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In the Wake of an Earthquake

… Read the rest The post In the Wake of an Earthquake first appeared on Elmad Online Learning. Continue reading In the Wake of an Earthquake at Elmad Online Learning.

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The Mystical Importance of Location in Judaism

… Read the rest The post The Mystical Importance of Location in Judaism first appeared on Elmad Online Learning. Continue reading The Mystical Importance of Location in Judaism at Elmad Online Learning.

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Is There a License to Reinterpret the Torah Through Pronunciation?

… Read the rest The post Is There a License to Reinterpret the Torah Through Pronunciation? first appeared on Elmad Online Learning. Continue reading Is There a License to Reinterpret the Torah Through...

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Admorit or Rebbetzin

… Read the rest The post Admorit or Rebbetzin first appeared on Elmad Online Learning. Continue reading Admorit or Rebbetzin at Elmad Online Learning.

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The Wedding that Linked the Belz, Vizhnitzer Hassidim Together

In 1964, a match was arranged between 18-year-old Surah’le Hager (b. 1946) and 16-year-old Yisachar Dov Rokach (b. 1948). At the time, Surah’le was the granddaughter of the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, Rabbi...

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Is prozbul enough?

One aspect of Shemittah – the biblically mandated sabbatical year – is a system of debt relief whereby creditors release debtors from loans that are due to be repaid. This requirement is commonly...

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Making Oneself Pious

Polemic tracts against the Hasidim refer to adherents of the nascent movement as mit’hasdim. The term is based on the Hebrew root het samekh dalet. This root appears in the Mishnah to refer to pious...

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Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore: Permitting the Forbidden

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Pigs in Jewish Law & Lore: Bacon Evolution

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Pigs in Jewish Law & Lore: Synthetic Swine

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Pigs in Jewish Law & Lore: Do We Know Why?

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Pigs in Jewish Law & Lore: Pork Prohibition

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Pigs in Jewish Law & Lore: Symbolic Pigs

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Pigs in Jewish Law & Lore: Frankfurt Perspectives

Pigs in Jewish Law and Lore with the Maggid of Melbourne, Levi Cooper The Maggid of Melbourne was recently on a research trip to Frankfurt am Main, Germany. While in residence at the Max Planck...

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Intense Devekut

Enjoy learning with Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper? Check out his podcast series! The following article is the first in the series “Navigating Excessive Spirituality”. Intense Devekut The goal of the mystic is...

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With God While Eating

Enjoy learning with Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper? Check out his podcast series! The following article is the second in the series “Navigating Excessive Spirituality”.   With God While Eating Dov Ehrman was...

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Too Much Devekut

Enjoy learning with Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper? Check out his podcast series! The following article is the third in the series “Navigating Excessive Spirituality”.   Too Much Devekut In a talk delivered in...

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Midrash Favouritism

Enjoy learning with Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper? Find more articles and listen to his archive of podcasts on Elmad!   Midrash Favouritism In an unexpected passage in the Midrash, the sages recounted a deal...

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Synagogues of the Widow

Enjoy learning with Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper? Find more articles and listen to his archive of podcasts on Elmad! The Talmud records the tradition of a blessing recited upon the establishment of Jewish...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 1: Octagon Synagogues, Tradition, and Innovation

  In this first episode of “Exploring Sacred Spaces,” the Maggid of Melbourne takes us back to 1787, exploring a responsum by Rabbi Yehezkel Landau that discusses whether it is permissible to build a...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 2: Small Steps for Prayer Leaders

  In this second episode of “Exploring Sacred Spaces,” the Maggid of Melbourne shares insights into the bimah and how we approach it. How is the Hazzan supposed to approach or descend, and what are...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 3: Tied to the Lectern – A Hasidic Tale

  Join the Maggid of Melbourne as he continues his exploration of where the Hazzan (prayer leader) stands as he leads prayers. Levi brings in a tale of a Hasidic man who ties himself to the lectern...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 4: Stepping up to Offer Blessings

  In previous episodes, the Maggid of Melbourne discussed how the Hazzan should approach the lectern, examining the question of whether one should step up or down. What about when the Kohanim come...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 5: Blessings at Eye Level

  We continue our examination of the duchan (platform) from which the Kohanim offer blessings to the congregation. As we know from the previous episode, the Kohanim are meant to go up to the duchan,...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 6: Halakhot of Air Conditioners

  Is there an obligation to have air conditioners or heaters in a synagogue? If we do have air conditioners, what considerations do we need to take? Is it alright to leave an air conditioner on when...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 7: Holy Arks

  In today’s episode of the Maggid of Melbourne’s “Exploring Sacred Spaces” we dive into the significance of the Holy Ark in a synagogue and the dilemma of dealing with an existing Ark when moving to...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces Ep. 8: Lions in Shul

  The symbolism of lions has been seen throughout Ashkenazi synagogues. Yet, in 1949, Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel cautioned the use of images in synagogues due to the prohibition of graven images. How do...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces 9: Menorah or Chanukiya

  We see them all the time in our Jewish spaces, but what exactly is the role of the Chanukiya within synagogues? Join Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper, the Maggid of Melbourne, as he leads us on a fascinating...

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Exploring Sacred Spaces 10: Karate Kicks on Synagogue Walls

  From watching children practice their karate kicks to remembering stories of shared walls with homes, the Maggid of Melbourne embarks on a fascinating discussion about the sanctity of synagogue...

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Episode 11: Windows for Prayer

  Do synagogues need windows? Going back to the time of Daniel, we learn that windows have played a role in prayer, but does that mean that windows are required? Why would we even need windows, what...

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Episode 12: Smell and Sight

The Maggid of Melbourne brings another tale, this time about the planning of the building of Yeshivat Har Etzion and Rav Amital’s reaction to learning there would be no windows in the Beit Midrash. We...

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Episode 13: Window Design

If, as we’ve learned, we are meant to have windows, is there a specific way they should be designed? In today’s episode the Maggid of Melbourne leads us with an examination of the windows that were...

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Episode 14: Mysticism in Synagogue Design

There’s more to windows and synagogues than meets the eye. In this episode, the Maggid of Melbourne continues his discussion on windows in synagogues. Searching for guidance on how many windows should...

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Episode 15: Structural Damage

In the wake of the terrifying earthquake that struck Turkey, the Maggid of Melbourne dedicated this episode on structural damage to the people of Turkey. What do we do when there is a crack in the...

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Episode 16: Unfinished Synagogues

Sometimes when you walk into a Jewish home you are immediately confronted by a portion of the wall that is incomplete. Why is that? In today’s episode the Maggid of Melbourne explores this tradition,...

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Episode 17: Dedication Plaques

Is it acceptable to place a dedication plaque in a sacred space? In today’s episode, we go back to the Tanakh, learning about the building of the Temple, and other early sources as we examine this...

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Episode 18: Eternal Light

Where did the tradition of lighting a ner tamid (Eternal Light) in a synagogue begin? In this final episode of Exploring Sacred Spaces, the Maggid of Melbourne looks to the sources once again, this...

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Grab a Good Deed

Enjoy learning with the Maggid of Melbourne? Find more content by Rabbi Dr. Levi Cooper on the Maggid of Melbourne page. On Rosh Hashana we sound the shofar during the day and not during the night...

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Torah for Tough Times: Hallel During Wartime

On October 7, as Jews around the world were celebrating Simchat Torah, terrorists crossed into Israel attacking communities across southern Israel. While left reeling from the pain of this tragedy,...

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Torah for Tough Times: Prayer for the Communities Attacked

On October 7, as Jews around the world were celebrating Simchat Torah, terrorists crossed into Israel attacking communities across southern Israel. While left reeling from the pain of this tragedy,...

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Torah for Tough Times: Images of Atrocities – A Torah Perspective

On October 7, as Jews around the world were celebrating Simchat Torah, terrorists crossed into Israel attacking communities across southern Israel. While left reeling from the pain of this tragedy,...

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Holy Darkness

In dark times, it is difficult to see the glow of holiness; blackness covers any speck of light and a sense of gloom is pervasive. This is an all-too-familiar feeling for us in these times. A hasidic...

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Embracing Our Soldiers

On Rosh Hodesh Heshvan (October 15-16, 2023) – just over a week after the Simhat Torah massacre – the Boyaner Rebbe, Rabbi Nachum Dov Brayer (b. 1959) dispatched a book of prayers to his hasidim who...

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Torah for Tough Times: Lauded Objective

What does Judaism say regarding the mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim, freeing captives? In a timely new addition to his impromptu Torah for Tough Times mini-series, Levi explores the importance of freeing...

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Pidyon Shvuyim: Exorbitant Ransoms

At what point are we unable to commit to the obligation of redeeming captives? The Maggid of Melbourne continues his exploration of the mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim, discussing when exceptions to our...

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Pidyon Shvuyim: The People Act

In the previous episode, we learned that, despite the importance of the mitzvah of redeeming captives, there are exceptions to the rule, specifically when it comes to paying exorbitant ransoms....

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Pidyon Shvuyim: Choosing to Stay

Was there ever a time that our people left a hostage in captivity? In this episode of our series exploring the mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim, the Maggid of Melbourne takes on a trip to 13th century...

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Pidyon Shvuyim: Contact with the Outside

During the recent cease-fire, Israel requested that the International Committee of the Red Cross be granted the ability to visit our brothers and sisters held hostage in Gaza. With this in mind, the...

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Pidyon Shvuyim: Prepared to Pay

In the final episode of the Maggid of Melbourne’s series on the mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim, we recap the remarkable story of the 1970 Dawson’s Field hijackings, in which 4 airplanes were hijacked by the...

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Pidyon Shvuyim Episode 7: Releasing Terrorists to Free Hostages

If terrorists demand the release of other terrorists in order to free hostages, is this a case of pidyon shvuyim? Perhaps this scenario should be considered under a different legal rubric? Credits:...

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