“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…
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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…
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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;…
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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…
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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…
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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 …
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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], …
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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…
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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.…
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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…
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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 (…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…