Two views on confronting a crisis of faith. One says shout down heretical thoughts. The other says atheists deserve to be taught. Dear Dr. Gotfryd, I usually enjoy your articles but I have to object to your recent emphasis on responding to doubts with rational arguments. I believe it is not in line with the [Read More ...]

Dear Dr. Gotfryd, I am on the verge of a nervous breakdown with no one to turn to. I’ve spoken to a lot of people, nothing has helped so far and someone suggested you because you are a logical person. I am a Lubavitcher bochur [young man], went through the system, got smicha [rabbinic ordination]. [Read More ...]

by Dr. Yaacov (Jack) Hanoka, PhD Dr. Hanoka is a devoted Chassid of the Rebbe and an internationally renowned solid state physicist with 70 publications and 56 patents in the field of solar power. His scientific prowess in no way dampens his clarity and commitment to the truth of Torah. He sees no contradiction between [Read More ...]

Hi Greg, I was happy to hear from you and have read with interest your reflective paraphrase of my last letter to you, as well as your many counterpoints which all essentially leave us back where we started from, and I think that is basically the following: You feel that accepting the Torah as G-d’s [Read More ...]

 Dear Dr. Gotfryd, I've heard it said many times that there has to be a First Cause, but why? What is wrong with saying that the world is all made up of basic building blocks such as atoms, protons, etc. which have always existed? Why do you have to say that there was a cause [Read More ...]

Hey, Dr. Gotfryd.               I felt what I thought might have been a small earthquake today, and something made me remember your letter, that you published in the Chabad journal. So I re-read it, today, with a new perspective and great interest.               I think reading something again makes you appreciate nuances and [Read More ...]

I love science, and it was partially through science that I came to Torah, with material such as the essays by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan you can find online at simpletoremember.com.[1]   In fact, whenever I see material about science and Torah, I try to acquire and read it.  So, when one of my Rabbi friends [Read More ...]

Hi Arnie -    I'm responding to your recent article with its call for help in developing a companion curriculum as a kind of running commentary to the standard science curriculum and textbooks taught in Jewish high schools: Here are my thoughts: I think the basic emphasis should be on driving home certain basic principles, [Read More ...]

Shalom Greg, Vadim and Levi, Thanks for including me in your virtual debate about Science and Torah. Your thread is about as long and rich in words as Jewish history is in years since Avraham Avinu, upwards of 3800, and I read it with interest. Clearly you, like most of our brethren throughout the ages, [Read More ...]

A Bas Chabad on Mivtzaim met a lawyer who promised he would keep kosher if she could prove to him that the soul exists. She asked me to help so I wrote him a letter (last week's column) to which he and many others replied. Here are some of the responses (minus the lawyer jokes). [Read More ...]