Why gedolei Torah don’t wear tekheiles
Below is a fascinating letter written in 5776 by a chassidic posek, HaRav Menachem Mendel Shafran, cited by Rabbi Yitzchak Brand, which offers a clear explanation why gedolei Yisrael don't wear tekhelet.
HaRav Shafran writes that the evidence in support of Murex is highly convincing, yet for the past 200 years gedolei Yisrael have been...
How do I know if Murex is genuine tekhelet?
Tzitzit strategies during summer heat
Time to get personal...It's really hot here in Israel this week. The Electric Company reported a record high usage yesterday afternoon. So when I got dressed this morning, I departed from my typical tzitzit attire.
Usually I wear an undershirt, a Wool Comfort and a shirt. I know, many people out there think wool is...
Are machine-spun strings kosher?
We recently received the following inquiry, apparently from someone debating between hand-spun tzitzit strings and machine-spun.
Are the machine spun tzitzit strings kosher?
Machine-spun tzitzit definitely meet basic standards of kashrus and have rabbinical supervision.
If you want a more in depth answer, in a word, if you hold that machine-made matzah is kosher for the night...
Ptil Tekhelet tzitzit for Sephardic Jews
The Ptil Tekhelet Organization makes two types of strings, known as "Raavad" and "Rambam." The reason is because there is no consensus in the Rishonim as to how many of the strings should be blue and how many should be white. The Raavad strings are all blue, whereas the Rambam strings are half blue....
Which type of tzitzit should I buy? Guidance for tzitzit beginners
Does a scarf require tzitzit?
I don't know whether you've been following the weather in Israel. It's been rainy. Really rainy. My wife told a friend she doesn't remember when it's rained so much. Her observation was accurate, because according the the meteorological service, the last time Israel got this much rain was in 1969, which was a few...
Are the white tzitzit and blue tzitzit one mitzvah or two?
In Bereishis (9:23) we find, "And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness." Rashi explains that the verse says "took" not in the plural, but in...
No tzitzit in Jordan
Jewish tourists in Jordan have often been instructed by Jordanian security personnel to hide any outward signs of their Jewishness, ostensibly for security reasons. This week a large delegation of Jews traveling to Jordan, including local government officials, were compelled to cover their kippah and remove their tzitzit.
A large group of Israeli deputy mayors...