Relations with non-Jews, and laws regarding them.

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216 views

Attending a relative's non-Jewish wedding in a non-Jewish place of worship?

Could somebody attend his non-Jewish relatives' wedding ceremony if they are held, let's say, in a church or a Buddhist temple?
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4answers
291 views

What is the source of hatred perceived by Jews in different parts of the world?

I don't know if this is off topic but a similar question is here at Christianity SE and I thought it would be interesting to ask the corresponding one here. It intrigues me how people from other ...
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2answers
111 views

Bishul Akum: now what?

What is the kashrus status of a pot if the food cooked in it was Kosher, but cooked by Non Jew? Is the pot kosher or not?
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2answers
136 views

Why Ishmalites are accused of rejecting the Torah?

Being an Ishmalite myself i can clearly say that we don't reject the Torah as false as accused here. It is considered to be one of the revealed books by God and is called as "Torat" in our scripture. ...
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4answers
135 views

Why do we read Yona on Yom Kippur?

Why do we read Yona of all things on Yom Kippur? There are better tales of teshuvah that are more relevant to klall yisroel; why was this sefer, which deals exclusively with non-Jews doing teshuva, ...
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3answers
188 views

What is a Gentile to do? Ie. What would you do if you were not born Jewish? [closed]

Short form: I happen to not be one of the chosen ones. If you were in that situation what would you do or feel? What is a Gentile to do? Long form: I have been reading and studying a lot about ...
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3answers
128 views

Why offer the Nations mitzvos from the Torah that are already in the Noahide Laws?

When Hashem went around offering the Torah to the other nations each asked what is written therein to each nation He told them of the commandment representing their weak point or vice, hence they ...
2
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4answers
376 views

Wine touched by non-Jews

Are you allowed to drink wine that non-Jews touched? Why?
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1answer
58 views

If a non-jew steals is he liable to the death penalty?

Stealing is a Noahide commandment. If a non-jew violates a Noahide commandment he is obligated to die. That means if he steals a penny or something he's obligated to death?
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1answer
100 views

Can a non-Jew run a Judaica store?

Could a non-Jew run a Judaica store/business? Would this be kosher? What if it's online? Are there any restrictions on converts?
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2answers
208 views

Why are children from a gentile wife not considered Jewish with a Jewish father?

Why are children who have a Jewish Father and gentile mother not considered Jewish?
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1answer
71 views

Do non-jews have soul mates?

We know that Jews have soul mates: people whom they are destined to marry. Do non-Jews have people they are destined to marry?
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3answers
224 views

Did Chazal know about China and the Chinese? and from which of Noach's sons do they hail?

The silk road from the Far East to Asia probably operated from about 200 B.C.E although it was not a direct trading route but worked in stages; so there was no direct contact from say China to ...
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2answers
94 views

Listening to Ambient Music

Is there anything wrong about listening to Ambient Music produced by Non-Jews (with no lyrics or vocals and certainly no issue of Kol Isha.) The reason for listening to it is in order to relax or for ...
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2answers
166 views

Will A Non Jew who did not keep the Noachide Laws be Held Accountable?

Will A Non Jew who did not keep the Noachide Laws be Held Accountable on yom hadin? After all, he can claim he didn't know anything about them. Maybe there is a difference between a gentile in ...
2
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1answer
86 views

What is a ger toshav?

I read in the Book of Isaiah (Is. 56:1-8), about the foreigner joining Hashem. I asked my Rabbi briefly about this passage. He explained that the passage is probably neither about a gerut conversion ...
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1answer
56 views

Formulation of name(s) when praying for non-Jews

When praying for non-Jews, how should one formulate the name of the sick individual if he or she as a Hebrew-derived (vernacular) name? Eg., Jack ben Rebecca vs. Ya'akov ben Rivkah?
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1answer
118 views

If someone had a family tradition that he came from an Edomite, would he be allowed to marry a Jew?

An Edomite cannot marry a Jew for three generations. Nowadays (since the time of Sancheiriv, who mixed all nations together), this law no longer applies as we no longer know who is an Edomite. ...
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1answer
66 views

Chometz Gezel Akum

The Gemara in Pesachim (ה:‏) says if you are holding Chometz for a gentile and Pesach comes you have to burn it. How is it possible to say that: it is Gezel Akum and even if you pay him back you ...
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1answer
91 views

Can a Jew sell a sefer Torah to a non-Jew? Why or why not?

A question was raised whether a non-Jew can run a Judaica store. My thought on that was it depended on what types of judaica he sold. I doubted that a sofer would sell him mezuzah parchments, ...
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2answers
74 views

Gentiles and Berachoth

It seems pretty obvious that gentiles shouldn't make Berachoth on any Mitzvoth (their 7 aren't exactly ritualistic, and they were not commanded in the rest of ours). But are there any Berachoth that ...
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0answers
50 views

What God must gentiles believe in?

In the Rambam's Mishne Tora, the end of chapter 8 of M'lachim reads: Any [gentile] who accepts seven commands and is careful to fulfill them is among the pious of the nations of the world and has ...
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0answers
78 views

Have the empires of old perished?

I remember being taught when I was younger that the fact that Jews are around is a testimony to the eternity of our religion; that we survived them all and that they are no longer. I am unaware ...
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0answers
46 views

Apostate Jew performing mitzvahs

It has been discussed many times on this site that a non-Jew may not observe Shabbat (in addition to various other mitzvot that are prohibited to non-Jews). We have also seen that a Jew who renounces ...
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64 views

Are there 8 Noachide Laws?

I have been reading up on the sheva mitzvos bnei Noach and the idea that there are 7 laws, but it seems that according to one sense, there must be eight. If not, can a "Noachide" be successful as a ...
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0answers
70 views

Is it permitted to listen to instrumental secular music by an antisemite?

Assuming it is permitted to listen to music composed or performed by a non-Jew, is it prohibited, ill-advised, or outright permitted to listen to instrumental secular music by a composer who ...
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0answers
31 views

Should you show preference to a Jew/ Jewish establishment? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Purchasing from a Jew If you have the opportunity to do business or make purchases with either a non-Jew or a Jew equally is there any reason to prefer the Jew over the ...
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4answers
473 views

Teachings of Chabad (Lubavitch) - controversial or not?

I have been reading about Chabad Lubavitch and, since I have started to be in contact with a local group, I am in doubt about the Chabad messianism (belief of some adherents about the last Rebbe). ...
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2answers
77 views

Midrashim concerning Balaam?

Where can I find Midrashim about Balaam the Gentile Prophet, who appears in this week's Torah Portion?
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2answers
638 views

Why usury or interest on loan is illegal within Jews and legal for non-Jews [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Are we allowed to charge interest or not? Any action or deed which is not considered ethical for ourselves, should also apply on others as well. Also throughout the ...
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1answer
54 views

Adapting melodies from pop culture to liturgy

On JM in the AM, once, I heard a leading chazzan -- sorry I don't recall the name, but he was a leader in an organization for chazans -- make the argument that it is assur to adapt melodies from pop ...
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2answers
204 views

Non-Jews learning or being taught Torah

I read on Mi Yodeya, and elsewhere on the Internet, that the Gemara (Chagigah 13a) says that Jews can't teach Torah to gentiles, and that according to Tosefot (Chagigah 13a sv. ein) this is because ...
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1answer
91 views

Is a Gentile that keeps Yom Tov Chayav Misa like on Shabbos?

We say a gentile that keeps Shabbos is chayav misa (death penalty). Is this also true if a gentile keeps yom tov?
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1answer
40 views

Eating certain cereals during Aseres Yemei Teshuva

Orach Chaim 603 says that a person should avoid eating Pas (bread/baked goods) made by Kuthim (or non-Jews, Mishnah Berurah, ad loc.) during the Aseres Yemei Teshuva. Does this include cereals made ...
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1answer
148 views

What is a non-Jew's purpose in life?

What does a non-Jew have to do in life? Why did God create non-Jews? A Jews purpose in life is to learn Torah and do Mitzvos. What should a non-jew be spending his time doing?
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1answer
118 views

Going to a wedding of a gentile

It says in SA YD Siman 152 Sif 1 that it's ossur to go to a wedding (seudah) that a gentile is making for his son. The Shach and Taz both discuss over there if for reasons of "aiveh" if one is allowed ...
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1answer
98 views

Mezuzah for room used by Non-Jews

In a Jewish-owned and -operated mifa'al (factory/business), there is a room that is designated for the non-Jewish workers where they can eat, rest, etc. The room is used for nothing else (not even for ...
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1answer
133 views

What is the status of a library loan?

When you borrow something from the (secular) library does it follow the same halacha as a loan from one Jew to another?
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0answers
38 views

Can a Jew cut a non-Jew's nails consecutively?

Can a Jew cut a non-Jew's nails consecutively? This would relate to a profession in which one trims nails such as podiatry, nursing, pedicurist etc.
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0answers
43 views

Stopping gentile from doing borer on Shabbos

Consider the following situation. A shul makes a large Kiddush every Shabbos morning after Davening. They have many food items that need to be prepared and set up for the Kiddush however the ...
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91 views

Non-Jews praying with the Jewish community

I read a comment made on another question that regardless of how they are worded, blessings that are made in communal prayer can only be prayed by someone who is obligated to them. The idea that ...
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0answers
54 views

Decorating of the Beitzah

Somebody told me in Israel some have the custom of decorating the egg for Pesach (like an Easter egg). Wouldn't that be considered chukas hagoyim or avoda zara?
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106 views

Is wine touched/shaken by a non-idolatrous Gentile child forbidden to drink?

Shulchan Aruch (YD 124:1) states: A Nochri child who does not mention idolatry or Meshamshim, if he touched wine he forbids only drinking it, but not benefit from it. (See this related ...
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2answers
152 views

arab suicide bombers [closed]

We make a tremendous deal about self sacrifice of Avraham Avinu by Akeidas Yitzchok - the Abarbanel writes that it is "the entire glory of the Jewish people and their merit before their Father in ...
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0answers
81 views

How can I be frum in a non-Jewish work enviroment? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: How do you get non-Jews to treat you with some kind of tznius? What can I say and how can I act to prevent the non-Jewish people in my company from automatically ...
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3answers
694 views

How, if at all, can “frum” Jewish men justify their consorting with prostitutes?

A friend of mine is a part-time magistrate in Sullivan County, New York. He often hears cases of hasidic men being caught with prostitutes. Moreover, he tells me that the cases of STDs among hasidim ...
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3answers
78 views

How to explain Kashruth simply

How can one explain Kashruth to a curious colleague without too much complexity? I get curious questions all the time, mostly about the laws and about rabbis blessing the food, which is, of course, a ...
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1answer
144 views

Who is a Jew according the Tanach?

Does the Tanach give guidelines to Identify who is a Jew and who is not?
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1answer
198 views

Entering a place where Gentiles and Jews Daven together from a Siddur

Would it be permitted to pray in a place where there are services that are mixed with Jews and gentiles? Meaning, a synagogue that also invites gentiles to pray with the Jews (but they all pray from a ...
0
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1answer
120 views

In What Sense Non Jews Should Obey/Disobey Torah?

There are 2 opinions. In some cases I've heard that God reward anyone that obey Torah. Also, I think I read somewhere in exodus that anyone living in Israel, be it foreigners or not, must not work ...