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Vayikra 24:10 and on tells of an episode with a blasphemer. The torah tells us that he was the son of an Israelite woman and an Egyptian man. From a Rashi comment there I found my way to Vayikra ...
This is a strange fact pattern that I thought of and I will explain my premises as I move through it, but the bottom line is whether a person can use suicide as a halachically acceptable behavior: ...
For various of the ten plagues, God tells Moses or Aaron to do something to bring the plague on Egypt: Take your wand and tip your hand over the waters of Egypt… and they will be blood. Blood wi...
The context here is the aftermath of the debate about the oven of Akhnai. What did Rabbi Eliezer do that was worthy of ostracism? Dissent, by itself, must have happened many times without discipl...
There is a conept that there is a s'char mitzvah, a reward for doing a mitzvah, and an oneish/punishment for "sinning". But there is also an idea that a child, under the age of bar/bat mitzvah who ...
I think I remember hearing that there is a particular prayer to be said when seeing a place where there was formerly a shul. Can anyone confirm this? Could you tell me what the prayer says? (I am m...
I live with my wife and one of my responsibilities is to do the food shopping. Often, she gives me a list and I go. If I come home with something not on the list, can I hand it to her on Purim and...
Nun, the father of Yehoshua, is apparently named after a word for fish in Aramaic (for example, Beresheet Rabbah 97:3; Divrei Emet, Matot). His father Elishama (according to Divrei Hayamim 1:7:26-2...
Like many Jews, I have been taught that Jews don't bow; many people trace this prohibition to Mordechai not bowing to Haman. This custom can be further traced to Exodus 20:5 - "You shall not bow do...
If a man is required to father a boy and a girl (according to B"Hillel in Yevamos 61b), but is married to his late brother's wife (the brother died, childless) then do (all) the children who are bo...
The Bracha of Shehechiyanu reads as follows: ברוך...×©×”×—×™×™× ×• ×•×§×™×™×ž× ×• ×•×”×’×™×¢× ×• לזמן ×”×–×” ...that He kept us alive and sustained us and brought us to this time. ...
This d'var torah discusses kal vachomer arguments in torah: Rashi is bothered that these two arguments have some sort of flaw. He wants us to realize that this isn’t so difficult, as there are t...
Exodus 34:7 ("נֹצֵר חֶסֶד לָאֲלָפִים נֹשֵׂא עָוֺן וָפֶשַׁע וְחַטָּאָה") is written in Torah scrolls with a large initial letter nun. My kid wants to know why. (I checked several commentaries and fo...
The akeidah was a significant event for both Avraham and Yitzchak.[1] Immediately after they appear to go their separate ways -- Avraham leaves without his son, and we're not told where Yitzchak w...
I've heard from multiple people, that when wearing the tzitzis strings out, leaving the knots visible is a sign of haughtiness. Does anyone know of a source for this? How does doing this show haug...
Devarim 26:13: וְאָמַרְתָּ֡ לִפְנֵי֩ יְהוָ֨ה אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ בִּעַ֧רְתִּי הַקֹּ֣דֶשׁ מִן־הַבַּ֗יִת וְגַ֨ם נְתַתִּ֤יו לַלֵּוִי֙ וְלַגֵּר֙ לַיָּת֣וֹם וְלָאַלְמָנָ֔ה כְּכָל־מִצְוָתְךָ֖ אֲשֶׁ֣ר צִוִּיתָ֑נִ...
In Nitzavim, Devarim 29:23-27 it says: "all nations will ask, “Why did the LORD do thus to this land? Wherefore that awful wrath?” They will be told, “Because they forsook the covenant that the LO...
Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 587:3, cites a view that if someone heard half of a double-long t'ki'a (long shofar blast) in a way that was effective but the other half in an invalid way, then he's n...
I have heard that when dietary laws and serious medical conditions interact, there are grounds to be lenient on the basis of pikuach nefesh. I'm pretty sure I've heard this with respect to ingredi...
I understand there was a little fence in Bayit Sheni called "HaSoreg"/"The Grille" which was meant to warn away gentiles and tme'im from entering the Chayil part of Har Habayit (according to the mi...
The Rambam writes (Hilchot Teshuvah 2:10, Sefaria's translation): אָסוּר לָאָדָם לִהְיוֹת אַכְזָרִי וְלֹא יִתְפַּיֵּס אֶלָּא יְהֵא נוֹחַ לִרְצוֹת וְקָשֶׁה לִכְעֹס וּבְשָׁעָה שֶׁמְּבַקֵּשׁ מִמֶּנּו...
Today I saw this question: History of Birkas haMinim, which got me thinking: Nowadays, that we don't have Tzdokim or little Judaic Temple-cults like the Essenes, whom is the Birkat Haminim directed...
On Rosh Hashana I heard somebody say something like: if you can't get to a public shofar blowing, at least this is a commandment that is relatively easy to fulfill on your own -- most people, this ...
I have often wondered about the meaning of David's name. I believe Da'at Mikra write that it may be a short form of Dodvahu (דודוהו), which also appears somewhere in Tanach and means Dod (friend) o...
Are there any sources that discuss how one can internalize the belief that their prayers have a real effect on the world?
On the one side of the family, we have the union between Tamar and Yehudah, which, while technically a fulfillment of Yibum, Yehudah thought she was a harlot. From this union came Peretz (Bereishis...
For "בִּשַּׂרְתִּי צֶדֶק בְּקָהָל רָב" (Psalms 40:10), a copy I have has instead "דִבַּרְתִּי צֶדֶק בְּקָהָל רָב". I assume this is just a transcription error, but wonder whether perhaps it is, rat...
In my Simchas Torah experience, there's at least as many cycles of aliyos as there are Kohanim and Leviim, such that if anything a given Kohen or Levi may end up with multiple aliyos on a given Sim...
The Talmud (Berachos 61b.9) relates the holy incident regarding Rebbi Akiva's martyrdom. He proclaimed "all my days I have been pained, waiting for this moment of fulfillment". Seeing as his commen...
Which of the Asseres Hadibros is most important? I remember hearing that its jealousy, but any sources (either that its jealousy or any other one) would be greatly appreciated.
Sanhedrin 101a.2 teaches: תנו רבנן הקורא פסוק של שיר השירים ועושה אותו כמין זמר והקורא פסוק בבית משתאות בלא זמנו מביא רעה לעולם מפני שהתורה חוגרת שק ועומדת לפני הקב"ה ואומרת לפניו רבונו של עולם עש...
In Eruvin 74b.2, the Gemara rejects a proof by saying: לְעוֹלָם אֵימָא לָךְ קַיבְּלַהּ מִינֵּהּ, וְהָכָא חַזָּנָא הוּא דַּהֲוָה אָכֵיל נַהֲמָא בְּבֵיתֵיהּ וְאָתֵי בָּיֵית בְּבֵי כְנִישְׁתָּא The G...
I read a blog post tonight that started out by asking why we don't have a mishkan today -- we had the mishkan in the wilderness before the temple was built, after all, so if we can't have the templ...
At megillah readings, I'm used to people making noise to blot out every mention of Haman's name. Tonight I was at a Chabad reading and they had a different custom: they blotted out the mentions th...
When Pesach starts on a Saturday night, I understand that we are forbidden to eat matzah on that Shabbat (because we don't want to diminish the experience at the seder), but that we also aren't all...
Many kids I know (including past-me) think that Eliyahu drinks from the fifth cup at each seder. I've been to several where parents encouraged this belief, perhaps as a way of keeping the kids awa...
When it comes to the bread, my plain understanding of the Exodus is that the Israelites left Egypt with dough (Exodus 12:34) and later baked it into unleavened bread because it had not risen (Exodu...
The beginning of the Jewish year is referred to as Rosh Hashanah. The beginning of the Jewish month is called Rosh Chodesh. How come Rosh Hashanah has a "hey" (ה) in it, while Rosh Chodesh does n...
Last Shabbat, one of the community, who came from Ethiopia, gave a lesson about the different customs an traditions that they had back there at Ethiopia. He was pointing out several major differen...
Genesis 18 describes "אנשים [=men]" who came to visit Abraham. Chapter 19 starts "And the two מלאכים [=messengers, or angels] arrived at Sodom…" and proceeds to call them, too, "אנשים". Rashi and ...
Some books in Tanach have a different kind of trop for the words. (see Psalms, e.g. under בַּעֲצַ֢ת and above רְשָׁ֫עִ֥ים) Why does this book and others have a different kind of trup? How is th...
This Shabbat is Rosh Chodesh Av. During the three weeks (which we're in the midst of) we read three special haftarot. On Rosh Chodesh normally we read a special haftarah. When they coincide, do ...
I had been under the impression that somebody who is not personally obligated in a mitzvah (or maybe specifically a b'racha?) cannot do it on behalf of someone else. This is one of the usual expla...
The g'mara on Yoma 73a gives the following examples of questions asked of the urim v'tummim (Exodus 28:30) and their answers: "Shall I pursue after this troop?" (I Samuel 30:8). Answer: "Thus...
The past few weeks, the phrase "halachta b'drachav" or "Lalechet B'drachav" or "Lalechet b'chol drachav" meaning "walk in His ways" (or "walk in ways that are proper before Him" according to Onkelo...
I was taught that we shouldn't make an interruption between saying a mitzvah b'racha and taking the action. I don't have a source for this other than that it makes sense; you don't want to risk ma...
After reading some chapters of Tanakh I had found a relation between Abrahamic Religions (Islam, Judaism, Christianity). I don't know how many Abrahamic Religions are right there. I have found 4 n...
I believe it was Rav SZA who wrote/said that there are three "threes" (3 things that people do having to do with "3") that are made up. Does anyone know where this is written and/or what they are?
The Aruch HaShulchan rules on 271:30 that b'dieved, even one who doesn't drink melo lugmav of wine at kiddush is yotzei. Would he also say the same by havdalah?
Do any contemporary rabbis address the permissibility or prohibition of reading the heretical “Me’or Eynayim” by de Rossi?
