Torah Cafe

Our kitchen and our diets have evolved dramatically from the days when the only appliance in the kitchen was an oven and grocery stores only carries flour, sugar, oil and salt. As our food preparation and consumption evolved, the kosher kitchen evolved with it. A talk about the basics of a kosher kitchen, what makes it kosher and how to balance the milk and meat in the kitchen.

The Rebbe was one of the most influential leaders and greatest Jewish teachers in history. The Rebbe inspired millions with life changing teachings to change their communities and the world around them.  Discover 5 life-changing teachings of the Rebbe.

Central to Jewish life and practice today is the 'Rabbi'. Did Judaism always have rabbis? Was Moses a rabbi? When did rabbis begin and how did the position evolve?  What is the role of a rabbi? Are there different types and status among rabbis? Learn about what makes someone a rabbi, what the rabbi's role is and how the position evolved over the past 3,000 years.

King Saul was the first King of Israel who reigned almost 3,000 years ago. He began his short reign as a promising monarch who united Israel into a functioning kingdom but things quickly went sour.

Moses led the 12 tribes of Israel out of Egypt and to the promised land. But over 2,500 years ago, 10 of the tribes were exiled from Israel leaving only 2 tribes behind in Israel. Where did the 10 tribes go? What happened to them? Where are they today?

Karma is a popular Hindu belief that every action has a direct consequence, which will come to fruition and impact us in either this life or a future life. Does Judaism believe in Karma? Do we believe that all actions have direct consequences on our lives? Do we believe that we can see things that happen to us through the lens of our previous actions? A discussion of the Jewish perspective on...

A central Jewish belief is that G-d communicated his instructions to us through the Torah. But does G-d really speak to people? What is talking to G-d like? How does someone know if G-d is talking to them? Does G-d speak to people today? A discussion talk about the Jewish belief in G-d communicating with humans and how it works.

The festival of Shavuot marks the date when G-d 'gave' our ancestors the Torah at Mt. Sinai. What exactly does 'Giving the Torah' mean? What happened? What did we receive? How did it happen? A discussion of the full story of the giving of the Torah, how it happened and what it means.

The first book of our Oral Torah is the Mishnah which stands at the center of all Jewish law and teachings and is one of the most important texts in Judaism. A discussion about who wrote the Mishnah, how it was written, what it contains and how it is studied today.

There has been much debate recently about the impact of offensive speech particularly on social media. Should we allow people to write and say things that offend others? Should we block people from such offensive speech or even "cancel" them? A fascinating discussion about the Jewish ethics of curtailing offensive speech.

Our society is being torn apart over what many perceive as inherent biases built into our culture and institutions. The complaints and demand for change are premised on the expectation of equality for all that has become a bedrock principle in our society. But should all people really be equal? Is it true that all people were created equal? A fascinating discussion about t...

Have you heard of the Trolley Dilemma? Imagine there was a trolley heading down the tracks and five people were stuck on the tracks with no time to stop the trolley or save them. However, you could press a button that will send the trolley down a different track where only one person will be killed. What do you do? While this case is theoretical, there are many practical implications to the questi...

How much should we be paying in taxes? Are we paying too much? Too little? Is our tax system fair? What would a fair tax system look like? Tax policy can be complicated and often a source of political friction in society. We Jews have had to deal with tax policy in our communities for thousands of years. What do Jewish teachings say about tax policy? Who should pay? How much is the ideal amount? A...

Of the many laws of Judaism, about one fifth involves the laws of Tumah & Taharah; a complex set of laws that are largely no longer observed. Learn about this fascinating missing part of Judaism, where we explore why it is no longer observed and what it means to us today.

On Passover Eve at the seder we eat Matzah. It is the only mitzvah we have where we are commanded to eat something in particular. Our traditions teach that Matzah has great power to impact our physical and spiritual wellbeing. Learn about the great spiritual power of Matzah and how it can impact our wellbeing.

At the Seder on Passover, we drink 4 cups of wine as a symbol of our freedom. We also fill a fifth cup but do not drink it. That cup is called Elijah cup dedicated to the prophet Elijah who lived over 2700 years ago. Jewish traditions say that Elijah, now an angel visits every seder. A talk about the Seder and Elijah's unique role at the Seder

In Judaism, we believe that everyone has a soul. What is a soul? What does the soul look like? What is the soul made of? Where is the soul before we are born and after we die? Do animals have souls? Learn about the Jewish belief in souls!

For over 800 years, two Temples stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. We've been praying for close to 2,000 years to rebuild the Temple. What stops us from rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem today. Is it only geo-political concerns or are the other reasons we have not begun to build the Temple?

Learn about one of the most famous prophets in Judaism is the prophet Elijah who lived during the First Temple period. He is not only known for his exploits in his lifetime but also for his unusual death and for his continual reappearance throughout history.

Einstein refused to believe that there was randomness in quantum mechanics because G-d would not play dice with the universe. But does he? While Judaism believes in Providence, the name of the festival of Purim means 'lottery'. Throwing dice of lotteries have special significance in our relationship with G-d. A talk about Purim and the unique gambling relationship we have with G-d.

The Torah commands us to remember what nation of Amalek did to us and to destroy them. Who is Amalek? What must we remember? How and why must we destroy them? Learn about this strange and challenging commandment and a discussion of how G-d can ask us to destroy a nation.

What are the rules for Kosher milk or milk products? Is all milk Kosher? Are the kinds of milk, cheese or other dairy products that are not Kosher? A discussion about Chalav Nochri, Chalav Yisrael and what makes milk Kosher.

Medicine has always been a very Jewish profession. Some of our most famous Jewish leaders were also doctors such as Maimonides. A talk about Judaism's view of medicine and the history of it's practice in the Jewish community.

For thousands of years, Jewish men have worn Tefillin, black leather boxes and straps when they pray on a weekday as prescribed four times in the Torah. What exactly are these Tefillin? How are they made? Why do we wear them? And why are they not usually worn by women? A fascinating discussion about the Tefillin, their significance and a demonstration of how they are made.

Pronouncing God's name can be confusing. Sometimes we say Hashem sometimes we switch his name, sometimes we mispronounce it. Writing God can also be confusing. Many write G-d or misspell his names. Why is God's name so confusing? Learn about God's different names and why we often avoid writing or pronouncing them correctly