Shu"T First, Ask Questions Later

Our friend, Rabbi Yehoshua Domosh, returns with three Sephardic seforim that caused - or should have caused - quite a stir. Can you guess what they are?

Sefer Meoros Moshe As I Walk Through the Valley podcast

We have the privilege of being joined by Rabbi Bezalel Naor, author of The Project of Hasidism (Kodesh Press), in order to take a more careful look at the Chassidic approach to zmanim . We take a look at Sha'agas Aryeh (no. 15) among several other responsa that help us get to the bottom of how the prescribed times for prayer and time-bound commandments, for many, became negotiable. 

As listeners might know, the host of this show, Moshe Kurtz, has the honor of serving as the rabbi of Congregation Sons of Israel in Allentown, PA. In this episode, he is joined by Dr. Noam Cohen , a professor at Muhlenberg College who will be teaching a course on the history of the Jews of Allentown. He shares with us a responsum ( Orach Mishpat , #131) written by Rav Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Koo...

Dr. Yaakov Weinstein shares with us how the Netziv ( Meishiv Davar 1:24) and other prominent poskim addressed a request to prevent the publication of another rabbi's Torah and its implications for intellectual property. We also briefly discussed his Torah from Narnia blog at the end. https://torahfromnarnia.blogspot.com/

Rabbi Pinny Rosenthal, OU-JLIC's National Development Director, reveals a game-changing responsum of the Rashba (1:581) that informs how we understand the world of fundraising and Jewish philanthropy today.

Rabbi Michael J. Broyde is the author of Jewish Law and the American Thanksgiving Celebration: Secular or Religious Holiday? He is the expert on all things Judaism and Thanksgiving related. So, naturally, we were excited to hear his perspectives in advance of the holiday. His book can be purchased here: https://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Law-American-Thanksgiving-Celebration/dp/1962609111

Should L'Shem Yichud be said before giving a gett (bill of divorce)? Should it be said before any mitzvah? What even is L'Shem Yichud in the first place? In this episode, Rav Avi Kahan discusses the Noda B'Yehuda's approach and contextualize it in the broader discourse. ---Rav Avi Kahan is a Dayan at the Vaad Hadin V’Horaah Beis Din, with over a decade of experience in mediation, a...

We welcome back Rabbi Elli Fischer who regales us with his historical detective work to piece together an angle to the 18th-19th century umbrella controversy that most readers miss when they study the Noda B'Yehuda (vol. 2, O.C. #30) and Chasam Sofer (O.C. #72). Our discussion serves a perfect case study for how responsa not only inform the study of history, but how history informs our underst...

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Sinensky is Director of the Lamm Legacy Project and Director of Judaic Studies at Main Line Classical Academy. We wish him a mazal tov on the re-launch of the new and improved Lamm Legacy Archives . And to celebrate it, we are sharing this special bonus episode. To browse the archives, click here:  https://lammlegacy.org/

Rabbi Dr. Jason Weiner joins the podcast to discuss a new paradigm in palliative care, one that redefines the conversation around end-of-life decisions. This episode explores how two of today's most respected halachic authorities, Rav Asher Weiss and Rav Hershel Schachter, have provided rulings that completely change the game. Rabbi Dr. Weiner unpacks these "never-before-seen" piskei...

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Sinensky shares with us the scholarship of Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm, who was a leading figure in Modern Orthodoxy known for his ability to bridge traditional Jewish law with contemporary thought. R. Dr. Sinensky highlights a particularly challenging case that he addressed: whether a kohanim who did not observe Shabbos could duchen (perform the priestly blessing). R. Dr. Lamm's ruli...

"Which way is  Mizrach  (East)?" is a common refrain we hear at pop-up  minyanim . The intent is to face Jerusalem, and more specifically the Temple Mount. But does a New Yorker facing East actually directing his prayers toward the holy city or to somewhere in central Africa instead?  R. Yosef Weisenfeld , author of Derech Ha'Ir , addresses this and many other questions through a res...

While our podcast is on a brief hiatus, we feature an episode from our friends at "Shtark Tank" in which Rabbi Yaakov Wolff interviews Rabbi Shalom Rosner about the legacy of his illustrious father, R. Dr. Fred Rosner zt"l. If you enjoy this episode, consider subscribing to Shtark Tank, here: https://open.spotify.com/show/34xll8GhTfu1BiRdhb8AyR?si=VMsfrrg9Tvy7bm-0omCxCw

This is a very special episode for me, in which we discuss my Rebbe, HaGaon HaRav Moshe Dovid Tendler zt"l . We are joined by one of his granddaughters and a longtime colleague of mine, Rachel Rosensweig . She provides a synopsis of the Conjoined Twins ruling he was involved in and speaks more broadly about more personal aspects of Rav Tendler that many are likely unfamiliar with. Bio : Rachel Ros...

In this episode we are joined by R' Yitzy Tanner who shares with us a responsum of the Beis Dovid (no. 71) about Kohanim - or any Jewish male - serving in their country's armed forces. We also learn about the author, Rav Zev Wolf Leiter zt"l, who was a local rabbi in Pittsburgh, but who earned an international reputation.

We are joined by Rabbi Daniel Korobkin , medieval scholar and the translator/annotator of the Feldheim edition of Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi’s Kuzari, who takes us into the story of a community in arms over whether and when to permit the study of secular knowledge. By looking at several responsa of the Rashba (1:415-417; Kisvei Yad no. 150) we get a glimpse into the age old question of how Judaism ought...

Can I drink beer and Scotch on Pesach? Don't get your hopes up just yet, but Rabbi Yehoshua Domosh , a trained Kashrus professional, takes us through some fascinating halachic analysis ( Responsa of Rivash , no. 255) about why distilled alcoholic beverages might not be so bad afterall - and also why an innocuous, unflavored seltzer may indeed have some potential issues bubbling just under the surf...

Rabbi Yehuda Halpert takes us 5 years back to the COVID Zoom Seder controversy, contrasts the different rabbinic responsa, and unpacks their significance for the post-pandemic era. Stay tuned for his upcoming book:  Speaking to an Empty Shul: Timeless Lessons from Unprecedented Times  (Mosaica Press, 2025).

Rabbi Ariel Rackovsky  shares with us a whimsical, yet real, case adjudicated by the  Beis Yitzchak  (E.H. 1:23)  about a man who "purchased" for himself the Kohen status...which sounded good at first, until it had serious ramifications for his marriage. We delve into the principles of halacha which govern speech, deed and much more to understand how this case was resolved and how it ser...

In this episode,  Rabbi Barry Gelman  shares with us a personal case he dealt with regarding a family who was adamant about reburying their deceased six feet under. Rabbi Gelman shares with us the responsum he received from  Eretz Hemdah ( B'Mareh HaBazak  7:81)  and how it made its way into a Texas courtroom. This is a fascinating discussion that incorporates Halacha, the American legal syste...

Today, Zachary Ottenstein join us as we look at the monumental Minchas Yitzchak of Dayan Yitzchok Yaakov Weiss and explore a lesser known responsum (4:30) about secular text books which has broader implications for recent trends in the Jewish world.

Editor's Note: This episode is dedicated in memory of Joy Rothke (Shayna Fradel bas Reb Velvel) a"h. I want to thank Ben Rothke for his friendship and ideas that have helped me throughout this project. May our learning be a zechus for his sister's neshama and may Hashem give him and his entire family much nechama.  - Moshe Kurtz --- In this episode, Rabbi Michoel Zylberman delves into a fascinatin...

Join our guest Rabbi Roy Feldman as he explores the remarkable accomplishments of Rav Yuval Cherlow , a pioneering Israeli rabbi who was on the vanguard of those who used the internet to answer the halachic questions posed by society. Rabbi Feldman presents us with one of his sefarim, ReShu"t HaTzibbur (pp. 173-176), to better understand his distinctive methodology, which combined rigorous halakhi...

Today, we explore the recent compendium of responsa called Shu"T PUAH , produced by PUAH, an organization that helps families with the range of challenges in the fertility journey, including halacha, medicine, finances, counseling and more. We had the privilege to hear from Rabbi Elan Segelman , PUAH's rabbinic director in America. We explore different perspectives on artificial insemination and s...