Halacha & Hashkafa

His Silence Is Deafening ‘One Seized it in Our Presence’ (Bava Metzia 6a)

It is said that greeting people with Shalom aleichem brings people closer together.6 As such, a man should not greet a woman with Shalom aleichem so that they do not become overly social with one another. According to this approach, there would be no problem for a man to greet a woman with good morning or how are you?

While generally travel is prohibited on erev Shabbat, the Shulchan Aruch rules that if one is ascending to the land of Israel and his caravan is leaving on Friday, he may leave with them because of the mitzvah of dwelling in the land of Israel (Orach Chaim 248:4).

It was a very sweet and thoughtful gesture, and, thankfully I still have my teeth and was able to enjoy the cake.

For example, if you would normally buy an esrog for $100 and one year there are no esrogim available, if you were to give that $100 to charity, it would count as if you performed mitzvah of taking the esrog!

It is said that in Nissan we will be redeemed. It is also written that only with great joy can we be redeemed.

Most of the drivers drove carefully and obeyed traffic laws, honoring the traffic lights and giving right-of-way to pedestrians. However, he did see his fair share of poor driving and near-accidents, whether between cars or with pedestrians. He also witnessed several accidents.

The Burdensome Beast ‘He Put His Donkey on the Ferryboat’ (Bava Kamma 117b)

At the beginning of bentching we thank Hashem who sustains the entire world with goodness, grace, kindness and mercy. It’s something to think about.

What is the meaning of Man being made in G-d’s image? G-d has no body or form: You saw no form at Mount Sinai, only a voice (Devarim 4:12).

According to the Ra’avad and Ramban, there is no Torah prohibition to fear. Instead, the Torah promises the soldier that he will not fear (see their comments to the Rambam’s Sefer HaMitzvot).

The halachic authorities are somewhat divided on the need to mention the name of a sick individual when praying for them. Several authorities rule that mentioning the name of someone when praying for them is optional.

Secular music with lyrics that are inappropriate due to heresy or lack of modesty is obviously not permitted. Otherwise, it’s not necessarily prohibited – just as secular wisdom is not prohibited merely because its source is not Jewish...

If the store allows returns, I don’t see the problem, replied Eli. If you want, you can ask Rabbi Dayan. I normally wouldn’t bother just to save $2, but I am interested in knowing the halacha, said Shimmy.

The Messenger Or The Message? ‘How Do We View This Agent?’ (Bava Kamma 104a)

At a recent shiur, I spoke of my bubby and her endless nights of tears. I asked that each of us take the time to feel the pain of the mothers, the fathers, the bubbies and zaydies who are waiting for their children to come home from this battle for the existence of our land, and of our people.

Love seems to be the ideal, but only on paper, as human nature also must operate from a degree of fear.

While the Talmud Bavli praises burial in Israel, the Talmud Yerushalmi is critical of bringing the dead from outside the Land for burial in Israel.

Ultimately, there is no color requirement for Shabbat clothes, and they may be of any color. The only requirement is that one have specially designated clothing exclusively for Shabbat that are as nice and dignified as one can afford.

Every morning and throughout the day my phone would buzz nonstop with holy Jews on these groups looking to contribute in any way they could.

According to most, the leniencies that Chazal encourage relate to things that would otherwise be rabbinically prohibited. That is, we seek leniencies in these areas to overcome a deRabbanan, but not a deOraisa.

I then stood at my grandmother’s grave, suddenly the tears started rolling from my eyes, my heart opened up, and it was as if my grandmother was standing right there with me, talking to me and giving me strength. As I spoke the tears kept rolling down my cheeks. I felt like I could hear my grandma as if she was standing there with me.

The Gemara (Makkot 3a) teaches that once a witness testified, he is not believed to retract and say that he testified falsely as an eid zomem (conspiring witness), replied Rabbi Dayan. His testimony remains valid (C.M. 38:1).

Possession Is 100 Percent Of The Law ‘Stolen Chametz Became Forbidden Due to the Intervening Passover’ (Bava Kamma 96b)

I would say that animals are perceptive enough to pick up on their master’s sense of distress and may well realize that some doom awaits them.

It is interesting to note that although an aron kodesh must certainly be treated with respect and reverence, a number of authorities rule that an aron kodesh is not awarded any inherent or exclusive sanctity.

One of my favorite moments was, when to the consternation of our cabdriver, someone honked him. He opened his window and screamed lamah (why) beep beep?

As the blessing of Shehecheyanu is reserved for moments of great joy, it is appropriate only for close friends. But with modern means of communication – phones, email, WhatsApp, FaceTime, Zoom, etc. – it’s very possible that one will have seen or at least heard from his or her friend within thirty days.

A parent may make a request but they must realize that they cannot force any compliance or, if one prefers, any obedience from their married child, son or daughter.

Jonathan knew which trees were orlah, so the leniency of questionable orlah outside of Israel was not applicable, but his partner would not forgo these fruits!