Category: Sex & Niddah

May a Husband Give His Wife Supportive Touch During Childbirth? – Part 2

by Rabbi Dov LinzerPosted on April 26, 2018

May a husband hold his wife’s hand or give her a massage during childbirth, according to halakhah? We began to answer this question last week and came to the following interim conclusions: A pregnant woman is not considered to be in niddah until either she experiences uterine bleeding (distinct from mere stains), or until a limb of the baby emerges from the womb. …

May a Husband Give His Wife Supportive Touch During Childbirth? – Part 1

by Rabbi Dov LinzerPosted on April 19, 2018

QUESTION: I am nine months pregnant, and my husband and I have been doing Lamaze classes to prepare for the birth of our baby. Part of the Lamaze method includes pressure massage and massage of the abdomen. I have been told, though, that it is forbidden by halakhah for my husband to do this because I will be in niddah at that time. …

May A Single Man Fulfill The Mitzvah Of Pru U’rvu (procreation)?

Amy Pollak (Posted on March 11, 2018)
From the Lindenbaum Center for Halakhic Studies

To read this teshuva in hebrew click here: Introduction Until the last generation, marriage and reproduction always went together. The only legitimate way of producing children was in the framework of marriage since non-marital sexual relationships are halakhically forbidden or, minimally, strongly discouraged.[1] In our generation, technologies have evolved that enable reproduction outside the context of marriage that do not cross these lines.…

The “Can We Really Do THAT?” Episode Part 2- Joy of Text 3:1

by Rabbi Dov LinzerPosted on March 6, 2018

Which sexual acts are permitted in a marriage? The answers might surprise you! Find out why co-host Dr. Bat Sheva Marcus calls this one of “the most important episodes” of the podcast. Plus we interview the creator of the hit YouTube series SOON BY YOU, Leah Gottfried, about the challenges of dating as an Orthodox Jew, and we introduce a new take on the Final Word.…

Does Sexting Lead to Mixed Dancing? And More!- Joy of Text 1:3

Bina Westrich (Posted on December 28, 2017)
From the Lindenbaum Center for Halakhic Studies

In this episode, Dr. Marcus and Rabbi Linzer tackle female masturbation and interview Miryam Kabakov about Eshel, a group for LGBT Orthodox Jews. In the Q&A: is it permissible to talk “dirty?”This episode was recorded live at Limmud NY. These sources accompany the third episode of the Joy of Text podcast.…

The Birth Control Episode- Joy of Text 3:3

Bina Westrich (Posted on December 27, 2017)
From the Lindenbaum Center for Halakhic Studies

IUDs, condoms, the pill, oh my! We break down the pros and cons of these and other common birth control methods and the halachic considerations that render some forms of contraception more acceptable than others. Then we hear from internationally renowned educator Rivkah Slonim, the Chabbad rebbetzin at SUNY Binghamton, about her three decades of teaching Jewish college students about sex and marriage.…

Forbidden Fruit – Kiddushin 81a-b – Joy of Text 3:2

Rabbi Dov Linzer (Posted on November 14, 2017)
From the Lindenbaum Center for Halakhic Studies

Cautionary tales from the Talmud illustrate the power of sexual temptation to lead even the most revered rabbis astray… But do these stories make too much of desire? Hosts Rabbi Dov Linzer and Dr. Bat Sheva Marcus and moderator Rebecca Honig Friedman discuss a passage from Kiddushin 81a-b.…