יום שישי, כ״ו חשוון תשפ״זFriday, November 6, 2026
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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.
While they were talking, Nachman's camper dropped his gift, which broke as it hit the ground. The camper was visibly distraught although he wasn’t able to speak.
Carrying At The Kotel ‘Sratya u’Platya’ (Eruvin 7a)
Is it proper for a Jew to propose on one knee?
Waiting For Kiddush ‘Mazal Bears No Influence…’ (Shabbos 156a)
The Shach [Yoreh De’ah 151:17] doesn’t understand this statement, however, because we commonly see non-Jews bringing icons into their homes on a permanent basis!
By Tzvi Fishman
While Rav Kook's love for the Jewish people knew no bounds, one should not think that he was some sort of liberal, reform rabbi who believed that everyone was free to do his own thing, G-d forbid.
What should one do if one hears about persecution of a people in a foreign land?
What are you going to do? Rabbi Dayan's son asked him. You're outnumbered, but it seems ridiculous that the ruling should follow two kollel students against you!
Out On A Limb ‘The Halacha Is One May Reset a Fracture’ (Shabbos 148a)
If a person who is asked about someone remains silent because he doesn’t know with certainty that a certain rumor is true, the questioner understands from his silence that there is room for concern.
Is it proper, l’chatchilah, for a young married couple to apply for government welfare programs like food stamps and section 8?
Treif Cows Milk? A Toldah of Dash (Shabbos 144a)
Some maintain that if the contract can be legally upheld in court, the late payment clause is halachically valid as a kinyan situmta (common commercial practice) and is not considered asmachta; hence, there is no concern of ribbis.
Lashon hara is considered a grave sin because it poisons society and inter-personal relations to the point that our Sages compared it to the three severest sins together: idol worship, incest, and bloodshed.
Is trying to reconcile Torah with current scientific knowledge proper?
If the lender stipulated such a fine unlawfully, there is a dispute whether the borrower is required to pay it.
Circumcised At The Hand Of Heaven? ‘A Drop of Blood Must be Taken’ (Shabbos 135a)
Should an ordinary Jew endeavor to say Tikkun Chatzos? If not regularly, perhaps sometimes?
Damsel In Distress ‘A Woman In Labor Is Considered Critically Ill’ (Shabbos 129a)
He approached Mr. Stein. "Did you hide money in the wall by any chance?" "No, why?" laughed Mr. Stein. “Because I just found this envelope with $50,000 cash in it," replied Mr. Hyman.
May one enjoy good food or is the ideal to not care what one eats as long as it gives one strength to serve Hashem?
November 6, 2026 
