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Ashkenazi vs Sephardi

Dear Rabbi Simon, Navah has asked me: is there anything that’s permitted for Ashkenazim which is forbidden to Sephardim. Funny how questions like this always materialise at Pesach… All the best, Stefan Hi Stefan (and Navah) The answer is “plenty”, and year-round, not just for 8 days. 1. The Shulhan ‘Arukh rules that one must wait 6 hours between meat and milk. The…

24 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Mitzvah with Strings Attached?

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Dear Rabbi Simon, I hope it’s OK to trouble you with a question/discussion that I was having with a friend: Essentially – does one need/is one obligated to wear a begged katon (tzitzit)? I was putting forward the view that this is a must, a mitzvah, something that one cannot absolve oneself of. That minhag of the Jewish People essentially…

24 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Tallit-Kattan, Tallit-Gadol: Fringe Benefits?

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Dear Rabbi Simon, Following on from last week’s Q&A re tzitzit (is it a mitzvah?), why in the beracha on the Tallit does it not refer to the word tallit, but rather tzitzit which we have blessed (in a different formulation) before? Related to that, why do we have the tallit if we also have the tzizit? Thanks and shavua…

24 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Under Cover

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Dear Rabbi Simon, TY for your reply re the nature of the mitzvah of tzitzit [Kesher Connections newsletter two weeks ago]. The discussion to which I referred then developed into a debate about wearing a head covering – in that this too was purported to be a midat chasidut (“practice of the pious”, ie not universally required as normative). Granted,…

24 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

New Sefer Torah

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Dear Rabbi Simon, Our Shul is Modern Orthodox. We are looking at acquiring a new Sefer Torah. My limited understanding is that we have a choice between Ari or Beit Yosef. Which would you recommend for our kehillah? What essentially is the difference? Thanks! Jonathan Dear Jonathan, Go for the Beit Yosef (see Bereshit 41:55). This is the “font” prescribed…

23 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Kosher Invitation?

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Hi Rabbi Simon I hope you can advise me. If there are families who invite you to eat and they say they keep kosher at home fully, BUT you know for a fact that they eat out vegetarian/fish etc. are we allowed to eat by them? I’ve been reading about it and read that you should never ask someone about…

22 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Crystal or Occult?

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Dear Rabbi Simon I recently bought a couple of necklaces from a lady who does crystal healing. I bought them because they were pretty, and thought of the “healing” properties as just a bit of an added bonus and a nice idea! It occurred to me afterwards to wonder whether it’s OK to wear these from a Jewish perspective? Thanks…

22 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Puppy Love

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Dear Rabbi Simon We have recently acquired a (female) dog as a family pet. Our vet has advised us to have her neutered, as is common practice with many household pets (particularly dogs). Is there any objection to this in Jewish law? Caleb Dear Caleb TY for your Q. The simple answer is yes, there is an objection. The Torah…

22 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Sacred Texts, but Surplus to Requirements

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Dear Rabbi Simon We have a box of Chumashim (mostly Bereishis) that were cast-offs from one of the Jewish schools (we were able to have them for Elkanah’s bar mitzvah). They were given to us to use/dispose. With a few exceptions they are in pretty bad shape though still usable technically. We’re not sure what to do with them – should they…

22 Jun 0Comments 0Likes

Crawling in the Kitchen: Warm Weather Peril

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Hi Rabbi Simon. I just found 2 worms in a packet of beans… do I need to throw away the whole pack? Thank, Brenda Hi Brenda, Distasteful discovery. That’s why we check our produce, isn’t it? This sort of thing is especially prevalent in the summer. You do not need to discard the whole packet (unless you want to). But…

Questions & Answers

this week

Questions and Answers

Ask the Rabbi: Quinoa on Pesach

Dear Rabbi Simon,
Where do you stand on quinoa (and the kitniyot ban) for Pesach?
Many thanks,

Tzippy

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Dear Tzippy,

In line with other American authorities, I am in favour of quinoa. Although I reject completely the voices (mostly from Israel) seeking to abolish the ban on kitniyot entirely, IMO we do not need to include in the prohibition pseudo-grains that were unknown in the Old World until modern times. Best to buy with a Pesach hechsher though, to be free of any possible wheat contamination.
Rabbi Rashi Simon

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