The prospect of having to raise children as good Jews should shake even the strongest of hearts. Go ahead, glance in the mirror. Do you look like an experienced parent? We have to make all the right decisions the first time around, because we aren't going to get any second chances (at least not with this kid).

This book is meant as a roadmap for travellers along the highways of chinuch (or perhaps more accurately, an index to the real map - the Torah). It should help you to at least see which way is up. Then you can choose the best route ahead.

Let's set the compass points:

WHAT THIS BOOK ISN'T:

You should look to these pages for practical aid, but don't expect to find the answers to each of your specific problems. Chazal themselves didn't record solutions to every obstacle history has placed before the Jewish parent. Rather, in their divinely-inspired wisdom, our rabbis condensed general rules into short, pithy statements.

This book is not a catalogue of every style and approach to chinuch from every corner of the Jewish world. With that in mind, it should be understood that not every reader from every corner of the Jewish world is required to accept every idea he will find here. Let this book serve as a jump-off point, something to stimulate thought and discussion. Not all Jews will agree with everything that is written here. But I think that an awful lot of them will...

WHAT IT IS:

Here are the rules and practice of Torah education; an overview of the relevant ideas of Tanach, the Gemara and its commentators, Poskim and Torah leaders right down to the present. The rules are broad enough to apply to any circumstances that might face a family, yet accessible enough to be relevant to every generation. The sum is a guide to Torah-true chinuch.

And it works!

HOW TO READ IT:

The words of Chazal are infinitely deep. They can only be useful if you will take the time to properly understand and absorb them. Much work is needed to grasp the true meaning of the sayings of Chazal, and more to apply them to your personal life. On the other hand, being able to respond quickly to changing situations is essential in chinuch. Therefore, to react effectively as a Torah-Jew, a parent must have integrated the main ideas into his personality before coming face-to-face with real-life problems.

That being said, I cannot recommend highly enough the importance of careful review. A quick one-time glance at the contents will not, in the end, prove particularly useful.

Just a word about style: nearly all the translations of Hebrew texts in this book are "free-style" to retain the intent of the original author without becoming burdened down by awkward usage. Those who choose to look up the sources in their original form, are doing themselves a favor, as no translation can do justice to the dignity and beauty of the Holy Tongue.