by Rabbi Dov Linzer
Posted on April 29, 2021
Does the Torah advocate or permit a person to sacrifice obligations to the family if he or she devotes himself or herself to serving God? This question comes up in the context of the giving of the Torah, which we are about to celebrate on Shavuot.…
Rabbi Shemuel ben Moshe de Medina (1505-1589) was Rosh HaYeshiva of the Thessaloniki yeshiva which produced some of the most important scholars and halakhic decisors of the 16th and 17th centuries. In addition, he also served as the Av Beit Din, and in this role he was known for his humility and scholarship.…
In the Time of Coronavirus
This Saturday night, December 5th, we will begin to add “וְתֵן טַל וּמָטָר לִבְרָכָה,” the prayer for rain in its right time, into our weekday Shmoneh Esrei. The key halakhot that one must know regarding this are as follows: if one forgets to add this prayer in during בָּרֵךְ עָלֵֽינוּ, they may add it in later during שְׁמַע קוֹלֵֽנוּ.…
by Dr. Yonatan Grossman
Posted on September 15, 2020
Scroll below the video to follow along with the source sheet.…
by Dr. Daniel Rynhold
Posted on April 17, 2019
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Halakhic Parameters of Abortion: A Study Guide Guided Questions for Chavruta Learning See sources 1-5 which serve as the core sources for the Rabbinic position that full human life begins only after birth. Now look at sources 8-12. Do they indicate that a fetus has the legal status / protections of a human life or not? …
by Rabbi Haggai Resnikoff
Posted on August 3, 2017
Judaism today sees itself as a civilization that honors history above most things. And the history that we venerate is almost always our own. The Torah, however, in various places emphasizes the importance of knowing other people’s histories. This actually appears odd to us (as well as to early sages) precisely because knowing the history of ancient peoples, particularly those that have disappeared in the wake of our arrival on the scene, seems irrelevant to identity formation which, for us, is history’s primary purpose.…
by Rabbi Dr. David Berger
Posted on December 9, 2016
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by Rabbi Haggai Resnikoff
Posted on September 6, 2016
Although the written Torah suggests in various places a violent relationship with other religions- particularly those that involve avodah zarah (best but incompletely translated as “idolatry”)- we find in the Sages a mixed bag of how we should treat other religions.…
by Rabbi Dov Linzer
Posted on July 20, 2016
Introduction In Part I of this series we explored areas where the halakha – as articulated in the Talmud – has made distinctions between our obligation to Jews and our obligation to Gentiles. The following chart is based on a similar chart which appeared at the end of Part I. …
by Rabbi Dov Linzer
Posted on November 18, 2011
On the very first page (2b) of Mesechet Berachot, the Gemara discusses, on a bit of a tangent, the statement of the father of Shmuel that it is forbidden to go into partnership with a non-Jew, lest non-Jew will be required to take an oath to verify his claim in a dispute, and this oath will be taken in the name of a foreign god. …
by Rabbi Dov Linzer
Posted on October 29, 2010
The last dapim of mesekhet Avoda Zara which address central issues in Kashrut and end with a discussion of kashering and toveling vessels. This is a somewhat unusual way to end a mesekhet that is devoted to discussing the world of idolatry and its dangers. …