Questions tagged [avodah-zarah]
Worship of foreign deities, one of the three cardinal sins.
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Questions regarding selling "mitzvah" items to Christians for use in their Church service
My understanding is that one is not aloud to intentionally sell anything to an oved avodah zarah ("idol worshipper") if he knows that he will use that item for his idol worshipping purpose.
There are ...
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Do jews find it blasphemy to be judged by religious laws of the pagan country they live in
Does being judged by non judaic religious law in a non judaic , pagan country considered to fall into the category of Shituff (Associating partners with God) . As jews belive that only God has the ...
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Is a chess set with full figured human pieces permissible to own? [duplicate]
Link to a similar chess set
Is a chess set with full figured human pieces permissible to own?
My question is due to the second commandment.
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Waving or otherwise recognizing the English flag and its variants
Related to this question and this question the English flag and many of its variants from former colonies have the cross of someone who is recognized as a saint by Catholics, George. This cross was ...
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Asking From Angels Borchuni Lshalom
Jews usaly do not ask angels for help as per the RAMBAM. He writes (in Sanhedrin, Perek 11) in the fifth Yesod ha'Emunah the prohibition against serving Avodah Zarah -- that not only should a person ...
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Greek Ruins -- Previous Sites for Pagan Worship
I know that Maimonides states not to enter places of idol worship. That being the case, is it permissible to visit Greek ruins that where once used for a pagan religion?
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How did names of foreign gods find their way into the Torah and Hebrew language? [closed]
After having found one explanation that the origin of the Hebrew word "Shachar" שחר which is used in the context of "Alos HaShachar" is the name of a foreign god. As well that "Shemesh" שמש which we ...
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Examples of Destruction of Idolatry in a Pagan Land
Idolatry is a great abomination which G-d wants abolished or nullified, hence I want to know whether the believing people of the past took an action against it even if they were in the minority.
Are ...
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When someone is gifted a divination object [closed]
A very good friend of mine gave me a divination object for a present. She spent a few years in the Peace Corps in Mongolia, and brought me back a little hide box with sheep and horse ankle bones, ...
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Are there any ill-effects for mis-directed prayers?
Inspired by the end of this answer:
Just remember that all non-Jews don't follow the Sheva Mitzvot and could [even] be in Avodah Zarah and then would...a blessing [of theirs] matter? It might even ...
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What are the ways of the Amorites?
When we are told not to go in the ways of the Amorites (Shabbat 67a, Yerushalmi Shabbat 6:9), However the practices enumerated there do not seem to be specific to the Amorite people. Were there other ...
user1668
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Mevushal wine used for avoda zara?
Suppose that while you are away, your non-Jewish housekeeper borrows your mevushal bottle of wine and pours some off for avoda zara (apparently, despite the fact that it's mevushal, it's "good enough" ...
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intent on shema regarding idolatry
in the shema we recite "Take care lest your heart be lured away, and you turn astray and worship alien gods and bow down to them"
what intent should one have while reading this given that the ...
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Idol as a reference point for location
לִפְנֵי פִּי הַחִירֹת בֵּין מִגְדֹּל וּבֵין הַיָּם לִפְנֵי בַּעַל צְפֹן
(Shmot 14:2)
There is a Halacha that says you may not say "let's meet by such and such an Idol" yet here the Torah does it. ...
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Meis Mitzva and Idolatry
A Cohen finds a dead body in India
Should he bury it himself and become taamei
OR
Should he inform the nearby village who will then dispose of the body with idolatrous rituals.
The roots of the ...
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If God doesn't have a body, how come Moses speak face to face with God? [duplicate]
Whatever Moses see is just God's creation right given that God cannot be seen and does not have forms or body (or does He?).
Did Moshe Rabbeinu See God?
Well did Moses really see God or did he just ...
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Praying with pictures or money on the table
It has been established that one may not pray facing a picture.
May one pray by a table where pictures or money bills lie?
How about engraved images like coins?
If prohibited, how can the practice of ...
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Buying products from store that sells avodah zarah?
What is the Halacha on buying products (not used for Avodah Zarah and not intended) from stores that sell things that can be used for Avodah Zarah?
Assuming that buying such products is forbidden, ...
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saying the word "Jesus" [duplicate]
The standard practice seems to be avoiding saying the word "Jesus" due to the halacha of שם רשעים ירקב, but some people seem to be willing to say it. Is there a heter for this? (Also, would this heter ...
user3318
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Is property belonging to a human god considered tashmishei avoda zara?
If a non-Jew who is worshipped as a god wants to bring a korban, can we accept it? Normally non-Jews can bring any sacrifices to our God which they want and are not limited to the Temple Mount while ...
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Tattoo of an image of idolatry
According to this exhaustive article on the subject of tattooing in Halachah, there is an important opinion with many ramifications that states that one is only liable for the biblical prohibition of ...
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How can Jewish merchants sell their wares to Christians before their holidays? [duplicate]
The first perek of Avoda Zara makes a strong pronouncment that it is forbidden to sell or buy from an idol worshiper close to his holidays, because by doing so, you help him celebrate that holiday. ...
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For the Noahide laws, what should Noahides, who are unaware of the biblical God, do? [duplicate]
Being a Noahide Gentile seems to be harder than it looks. Noahides must follow the seven commandments. I wonder what happens to those innocent peoples who practice polytheistic, traditional folk ...
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The "Sign of the Horns" and 'Avodah Zarah
Is the "Sign of the Horns" a manifestation or an act of 'Avodah Zarah? What if someone uses the gesture as a pop culture reference (eg., heavy metal), or just jokingly - or even mockingly about ...
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God issuing prophecy in the name of idols
I once read somewhere in the Gemara that a Rabbi asked how come idolaters claim that, as they walked by an idol, the god made a prediction (or gave advice) that came true. The answer was that God ...
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Why does the pasuk describing idols leave out "speaking?"
In Parshas Vaeschanan the Posuk says:
עֲבַדְתֶּם שָׁם אֱ־לֹהִים מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי אָדָם עֵץ וָאֶבֶן אֲשֶׁר לֹא יִרְאוּן וְלֹא יִשְׁמְעוּן וְלֹא יֹאכְלוּן וְלֹא יְרִיחֻן
Translated as:
And there ...
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