Question
Dear Rabbi, I am a Christian and a former school teacher. I attend Grace Baptist Church in Virden, Il. During my 35 years of teaching one student really stood out as the most respectful, honest, hard working and kind person ! I talked with this boy one time about religion and he responded that Jesus was a very good person but not the son of God or our savior ! At my church I brought this response up and several of my friends stated that this boy will go to hell unless he acknowledges that Jesus is our savior ! I find this hard to believe even if it does state in the Bible that to be saved one has to believe that Jesus is the son of God and our savior ! I do not believe this Jewish boy will go to hell ! If I had of been brought up Jewish by my parents I would probably believe the same as he and had this boy been brought up by my parents he would think as I do that Jesus is the son of God and our savior ! All of this is very confusing but I think we all can go to heaven ! Your thoughts please ?

Question
What are the various Jewish views on the afterlife and who qualifies for what eternal state, if any? This question came up in my Christian bible study, and I did not have a good answer. If you want to point me to some authoritative views, I would appreciate it. BTW, my password is Isaiah 53. I thought you may find that intriguing. Shalom! JOHN

Question
Jewish tradition teaches that righteous people are punished in this world by HaShem for few sin he committed to be fully rewarded in the world to come, while wicked people are rewarded in this world for few mitzvahs they do, to be fully punished in the world to come. According to this teaching, righteous people generally suffer in this world, often with poverty. However, there are many affluent righteous figures in Tanakh, like Abraham, Job, and King David. And the Torah promises material blessings to those who perform commandments. Which is true? Are the righteous people punished with suffering in this world? Or are the righteous ones rewarded with wealth in this world?

Question
Hi, I’m a Jewish teenager who just finished high school and plan to go to college after the summer. I went to Sunday school until bar mitzvah and stopped. But I still have a basic question that I never got answered: Where do we go when we die? Thanks.
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Question
I have a co-worker who asks me many questions about Judaism. One morning when he came to work he told me his children asked him why they have to go to church. He didn't know what to tell them. He said an honest answer would have been, "Go to church so you won't go to Hell." But he didn't know if he should be so blunt with his young children. Then, he suddenly looked at me and asked, "What would you tell your children? Don't Jews believe in Hell?" I said that I had never been taught the concept in my religious education and had never heard it discussed in the synagogue. I was taught that Judaism emphasizes this world we live in right now. So, Rabbi, does Judaism believe in Hell?
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Question
Dear Rabbi, I hope you can help me. I have a good friend who refuses to believe in anything he can’t see. Specifically, he claims he wants to believe in an “Afterlife” but can’t rationalize it. Any advice? Thank you!