2021-03-23

While “only” a rabbinic command, drinking four cups of wine is given special status at the seder. Unlike matzah and marror—which…

2021-03-17

There is a fine line between matzah and chametz. They are, by definition, made of the same ingredients. All that separates them is a fleeting moment…

2021-03-11

The most repeated mitzvah in the Torah—and hence, one can argue, the most important message of the Torah—is to be kind and sensitive…

2021-03-05

“On the eve of Pesachim, one may not eat adjacent to mincha time until it gets dark; even a poor person of Israel should not eat until…

2021-03-02

“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…

2021-02-17

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…

2021-02-13

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;…

2021-01-29

There is a fascinating debate amongst the medieval greats as to whether one is obligated to act lifnim meshurat hadin, over and above what…

2021-01-25

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…

2021-01-20

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 …

2021-01-19

I am on occasion asked by my (generally non-observant) students questions about the afterlife. This is a most welcome question, indicating some…

2021-01-13

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…

2020-12-23

There is no more oft-repeated command in the Torah than the charge to be kind and sensitive to the ger—ki because[1],  …

2020-12-15

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…

2020-12-10

The problem of theodicy—why a benevolent G-d allows so much evil to exist in this world—has troubled thinkers from time immemorial.…

2020-12-08

One of the principles of Biblical interpretation is that the Torah is not necessarily written in chronological order, ein mukdam umeuchar…

2020-12-02

One of the requirements our Talmudic Sages set for the receiving of semicha, rabbinic ordination, was the ability to speak clearly (…

2020-11-26

“On the eve of the fourteenth, we search for chametz by candlelight” (Pesachim 2a). I fondly recall hiding pieces of chametz all over the…

2020-11-24

The task of editing involves critical decision-making. Beyond questions of language and syntax, an editor must decide what to include and what to…

2013-11-10

Mashechet Pesachim details the events of the busiest day of the year, beginning with the search for chametz the night before the seder, the…

2013-11-06

With the destruction of the Temple, the focus of the seder menu shifted from the eating of the korban pesach to the eating of matza. The importance…

2013-11-01

Great poetry resonates across generations and even cultures, with all finding different layers of meaning that speak to them. Yet at the same time,…

2013-10-29

The Netziv, in his commentary on Chumash, explains that the first verse of the priestly blessing "May G-d guard you and protect you"…

2013-10-24

In our last Daf Yomi Thought we spoke of the three people whom G-d loves. However, there are those whose actions are such that G-d actually hates…