Rumor has it that during the “Black Plague” in the Middle Ages there were those who blamed the Jews for its spread, because of the lower mortality among them, which was associated with the religious customs of washing hands. Much water has flown since then, even in Jordan River. And nowadays? Miraculously, various elements related […]

One of the common religious claims about “creation” is that the world was created some 6,000 years ago with all the known scientific evidence already built into it. Sort of “God is trying us”. This claim of retroactive creation makes little sense, and is already discussed here. An interesting method of tackling this issue is […]

Tens of thousands of Breslev Hasidic Jews intend to fly to Ukraine, to the town of Uman, in order to attend the yearly ceremony near the grave of their rabbi. This is generally an extremely crowded event, and the people in charge of public health in Israel want to prevent this madness from taking place, […]

Today is the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. Supposedly the day in which the “Torah” was “given” to the people of Israel. According to the tradition, it was since passed between generations without changes, and its verdicts and commandments always kept… well, mostly. So, ancient holidays like “Pesach” (Passover) and “Sukkot” have always been celebrated since, […]

The recent Coronavirus poses new challenges to religion. Aside from wondering why God is supposedly mad at us (everything is for a reason, you know) – there are some several intriguing issues that relate specifically to Orthodox Judaism. The Orthodox Jewish religion dictates many specific and rigorous rituals, which are of little interest to the […]

A new virus is always a great joy for religious preachers, who perceive our world as run by some kind of mysterious mechanism that keeps them in the center of things. Indeed some of our local Jewish preachers (as I’m sure also their competition worldwide) have already expressed their opinions on this matter. One talented […]

One of the most interesting holidays in the Jewish calendar is ‘Sukkot’, when religious Jewish people (as well as many secular kids) spend time in small wooden huts near their homes. This is also known as the “Collection Festival”, following the old Biblical command: “Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye […]

A soldier in the IDF has been put into a month of detention, because… a package of hamburger was found in his private fridge, in his room. Now, let me make this clear: This was not an issue of health. It was not some commercial thing. No money was involved in the reason for this […]

The big parties in the Israeli parliament (the “Knesset”) quarrel over the image of the future government. One of the main issues? Things associated with a bit more separation of church and state. In particular: Public transportation in the weekends, the right of every couple to get married regardless of religious constraints, compulsory basic education […]

The story of the young Israelis in Cyprus previously-accused of raping a British woman — demonstrates an important issue of religions. Watching the story evolving on TV, one could not escape the religious aspects popping up here and there. Many of the boys were suddenly shown with a “Kippah” (a Jewish traditional head cover) on […]