For better or worse most people pay little attention to the proof texts brought to support various…
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Moed Katan 5: The Right Path
One of the fascinating features of the Talmud is how it seamlessly moves from topic to topic. The…
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Eikev: Pain and Gain
“And they placed upon them taskmasters lema’an anoto, in order to afflict them in their burdens” (…
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Some Opening Thoughts on Masechet Moed Katan
Moed Katan has as its focus two contradictory themes: the laws of Chol Hamoed and of aveilut,…
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Some Concluding Thoughts on Masechet Megillah
“And I have given them statutes that are not good, and laws that they do not live with"…
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Megillah 32: Torah Tunes
Learning Torah is meant to be enjoyable. It is for this reason that a mourner is not permitted…
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VaEtchanan: Loving G-d
Jews of faith, when faced with imminent death, have departed this world with the words of the shma …
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Megillah 21: We Stand on Guard for Thee
One of the ways we show respect for a person is to stand in their honour, and such an honour is not…
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Megillah 17: Must We Pray?
One of the most central requirements of Jewish life—both in time and importance—is that…
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Tisha B'Av: The Joy of Jerusalem
"Whoever mourns for Jerusalem will merit seeing its joy" (Ta'anit 30b). Our…
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Megillah 14: The Songs of Israel
Pesach is the foundational holiday of the Jewish people, and the Exodus is the defining moment of…
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Devarim: Justice Comes First
Sefer Devarim is the book of preparation to enter the land of Israel. Moshe Rabbeinu was to be…
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Megillah 14: Whipped Into Shape
Often it takes our enemies to whip us into shape. “Rav Abba the son of Kahana said: Greater…
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Megillah 6: Try Harder
When one makes a siyum to mark the completion of a tractate of Talmud, we recite the beautiful…
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Megillah 4: Active Defence
"Rav Yehoshua ben Levi said, women are obligated in the reading of the Megillah she'…
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Mattot: Promises
Promises, promises.
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Megillah 3: What Comes First
"These days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, every family, every…
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Megillah 2: Breaking the Walls
The first daf (page) of Masechet Megillah focuses on the distinction between open and…