Rabbi Dr. Nachum Amsel

All living beings in the world require nourishment to continue to live and to survive. In this particular aspect, man is no different from any other living creature. However, man is unique among creatures of the world in other aspects regarding food.

Our society often judges people by the friends they choose. A good friend can help make life more meaningful and worth living, but most people who we call "friends" are actually only acquaintances, not true friends. How does one discern between who is a true friend

One of the most known and recognized Jewish prayers, if not the most well-known prayer of all to both Jews and non-Jews, is the Kaddish. Ask anyone what this prayer is about and they will tell you that it is the prayer for the

What are the other special commandments and customs of Sukkot, and what do they, with all their details, teach the Jewish people about the values of this holiday and Judaism, in general?

Yom Kippur is the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, quite different from all other days of the year for Jews. Nearly all waking hours are spent in the synagogue

As the life span of human beings has generally been dramatically increasing in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, most people tend to suffer more illnesses over a lifetime than their ancestors did in previous generations

On Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, the atmosphere and mood is quite different from the revelry of the secular New Year. This chapter will explore why and how this is so, through the unique

Of the 613 mitzvah-commandments in Judaism, Tzedaka-charity is unique in certain of its attributes, Jewish law, and other anomalies connected with it. This makes Tzedaka the most unusual of all the commandments. Three of the remarkable aspects of Tzedaka will be

This essay is reprinted from the book, “The Encyclopedia of Jewish Values” published by Urim, or the upcoming books, “The Encyclopedia of Jewish Values: Man to Man” or “The Encyclopedia of Jewish Values: Man to G-d” to be published in the future. This essay is not intended as a source of practical halachic (legal) rulings. For... Read more »

Pages By: Rabbi Dr. Nachum Amsel

NEW! Class & Source Sheets on Jewish Perspectives on Food

NEW: Class & Source Sheets on Jewish Insights into Friendship

NEW: Kaddish – Understanding the Underlying Values to this Most Misunderstood Prayer

NEW! Class & Source Sheets on the Underlying Concepts of Sukkot & Shmini Atzeret

New Class & Source Sheets! Underlying Values and Concepts of Yom Kippur

New Class & Source Sheets: How Judaism Views Doctors & Visiting the Sick

New Class & Source Sheets: Underlying Values & Concepts of Rosh Hashana

New Class & Source Sheets! How Tzedaka is Different from Other Commandments

New! Marit Ayin – Should We Care What Others Think?

New Class and Source Sheets! Honesty and Cheating

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