Parashat HashavuaSeries'LibraryPiskei Din (Hebrew)Test YourselfAs you may have read, a shocking tale unfolded this week in Yerushalayim: a man who acted as a Rabbi, a Sofer, a Mohel and a Kohen was found to (allegedly) be a non-Jew, who came to Israel to missionize Jews to Christianity. If true, what, now, must be done to "undo" the religious ceremonies he performed? The boys upon whom he performed a circumcision must have "tipat dam brit," a small drop of blood drawn from the area of the brit. Any couples he married must go through the ceremony again; the same applies to any Pidyon Ha-Ben at which he served as the "Kohen." The Tefilin & Mezuzot he wrote are invalid & must be replaced with kosher ones. As for his wife, who passed away & was buried in a Jewish cemetery, it is not absolutely required that she be re-interred in a non-Jewish cemetery; a divider may be placed around her grave, separating it from the other graves. And while it certainly is valid to financially assist both Jews & non-Jews, because money for the family was raised under false pretenses, those funds should be returned to the donors, if at all possible.
Halakha on Abortion of Fetuses with Severe Abormalities
A fetus is considered a living entity in regards to certain laws, but there is no penalty of death for taking its life. What do the rabbinical decisors say?
The Shelah's Prayer (Tefilat HaShlah), is a prayer for education of children. Many say this beautiful prayer on Erev Rosh Chodesh Sivan, as the Shelah wrote in the introduction to prayer.
May someone soak an infected toe in hot water on Shabbos? May I take a quick dip in the pool on a Shabbos when it is 105 degrees in the shade? Is bathing on Shabbos permitted to alleviate a minor skin condition?
What do I need to bring to a wedding? Who escorts the bride and groom down the isle?
Finally, a short step by step birds eye view of the Jewish wedding.
The individual Chanukah candle symbolizes the Torah as a whole - one entity which is more than the mere sum of its commandments. The additional candles allude to the commandments - the concrete outward manifestation of the Torah's inner essence.