Parashat HashavuaSeries'LibraryPiskei Din (Hebrew)Test YourselfOur Sedra discusses the canceling of debts in the upcoming Shmita (7th) year. Mishna Shevi'it states that when Hillel the Elder (circa 100 CE) saw that wealthy people were refraining from loaning money to the needy during the Shemita year (a Torah prohibition), he enacted the "Prozbul," a device designed so that debts would not be cancelled & people would once again agree to loan money to one another. In essence, debts are transferred to a Bet Din, which is allowed to collect them even during Shmita. "Prozbul" comprises the Aramaic words: "Pruz buli ubuti," which translates as "an advantage to the rich & the poor." The prozbul benefited the rich by securing their loans & helped the poor by enabling them to borrow money even with a Shmita year approaching. Two valid witnesses sign the Prozbul, which is usually administered by the Rav of the Bet Knesset. The Prozbul can only be utilized when Shmita is rabbinic; when the majority of Jews live in Israel (very soon!) and Shmita is a Biblical law it may not be used.
Between the recital of morning berachos and Boruch She’amar, which begins pesukei dezimra, is a section of the davening colloquially referred to as “korbanos,” since it includes many references to the various offerings brought in the Beis Hamikdash. The goal of this article is to provide an overview and some details about this part of the davening.
Energy at the Intersection between the Holy and the Mundane
Ein Aya Shabbat Chapter B Paragraph 278
[Rabbi Shimon and his son, Rabbi Elazar, left the cave after an additional stay.] As Erev Shabbat was turning into Shabbat, they saw an old man who was holding two fragrant branches and running during twilight. They said to him: “Why do you have those?” He told them: “In honor of Shabbat.” “Why isn’t one enough?” “One corresponds to zachor (remember Shabbat) and one corresponds to shamor (observe Shabbat).” Rabbi Shimon said to his son: “See how beloved the mitzvot are to Israel.”
According to our Sages, The Day of the Rain is as great as, or even greater than the day of the Giving of the Torah. The basis for this comparison is discussed in depth, as well as additional aspects of the connection between the rains and the Torah.
For many, this most basic question will formulate their decision whether to be religious-Zionists or not. Interestingly, the Rambam explains the celebration of Chanuka as thanks to Hashem for 200 years of Israeli Independence, even though the Maccabean Dynasty was not from the tribe of Judah and for most of that period was not religious! Why is it so important to have a Jewish State, even if not the ideal one?
According to most authorities, women are no less obligated to pray than men. Therefore, they must pray “Amida” in the morning and the afternoon (“Shacharit” and “Mincha”). The evening Amida prayer (“Maariv”), on the other hand, is voluntary.