by Rabbi Yossi Slotnick | Mar 22, 2008
Rabbi Yossi Slotnick Former Rosh Kollel in Cape Town (1997-1998) Currently Ra”m in Yeshivat Ma’ale Gilboa As we all know, when Purim falls on Shabbat, we advance kriat hamegillah (the Megillah reading) to Friday. In our fixed calendar, Purim D’Prazot...
by Rabbi Eldad Zamir | Mar 22, 2008
Rabbi Eldad Zamir Former shaliach in Cape Town (1997 -1998) Currently Senior Instructor at the Nativ ’Giyur” program in the IDF Memories of an African Purim Although Purim is not a regular school day, it’s also not a vacation day in the Theodore Herzl Jewish...
by Rabbi Boaz Genut | Mar 22, 2008
Rabbi Boaz Genut Former Rosh Kollel in St. Louis Former Executive Director of Torah Mitzion Currently Director of the Department of Marriage and Community Affairs at Tzohar Purim is unique among the festivals in many aspects. One of the unusual aspects of Purim...
by Hanoch Shalev | Mar 15, 2008
Hanoch Shalev Former Shaliach in Melbourne The winter is coming to an end and with it the end of this year’s cycle (Nisan being “rishon hu la’chem”). We should therefore investigate what messages Purim and Zachor convey to us, stationed at the turn of the year,...
by Rabbi Shlomo Sobol | Mar 15, 2008
Rabbi Shlomo Sobol Former Rosh Kollel in Detroit Although neither the Gemara nor the poskim refer to Purim costumes as an obligation, the Rama does state: “They had a custom of changing themselves (lehishtanot) on Purim, and it is not nonsense (davar reik).”...
by Rabbi Moshe Spetter | Feb 2, 2008
Rabbi Moshe Speter Former Rosh Kolle in Greater Washington The month of Adar I is added to the calendar during a shana me’uberet (a leap year). The Mishna (BT Megillah 6b) states: “There is no difference between the first Adar and the second Adar – except...
by Rabbi Moshe Spetter | Mar 11, 2006
“On the first of Adar, announcements are made concerning the payment of shekels” (Mishnah, Shekalim 1:1). In Temple times, a half-shekel was collected from every person yearly to pay for the communal sacrifices. This collection took place during the month...
by Rabbi David Rifkin | Mar 11, 2006
“And the city of Shushan was bewildered” 3:15 “And the city of Shushan was cheerful and glad” 8:15 In Megillat Esther we read about the conflicting descriptions of the city Shushan, reflecting the different mood of the Jews, which in turn...
by Rabbi Moshe Aberman | Feb 25, 2005
In our previous article we discussed the status of the first and second months of Adar from the perspective of the celebration of Purim. As we saw the time of celebration was determined by the question of when would be the more appropriate time to commemorate the...
by Rabbi Moshe Aberman | Feb 11, 2005
Rav Moshe Aberman Former Rosh Kollel in Chicago The Torah teaches us that Pesach must be both in the first month of the Jewish lunar calendar known as Nissan and during the spring season. In order to equate the Jewish lunar month of Nissan to the solar seasons,...
