse is …

      WHO WAS PINCHAS? Pinchas had “pi-nechas (nechoshet)”, “a mouth of brass”. He was a gallant warrior who was indignant when he saw people rebelling against God and the Torah. As a priest, a grandson of Aharon HaKohen, he should never have taken up a weapon and killed …

KEEPING ALL 613 COMMANDMENTS. Q.  Does anyone keep all the 613 commandments? A.  There are two answers, the practical and the theoretical: 1. The practical answer: many commandments only apply to certain groups (kings, farmers, judges, women, kohanim, etc.) or certain places and times (the land of Israel, the time …

WHAT IS GOD? I can only give a personal view. There are two reasons. One: we all have our own take on God. I cannot be certain that my father’s God is the same as mine. I can’t be a believer with my father’s heart, only with my own. Two: …

AMEN. Q. Why do we say Amen after certain prayers? A. From one point of view, saying Amen shows that we care. When you hear a statement of fact or opinion and are concerned enough to say Amen, you are not indifferent or apathetic. You know there are some things …

NOT COMMANDMENTS Central to Shavu’ot is the Revelation on Mount Sinai, where God gave “Aseret HaDibrot” (Ex. 20:1-14). We call them “The Ten Commandments” in English, so why isn’t the Hebrew “Aseret HaMitzvot”? The Hebrew means “Ten Words”. “Word” has several meanings; in this context it is like the phrase, …

B’RACHAH OR KIDDUSH? Q.  In South Africa the refreshments after a Shabbat service are called a “b’rachah”.  Elsewhere it is a “kiddush”. Which one is right? A.  It is all very confusing, very interesting and very wonderful to see how the other half lives. Many communities have their own way …

HANDLING YOUR EMPLOYEES. Q.  What does the Talmud mean when it says that whoever acquires a servant acquires a master over himself? A.  The source is Kiddushin 20a.  In the literal sense it probably means that an employer is at his/her workers’ mercy. The workers know the business cannot continue …

HANSEN’S LAW. Pesach, when the Haggadah talks of parents whose children ask, “What are the testimonies and the statutes of the Torah?”, is the tailor-made occasion when observers of Jewish life get a reminder of Hansen’s Law which says, “What the son wishes to forget, the grandson wishes to remember”. …

WHAT IS THE QUESTION? Abraham Joshua Heschel said that our generation knows the answers but has forgotten the questions. With regard to Pesach we know that our ancestors were slaves in Egypt, God redeemed them and took them out across the Red Sea to become a free nation, and we …

PSALM 22 – THE PURIM STORY IN POETRY There is a rabbinic tradition that links Psalm 22 with Purim. The psalm is headed, “For the Leader, upon Ayelet HaShachar”. This phrase literally means “the hind of the morning”, which some views regard as a musical instrument or a melody. The …