What Does Kosher Mean?

Luke Ford says:

I’m staying with some non-Jewish friends at Loma Linda University this weekend. I’m going to be on a panel Sabbath afternoon talking with three Christians and a Jew about a new book.

My friends have never hosted an Orthodox Jew for the Sabbath before.

I found myself asked, “What does kosher mean?” And I stumbled. “I think it means ‘fit’ or ‘appropriate’,” I said. “Food fit for a Jew. I’m a vegetarian and that makes keeping kosher much easier.”

And then I found myself explaining “kosher grape juice.” I said that about 2,000 years ago, the rabbis decided that Jews should only drink grape juice and wine grown by Jews. I didn’t explain but I think this is obvious, that it was part of the rabbinic fence to minimize socializing with non-Jews.

If you can’t drink with them, you are less likely to sleep with them.

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Respect For Transgendered Rabbis

Luke Ford says:

For years I’ve worried about the lack of respect Jews show to their transgendered rabbis.

You’d think the Holocaust would’ve educated us to be more sensitive.

Does not our Holy Torah command us not to judge men who dress as women?

I don’t see why a person’s unconventional gender choice should be a disqualification from the rabbinate.

Is a man wearing a woman’s clothing any less likely to work in Torah? Is a woman who chooses to live life as a man any less qualified to lead the davening?

What about a Yisrael who chooses to identify as a Cohen and tries to deliver the priestly benediction in an Orthodox shul?

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A Year Off Before College

Luke Ford says:

Dennis Prager had a great point on the first hour of his radio show today: “My wife and I were at a mall in Houston. I made the observation when I saw kids from all backgrounds and how courteous they were. “Thank you.” “Have a wonderful day. “Thank you. What can I do for you?” Always with a big smile. And you realize how working for private industry as opposed to working for the government so often makes you a better person because you are forced to be polite and decent and inquire about people’s lives. I am a big behaviorist. Wish enough people a nice day and you might become a nicer person.

“You don’t become a nicer person at college. You become a more selfish person. Work or travel.”

“There isn’t a single good argument for going from kindergarten to college without smelling the flowers.”

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Off The Derech

Luke Ford says:

I often encounter these professional beggars (meshulachim) in Orthodox life. They always have a great story. I have a personal code of not giving to people who directly solicit me. Instead, I save my charity for myself. I figure I should pay off my loans from my family before I give to beggars.

Nataly emails:

I grew up in a converted 3-story boarding house called The Boro Park “Meshulach” House. For those of you who don’t know what a meshulach is, they are those guys who look like Rabbis, and who knock on your door asking for tzedakah for their mothers-uncles-fathers-kallah’s-sick niece. A lot of them are genuinely very poor, but naturally there are some crooks in the bunch.

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Height Constructive Awareness

Luke Ford says:

I picked up this book and I did not expect much. On the back cover, it reads: “Daniel McGowan has personally introduced more than 7,000 people in the U.S. and Europe to Alexander Technique since 1983.”

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Yoga Constructive Awareness

Luke Ford says:

I picked up this book and I did not expect much. On the back cover, it reads: “Daniel McGowan has personally introduced more than 7,000 people in the U.S. and Europe to Alexander Technique since 1983.”

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Constructive Awareness Breathing

Luke Ford says:

I picked up this book and I did not expect much. On the back cover, it reads: “Daniel McGowan has personally introduced more than 7,000 people in the U.S. and Europe to Alexander Technique since 1983.”

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