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Book Of Animal
Answers

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We are so proud of the young
man that you've become. You
can achieve whatever you want
in life. No dream is too big! We
wish you a lifetime of health,
happiness, and great success.

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All our love,

Mom, Dad,

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The Beth Shalom Family
Congratulates
Our Graduating Seniors!

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Natalie Gray

Congratulations on your
graduation from
Michigan State University.
We wish you much success in
your future career.

All our love,
Mom, Dad, Rachel, Emma,
Grandma & Papa

108

May 22 • 2014

Rabbi Jason Miller
Contributing Writer

never realized I had so many ques-
tions about animals until I met
my brother-in-law, a veterinary
radiologist and a devoted pet lover.
It was at the first family dinner that
my wife's sister brought him to that I
began to pepper him with questions
about animals. I realized that I had an
animal expert in my midst and all of a
sudden I started to think of the most
intricate questions about animals. My
kids joined in and began asking him
their own animal questions.
Listening to his answers and learn-
ing from him was a fun experience
and something that we have repeated
often at family get-togethers.
As a rabbi, I can relate to what my
brother-in-law must feel when some-
one learns that he's an animal expert
and suddenly a game of 20 questions
ensues. That happens to me when I'm
at an event and someone (usually a
non-Jew or an unaffiliated member
of the Jewish faith) hears that I'm a
rabbi. They take that opportunity to
ask every question about Judaism that
they've ever had and I become a living,
breathing Wikipedia for them.
Well, now a rabbi from New Jersey
has published a book that brilliantly
answers the most common ques-
tions people have about animals with
regard to the Jewish religion. Rabbi
Ron Isaacs, spiritual leader of Temple
Sholom in Bridgewater, tackles close
to 100 interesting questions about
animals in his book Do Animals Have
Souls (Ktav Publishing, available on
Amazon.com , $15.98).
I finished reading through every
question in this book in the fall, and
I chose a perfect time to do it. Each
year, in synagogues all over the world,
we read the story of the creation of the
world, in which animals and humans
are created and then Adam (the first
human being) is charged by God with
the task of naming the animals, and
the story of the great flood in which
Noah was charged by God with the
task of preserving the animals by

building an ark.
In some congregations on Shabbat
Noach, congregants are invited to
bring their pets to synagogue. Some
rabbis will even offer a special blessing
for the pets.
It is always a good time to remem-
ber our relationship with our pets and
also our responsibility to treat all of
God's creatures with love and respect,
as directed by the mitzvah (command-
ment) of Tza'ar Ba'alei Chaim, or com-
passion toward animals.
Rabbi Isaacs has chosen some
very thought-provoking questions to
answer in his book — from the mun-
dane to the perplexing. Are dogs men-
tioned in the Bible? Is it permissible to
hunt animals for sport? Can I bless my
cat? Do animals have souls? Is there an
afterlife for my pet? How do I grieve
for my dog and what prayer can I say?
Rabbi Isaacs is both wise and witty
in this book, which is appropriate
for adults and children. A pet lover
himself, it is easy to tell that he cares
deeply about animals. Many of the
topics have to do with ways in which
we humans can use Jewish ritual to
honor our pets.
If you've always wondered if animals
have souls or if you just wanted to know
a little more about animals in general,
this book will be great for you.

❑

This essay first appeared at
blog.rabbijason.com.

"You never soar so high as when you
stoop down to help a child or an animal."

- Jewish proverb

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