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Why Are There No Female Judges in Torah?Question: I am interested to understand why women cannot judge disputes in Torah law. How is the case of Devorah, the judge, handled? Is wisdom limited to the male population? Is it understood that females have no ability to distinguish between two points of dispute? Answer: The Torah does not provide a reason why women cannot be judges on civil or capital cases, leaving us to only to speculate. The Jerusalem Talmud Shavuot 4:1 states unequivocally that women cannot be judges and provides several proof-texts. The ruling is codified in the Code of Jewish Law. Shulchan Aruch, Choshen Mishpat 7:4 In context, the rule is somewhat surprising. Throughout both the written and oral Torah we find men consulting women and following their advice, beginning with Abraham "obeying the voice of Sarah," Jacob following the advice of his mother, and later consulting with his wives before departing from Haran--even though he had been already so instructed by G‑d Himself. Similarly, King David is advised |
Why Is Israel Unpopular?You write that Israel's popularity has suffered since the First Gulf War in 1991. This is surprising to hear. As far as I can recall, I do not remember any time that Israel was popular, from the time she was granted autonomy to the present day. But then, in all of history, when was it popular to be nice? |
Keeping Out of Unethical BusinessI found out that my business partner is planning on doing something that is possibly illegal, but in a way that avoids creating any liability for himself. Am I allowed to continue the partnership? |
The Rebbe’s InvestmentLeadership, to many, means leading the masses. To the Rebbe, leadership meant empowering individuals, each one, one by one. |
Forgiving InfidelityQuestion: How do you trust your spouse after he has been texting and emailing another woman? At first, he assured me it was nothing. Eventually, I found out that it's been going on for months at all times of the day and night. We have started going to counseling but the trust and security of a marriage is gone. I'm finding it hard to forgive and let go. I love him very much and he has assured me it has stopped. How can I ever be sure? We have teenage children already. I thought we had a good marriage. I'm so hurt, confused, betrayed and I just can't seem to let go or forgive him. Response: I can feel your pain, the pain of having your love betrayed, especially after so many years of building a home together—it's a pain that can leave you lifeless on the pavement. I'm a man, and so in some ways it may be inappropriate for me to answer. Yet on the other hand, there are some things I can tell you that a woman might not. Take this to heart: Men are not unfaithful because they do not love t |
My Orthodox Friend Cut Me Off!Question: I'm not Jewish, but my best friend while growing up was. Our bond was unusual for teenagers and young adults. We had a real love and respect for each other. In his mid 20's, he was drawn to Israel and eventually moved there. He became orthodox and is now actually a rabbi. Not long after he began his spiritual journey, he shut me out of his life completely, but without a word or explanation. He did this quite abruptly and very insensitively. I decided to give him some space and wait for some correspondence. I didn't hear a word from him for nine years, although he occasionally visited home not far from here. Now he's been emailing me, he's married with kids, and wants to reconnect. It hurts, but I just don't want to deal with him. My question is this: Because the collapse of our friendship coincided with his awakening religiosity, it has crossed my mind that maybe he was instructed either directly or indirectly to sever ties with old friends, particularly non-Jews. Could this |
The Synchronous Universe of the Baal Shem TovMany a scholarly mind of his day found the notion absurd. That G‑d cared about the righteous deeds of those who did His will, that they understood. But why on earth would a great G‑d care about a fallen leaf in some forsaken forest? |
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