יום רביעי, א׳ אב תשפ״וWednesday, July 15, 2026
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Rabbeinu Tam has an ingenious solution for how to have Seudah Shlishit on Erev Pesach: eat matzah ashirah [egg matzah].
Is it appropriate to introduce “gimmicks” at the Seder (like 10 toys for the 10 makos) in an effort to make it more fun for children? Or should the Seder be more dignified and formal?
In Our Days ‘We Do Not Seize a Surety From Children’ (Shekalim 3b)
Although yearly statements may show gains, there is no obligation to give maaser until shares are redeemed.
The Shulchan Aruch does not even mention the opinion of the Rif and Rambam and states explicitly that the requirement of guarding applies only to the matzah used for the Seder.
Is listening to rap or heavy metal music appropriate?
A Case Of Mistaken Identity ‘And Two Cooked Foods’ (Pesachim 114a)
The Gemara [Bava Metzia 117a] discusses a tenant who washes his hand with the water that leaks on a tenant below him.
In looking up a pasuk online, the first result one gets is usually the King James translation or another Christian translation. Can one use this translation if the pasuk isn’t Isaiah 53:5 or something similar?
An Expression Unique In Shas ‘I Am Neither Wise…’ (Pesachim 105b)
We are a nation of miracles. We have traveled through the four corners of this earth. We have gone through every type of persecution. We were told that we would be vanquished, thrown into the sea.
Although a person is usually liable even for accidental damage, Rabban Yochanan explains that, in this case, he is really completely exempt, but the Sages fined people who purposely damage property so that they won’t do so wantonly.
When publishing a deceased person’s writings, may one censor a tiny amount of material in order to vastly increase the number of people who will read it and be influenced by the author?
He Might Extinguish It ‘The Best Way of Performing the Mitzvah’ (Pesachim 103b)
The family suddenly realized that giving on his behalf while he was sedated may not have counted, so they called Rabbi Dayan and asked him.
Should a lawyer defend someone in court whom he thinks is guilty? What if the man is truly despicable (e.g., a child killer)?
Hashem's House Is No Different (Pesachim 94a)
The Gemara then says that certain people – including teachers, shochtim, doctors, and mohalim, whose malpractice cannot be undone – do not need to be warned before being fired since they’re considered to have already been warned.
Is there anything wrong with taking an animal from the wild and confining it to restricted living quarters. In other words, are zoos “kosher”?
Hashem’s House Is No Different “Everything Except ‘Leave’” (Pesachim 86b)
In some cases, a neighbor can object so that the protrusion doesn’t establish a chazakah (permanent rights) should he ever want to build there.
Should a frum Jew believe the sun goes around Earth if the Rambam says it does?
Location! Location! ‘On and Off His Forehead’ (Pesachim 77a)
As Shimon put the $20 bills in their compartment, he noticed that one had a star in the serial number. He recognized it as a 2017 $20 bill Federal Reserve Star Note worth over $30 as a collector's item!
Is it important to keep kids (who are old enough to come to shul) at their seats for Kerias HaTorah (as opposed to letting them play outside)?
The sale is valid since the food is essentially of the same type, and most people are not particular how an animal is raised.
Against The Tide? ‘How Do We Roast the Paschal Sacrifice?’ (Pesachim 74a)
Is it ever appropriate to get drunk?
Blood On His Hands! ‘It’s Praiseworthy for the Sons of Aaron That They Walk in Blood…’ (Pesachim 65b)
Ohr Chadash could very much use the additional funds, replied Mr. Klein. But I’m not sure it would be ethical to change the will at the expense of Toras Yisrael. I think it best for you to consult a halachic authority.
Should a Jew avoid living in Germany? What about doing business there?
Mazal Tov! ‘They Recited Shema Yisrael’ (Pesachim 56a)
Should a parent encourage a child who wants to join the U.S. Army?
Are We There Yet? “I Don’t Work on Yom Tov [Sheni]” (Pesachim 52a)
It's good you trust me, said Yosef. Otherwise you could claim the envelopes had less money in them and refuse to pay the full amount.
In retrospect, which group of Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto were correct – those who favored fighting the Nazis or those who opposed doing so?
Spoiled And Rotten? ‘A Loaf Went Moldy’ (Pesachim 45b)
Mr. Aboudi contacted some of his Egyptian counterparts to procure a mummy. That evening, he shared with his chavrusa, Mr. Landau, that he was currently trying to acquire a mummy.
When we are stressed and under pressure, we often parent out of emotion. We just want to get through the moment and forget the long term goal of raising children with soul.
Should parents name their child after an ancestor if that ancestor's name sounds strange to modern ears (an extreme example would be “Yenta”) and the child may later feel awkward sharing his or her name with others?
A Matter Of Ownership ‘Here Too [It Means] Of Your Own’ (Pesachim 37b-38a)
Is it appropriate to invite yeshiva bachurim to one’s Shabbos table if one has a teenage girl at home?
Chametz On Shabbos Erev Pesach (Pesachim 32a)
Rav Sheshes, though, maintains that a dice gambler is disqualified only when he lives off of gambling and doesn’t have another profession.
Is it proper for an ordinary Jew (as opposed to Avraham Avinu, Moshe Rabbeinu, or R’ Levi Yitzchok of Berditchiv) to challenge G-d?
The Shoemaker’s Children ‘If One Can Eat, One Can Sell’ (Pesachim 21a)
Yaakov couldn’t remember who handed him his oil bottle and both Avraham and Yitzchak insisted he was the one who did so.
Is it appropriate to read works of fantasy – say, Harry Potter, for example?
For Want Of A Miracle ‘Levi Taught: [It Is The] Liquids of the Altar’ (Pesachim 17a)
Mr. Poupko felt that all owners, from both sides of the building, should contribute. "The sewage line serves the building in general, and is considered joint property," he reasoned.
Gam zeh yaavor is a beautiful Jewish wisdom. Nothing lasts forever. Not the good and not the bad. This difficult time will pass.
The practice of the Vilna Gaon was not to have the challah on the table at all during Kiddush (Masseh Rav 118). Why don't all Jews act similarly?
Is having a natural birth advisable, inadvisable, or a value-free decision?
Rabbi Dayan said, To replace the juice from the mini-bar with a bottle from the store would be cheating the hotel.
Accepted Custom ‘We Burn at the Sixth’ (Pesachim 11b)
A Matter Of Resolve ‘The One Who Searches [For Chametz] Recites A Berachah’ (Pesachim 7a)
One day, the elderly Mrs. Miller returned from some errands and found that the house had been robbed. When word got back to Mrs. Rosen, she asked the Millers to pay her the value of her stolen jewelry.
Should you give money to a panhandler on the street (or a subways car) if you have no idea if the person really needs it or not (e.g., he may take the money to buy drugs)?
Out Of One’s Box ‘All May Enter the Heichal to Build, Repair…’ (Eruvin 105a)
Accordingly, the Gemara [Bava Basra 21a] states that a person who rented a house from a person who isn’t the owner must pay the true owner when the house is intended for rent, but not when it isn’t.
Tosafot indicates that one can fulfull the precept of shalosh seudot by eating all three meals on Shabbat day.
Should you read the Rambam’s Guide for the Perplexed if you aren’t perplexed?
But would that be fair to the other person? Eli asked. You asked me first for payment, but he lent me first and he might ask me soon to pay him back.
As we got into the car, we made a decision. We would go to see my zaida and my bubby, whom we called Mama, a"h. I needed their brachos, I needed to receive their blessings.
I have heard eyewitness reports of individuals mistakenly performing melachah immediately after the conclusion of an early Maariv - exactly the scenario about which the Maharshal was concerned.
Should a person daven a long Shemoneh Esrei if others around him might consider him arrogant (or holier than thou) as a result?
The following evening, the mohel came by. "Unfortunately, the baby is still yellow," he said. "We have to delay the bris.”
Elevated Train Tracks As An Eruv ‘Pi Tikra Reaches’ (Eruvin 94b)
Is it okay for a young man to leave his parents’ mesorah and join another (e.g., for a chassid to become yeshivish, for a dati le’umi/Modern Orthodox Jew to become black-hat, etc.)?
Who’s Fridge? ‘If The Owner Retains a Holding There’ (Eruvin 85b)
Is it ever appropriate for a husband to put his foot down with his wife or a wife with her husband? Or is compromise the answer no matter what the issue is?
Detached Or Unrelated ‘He Made an Asheirah Tree Into a Ladder…’ (Eruvin 78b)
I can post a sign about the sefer, said Moshe, but I’m hesitant about the money. It's a big city with a wide variety of people; I don't want to start getting phone calls from strange people asking me about an envelope of money.
Is following sports a waste of time or harmless pleasure?
Do Hotels Need Eruvin? ‘A Separate Contribution From Each Company’ (Eruvin 72b)
Is it appropriate for a man to wear cologne?
Spreading The Wealth ‘Giving to Only One Poor Person’ (Eruvin 63a)
Even if for some people the esrog is kosher, if it’s pasul for the buyer, it’s also mekach ta’us.
If Albert Einstein had been frum, should he have become a rosh yeshiva rather than a scientist?
If Mr. Amitai isn't called up, he doesn't have to honor his pledge - unless he decides to award the aliyah to someone else.
Twin Cities ‘A City Is Given A Karpif’ (Eruvin 57a)
How does a person let go of a grudge against someone who harmed him or her egregiously?
A Sage View ‘It Needs An Iron Partition To Divide It’ (Eruvin 47b-48a)
There is still a mitzvah of hashavas aveidah in this situation, and using the towel without permission could constitute theft.
Should rabbis recommend that people vote for a particular candidate?
The Maharil explains that the custom of Tashlich – like many other Rosh Hashanah minhagim – is intended to evoke G-d’s mercy by recalling Akeidat Yitzchak.
An Early Navigational Instrument ‘Rabbi Gamliel Used His Tube To Measure…’ (Eruvin 43b)
When things are tough, most times it is a reminder that we need to improve ourselves.
From a hashkafic perspective, is it important for a Jewish man to have a beard?
Similar To Carrying In A Karmelis ‘This Shall Be Tithed When Night Falls’ (Eruvin 36a)
Like Rabbi Pappenheim, Rabbi Aharon Marcus connects “te’ne” to “eitun,” but he argues that both words are actually of Egyptian origin. Master etymologist Rabbi Dr. Ernest Klein (1899-1983) also maintains that “te’ne” is an Egyptian loanword.
"I'm not out to cause you an extra expense," said Mr. Meyers. "It's not like you're at fault. The storm was unusually strong. There was nothing you could do. I'll split the cost with you."
How would you advise fulfilling the mitzvah of “you shall surely rebuke your fellow”?
"Can we count what you paid as tzedakah?" Moshe's wife asked. “Gershon really seems to be poor now.”
When Life Is A Zoo ‘The Greater Part…Is Regarded as a Garden’ (Eruvin 23b)
In his ethical will, Yehuda ibn Tibbon, a famous 12th century translator and physician, encourages mastering Arabic and the sciences.
At what age would you advise parents to allow their children to have a cell phone?
The driver managed to unload the elevator, but it wouldn’t budge afterwards. A serviceman came and said, "The elevator was overloaded. The brakes have to be replaced."
Confirming A Gadol’s View ‘Majority Rules’ (Eruvin 16a)
In the case of a non-serious violation of procedures, it is better to address the violation in private.
July 10, 2026 
