Stones to Reduce Anxiety: Idolatrous?

Question

To relieve my anxiety, my doctor, who is an Orthodox Jew, wants me to play with a set of commercially marketed stones called ‘worry stones.’ They are sold in catalogs that sell a variety of small objects based on various cultures around the world. The idea behind them is you spend time rubbing them together and it supposedly makes you feel less anxious.

I am not orthodox myself, but I am well connected with orthodoxy and I know enough to think it sounds to me like what is termed avoda zara.

What do you think?

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Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    First, please accept my personal Brachah that your anxiety lessen and that it very soon not affect you at all.

    While it is possible that there might be some worry stones that are made for idol worship, commercial worry stones are not idolatrous and you can feel comfortable using them.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team