Torah Cafe

By Zalman GordonReligion & Spirituality Judaism

Torah Cafe episodes

July 09, 2023 The Jewish View on Gun Control
Should there be limits on people's ability to purchase and safely use weapons? Should we have the freedom to arm ourselves as we feel necessary to protect our family and property?
A fascinating discussion about the Jewish view on the gun control / gun rights debate.
46 min
July 02, 2023 Why is life so unfair?
At a young age we discover that life just isn't fair. If we believe that our universe and our lives are controlled by G-d then why does G-d make life so unfair? Some people do really well, some struggle. Often our challenges are due to circumstances beyond our control. Can't G-d level the playing field?
50 min
June 25, 2023 The Great Escape from the Soviet Union
In 1946-1947, a group of a few thousand Chassidic Jews escaped from the Soviet Union to the West in one of the most daring escapes of the 20th century. This is an attempt to retell this story that has never been fully told before, with only bits and pieces shared in various historical personal accounts.
57 min
June 18, 2023 What are Tzaddikim?
Tzaddikim means righteous people. What exactly are Tzaddikim? How does one become a Tzaddik? What is the role of a Tzaddik? Is it possible for people to rise above the ordinary and achieve a unique relationship with G-d?
A fascinating discussion about the Jewish belief in Tzaddikim.
51 min
June 11, 2023 Where did Yiddish come from?
Yiddish was the spoken language of most European Jews (Ashkenazim) and their descendants for almost 1,000 years. Why did European Jews start speaking Yiddish? How did the Yiddish language evolve? Where is Yiddish still spoken today?
A discussion about the origins and evolution of Yiddish.
1 hr 7 min
June 04, 2023 The Manna
The daily manna was among the most mysterious events that our ancestors experienced while travelling through the desert after having left Egypt. This strange food fell daily and became their primary source of food throughout their 40 years in the desert.
What exactly was the Manna? How was it prepared and eaten? What did it taste like? Why did G-d choose to send Manna?
47 min
May 28, 2023 Why do Jewish women wear wigs?
Many Jewish women always keep their hair covered by wearing a wig or sheitel. Why do Jewish women cover their hair? When did this rule begin? When did they start wearing wigs? What is the point of wearing a wig that can often look better than their real hair?
A fascinating discussion about why Jewish women wear wigs.
39 min
May 21, 2023 How do we know the Torah is true?
The Torah is the basic book and teachings of Judaism. Without it, there would be no Judaism. We believe that the Torah was given to us by G-d and contains G-d's instructions for us. How do we know that the Torah is true and its instructions are G-d's instructions?
1 hr 2 min
May 14, 2023 Why are some words in the Torah misspelled?
In Jewish belief, every word in the Torah is exact but be spelled perfectly in the Torah scroll. If one letter is missing or wrong, the whole Torah is not Kosher. Yet the Torah itself has multiple misspelled words that are read differently than they are spelled.
If every word of the Torah is exact, why does the Torah have words that are misspelled?
A fascinating discussion about the phenomena of misspelled words in the Torah and the Tanach (Jewish Scriptures).
55 min
May 07, 2023 The Jews of Morocco
Jews have lived in Morocco since the time of the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. At one point the Moroccan Jewish community numbers more than 250,000 people and today more than 1 million Jews have Moroccan ancestry making it one of the largest Jewish communities with its own distinct customs and culture.
A fascinating discussion about the Jews of Morocco.
48 min