Rav Yisrael Salanter, the 19th century founder of the mussar movement, was asked by his students…
Pinchas: Moving On
"And Moshe did as G-d had commanded and he took Joshua and stood him before Elazar Hakohen and…
Pesachim 4a: The Rent is Too High
Landlord-tenant disputes are the bread and butter of many a lawyer. No law can account for any…
Pesachim 3b: Story of a Bigmouth
Great leaders are great strategists. The Talmud (Pesachim 3b) relates that a certain non-…
Pesachim 2-3: Light Up the Night
"To tell of Your loving-kindness in the morning and Your faithfulness at night" (…
Pesachim: Some Opening Thoughts
"On the night of the 14th [of Nissan], one [begins the] search for chametz". So…
Balak: Religious Wars
This week's d'var Torah is sponsored by Golda Brown in honour of the…
Eiruvin 95b: Tefillin for Women
In Talmudic times, it was common for one to wear tefillin all day long. As the Torah does not limit…
Eiruvin 81b: Cash Cow
As more and more of our economy runs on credit, as we increasingly pay for purchases with debit…
Eiruvin 80b: Fighting Over a Crust of Bread
For thousands of years, a meal was defined by the eating of bread. Not only as did bread serve as…
Eiruvin 69b: Following in Parents' Footsteps
I dedicate the thought below to the memory of my mother, Rachel bat Chaim (Ruth Kelman) z”l,…
Eiruvin 69: One Big Happy Family
The concept behind an eiruv is that the people making it join together as one large household. Each…
Shelach Lecha: The Little Things
Sefer Bamidbar describes not only the physical locale of the Jewish people, but their spiritual…
Eiruvin 65: Extracurricular Reading
One of the key components of the legal discussions of the Talmud is the bringing of proof texts to…
Eiruvin 64a-65a: L'Chaim, Yom Kippur, and Sin
One of the methods used to help people remember those whom they meet is the mnemonic device of…
Beha'alotcha: What Goes Up Must Come Down
"It was in the second year, on the 20th day of the second month, that the cloud [of glory]…
Eiruvin 63a: May We Debate?
The teacher/student relationship is a most special one. A teacher must treat his student as…
Eiruvin 60b: He's Only a Prophet
To tell someone that his words are those of prophecy would seem to be the highest compliment one…