“On the eve of Pesachim, one may not eat adjacent to mincha time until it gets dark” (Pesachim 99b). The seder meal is the most…
Pesachim 66: Anger Management
Judaism eschews extremism. “The two extremes in each and every tendency are not a good way, and it is not proper for a man to follow them…
Pesachim 66: A Wise Leader
The Shulchan Aruch, the most accepted code of Jewish law, consists of four sections: Orach Chaim, dealing with the day-to-day routine of Jewish law;…
Pesachim 50: Time to Work
There is a fascinating debate amongst the medieval greats as to whether one is obligated to act lifnim meshurat hadin, over and above what…
Pesachim 50: That's My Minhag
In one of his teshuva derashot, Rav Soloveitchik lamented the fact that, while there are many shomer Shabbat Jews in America, there are very few…
Pesachim 49: A Great Family
Language is much more than a method of communication. It conveys the values and culture of those who speak it. The Hebrew language is known as …
Pesachim 50: A Very Clear World
I am on occasion asked by my (generally non-observant) students questions about the afterlife. This is a most welcome question, indicating some…
Pesachim 43: Chametz at the Seder
In our last post, we discussed the fascinating view of Rabbi Yehuda (at least, as understood by Rashi) that the prohibition of eating chametz on…
Pesachim 29: Enjoying Some Chametz on Pesach
There are few ritual prohibitions as widely and carefully observed than that of the prohibition of eating chametz on Pesach. It is not uncommon…
Pesachim 21: Welcome Stranger
There is no more oft-repeated command in the Torah than the charge to be kind and sensitive to the ger—ki because[1], …
Pesachim 13: Time for a Joke
In describing our Talmudic Sages, one would not put a sense of humour at the top of the list—maybe not even at the bottom. Yet that would be…
Pesachim 8: Bathing In Jerusalem
The problem of theodicy—why a benevolent G-d allows so much evil to exist in this world—has troubled thinkers from time immemorial.…
Pesachim 6: 30 Days Notice
One of the principles of Biblical interpretation is that the Torah is not necessarily written in chronological order, ein mukdam umeuchar…
Pesachim 7: Let the Dough Rise
One of the requirements our Talmudic Sages set for the receiving of semicha, rabbinic ordination, was the ability to speak clearly (…
Pesachim 2: Searching for Chametz
“On the eve of the fourteenth, we search for chametz by candlelight” (Pesachim 2a). I fondly recall hiding pieces of chametz all over the…
An Introduction to Masechet Pesachim
The task of editing involves critical decision-making. Beyond questions of language and syntax, an editor must decide what to include and what to…
Eiruvin 100: Cats and Ants
Imagine if the Torah had not been given. While for many, such a thought is unthinkable—“for they are our life and the length of our days…
For the Sake of Heaven
I often ask my high school students what they consider the most difficult mitzvah to observe. The two most common answers I receive are keeping…