Torah Cafe

The Kotel, the Western Wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem is the holiest place Jews are allowed to go to today. People come from around the world to the plaza in front of the Kotel to pray and talk to G-d. Learn about the history of the Kotel and what it means for Jews today.

One of the biggest cultural differences between Jewish traditions and our modern western culture is the interaction between men and women. Jewish traditions put strong limits on interactions and physical touch between men and women. A discussion about the Jewish traditions on interactions between men and women.

Racism, has been a feature of our culture and world for the past 200 years, Particular groups or races believed themselves to be superior to others while they believed other races to be inferior. Races led to horrible tragedies from the Holocaust to the Rwandan genocide as well as to to pervasive persecution and inequality from Aparteid in South Africa to Jim Crom in the South....

A minyan made up of ten Jewish adult men is necessary for many of the synagogue prayers such as the Kaddish, repetition of the amida and to read the Torah. What is a Minyan? Why does it require 10 Jewish adult men and why is it necessary for certain parts of the synagogue prayer?

The Menorah has long been one of the most central symbols of Judaism. The original Menorah was a pure gold, 7 branched candelabra that stood in the Holy Temple. A discussion about what the original Menorah looked like, how it was made, what happened to it and the big debate over the shape of its branches.

Historically, Jews would make brisket to eat on the Jewish festivals. Why brisket? Surprisingly, it is not only a great choice for a holiday dinner, there is an important history behind it.

The Midrash is a central part of Judaism and Jewish teachings but what exactly is the Midrash? Is the midrash a single book, collection of books or genre of scholarship? Is the Midrash stories or law? Are all its stories true? Who wrote the Midrash? How did it develop? A fascinating class all about the Midrash!

For more than 150 years society has debated over two economic structures "socialism" where the government manages the economy to ensure every gets an equitable part and "capitalism" where individual citizens manage the economy in a free market with only general regulatory oversight by the government. Which of the two systems does the Torah prefer? What would the ideal Jewish economic str...

One of the most complex and controversial commandments regarding food (kosher) is not to eat Chadash (new grain) and to only eat Yashan (old Grain) What exactly is the commandment and is it relevant for us today? Learn about the mitzvah of Chadash and the big controversy over whether we should be concerned about it today.

Yechezkel was one of our great prophets from the late Biblical Period and author of the Book of Ezekiel, one of the books of Tanach. The visions of Yechezkel were full of esoteric experiences, warnings about the destruction of the Temple and descriptions of redemption.

The Torah commands us to protect ourselves, guard our health and avoid doing anything that will harm us. A discussion about the Torah's rules for health and safety.

G-d inflicted Ten Plagues on the Egyptians so that they will let his people go. Kabbalah teaches that the plagues were not random but each had a very particular purpose and goal.  A discussion about the mystical meaning of the Ten Plagues

In addition to the reading from the Torah in the synagogue every Shabbat and holiday, we also read a Haftorah from one of the books of our Prophets. When did the Haftorah start? Why do we do it? How do we choose the Haftorah each week? A fascinating discussion about the Haftorah.

We all love watching sunset, but when exactly is the sunset, the moment when day switches to night? This question is very relevant in Judaism since Shabbat and Jewish holidays begin at sunset. Time is a central pillar in Judaism. Shabbat and Jewish holidays begin and end at certain times. Many commandments must be fulfilled on specific days, at specific times or during the day or night. Jewish sch...

Jews have lived in Ukraine for over 2,000 years making it one of the oldest continuous Jewish communities in the word . For the past 500 years, Ukraine had one of the largest Jewish communities in the world and remains so today. Ukraine has also seen some of the worst anti-Semitic atrocities in our history.

Hamantash is a delicious pastry with filling that we eat on Purim. Not only is the Hamantash delicious, it has a unique mystical significance that ties in with a lesser known Purim food, the Krepel. A talk about the Purim holiday with a fascinating discussion about the mystical significance of the Hamantash.

Through the Torah and Jewish prayers we use human terminology when referring to G-d including gender (usually male), body parts (hands, eye, ears, nose, feet), feelings (angry, happy, sad, merciful, kind) and actions (speaking, smelling, hitting, touching). Yet Judaism believes that G-d is beyond any human description. How can we use human terminology for G-d while believing he is beyond...

Hillel the Elder who lived just over 2,000 years ago was one of the most influential Jewish scholars and leaders in history. Hillel was President of the Sanhedrin Supreme Council of Judaism) during the reign of Herod and founder of Beit Hillel, one of two prominent academies in Jerusalem during late Temple period

Jewish law places limits on how far we can travel on Shabbat even when walking by foot. We are also given ways to extend those limits. A discussion about travelling on Shabbat.

Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman of Girona, Spain, known as Ramban or Nachmaines was one of the greatest Jewish leaders, scholars and thinkers in our history. In the 13th century, he served as the chief rabbi of Girona as well as the most important rabbi of Aragon and the Iberian Peninsula. Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman wrote extensively making a major impact on Jewish thought, commentary, law and mysticism...

The Choshen - Breastplate was a special garment worn by the High Priest when the Holy Temple stood with 12 precious stones engraved with the names of Israel. The Choshen had miraculous powers. The Jews would use the Choshen to ask G-d questions that they had. A fascinating discussion about the amazing Choshen and its miraculous powers.

We know we should be giving charity but how much should we give? Are we giving enough? Perhaps we are giving too much! Can we really help everyone who needs it? A discussion about the parameters of giving in Judaism where we will talk about whom we should give and how much we should give.

In addition to the birthdays that most people celebrate, we also have Jewish birthdays. What is a Jewish birthday? What does it mean? How do we celebrate? A discussion about the significance of our Jewish birthday.

Philosophers and physicists have always wondered if there are other realities beyond our own that we are unaware of and cannot reach. People have imagined and fantasize about what such parallel universes would look like. A discussion about the Jewish belief in parallel universes and what we believe they are like.

While most of the world is starting their new year in the Gregorian Calendar, we Jews use an entirely different Jewish calendar whose dates only sync with the Gregorian calendar periodically. Where does the Jewish calendar come from? How is it calculated? How does it work? When does the Jewish calendar sync with the Gregorian Calendar?