Mezuzah
I’ve been wondering about the Hebrew letter shin on the Mezuzah cover. Could you please fill me in on its significance?
Meditation
I spent years as a devotee of Transcendental Meditation. I was recently challenged by an old friend about why I have traveled so distant from our own religion and why don’t I seek spirituality from the religion of my ancestors, Judaism. My response was that I’ve been Jewish all my life and attended high holiday services, etc., and never found anything spiritual about it. My friend’s rebuttal was that I never checked into it as an adult and have been sidestepping the issue based on my impression as a kid. Perhaps if I’d look into this as an adult with fresh, new eyes I would find deep spirituality in Judaism. That’s the nutshell version of our discussion. Since then, I’ve spoken with a number of somewhat educated Jews, and nobody has pointed me to anything that smacks of meditation or the like within the framework of Judaism. Before I give up, it was suggested to me that I reach out to you to see if you can say anything redeeming in this direction. If not, I rest my case.
Medical Procedures on Shabbat
I’ve been discussing with Jewish colleagues the traditional view of medical emergencies vis-à-vis the Sabbath, and which takes precedence according to traditional sources. I realize it’s not in the purview of this column to do an exhaustive analysis of this topic, but perhaps you could give a rule of thumb.
Medical Procedures and “Playing G-d”
There was recently discussion on the radio about the will of G-d for people to be sick and doctors treating them. If G-d made them sick, how can a doctor “play G-d” and cure them, seemingly in contradiction to His will? I know we Jews go to doctors, but is there an answer to this question?
Why Should I Get Married? Pt 3
My son has been living with his Jewish girlfriend for the last two years and is now talking about having a child. All my urging to get married first are falling on deaf ears, as they don’t see what they’ll gain by being married over how they’re living now. They don’t accept my argument that the baby would be considered illegitimate. I would much appreciate any insights you have for me to relate to them.