The Mishna Berura (Rav Yisrael Meir Kagan of Radin, 1839-1933), in Siman 242 (Se'if Katan 9), writes that if somebody receives from another person some food for Shabbat, he should not eat that food on a weekday. Since the food was sent specifically in honor of Shabbat, it should be eaten on Shabbat. The Halachic authorities debate the question of w…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The Rama (Rabbi Moshe Isserles of Cracow, Poland, 1525-1572), in Orah Haim (242), records a custom to eat on Shabbat a type of food called "Muliyata," or "Pashtida," which is dough filled with a stuffing of meat or other food, what we would call sambusak. The reason for this custom, the Rama explains, is to commemorate the manna which fell from the…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

Some people like to drink hot water with a lemon flavor, which they prepare by dropping or squeezing a piece of lemon into a cup of hot water. Under what conditions would this be permissible on Shabbat? With regard to the laws of Bishul (cooking) on Shabbat, Halacha differentiates between a "Keli Rishon" – the original utensil in which an item was …

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

What options are available to somebody who suddenly realizes he has something in his pocket while he walks in a public domain on Shabbat? One option relates to the Halacha of "Makom Petur" which the Gemara establishes in Masechet Shabbat (7). The term "Makom Petur" refers to a place in a public domain that is at least three Tefahim (handbreadths) a…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

If three people ate together, and two of them forgot that they needed to conduct a Zimun, and recited the first three words of Birkat Ha'mazon – "Baruch Ata Hashem" – before realizing their mistake, it is questionable whether or not they should continue reciting Birkat Ha'mazon. Seemingly, they should be able to correct their mistake by reciting th…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

If a group of people are reciting a Zimun, and there is somebody sitting with them who did not eat, he does not answer with the standard response of "Baruch She'achalnu Mi'shelo…" Since he did not eat, he cannot say "She'achalnu Mi'shelo" ("from whom we ate"). Instead, the Shulhan Aruch (Orah Haim 198) writes, he responds, "Baruch U'meborach Shemo …

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

When three people eat bread together, they are required to recite the introductory Zimun before Birkat Ha'mazon. The Shulhan Aruch writes that it is a Misva to try to arrange that a Zimun will be required. This means that if two people eat together, it is a Misva for them to try to find a third person to join them so they can recite a Zimun. Of cou…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

When three people eat bread together, they are required to recite the introductory Zimun before Birkat Ha'mazon. The concept of Zimun is that we prepare ourselves for the Misva of Birkat Ha'mazon. When it comes to other Misvot, we prepare for the Misva act by reciting a Beracha. For example, we recite a Beracha before putting on Tefillin, and we re…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Zimun is recited before Birkat Hamazon when three people ate a meal together. According to the Shulhan Aruch, even a minor – who has not yet reached the age of Bar Misva – can count as the third person for a Zimun, provided that he is capable of reciting Birkat Hamazon and understands to whom he recites the Beracha. Children who have reached the …

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The question arose at a large wedding where the guests ate a sit-down, catered meal and then prepared to recite Birkat Ha'mazon. It was obvious to all that given the size of the banquet hall, the voice of the Rabbi leading the Zimun at the dais would not be heard beyond the two or so tables situated right in front of the dais. In order to ensure th…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The Talmud (Berachot 54b) teaches us that four people must say the HaGomel blessing, i.e., those who travel through the desert, those who travels overseas, those who are released from prison, and those who were sick and feel better. Sometime, on Shabbat, there are many people who need to say HaGomel. Can one person say HaGomel for the other people …

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The Gemara in the ninth chapter of Masechet Berachot establishes the obligation to recite the Beracha of Birkat Ha'gomel upon emerging safely from a dangerous situation, such as illness, captivity, and travel. In the prevalent editions of the Talmud, the text of the Beracha reads, "Baruch Ata…Ha'gomel Hasadim Tovim Le'amo Yisrael" – "Blessed are Yo…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The blessing of Birkat Ha'gomel (which one recites after emerging from a situation of danger) must be recited in the presence of ten people. The authorities debate the question of whether one must repeat the Beracha if he recited it when ten people were not present. The Shulhan Aruch applies to this case the famous rule of "Safek Berachot Le'hakel,…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

Is it permissible for a man and woman to take a trip together alone in a car? For example, if a man is driving somewhere, and the woman who lives next door needs a ride to that location, may she ride with him even though there is no one else in the car, or does this violate the prohibition of Yihud (forbidden seclusion)? The Halachic authorities ru…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

If a young man is suggested a Shidduch with a girl who is, let's say, 21 years old, and that girl has an unmarried 23-year-old sister, would it be improper for the boy to date the girl? Should he be concerned about the possibility that the older sister will feel resentment over the fact that her younger sister is marrying before her, which could in…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The Gemara in Rosh Hashanah states that the transgression of not wearing Tefilin is in a special category of harshness. One who is not scrupulous to wear Tefilin is classified as "Karkafta D'la Manach Tefilin"-The scalp that does not don Tefilin and receives an extended sentence in Gehenom. Normally, the maximum sentence in Gehenom is twelve months…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

If one violated the prohibition of Borer B'Mezid (intentionally), the selected food is forbidden to benefit from. The only solution is to mix it back in with the P'solet (waste) and start again by selecting in a permitted fashion. If one violated Borer B'Shogeg (unintentionally), Hacham Ovadia and Hacham David in Halacha Berura bring several factor…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

It occasionally happens that some liquid sits on top of yoghurt in the container, and many people prefer spilling out the liquid before eating the yoghurt. At first glance, this would appear to be forbidden on Shabbat, as it entails removing Pesolet (an undesirable substance) from Ochel (the desirable substance). In truth, however, many Halachic au…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

There are three conditions that must be met for one to be allowed to separate on Shabbat: 1) He must separate the Ochel (desirable food) from the Pesolet (undesirable substance), and not the other way around; 2) this must be done by hand, and not with a utensil; 3) this must be done just before the food is to be eaten, and not for later use. The re…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The Shabbat prohibition of Borer forbids removing undesirable items that are mixed together with desirable items. The question arises as to whether it would be forbidden to remove bones from fish as one eats on Shabbat. The Hid"a (Rav Haim Yosef David Azulai, 1724-1806), in his work Birkeh Yosef, cites a debate among the Aharonim (post-Medieval Hal…

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour

The Shabbat prohibition of Borer forbids separating undesirable food from desirable food on Shabbat, except under certain conditions. The Poskim addressed the question of whether this prohibition would apply to removing the inedible peel that surrounds a vegetable or fruit. Would one be allowed, for example, to peel an onion, or a clove of garlic, …

A Daily Gemara podcast, brought to you by Daily GemaraPor Rabbi Eli J. Mansour