Tough Questions for Schools and Parents The costs of living in the Orthodox community are rising every year. Along with regular expenses, the cost of Yeshiva tuition is also an increasing financial burden. Likewise, many schools are struggling with financial challenges and are having difficulty making ends meet. How can they pay their teachers when the parents do not pay … [Read more...]
“Alexa, May I Speak on Shabbat?”
Adapted from a Shiur by Rav Mordechai Lebhar What can’t you say when someone’s always listening? Amazon's Echo and similar “smart speakers” are devices that provide information, take orders for goods, or activate any of an array of services in response to voice commands. They operate by constantly recording ambient sound and listening for a “wake word,” which for the Echo … [Read more...]
Sephardic Halacha Journal for Parshat Noah
Click below links to download PDF versions of our Halacha Journal: 2 Page Shul Version Parasha Noah PDF Version Full Print Version Parasha Noach PDF Full Version … [Read more...]
Bet HaVaad on the Parasha – Noah Be Fruitful and Multiply: Till When?
פרו ורבו ומלאו את הארץ וכבשוה Highlights of a Shiur by Rav Yosef Jacobowitz Be Fruitful and Multiply… (Bereshit 9:1) What is the minimum needed to fulfill one’s obligation? Or, more to the point: Can a person ever fulfill the obligation in its entirety? The Mishna in Yevamot cites a discussion between Bet Shammai and Bet Hillel whether one needs both a boy a girl to … [Read more...]
Avissar Family Ribbit Initiative: Ribbit Facts
Who is subject to Ribbit? All participants in the transaction violate issurim: lender, borrower, witness, guarantor, and scribe or attorney. Banks and publicly traded companies As ribbit is only prohibited where both parties are Jewish, one may borrow at interest from a publicly-traded bank or financial institution, where the religion of principals of the company is not … [Read more...]