What Kashrut Is Not This week’s parsha, Shemini, contains most of the laws of Kashrut, the dietary code of Judaism. Anthropologists have viewed the laws of kashrut as superstitious taboos, or a reflection of the eating habits and norms of the ancient Near East. One author explained the prohibitions of kashrut as purely a matter…
Question: Does Rosh Hashana share any similarities with the Jan. 1st New Year’s Day holiday? Is it a time for making “New Year’s Resolutions”? AskTheRabbi.org answered: While the form of the celebrations may be very different, I can think of two ways in which these days are similar. One similarity is that it is the…
Question: My question concerns food, since I am a chef. And so far, no rabbi was able to explain this to me to my satisfaction. My question is: Why do we consider chicken “meat”? When it comes to the verse “Do not cook a calf in its mother’s milk”, well, chickens don’t produce milk! Even…
Question: I’ve heard reasons why we keep kosher, and therefore understand why kosher animals were created. But I have no idea how to explain to a 10 year old public school student, whom I tutor, why God created non-kosher animals as well. Please help! Thank you!! AskTheRabbi.org answered: I think that you should your student…
Parshat Shemini contains within it many of the basic dietary laws of the Torah, known as kashrut. Anthropologists have viewed the laws of Kashrut as superstitious taboos, or as a reflection of the eating habits and norms of the ancient Near East. One author explained the prohibitions of Kashrut as purely a matter of economic…