I just bought a pair of tzitzit. I usually buy the V-neck ones, but yesterday I mistakenly walked out with a round neck. Can I do the surgery myself, and cut the front of the beged to form a V-neck? And how deep a cut would be too deep? Thanks, Rabbi.....

I understand that the minhag is not to work on Tisha b' Av until chatzot. I have a lot of paper work to deal with and telephone calls to make overseas which I would normally deal with from home. This is not something which I enjoy particularly. I just need to do it and whilst I could put it off to another time without losing money this puts me under pressure. This is even more so since I need to go to England on Friday. I am not buying and selling over the telephone. The work is in the nature of administrative work. The Shulchan Aruch seems to me to refer to work carried out in public and not office work since at the time when the Shulchan Aruch was written down, there were no offices in peoples homes and there were no emails or telephones. Would I be transgressing the minhag if I did office work from home on the night of Tisha b' Av and in the morning so as to not put myself under pressure? Shimshon Krell

Dear Rabbi, I am uncomfortable emailing this question, since I wish all the Arabs would stop fighting with Israel or die, yet, because this is weighing on my mind, I have to ask it anyway. This is a three part question. First part, we have a concept of Milchemes Mitzva, A holy war, and when that is done, I believe that killing civilians is permissible. The Arabs believe that they are fighting a Milchemes Mitzva, so according to their logic, why shouldn't they be able to target civilians? Is it not a double standard to call them evil, when in our history, we have killed civilians, as stated in the Torah? Second part, if they are doing it lesham shamayim, soling for the sake of G-d, when suicide bombers die, will they be punished or rewarded for their noble intentions? Third part, is there anyway to prove to the Arabs, that what they are doing is not G-ds will, since their sole aim appears to be to do G-ds will? Thank you for your help clarifying this, Cobi

What is the proper protocol for the mazuza, Placement on the door frame? etc.

1) if one learns torah but then forgets it immidietly, is he rewarded. Why or why not? Please provide sources if possible. 2) why is it so farfeched to say that J was a prophet if we see that even the wicked Bilaam was one? 3)I am a yeshiva student who would like to read the new testament and koran. I feel like it's the only way to objectively weigh which religion is correct. What are your thoughts about this?