This week's parsha

Unless otherwise noted, "This week's Parsha" comprises articles taken from contributors to the Chabad.org website. We show the original author's name here, so that proper attribution is given. For the sake of brevity, footnotes cited in the original author's writings are omitted from this website. If you need to see the citations, please refer to the original articles on the Chabad.org website.

Is My Body Mine?

Published: 11 August 2010 | Written by Tali Loewenthal

The idea that "my body belongs to me" has been an important factor in making modern life more secular and libertine. "My body belongs to me," some people say, "and therefore I can do what I like with it, as long as I do not harm other people." It sounds logical enough. We live with our bodies all the time. We can understand that there should be rules about what we do to other people. But my body is "me", so why should anyone else care? Why should the Torah care? Why should the Torah give rules for how I treat my own body?

Why Shechitah Is Important

Published: 02 August 2010 | Written by Tali Loewenthal

The Jewish people today are facing many conflicts. One of these concerns shechitah, the ritual slaughter of fowls, lambs and beef so that Jews are permitted to eat the meat. A number of groups are applying pressure in an attempt to ban shechitah, or to impose government laws which would prevent it from being carried out effectively.

Why is it important to protect our right to perform shechitah?

In practical terms, shechitah is virtually painless for the animal. The special shechitah knife is honed razor sharp: if it sliced a person's finger he would not feel it. The act of shechitah generally cuts the carotid arteries, causing immediate cessation of the blood supply to the brain. This is an effective, swift and pain-free stunning procedure. Many contrast this with the fixed bolt form of stunning used in non-kosher slaughter which anti-meat-eating groups describe in very negative terms.

Dynamic Judaism

Published: 28 July 2010 | Written by Tali Loewenthal

There are static systems and dynamic systems. The static system is likely to have a strong and stable structure. But because - by definition - it does not change, after a time, it may well start to decay and even to crumble. By contrast, a dynamic system is one of movement, change and discovery.

If you were evaluating a business set up, you might ask yourself, "Static? Or dynamic?" This might affect your decision whether or not to join the firm as a director, or, if you were a banker, whether or not to lend it money. You might think in the same way about a community: "Static? Or dynamic?" Is there an atmosphere of healthy dynamism, of spirit, of excitement? Or is it staid and rather boring, and young people are moving away?