All Questions

I always remembered communities waiting for nightfall before praying Maariv on Shavuot night (to fulfill "seven complete weeks"). I recently learned this was not the case in every community, ...

We're taught that when Moses brought down the tablets, he shattered the first set in a rage after witnessing his people worshipping the golden calf. As soon as Moses came near the camp and saw the ...

According to the Gemoro in Yuma (28B) the forefathers already observed the Torah in it's entirety (according to the understanding of Ramban and the Shaloh in Toldot Adam, Beit HaBechira 4), ...

Who is the author of Targum Sheini on Megillas Esther? When did he live? I've checked several Megillas that have Targum Sheini printed in it and none of them have any details. If anyone can find me ...

Cain and Abel and Noah did traditional offerings. Abraham did some odd ritual involving cutting animals in half and walking through them, Yaakov poured some oil on a rock. God tells Moshe to ask ...

There are multiple questions about entering churches here, most of which are marked as duplicates and pointed to this one. What none of them address, however, is why in the halacha it is forbidden to ...

In parashat Yitro, before the giving of the Torah, God summons Moshe up the mountain to tell him to go down again and warn the people to stay away from the mountain. He mentions that even the "...

After the battle with Amalek, Moshe builds an altar (Mizbeach) called "Hashem Nisi" (God is my miracle). Was anything offered on it, who performed the service, and does it have any kedusha ...

Transgender erva Transgender identity and judaism

What is the name of the sefer that lists the simanim in shulhan aruch where maran is posek according to kabbalah i.e. like sitting down while putting on tefillin shel yad

When Rashi comments on a Mishna telling us that the gemara will explain, sometimes he uses the phrase בגמרא מפרש and sometimes he uses the phrase מפרש בגמרא. (see here) Why would Rashi use one over ...

In the morning blessings, there is a small but seemingly important variation in word usage across three blessings. In the blessing about the distinction between day and night, G-d is described by the ...

Where exactly does the Rambam say the following in his Igeres Teiman: “When the gentiles think that this people will never have their own government and state, and they will never be redeemed from ...

David Burns, one of the founders of CBT, refers to the belief that one’s worth is entirely based upon his achievements as “Achievement Addiction”, and notes that there are many disadvantages to this ...

Why was Avshalom named so. It's kind of ironic that his name means "my father is peace", no? Any ideas?

The Midrash Pirkei D'Rebbi Eliezer (54) writes המופת הרביעי, מיום שנברא העולם לא היה אדם חולה, אלא בכל מקום שהיה אדם אם בדרך אם בשוק ועטש היתה נפשו יוצאה מנחיריו ומת, עד שבא יעקב אבינו ובקש רחמים על ...

Does the book "I Will Await Him" by Yirmiyahu Cohen exist as an e-book or as a pdf? (for purchase or for free).

https://www.iherb.com/pr/Now-Foods-High-Potency-Vitamin-D-3-50-mcg-2-000-IU-120-Softgels/8229 label has a triangle K and Kosher designation but the ingredients list indicates the product contains ...

(Leviticus 24:16-17 NHEB) He who blasphemes the name of the LORD, he shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him: the foreigner as well as the native-born, when he ...

People belonging to nations of the same language family (Latin, German, Slavic, etc.) are normally able to understand each other a little bit (or quite a lot). Is there any nation whose ...

Rabbeinu Bechaya (Bereishis 34:1) writes ועוד ידוע שכל האילנות יש להן לב כשתחתוך אותו אבל אילן זית אין לו לב, ואולי מפני זה טבע הפרי משכח התלמוד ומטמטם הלב, כמו שהזכירו רבותינו ז"ל בזית. ...

I am doing a report and I need to know who the following people are and 2 facts about them. If you don't know who everyone is whoever you do know would be helpful. Dovid Shaul Amaleki convert ...

Commenting on various types of speech, the Rambam writes: Concerning [words that are] commanded or beloved, if a person could speak them all his life, it would be good. Nevertheless, there are two ...

Where in the Torah, on a peshat level, is both the phrase and definition of "Yom Tov" derived? Why "Yom Tov" is considered a chag? Why "Yom Tov" is not shabbat? For ...

There was an ancient minhag in some communities to read the beginning of Parshas Bereshis on Yom Kippur. It's really intriguing to me. Has anyone heard of it? Is there any documentation of this minhag,...

Is donating blood a mitzvah? Are there contemporary sources? I am looking for an answer from a posek, rav, etc.

A question for those out there who try and guard their tongues, but more apropos here, their ears! When I hear loshon hara, I think to myself “I don’t want to hear this, but how do I say it?” It’s not ...

Ohalot 4:1 says that where there is a source of tumah beneath a cupboard, everything in the house is tamei. ArtScroll adds that the things in the cupboard remain tahor: “the tumah penetrates into the ...

People often say they learn Shas with Achronim and Rishonim. I'm curious, what are the mainstream Rishonim and Achronim that are generally learnt throughout Shas?

A local (jewish/frum owned) store near me sells these little glass cups with mousse in them (produced by a non Jewish company). Do such cups require tevillah from the stores perspective? follow up ...

The Torah says: בְּאֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֑ד וַיְדַבֵּ֨ר יְהוָ֧ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֛ה בְּמִדְבַּ֥ר סִינַ֖י -- The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting. [Numbers 1:1] Ibn Ezra and ...

Is there a name in Hebrew that means "God is my portion"? When I google translate I get אלוהים הוא החלק שלי which I have no idea how to say.

If one person owns the bottom floor of a house and another owns the floor on top, what happens when the one on the lower floor has tzara'as in their house and the house needs destroying? Assuming the ...

I always understood a major difference between a mishna/baraisa and the text of the gemarra is the former is in Rabbinic Hebrew and the latter is in Aramaic. The other day I chanced upon a gemarra in ...

One of the most famous abbreviations in Jewish Hebrew texts is the word 'כו, meaning et cetera. However, I have heard and seen different forms of this abbreviation, and I want to know what does it ...

Judaism has a long tradition of valuing debate. My sense is that it is somewhat singular in this regard. Certainly there is debate within Islam or Christianity, but if I understand correctly, Judaism ...

In Bamidbar (1,18) it says: וְאֵ֨ת כָּל־הָעֵדָ֜ה הִקְהִ֗ילוּ בְּאֶחָד֙ לַחֹ֣דֶשׁ הַשֵּׁנִ֔י וַיִּתְיַֽלְד֥וּ עַל־מִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֖ם לְבֵ֣ית אֲבֹתָ֑ם בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר שֵׁמ֗וֹת מִבֶּ֨ן עֶשְׂרִ֥ים שָׁנָ֛ה ...

I am looking for the word Tzitzit in Tanach (spelled any which way, but the word as it relates to tassels/strings.) I so far have the obvious 3 from the third passage of Shema. So my count is at 3. I ...

"Bamidbar" means "In the desert" or "In the wilderness". But the root dalet/bet/resh also refers to speaking. Are the two related, and if so, how? (This is not purely a ...

I understand that the world is very much into learning Gemara via the Brisker method. I was told that Rav Yosef Engel had a different approach to learning Gemara etc. However, I wasn't told how his ...

Please allow me to briefly provide background information. Please also note that Zeke B. and others touch upon similar subject matter but contain distinct questions. The word משיח is rendered by תרגום ...

There are sources that say that there are many more mitzvos than 613, and only some are counted. My question (or chakira) is, is there any difference between the ones that are counted and the ones ...

If an Ashkenaz Jew wanted to start diving into the learning halacha are there any sources on which halachic work might be recommended to him to start with?

Do any commentators explain a connection between the shared root of the word "טבע" for sinking (as in Shemos 15:4 - טֻבְּעוּ בְיַם) and the natural world of טבע?

Today it’s Mother's Day, which made me wonder if I could call G-d mother? Because G-d ‘gave life’ to all things. Of course we call him Aba, but why not Ima?

Does any text/source indicate that Shlomo HaMelech was a prophet? I ask because according to Muslims he was a prophet.

My understanding is that Hallelujah (or Alleluia) is a compound word from the Hebrew ‘hallelu’, meaning “to praise joyously,” and ‘yah’, a shortened form of the unspoken name of G-d. It is an active ...

The Gemara says in Pesachim 112b that a person should not marry a convert. The Gemara is clearly implying a marriage between a female convert and a Jew who is not necessarily a Kohen. Are there any ...

Someone told me in the name of a Talmid Chacham that Makkas Dam was not just in Mitzrayim, but was throughout the whole world, similar to the water splitting everywhere in the world. However, I looked ...

Do we have the complete Torah from the Dead Sea Scrolls? If not, how can we know for sure that the Torah we have today is the same from the time of the Second Temple Period, for example?