Wednesday evening begins the Jewish New Year 5774, followed 10 days later by Yom Kippur.
It is forbidden to wear shoes during that 24 hour Holy Day, but nobody goes barefoot. Instead Jews wear non-leather footwear preferring to interpret the commandment literally: "Do not strap leather on your feet",
Yes, that's all it said, and never mind that leather was the only shoe making material back then. Most Rabbis choose to ignore the requirement to go barefoot on Yom Kippur and instead insist that it's only a prohibition on leather. Not only do most Jews believe this, but a Google search confirms that very few Rabbis get it right.
Indeed, many Synagogues would in fact turn away a barefoot worshiper on Yom Kippur even if their annual dues was fully paid up!
The Rabbi in this current short article gets it, and explains the shoe prohibition it as it really is.
So how can a man that wise come to the conclusion he does at the end of the story? Wish I had a facepalm smiley.
Looking for an alternative to the usual Converse or Toms to wear to synagogue on Yom Kippur, a time when people traditionally refrain from wearing leather?
You could try Barefooters, a shoe made of a washable blend of cork and silicone called CorksiLite, a patented material used to protect skin from rubbing against prosthetics.
Barefooters are not quite as clunky as Crocs, and they come in a wide variety of colors to match any High Holiday outfit. Designed as a "recovery" shoe to ease your feet after running, other sports or wearing high heels, they come with a special reflexology insert that massages and supports as you walk.
Perfect for long periods of standing during services, too.
Heather Rosenstein, director of corporate development and an avid runner and cyclist, gave a pair to her rabbi, Jonathan Morganstern at Young Israel of Scarsdale, N.Y.
"When I brought him a pair of shoes, he said he had an `aha moment,'" Rosenstein said.
"He explained to me that the reason for not wearing leather was because, at the time, leathersoled bottoms were the only shoes available and Jewish tradition tells us that angels do not wear shoes, instead they walk barefoot with their feet feeling the ground beneath them.
"We were intended to be barefoot like angels on Yom Kippur, so Barefooters are the `perfect' shoe to wear since they recreate a barefoot walking experience."
To see for yourself, go to http://www.
mybarefooters.com.
It is forbidden to wear shoes during that 24 hour Holy Day, but nobody goes barefoot. Instead Jews wear non-leather footwear preferring to interpret the commandment literally: "Do not strap leather on your feet",
Yes, that's all it said, and never mind that leather was the only shoe making material back then. Most Rabbis choose to ignore the requirement to go barefoot on Yom Kippur and instead insist that it's only a prohibition on leather. Not only do most Jews believe this, but a Google search confirms that very few Rabbis get it right.
Indeed, many Synagogues would in fact turn away a barefoot worshiper on Yom Kippur even if their annual dues was fully paid up!
The Rabbi in this current short article gets it, and explains the shoe prohibition it as it really is.
So how can a man that wise come to the conclusion he does at the end of the story? Wish I had a facepalm smiley.
Looking for an alternative to the usual Converse or Toms to wear to synagogue on Yom Kippur, a time when people traditionally refrain from wearing leather?
You could try Barefooters, a shoe made of a washable blend of cork and silicone called CorksiLite, a patented material used to protect skin from rubbing against prosthetics.
Barefooters are not quite as clunky as Crocs, and they come in a wide variety of colors to match any High Holiday outfit. Designed as a "recovery" shoe to ease your feet after running, other sports or wearing high heels, they come with a special reflexology insert that massages and supports as you walk.
Perfect for long periods of standing during services, too.
Heather Rosenstein, director of corporate development and an avid runner and cyclist, gave a pair to her rabbi, Jonathan Morganstern at Young Israel of Scarsdale, N.Y.
"When I brought him a pair of shoes, he said he had an `aha moment,'" Rosenstein said.
"He explained to me that the reason for not wearing leather was because, at the time, leathersoled bottoms were the only shoes available and Jewish tradition tells us that angels do not wear shoes, instead they walk barefoot with their feet feeling the ground beneath them.
"We were intended to be barefoot like angels on Yom Kippur, so Barefooters are the `perfect' shoe to wear since they recreate a barefoot walking experience."
To see for yourself, go to http://www.
mybarefooters.com.