"Torah, Kabbalah, and Sex" appear atop the homepage of JewishSexuality.com. The
site, run by former Hollywood screenwriter and author Tzvi Fishman, features an
abridged version of his latest book on spirituality and sex.
His book, which is scheduled to be published in October, tackles lofty Torah
secrets dealing with Jewish sexuality in its purist form and spells them out in
a down-to-earth readable style.
The site features a section entitled For Married Men Only and unabashedly puts
on the table subjects such as masturbation, sexual fantasies, how to rectify
previous wrongdoings, sexual health and "Keys to a Holy Union." Fishman quotes
sources pointing to the paramount importance of engaging in marital intimacy on
Friday night, the Jewish Sabbath.
The "Jewish Holidays" section was added this week, and will include articles
about each of the upcoming festivals.
The second website, www.tikunhabrit.com, brings sources on sexual purity from
all over the Jewish and secular world about the nature of the problem,
as well as practical advice on how to control it, with a particular focus on
the dangers of Internet pornography. After testing several Pornography Filters,
the site owners chose a free filter as their top choice.
Dedicated to preserving the holiness of the Jewish nation, the third website,
www.briskodesh.org, presents a long lineup of kabbalah-related articles on the
prohibition of masturbation. The site offers many of the original kabbalistic
texts on this "incredibly important facet of observance" for download in PDF
format.
For many people, talk of sexual purity smacks of Catholic repression and
prohibitive asceticism, and conjures up images of an angry God who wants to
torture his subjects with temptation. But a closer look at the sources quoted
in the three new sites reveals that Judaism blazes the trail in highlighting
sexuality as a powerful tool through which one can reach the highest levels of
holiness and connection with God.
When channeled in the wrong ways and performed against spelled-out guidelines,
the same awesome power leads to depression and spiritual destruction.
While sexual spiritual health is probably amongst the least mentioned topics in
Rabbi's sermons, the three sites unanimously declare that it is the gateway to
a sound marriage and improving one's relationship with G-d.
The three sites promote a new awareness of this essential tenet of Judaism. The
sites' authors note that the prohibition against masturbation is virtually
ignored in most Jewish day schools and yeshivot.
In today's world, where erotic images are always around the corner or a few
mouse clicks away, the challenge to restrain oneself is the greatest it has
ever been. Studies show that pornographic images are so compelling and
difficult to resist that their addictive effects have been compared to
crack-cocaine.
According to a study quoted on tikunhabrit.com, the largest viewers of
pornographic material in the general public are 12-17 year-old boys. As many as
10% of men admit they are addicted to internet pornography. Religious men,
according to surveys, are just as likely to stumble into this realm as are
their non-religious counterparts.
Rabbi Yehoshua Shapira, Dean of the prestigious Ramat Gan Yeshiva, agrees. He
estimates that amongst religious men with home internet access, 80-97% will
occasionally seek out pornographic sites.
"Being open-minded and on the cutting edge of technology has a certain value,"
admits Rabbi Shapira. "But let's be honest: would anyone bring a prostitute
into his home to tutor his children even if she were a talented math teacher?"
Rabbi Shapira recommends avoiding the internet except 1) for work and 2) with a
content filter installed. "And like the laws of yichud, never use the internet
while alone in the room," he adds.
As the Jewish New Year approaches, Jews will print tens of thousands of pages
of Torah articles for perusal over the two-day holiday. The three Jewish sexual
spirituality sites promise to engage Jews in new Torah understandings on the
most sensitive of topics.
