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