How Does Jewish Law Work?: A Rabbi Analyzes 119 More Contemporary Halachic Questions

Does Jewish law permit heart transplants? Do we have a responsibility to try to prevent or report a crime? Is it permissible to pray while barefoot? Can a Jewish man who has married a non-Jew be counted in a minyan?
In How Does Jewish Law Work, Vol. 2, Rabbi J. Simcha Cohen continues his remarkable research by responding to more questions of contemporary interest or concern to modern Jews who are committed to a life consistent with traditional Jewish law. As in his previously published and highly praised books, Timely Jewish Ques-tions: Timeless Rabbinic Answers and How Does Jewish Law Work?, Rabbi Cohen does not merely provide quick answers to the questions he raises. On the contrary, he invites his readers to listen in on his logic, his research, and his insights as he illustrates the process of Jewish law as it has been applied to new questions throughout the centuries.

According to Rabbi Cohen, "Halachah, the distinctly unique Jewish legal system, crystallizes the guidelines of Judaism. It makes us into Jews and marks us as Jewish. As such, an understanding of the halachic process provides insight into the inner soul of Jewish life itself."
In this book, Rabbi Cohen clearly presents each question and carefully details the process of finding its answer. Through explication of verses from the Torah, talmudic passages, and many other sources, the reader receives the answer to the question and is also given the necessary background information to see how a rabbi arrives at the halachic decision.


There are many books that provide answers to questions of Jewish observance and thought. How Does Jewish Law Work, Vol. 2 differs from others in that it places the answers in their proper contexts. For the person seeking to understand Jewish law, this book offers the opportunity to learn why Jews do certain things as they do. For those already familiar with halachah, this book will serve as a springboard for deeper study. All readers will come away with a sense of the complex system that is

Rabbi J. Simcha Cohen is the Rav of the Melbourne, Australia, Mizrachi community, a network of five synagogues, an elementary and high school as well as a koshrut supervising agency. He is the descendant of eighteen generations of rabbis and was ordained by the renowned Gaon, Rav Yitzchok Hutner. Rabbi Cohen attended the Yeshiva and Kollei of the Rabbi Chaim Berlin Rabbinical Academy. He has a number of university degrees and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. His weekly column, "Halachic Questions" appears in the Jewish Press. Rabbi Cohen is the author of five previous works: Intermarriage and Conversion, A Halachic Solution, The Jewish Heart, Timely Jewish Questions: Timeless Rabbinic Answers, The 613th Commandment, and How Does Jewish Law Work?, Vol. 1. He has served at the helm of major Jewish organizations and his writings have been acclaimed as "remarkable achievements" that "succeed in creating genuine Torah excitement."