Question: I was never given a Hebrew name. My father is a non-Jew and my mother is a Jew. I understand that the last part of the Hebrew name is the first part of the father's Hebrew name. What would the method be for determining my Hebrew name be?
[Administrator's note: A related question is found at http://www.jewishvaluesonline.org/question.php?id=298.]
Rabbi Blair answered this question for another situation and the answer would still be the same - as such, your Hebrew name would be Ploni ben Mother's Name. However, I, along with other rabbis, do offer the option of transliterating the father's name into Hebrew or obtaining a Hebrew equivalent to the father's English name. This is where it becomes a little complicated as well as a potential socio-political situation. The problem is defining one's jewish identity. Some will state that the father's name should not be stated at all if he is not Jewish. I think it shouldn't matter as the traditional Jewish identity is through the mother. If you have a non-Jewish mother and a Jewish father, the question of the Hebrew name is not an issue - only the Jewish identity of such progeny.
As a Reform Jew, I consider a person Jewish if one of the parents is Jewish AND the person has participated in appropriate and timely public and formal acts of indentification with the Jewish faith and people. As such, the Jewish identity is possible through either parent. Yet, I also acknowledge that within traditional Jewish law, the child is Jewish as long as the mother is Jewish. With this being noted, the questioner simply ignores his father's name in his Hebrew name. The alternative is to transliterate or translate the father's name into Hebrew and include his mother's name too - i.e. Ploni ben Thomas v'Mother. Since the questioner is Jewish according to traditional Jewish law no matter what, the father's religious identity should have no bearing on the full name. If you wish to honor your father's name, go ahead.
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Question: My question is two-fold.
I sort of stumbled upon a blog, where a "high-class escort", is describing her life. In the comments, a religious Moslem guy is chastising her to give up this 'career path' and do tshuva. I wanted to say something from a Torah stand point.
I know what the pertinent halacha/hashkafa (law) is for a Jewish lady. But I'm not sure about a Bas Noach (a female human being, non-Jewish, according to the Noahide laws).
Also, is it a Chilul Hashem (an affront for G-d) for me to even be commenting on such a blog?
Thank you.
Q: My question is two-fold. I sort of stumbled upon a blog, where a "high-class escort", is describing her life. In the comments, a religious Moslem guy is chastising her to give up this 'career path' and do tshuva. I wanted to say something from a Torah stand point. I know what the pertinent halacha/hashkafa (law) is for a Jewish lady. But I'm not sure about a Bas Noach (a female human being, non-Jewish, according to the Noahide laws). Also, is it a Chilul Hashem (an affront for G-d) for me to even be commenting on such a blog?
According to Webster’s Dictionary, a blog is defined as “a Web site that contains online personal reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer.” In the question, someone has come upon a blog site dedicated to the reflections of a “high-class escort.” The question is asked how to rebuke someone who is not Jewish and is it even appropriate to do so on a blog that appears non-reflective of Jewish values.
Parashat K'doshim (Leviticus 19:1-20:27) presents us with a Holiness Code of conduct. We learn: "You shall not hate your kinsfolk in your heart. Reprove your kin but incur no guilt on their account" (Leviticus 19:17). What does this mean? Does the Torah intend to legislate against a feeling, "hate"? How does "Reprove your kin" connect with the next clause, "but incur no guilt on their account," and what does it mean to "incur guilt" in this case?
With respect to the translation our Chumash provides, I would like to offer a different, idiomatic translation: "You must not keep a feeling of revulsion at your fellow to yourself. Instead, you should rebuke your fellow so that you not become guilty by association with him." The verse assumes a few conditions:
Someone close to you-a friend, a relative, a member of your community or your people, or simply another person-has committed a sin. The text uses the word achicha, which literally means "your brother." But this term extends beyond your immediate family to designate any member of your "people," which can be defined as narrowly as "a fellow Jew" or as broadly encompassing as "a fellow human being"!
You have witnessed or learned about your fellow's transgression, and it troubles you. The verb tisna, "hate," can describe action based on a feeling of aversion or revulsion toward another.
You might be inclined to hold your tongue and not confront your fellow about your discomfort with his or her wrongdoing, letting your hostility stew inside of you. The text says that "you should not hate . . . in your heart " (emphasis added). Sefer HaChinuch , an anonymously penned, thirteenth-century Spanish work of ethical literature, teaches that "secret hate is more pernicious than open hatred. . . . The reason for the prohibition is obvious. Secret hatred causes strife, enmity, and informing ['tattling'], that most odious of traits" (Sefer HaChinuch 238). This explains why the text commands, "Instead, you should rebuke. . . ." Don't keep your feelings secret, the text says. Have out with them! Nachmanides, also writing in thirteenth-century Spain, further observes, "People generally conceal their hatred." To refrain from a confrontation with a known sinner certainly fits human nature.
If you fail to call your fellow to account for his or her sin, you will become guilty by association. The grammar of the verse makes it clear that to fail to rebuke makes you accountable for the sin together with the one who transgressed in the first place. Judaism does not speak of "innocent bystanders" to sin.
We are left with an instruction that challenges us to do something that often makes us feel anxious, vulnerable, and uneasy: we are told to rebuke someone who has done wrong rather than hold our tongues and think, "I better not get involved." Rebuking a fellow may be a Jewish value, but it flies in the face of an American maxim that everyone knows: "Mind your own business." The Torah would have us call our fellows to task when they transgress rather than mind our own business. Is that nosy? Perhaps. Is it necessary? Absolutely.
Why must we sometimes rebuke even when it makes us uncomfortable? Because Judaism demands that each of us act responsibly toward every other. This necessitates not only that we encourage good behavior in others, but also that we censure others when they stray. Judaism frowns on complacency with evil. Judaism sees effective rebuke as a measure of our sincere desire to multiply goodness in the world. The Talmud says, "Whoever can stop the members of his household from committing a sin, but does not, is held responsible for the sins of his household. If he can stop the people of his city from sinning, but does not, he is held responsible for the sins of the people of his city. If he can stop the whole world from sinning, but does not, he is held responsible for the sins of the whole world" (Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 54b). Midrash sums it up most eloquently: "Love unaccompanied by criticism is not love. . . . Peace unaccompanied by reproof is not peace" ( B'reishit Rabbah 54:3).
Mastering the art of rebuke requires great sensitivity, great strength of character, and great love. In this case, it is appropriate to share Jewish values and encourage a path towards teshuvah, but done with a sense of dignity and respect.
Rabbi Laurence P Malinger (Reform) (With gratitude to Rabbi Jonathan E Blake for textual resources)
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Question: How does completing a service project have anything to do with B'Tzelem Elohim? [JVO Kids: 4-6]
How does completing a service project have anything to do with B'Tzelem Elohim?
If I truly believe that each one of us is made in the image of God, then how will I treat you? How should we treat one another if we believe this is true? Jewish tradition teaches us that we are to treat others with loving-kindness, respect, and dignity. In performing the mitzvah of tikkun olam, repairing the world, we are in essence creating an opportunity to strengthen b'tzelem Elohim in others. This occurs because my actions of a service project in itself is treating the other with loving-kindness, respect and dignity.
Think of it this way - the basic idea behind b'tzelem Elohim is to bring to the surface the "God-like" qualities within ourselves. Service projects helps us do this because we want these divine qualities to define both ourselves and our peers; but more importantly, we want the divine presence in all of our lives and this is the simplest path to this opportunity.
Rabbi Laurence Malinger
Reform
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Question: Our employee was overpaid as a result of an error in payroll submissions. The amount of overpayment was not insignificant and the overpayment continued for several months (the employee apparently did not notice) before the mistake was found. When the Congregational board president approached the employee about the error the employee balked at repaying, claimed it would be a hardship to return the money and did not feel he was obligated to do so. Ultimately, after demands and threats, the employee did agree to repay the overpayment, but only after negotiating a long repayment plan that spans more than a year (and without any interest). Do Jewish law or Jewish values require that this money be returned? If so, was the employee in violation of either Halachah or Jewish values by refusing to repay the money? Should it have been returned without delay (as soon as the error was pointed out) and without stipulation? Was the Congregation in any way in error in requesting repayment? What is the proper behavior according to Jewish values and ethics?
I begin by noticing the obvious: the employee's legal responsibility in this matter is determined by the labor and tax laws of the location in which this action took place. Jewish law recognizes this fact, under the principle dina d'malchuta dina (the law of the state is valid and binding upon us). It is therefore essential that the employee and Congregation each consult with an attorney as their legal obligations.
Yet, Jewish law does require the return of payment that was not due. I think this is similar to a discussion in the Talmud (Bava Metzia) -
The servant's liability for pecuniary loss caused to his master is equivalent to that of a bailee for reward, whether in respect of theft and loss or any other kind of damage (BM 80b, 82b). To state it in a simpler matter – the employee was causing the Congregation a loss for it was not part of any agreement. Since the Congregation made the error, it is also required to not cause any hardship to the employee in its repayment. Furthermore, there is no interest charged as it was an error and a simple repayment makes the matter “whole.” Returning to Bava Metzia, the sages of the Talmud were at pains to modulate the severity of the servant's liability, and with reference to damage negligently caused.
There is a concern that the repayment is a hardship and thus, more time is permitted. However, we also acknowledge that the employee probably paid additional taxes on this income being returned and thus should consult a tax advisor on recovering these additional tax payments.
Rabbi Laurence P Malinger - Reform
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Question: I am an egalitarian male. I have a mezuzah and pair of tefillin written by a female scribe, who is perfectly kosher within my beliefs, but obviously wouldn't be kosher in Orthodox beliefs. When I get the mezuzah and tefillin checked, do I have an ethical obligation to disclose the fact they were written by a woman to the (presumably) male scribe doing the checking?
We have learned in our tradition that the commandment of the mezuzah is found in Deuteronomy (6.4ff; 11.13ff). The text deals with affixing a mezuzah on the doorpost. We learn from later sources questions regarding the nature of the text and the way in which the text is written. Based upon your inquiry, the question arises that if a woman wrote the text, is there a question as to its state of kashrut.
We learn that the text itself must always be handwritten, be free of errors and be inscribed on parchment (Misnah Menachot 3.7) This is further explained in the Shulkan Aruch, Yoreh Deah 285, with the writing on each line beginning with a specific text and making sure it was done correctly. There is a text in the Talmud (Gittin 45b) that mandates that the sofer writing the text must be a man. This conclusion is not based on anything other than the concept of fulfilling mitzvot as an obligation. The contention here is that an acquired obligation, either voluntarily undertaken or assumed as a matter of cultural identity, is identical in nature to an obligation with which one was born. With this approach, one may say that a woman who commits herself to observance of the mitvah of tefillin has a Torah based obligation (an obligation grounded in biblical, as distinct from rabbinic, law) just as does a normal adult male, and may therefore function as a scribe just as a man, since women's halakhic exclusion from ritual writing stems entirely from their exemption from donning tefillin. The validity of this premise is questioned by many.
As I learned from Jen Taylor Friedman from Machon Pardes and the Drisha Institute, she writes, “By its terms, the principle that one not obligated to fulfill a mitzvah cannot perform that mitzvah on behalf of one who is so obligated should pose no barrier to a non-obligated person writing tefillin fit for use, for the mitzvah is to wear the tefillin and not to write them (or, in the case of mezuzah, to attach it, not to write it). After all, women are exempt from hearing the shofar blown and may not blow it for a man, yet a woman may take a horn and make a shofar, and it is generally the case that one exempt from a commandment may make the used in fulfilling it.” I acknowledge that this issue is argued further in the text, but as a Reform rabbi who treats all of our members as equal partners in following the commandments, I accept sacred scrolls written by a soferet (a female scribe). Now the question arises, if you choose to have your mezuzah and/or your tefillin checked, do you need to disclose that the documents were created by a soferet?
When checking either ritual objects; the two basic categories that are being checked are: Damage that may have occurred due to water, heat or other outside causes and problems in the way the Mezuzah/Tefillin was written such as spelling mistakes, touching letters, improper spacing, or poor materials. What is NOT CHECKED is the status of the sofer/sofert who wrote the parchment nor should it be grounds for declaring if the parchment is either kasher (fit) or tamei (unfit). Therefore, I do not believe it is necessary to declare the gender of the scribe as it has no bearing on the parchment’s state.
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