|
Can a Will Be Spiritual?
Sitting with the lawyer, making out a will, it felt
all about money and property. I hope I'm leaving so much more to my
family - values, vision, traditions. I heard there's such a thing as a
spiritual will, what is that? How do I make one?
Response: Collection of Spiritual
Wills
co-edited by Rabbi Shohama Wiener and Holly Blue Hawkins
Uncomfortable with the
word God?
I feel so uncomfortable with the word God, yet I keep searching for a
spiritual connection. The strange thing is that when I see a beautiful
garden or even a
beautiful flower, I find myself thinking “Thank you, God.”
Does this make any sense to you?
Response from Rabbi
Shohama Wiener
Response from Rabbi Goldie Milgram
Are There Authentic Forms of Jewish
Meditation?
Come on, surely there's no such thing as
Jewish meditation? I'm born Jewish, but practice a seriously engaged
Buddhism and also a lot of Yoga. I'm seeing flyers in town advertising
workshops are available to learn this. Is it real or a come-on by
evangelists or new age sheisters?
Introduction to Jewish Meditation by Rabbi Goldie Milgram
A Jewish Soul in a
Gentile Body?
All my life I have felt a warm connection to Judaism, although I was
born and raised in a gentile home. It kinds of feels like I have a Jewish
soul in a gentile body. Have you heard of such a thing?
Response
from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Jewish Holidays - What's with the Chest
Beating?
Just answer me this, what’s the point of the Jewish holidays and all the
chest-banging? If there’s an important point, despite graduating Hebrew
school some fifteen years ago, I still don’t get it. I hope you’ll
answer me in your column because I’m loving another religion lately and
sure didn’t get much from Judaism. Thank you.
Response from Rabbi Goldie Milgram
Trauma from Watching Disasters on
Television?
We don't even live near New Orleans, but watching all the
hurricane coverage on television this year seems to have been traumatic
to my daughter. Nightmares, fears of storms she never had, hoarding, and
more. I'm thinking about others in her class too, similar issues. Is
there something spiritual to do?
Disaster Response Curriculum
from Rabbi Goldie Milgram
Can I Eat Soy on Passover?
Your guidance would be greatly appreciated regarding the following. We
maintain a traditional style Jewish home, and Passover is very important
to us.
As vegetarians, how do we incorporate soy into our diets during Pesach
without compromising the holiday? Each year we struggle with this
situation, because soy is the major staple for us, providing a natural
source of protein in our heart healthy meals.
Response from
Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Why Do Bad Things Happen
to Good People?
I recently lost my mother, who was not only a wonderful mother, but
also my best friend. She had a very hard life, but always prayed to God
and did good things for everybody. I don’t understand why God didn’t let
her live longer.
Response
from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Troubled:
Hanukkah's Stories Too Warlike
I have been trouble getting into celebrating Hanukah, as the stories of
this holiday are so warlike.
Response
from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Related teaching from Rabbi Goldie Milgram
Rabbi and a Cantor for the
Wedding?
My fiancée and I are planning our wedding, and we want a ceremony that
is traditional, but that feels like us. We know a rabbi, a friend of the
family, who shares our desire for warmth and informality. This rabbi
usually officiates by herself, as she has a nice voice. We also know a cantor who has served at our family’s synagogue since I was
a child. We would like to include him, but are concerned that his formal
operatic style will undercut the tone of the ceremony we are trying to
plan.
What should we do?
Response from
Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Must I Believe?
I’ve finally found a synagogue where I feel joyful, peaceful, and at home.
Problem is, the Rabbi really believes in G!d and I don’t. I feel like a
fraud.
What do you suggest?
Response from Rabbi Shohama
Wiener
Sleepless and Worried about Work?
I am a practicing Jew. I keep Kosher, attend Shabbat services
regularly, and even attend morning minyan several times a week. Yet I
find I cannot sleep well at night, because I am too worried about my
responsibilities to my family and my business. What advice do you have for
me?
Response
from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Does Circumcision Matter?
My husband and I are expecting a boy, and are struggling with the issue
of circumcision. Our reading leads us to believe it is a barbaric and
patriarchal remnant of Judaism, causing unnecessary pain to the child.
Moreover, there seems to be no significant medical benefit. What can you
tell me?
Response from
Rabbi Shohama Wiener
What's This about Messiah?
This time of year the theme of Messiah rings in my ears constantly, due to
the Christmas season. And then I notice that many of the prayers in my
synagogue’s prayer book also talk about the coming of the Messiah. I am a
modern person. How do I make sense of this idea?
Response
from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Related teaching from Rabbi Goldie Milgram
Where's the Joy?
It’s been such a difficult month, remembering 9/11, worrying about
impending war, and sitting through Rosh HaShannah and Yom Kippur, focusing
on everyone’s sins. I want a religion that teaches me how to be happy. Can
I find that in Judaism?
Response
from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
Does God Love Me?
My Christian friends say God loves me, but
where do I find that in Judaism? And even if I could find it, how can I
believe that when there is so much suffering and hatred and greed all
around?
Response from Rabbi Shohama Wiener
©Reclaiming Judaism 2008 |