Dear Rabbi, I really enjoy hearing your podcast. We recently lost our dog of almost 14 years of age. It was hard on my entire family and me. We are all still grieving the loss of our dog. What is the Jewish perspective of dogs with regards to if they go to heaven after they...
It is true that there is no specific ancient Jewish wisdom on how The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind effectively ended the era of black-and-white movies when they were released in 1939. But the Torah does teach the permanent principles of color. It even teaches why different colors impact us in different...
Food is fuel, isn’t it? A meal for a human is the equivalent of adding wood to our fireplace. After all, our body temperature must be maintained at about 98 degrees Fahrenheit. Just as a home furnace converts firewood, coal, oil, or natural gas into heat, so do our bodies convert food into heat. Naturally...
l Here is today’s Thought Tool quiz: Early in 1845, Henry David Thoreau, along with about twenty of his friends, began a two and a half year-long party in a cabin on the shore of Walden Pond, near Concord Massachusetts. True or False? In 1971 Ted Kaczynski, his wife, six children, a nanny, a tutor,...
It makes sense to live life cautiously. Rational thought precludes taking risks. Reason suggests that we carefully weigh all options and avoid stepping onto any path whose outcome cannot be clearly seen. This safe approach reduces the likelihood of wasting one’s time and money, or harming one’s health. It certainly has merit. However, if the...
It is true that there is no specific ancient Jewish wisdom on how The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind effectively ended the era of black-and-white movies when they were released in 1939. But the Torah does teach the permanent principles of color. It even teaches why different colors impact us in different...
I visited many cities in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Israel last year, and I traveled through many airports while delivering over fifty speeches. (I counted them here: https://www.rabbidaniellapin.com/speaking_engagements.php) During my travels, I frequently rent a car. Sometimes from Hertz, other times from the smaller companies, Avis and National. Since I rarely see...
Five years ago, in a dazzling speech at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, Steve Jobs introduced his iPhone with these words, “Every once in a while a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything…” On June 4th, 1940, Winston Churchill gave a speech warning of a possible Nazi invasion. This was its climax: “We shall defend...
After speaking for Hillsong at the Dominion Theater in London on Sunday, I was honored to speak on Monday night for a large audience including several hundred associates of the Genistar Corporation, UK, at the London Chamber of Commerce. Walking to this event, I passed the imposing St. Paul’s Cathedral, which amazingly survived the bombing...
Imagine a remote island never touched by civilization. Its primitive populace possesses limited livestock and subsists on ineffective agriculture and inept fishing. Violence and brutality are common; tribal warfare and disease shorten life expectancy. Now imagine being parachuted onto this island. Let’s stipulate that the natives venerate you as a god-from-the-sky, feed you and care...
