I understand that we have both College Democrats and College Republicans chapters on our campus. To be honest, I don’t understand why. Don’t get me wrong — I can readily understand why a Torah Jew[…]
Category: Halakhah
“The ability of an individual halakhist to bring about a change depends…on one’s ability to foresee the opposition of one’s peers to one’s innovation”
…the ability of an individual halakhist to bring about a change depends, to a certain extent, on his ability to foresee the opposition of his peers to his innovation. From these conclusions, it is possible[…]
“In Spanish/Portuguese congregations, hagbah was entrusted only to a select group known as levantadores….”
The Mishnah Berurah (147:7) cautions that a weak person should never be honored with hagbah. In Spanish/Portuguese congregations, hagbah was entrusted only to a select group known as levantadores (Spanish for “raise up,” it referred[…]
“Emotional input is the reason why mature people go to a human being for psaq halakhah and not a computer”
There is a beautiful narrative in Ketubot 23a where Shmuel considered declaring a group of women captives tema’ot, and his father challenged his halakhic thinking by asking, “If they were your daughters, would you disgrace[…]
“…we can now better appreciate why certain rabbis have attempted to find solutions within Jewish law to the contemporary agunah problem”
I have been told that the Beth Din of America operates on the principle that if one of the parties wants a divorce, for whatever reason, and there is no chance for reconciliation, then the[…]
“…the question of whether halakhah excludes women from holding specific roles or offices”
…the question of whether halakhah excludes women from holding specific roles or offices. From a feminist perspective, there is no question that any rule which restricts women in that way is immoral, especially if there[…]
“The halakhic inquiry…does not start out from the point of absolute zero as to sentimental attitudes and value judgments”
The halakhic inquiry, like any other cognitive theoretical performance, does not start out from the point of absolute zero as to sentimental attitudes and value judgments. There always exists in the mind of the researcher[…]
“For Rabbi Gordimer, all poskim share the same ‘process’. Not only is this historically incorrect, it isn’t even ‘doctrine'”
Rabbi Gordimer claims that there is no such thing as Modern Orthodox pesak, and that decisions by Modern Orthodox poskim “should look no different than if [they] were adjudicated by a chareidi posek; process (research)[…]
A couple of “considerations regarding the words of מר עוקבא” re: waiting between meat and milk
Here are two additional considerations regarding the words of מר עוקבא: אמר מר עוקבא אנא להא מלתא חלא בר חמרא לגבי אבא דאילו אבא כי הוה אכיל בשרא האידנא לא הוה אכל גבינה עד למחר[…]
“While some earlier rishonim required waiting between eating beheima meat and eating dairy, Rambam was the first to state that one must wait after eating poultry, as well”
While some earlier rishonim required waiting between eating beheima meat and eating dairy, Rambam was the first to state that one must wait after eating poultry, as well. (Beheima meat refers to meat from cows,[…]