Category Archives: Jewish Law & Life Cycle

Reincarnation in Judaism

Where do we find reincarnation in Tanakh? How many times might a person reincarnate? And how does reincarnation fit into the greater picture of the afterlife, the world of resurrection, and what happens to a soul after death? Also: does Judaism subscribe to the notion of an eternal hell? Find out in this class as we dive into Biblical reincarnation and answer the big questions about the transmigration of souls and the afterlife.

For a written summary and more information, see here.
See also ‘An Honest Look at Death and Afterlife’.
On the ‘Origins and Kabbalah of Kaddish’, see here. 

The Intersection of Science and Mysticism

Dear Friends,

Back in February I was invited to speak with Eli Nash on his In Search of More podcast. We discussed everything from Torah and science to Kabbalah, kashrut, conversion, and major issues currently plaguing the Jewish world. See the full interview here: 

On Eating Bugs

The Locusta migratoria species, with its two “jumping legs” clearly visible.

In this week’s parsha, Shemini, we are presented with the Torah’s extensive dietary laws. All bugs and insects are forbidden for consumption except those that are winged and have two large jumping legs in addition to their four other legs, ie. locusts (Leviticus 11:21-22). The Torah names four families of such locust species which are kosher. Rashi comments that we no longer know how to identify these species, so for practical purposes no one eats such insects anymore (although a small minority of Mizrachi and Sephardi communities did consume locusts until recently).

The bigger issue today is the broader prohibition of consuming bugs, and how it applies to inadvertent consumption of tiny bugs in fruits and vegetables. It has become common to hear extremely negative language regarding such accidental consumption, with people saying (untrue) things like inadvertently eating bugs on poorly-washed lettuce or strawberries is “five times worse” than consuming pork, and with reputable kashrut organizations pushing more and more stringent requirements for washing produce—using bright lamps and magnifying glasses and even doing “laboratory testing”. Is any of this actually required? What does Jewish law actually say about washing produce and consuming errant bugs? Continue reading →