Category Archives: Mitzvos

Marital Rights and Responsibilities (#46)

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A healthy and harmonious marriage cannot be sustained by love alone. The Torah teaches the responsibilities and obligations of a husband that constitute the framework in which their relationship can flourish.

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Contact:
Websites: Personal: RabbiWolbe.com; TORCH: Torchweb.org
Twitter: Personal: @RabbiWolbe; TORCH: @TORCHWEB
Facebook: Personal: Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe; TORCH: TORCH Centre
Email: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com.

Podcasts Links:

This Jewish Life – A Podcast About Jewish Philosophy: Apple Podcasts, Android, Stitcher;
The Jewish History Podcast – The podcast telling the Remarkable story of the Jewish Peoples: Apple Podcasts, Android, Stitcher;
The Parsha Podcast – A Weekly podcast of analyzing and Exploring the Parsha: Apple Podcasts, Android, Stitcher;
TORAH 101 – A Podcast about the Divinity of Torah and the relationship between the Written and Oral Torah: Apple Podcasts, Android, Stitcher;
Eternal Ethics – The Pirkei Avos Podcast: Apple Podcasts, Android, Stitcher.
The Mitzvah Podcast – Surveying the 613 Mitzvos of the Torah: Apple Podcasts

The Female Jewish Slave (#43-45)

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The Torah allows a father to sell his minor daughter as a servant, and the new master can opt to marry her or wed her to his son, but he cannot restrict her from redeeming herself prior to the conclusion of her term and he cannot sell her to someone else. How can we make sense of these highly unusual mitzvos?

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

The Jewish Slave (#42, 344-346)

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The concept of slavery is – for very good reasons – unpalatable to modern sensibilities. Yet the Torah seems to condone slavery, or servitude, to some extent. What is the nature of slavery as outlined in the Torah and what are some of its laws?

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Three Post-Sinai Laws (#39, 40, 41)

Podcast (mitzvah): Download (Duration: 22:21 — 10.2MB)

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Immediately after the Sinai Revelation, the Torah commands three, seemingly distinct, mitzvos: Not to make statues even if their sole function is to beautify; Not to use metal implements to hew the stones of the Altar; Not to ascend the Altar ramp in a way that exposes the underwear of the priests. What are the reasons for these interesting mitzvos, and why are they revealed right after the Sinai experience?

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Thou Shall Not Covet (#38, 416)

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The last of the Ten Commandments makes a big – and on the surface quite infeasible – demand that we don’t desire or covet the nice things that belong to others. How can we reasonably fulfill that and what is the underlying lesson?

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Truthful Testimony (#37, 122, 589)

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The bedrock of any flourishing society is a functioning judicial system, and a judicial system can only operate when witnesses come forth and offer impartial, truthful testimony. The Torah contains 8 mitzvos that relate to testimony, and in this episode, we discuss the commandment to come forth and testify; the prohibition against lying on the witness stand; and the consequences of being proven as a false witness.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Not to Kidnap (#36)

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In two separate instances the Torah warns us against stealing. With the understanding that the Torah contains no redundancies, the Talmud explains that one refers to stealing money or possessions, and the other refers to stealing people, i.e. kidnapping. When we read in the Ten Commandments, “Thou shall not steal” it refers to kidnapping.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Against Adultery (#35, 188)

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Our society has trivialized adultery. In ancient times it was an absolute no-no even in societies that did not abide by other mitzvos; but in modern times it is tolerated and condoned. The Torah has a very strict prohibition against adultery and draconian edicts and safety measures to prevent it.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Thou Shall not Murder (#34)

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The Torah dedicates a grand total of two words to the prohibition of not murdering. Seems straightforward. Cut and dried. Yet the Talmud contains voluminous content regarding this mitzvah. What are the various types of murder, what are some of the unusual scenarios discussed in the literature, and in what area is this law adjudicated differently than any other?

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Honoring Parents (#33, 48, 212, 260)

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There are no people to whom we owe a greater debt of gratitude than our parents. If not for them we would not exist. They tended to us as children; fed us; drove soccer practice – they raised us into becoming the person we are. Even if a person feels like his parents did not do a great job, the Torah mandates that a child respects and honors them. In this podcast we outline the parameters of this mitzvah.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Refraining from Work on Shabbos (#32, 85, 114)

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The Torah warns us no less than twelve times not to work on Shabbos. What constitutes work and why are its laws so comprehensive and draconian?

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Heralding the Shabbos (#31)

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Shabbos is a mitzvah that is equal to all 613 mitzvos combined. It is a the fountain of blessing; the epicenter of the week; it is vitally important for the Jewish soul. Therefore we are commanded to remember it and acknowledge it in attention-catching ways at its commencement and conclusion.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!