The Smuggler Tony comes up to the Mexican border on his bicycle. He’s got two large bags over his shoulders. Joe, the border guard, stops him and says, “What’s in the bags?” “Sand,” answers Tony. Joe says, “We’ll just see...
The Grammy Awards, presented by the Recording Academy of the United States, are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the music industry worldwide. As far as awards shows are concerned, the Grammys couldn’t be a more...
Jews around the world have strong sentiments regarding hostages, stemming from a profound sense of unity and familial connection. When one member of the community suffers, it’s felt as if a close relative is in pain. During periods...
The Rambam, in one place in his writings, discusses the proper attitude we are supposed to have to things which the Torah forbids us to do. When a person sees a cheeseburger, for example, he should not...
The parsha begins with the words “And these are the laws which you shall place before them.” [Shemos 21:1] In commenting on this pasuk, the Medrash cites the passage: “Through justice a king establishes a land, but the...
They told me this morning at the Daf that Super Bowl Sunday is the busiest pizza day of the year. And 1.33 billion chicken wings will be consumed! As everyone gets ready for a gastronomic infusion, I would...
The Divrei Shmuel had a gabbai named Reb Yisrael Zalman Shelovsky. One day, the Divrei Shmuel said to his gabbai, “I need two hundred rubles. Please bring me two hundred rubles.” The gabbai was poor and didn’t understand why the rebbe...
Do you ever have it where two people can be eating the same food, but need to make different brachos? There are many examples. I’ll give you an example in hilchos brachos. Let’s say you have two fruits on the table, an...
Parashat Mishpatim presents a long series of laws, involving mainly interpersonal relations. We find here, for example, the prohibition against speaking insensitively to a widow or orphan, the responsibility to compensate for damages which one caused, laws governing...
Parshas Mishpatim. The word “mishpatim” (mishpat) means justice. It is a parsha of civil and ethical laws – laws that create a sphere of social justice in society. The mishpatim include – but are...