10 May THE FINER THINGS IN LIFE
Is it proper to enjoy good food or should we avoid worldly pleasures and focus on spiritual success? The Talmud contains a plethora of seemingly contradictory indications on whether it...
03 May WEALTHY NO MORE
A charitable pledge constitutes a vow that must be fulfilled. However, like many vows, it can be nullified if proper regret is presented to a religious court, if it is...
12 Apr TEN ANSWERS FOR THE WISE SON
The Passover seder is full of fours: four questions, four cups, four sons. The midrashic reading of four sons into the biblical text is brilliant, comparing the four times the...
05 Apr WHO READS THE HAGGADAH?
I. Three Seder Practices Generally speaking, when it comes to the Pesach Seder, people know the details of their own family’s practices but not those of many other families. From conversation,...
29 Mar WHAT IS FREEDOM?
I. Freedom of the Will Pesach is the holiday of freedom, when G-d redeemed us from slavery. But has that freedom continued with us, even after we subsequently were oppressed and...
22 Mar HOW MUCH HOLIDAY PREPARATION?
I. Thirty Days Before A Holiday Holidays are much like other things in life in the sense that the more you put into it, the more you get out of it. We are instructed to study...
15 Mar STANDING AT THE GATE
The Megillah mentions on several occasions that Mordechai sat ךלמה†רעשב– “at the king’s gate.” Apparently, he would frequently sit by the gate to the king’s palace. But we must wonder...
15 Mar CAN YOU GIVE CRYPTOCURRENCY FOR MATANOS LA-EVYONIM?
Cryptocurrency has gained traction in recent years, valuing over two trillions dollars in circulation. Can you fulfill the mitzvah of giving money to poor people on Purim (matanos la-evyonim) with...
08 Mar CAN YOU GIVE AN NFT AS MISHLO’ACH MANOS?
One of the mitzvos of Purim is giving Mishlo’ach Manos, a gift of at least two different things to a friend. With technology constantly evolving, I wonder whether you can...
01 Mar SPILLING WINE
I. Spilling Wine Rav Moshe Isserles (Rema, 17th cen, Poland; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 396:1) records a custom to spill Havdalah wine on the ground. He explains that the basis of...