"One should be as careful with a light mitzvah as with a heavy mitzvah" (Pirkei Avot 2:1…
Ketubot 30: In the Hands of Heaven
Malcolm Gladwell, in his bestselling book Outliers, demonstrates how so much of our…
Ketubot 28: Kids Talk
In our last post we discussed the fickleness of memory and how and when one may…
Shushan Purim: One People, Two Holidays
“Kol Yisrael Areivim zeh lazeh”, all Jews are guarantors for one another. While we may…
Ketubot 20: Keeping Memories Alive
Our memories are notoriously fickle and even untrustworthy. Yet we have little choice but to rely…
Mishpatim: Say What You Mean
Modern man loves his freedom. No one is going to tell him how to act. This is why giving criticism…
Ketubot 19: Dying for Lying
It is well known that a Jew must give up his or her life only if asked, or ordered, to violate one…
Ketubot 11: It's Great to Be a Jew
A legal system is much more than a collection of laws. It signifies the values a society holds dear…
Ketubot 10: Money, Money, Money
Money is a great motivator, impacting so many of the decisions we make. The crucial role money…
Ketubot 5: Moving Yom Kippur
In our last post we discussed that a betulah should marry on a Wedne
Ketubot 2: We Would Like to Invite You...
Planning a wedding is no easy task. One must pick a date, hall, caterer, band, florist, and on and…
Some Opening Thoughts on Masechet Ketubot
The Ketuba is one of the best known, but least understood, documents in Judaism. Read at every…
Some Concluding Thoughts on Masechet Yevamot
"Rabbi Elazar said, in the name of Rabbi Chaninah: Torah scholars increase peace in the world…
Yevamot 116: One Witness Is Enough
We have previously referred to the special leniency that allows a woman to remarry on the testimony…
Yevamot 115: To Believe or Not to Believe
Back in the tenth chapter of Yevamot, we discussed the case of a woman who remarried on the basis…
Yevamot 114: Put Out the Fire
One of the basic tenets of our legal system is that those who are not of a sound…
Yevamot 109: Torah Study
"Talmud Torah kneged kulam" (Mishnah Peah 1:1). This teaching is generally…
Yevamot 105: Don't Get It in Writing
One would not think that a discussion about the intricacies of the laws of …