What’s Your Bribe Linguists are at a loss to find an origin for the word bribe. It was first used in 14th century old French, but it means “steal.” By the mid-15th century its meaning had shifted to “gift given to influence corruptly.” No one knows where “bribe” came from or how it ultimately came to have […]

Close the Toothpaste! Imagine a couple standing under the chuppah googly-eyed and in love. The rabbi speaks about the beauty of marriage and the significance of the day. Then, all a sudden, the bride starts listing her set of rules for the marriage. “Make sure to close the toothpaste, keep the toilet seat down, take out the […]

Linguists are at a loss to find an origin for the word bribe. It is first used in 14th century old French but it means “steal.” By mid-15th century its meaning had shifted to “gift given to influence corruptly.” No one knows where “bribe” came from or how it ultimately came to have the meaning we use today. […]

Imagine a couple standing under the chuppah googly-eyed and in love. The rabbi speaks about the beauty of marriage and the significance of the day. Then, all of a sudden, the bride starts listing her set of rules for the marriage. “Make sure to close the toothpaste, keep the toilet seat down, take out the garbage, pay […]

Linguists are at a loss to find an origin for the word “bribe.” It is first used in 14th century old French but it means “steal.” By mid-15th century its meaning had shifted to “gift given to influence corruptly.” No one knows where “bribe” came from or how it ultimately came to have the meaning we use […]

If men fight and one strikes his fellow with a stone or a fist…he shall pay for healing. (21:18-19). The Talmud (Berachos 60a) infers from this verse that “permission was given to a doctor to heal.” This is a difficult idea to accept; do we really need an explicit verse in the Torah to let us […]

AND these are the laws that you should place before them. (Exodus 21:1) This week’s Parsha is full of laws and must be understood in context. What is the significance of its being placed immediately after the exhilarating Sinai encounter (last week’s Parsha) when its main content is law? There are obligations of an employer […]

And these are the ordinances that you will place before them.  (ibid. 21:1) A sizeable quantity of this week’s Torah portion deals with the laws of theft and damage. The question asked by many commentators is, what significance was there in giving specifically these laws immediately after the Ten Commandments and revelation at Sinai (last week’s […]