Kosher Questions
When Ben & Jerry’s announced a few years ago that they would stop selling their ice cream in certain parts of Israel, many kosher supermarkets and community organizations in the diaspora initiated a counter-boycott…
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Shabbos and Yom Tov
Fast Days
Tishah B'Av, the minor fasts and fasting in times of trouble.
Tachanun Technicalities
It’s been quipped that if a non-Jew ever grasped the joy a Jew feels upon skipping Tachanun, he’d convert on the spot. While exaggerated, the joke touches on a subtle truth in Jewish life: the unexpected “elation”…
Children and Havdalah
As the days become longer, the time for havdala comes later and later. This is a problem for young children. The Mishna Berura says that once a child understands what Shabbos is, he should be trained to hear havdala.
Where Is Rashi?
Daf Yomi learners relish when the daf that they learn relates to their daily lives, but that is somewhat difficult with this particular tractate, as nezirim seem hard to find.
When Purim Was on Pesach
Although the events of the Purim story transpired over a lengthy period of time, the main action occurred over a few days. The Megillah specifically states that Haman’s letters stating that the Jewish nation should be…
Something Fishy
It is a staple at most Shabbos tables: fish. Gefilte fish is most popular, but other varieties persist as well. The prices of fish along with many other staples have risen modestly recently.
Ta’anis In Teves
Now that Chanukah is over, we turn our attention to the somber day of Asarah B’Teves, a community-wide fast. Nevuchadnezar laid siege to Jerusalem on the tenth of Teves.
Who Knows Nine?
The Ancient Greek culture was focused on the human body. Someone remarked that on Chanukah we eat latkes and doughnuts fried in oil to ensure that our bodies do not become worthy of worship!
Who Knows Nine?
In this column, we previously discussed Rabbah Bar Bar Chana’s workers who broke the barrels of wine they were hired to transport (Bava Metzia 83a).
We Need To Start The Fire
The Gemara records a fundamental dispute between Reish Lakish and Rebbe Yochanan regarding damages caused by fire. Is fire to be viewed as a possession that one has a duty to safeguard?
Who Knows Fifteen?
The last mishnah in Maseches Taanis says that the most joyous holidays of the Jewish calendar were Tu B’Av and Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur was understandably a holiday because it is the day that Hashem forgives Klal Yisrael…
Not So Fast
The story is told of a group of friends that made a pact that after 120 years they would visit each other in the after-life. One who was in Gehinnom met his friend who was in Gan Eden.
Think Fast
People frequently ask if one is permitted to shower or bathe on the 17th of Tammuz, Asarah B’Teves, or Tzom Gedaliah. A daf learned this week by daf yomi participants may shed some light on this issue.
Gefilte Fish, Cottage Cheese, And Scotch
Recently, there was a boycott started in Israel against local cottage-cheese manufacturers. Consumers complained, “Why should cottage cheese cost 50% more in Israel than in the United States and Europe?” I’m lucky that…
Gemara stories on Fast Days
The Chofetz Chaim's Hidden Tears on Tishah B'Av
A visitor watches the Chofetz Chaim say Kinnos just like everyone else, then passes his home that night and hears him sobbing uncontrollably.
Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi and the Granada Massacre
Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi spread Torah across Spain and beyond; his less humble son and Granada's Jews were murdered on Shabbos, the 9th of Teves.
Sleeping in Graves on Tishah B'Av in the Desert
Each Tishah B'Av in the desert, the generation of the spies slept in graves; in the 40th year they awoke alive and, by Tu B'Av, knew the decree had ended.