It's a mitzvah to rejoice on a festival. And what better way to rejoice than a se`udat yom tov, a festive meal? Does meat have to be on the menu? Many Orthodox Jews say "yes" and that they have the sources to prove it. We're here to say "no," and we've got sources, too. It's a machloket. And not to brag or anything, but we think that our argument is ​more persuasive!

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Can you fulfill the mitzvah of n'tilat lulav on Sukkot with a lulav that is stolen?
That is, if you use a stolen lulav, are you yotzei? Do you fulfill your requirement? After all, even if it's stolen, it's still a lulav!
Or does the halakhah refuse to recognize the action on the grounds that you have fulfilled a mitzvah by way of a transgression against the Torah?
In this installment, we consider the legal and the moral aspects of this question.

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Who is the better person: the ba`al t'shuvah, the repentant sinner,
or the tzadik gamur, the wholly righteous individual who has never sinned at all?
​You can argue it either way. And - are you surprised? - the tradition does argue it either way!
Plus, there's an element of halakhah that rides on the decision, which is why we talk about it here. Download the source sheet at www.freehofinstitute.org/podcast