Why the Jews merited to be redeemed
Author: Ari Z. Zivotofsky
What’s the Truth About…the Jews in Egypt Keeping Their Jewish Names, Language and Dress?
What’s the Truth About…Breaking a Glass at a Wedding?
One of the most iconic features in a Jewish wedding is the groom stomping on a glass.
What’s the Truth About . . . “Ad Me’ah Ve’esrim Shanah”?
The Torah declares in an engimatic passage: “Hashem said, ‘My spirit shall not contend evermore concerning man since he is but flesh; his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.’”
What’s the Truth About . . . Davening Facing Pictures, Mirrors or Reflective Surfaces?
Misconception: One may daven facing a mirror, reflective window or family pictures. Fact: Even with one’s eyes closed, one should not daven facing a mirror, nor should one daven facing pictures of people or a reflective surface such as a glass breakfront or a window at night.
What’s the Truth About . . . Jews Counting Years Starting from Creation?
The earliest year-counting system used by the Jewish people, found in Tanach, counted from Yetziat Mitzrayim.
What’s the Truth about . . . Invitations to a Brit Milah?
There is a centuries-old custom not to “invite” guests to a brit and the accompanying meal but rather to merely “inform” them when and where it will be taking place.
What’s the Truth about . . . “Planting” Knives to Kasher Them?
While there are specific instances where thrusting a knife into hard soil ten times will kasher it, that does not work for other cutlery, and there is no halachic basis for leaving a knife in the soil for a long period of time.
What’s the Truth about. . .Fasting Forty Days Upon Seeing a Torah Scroll Fall?
The layers that have been added continue to develop. Irrespective of who fasts or for how long, this custom is a testament to the respect the Jewish people afford a sefer Torah.
What’s the Truth about . . . Joseph’s “Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”?
Was the ketonet passim an “Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat?” There are traditional interpretations that describe it as multi-colored, although that is not the prevalent opinion. But it was certainly not a “dreamcoat.”
“What’s the Truth about … Using Horseradish for Maror”?
Misconception: Horseradish (chrain) is the preferred item to use to fulfill the mitzvah of eating maror at the Seder. Fact: Among Ashkenazim, horseradish is widely used for maror. While horseradish often appears as the translation for tamcha, one of the vegetables listed in the Mishnah that may be used...