Written sources for this challenge
Every halacha, story, and kavanah above is drawn directly from the following pages. Full links are included here for anyone who wants to go deeper — this challenge only summarizes and organizes what's found in them.
Core Articles
- Chabad.org — "Honoring Parents (Kibud Av Va-em)"
- Chabad.org — "Respecting One's Elder Siblings" (Aryeh Citron)
- Chabad.org — "Must One Honor Abusive Parents?" (Yehuda Shurpin)
- OUTorah — "Grandparents & Grandchildren" (Rav Ari Enkin)
- Torah.org — "Honoring Others Part 1" (Rav Yehonasan Gefen)
- Aish.com — "ABCs of Honoring Parents" (R' Shraga Simmons)
- Torah.org — "Honoring Parents: Basic Requirements" (R' Doniel Neustadt)
- Yeshiva.co — "Children Obeying Parents" (R' David Sperling)
- OU Kosher — "What Is Included in the Mitzvah of Kibud Av V'aim?"
- OU Kosher — "I Did Not Show Proper Honor to My Parents. Must I Ask Them Forgiveness?"
- The Jewish Vues — "Vayishlach: Kibud Av V'Em"
- My Jewish Learning — "Kiddushin 31"
- TheYeshiva.net — "The Lost Art of Respecting Parents" (Rav YY Jacobson)
- Sefaria — Talmud, Kiddushin 31a (Dama ben Netina, with Tosafos)
Shulchan Aruch HaRav (shulchanaruchharav.com)
Several articles from this halachic encyclopedia were drawn on throughout the challenge, including pieces on honoring a parent during a meal, father-versus-mother precedence, letting parents speak first, honoring parents through speech, defending a parent's honor, kibud av v'em versus Torah study and versus other mitzvot, the laws when a son is his father's rebbe, saying a name that matches a parent's, and honoring non-observant parents and extended family.
Print & Personal Sources
- Sefer Dinei Kibud Av V'eim, in the name of Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv zt"l and others
- Rabbi Yerachmiel Fried
Shiurim to go deeper
Short shiurim on kibud av va'em, gathered for anyone who wants to keep learning after finishing the day's page. Watch them in any order, any time during the month.
- Part 2: Halachic Background
- Part 3: Sitting in a Parent's Place, Contradicting, Calling by Name
- Part 4: Showing Honor and Respect in Thought & Speech
- Part 5: Practical Examples of Respect
- Part 6: Waking Parents, Living Nearby, Simultaneous Requests, Financial Assistance
- Part 7: Growing a Beard Against a Parent's Wishes
- Part 8: Minhag, Chumra, Marriage Choices vs. Kibud Av V'Eim
- Part 9: Final Shiur — Married Woman, Stepparents, In-Laws, Older Brother
A complete nine-part series — best watched in order
A shorter, five-part crash course — best watched in order
Read about it
A few longer pieces worth sitting with, for anyone who wants to read rather than watch.
Books to go deeper
A short shelf on kibud av va'em, for kids and adults alike — helpful at any point during or after the month.
- It's Called Kibud Av Va'eim — A Story about Honoring ParentsDina Rosenfeld
- I'm a Winner Series — Kibbud Av V'emEichlers
- My First Book of Kibbud Av V'eimYaffa Spira
- Honor Them, Revere ThemRav Zechariah Wallerstein & Rav Shimon Finkelman
- The Fifth Commandment: Honoring ParentsRav Moshe Lieber
- My Father, My Mother and MeRebbetzin Yehudis Samet
- My Parents and MeRav Shimon Finkelman
- The Eternal Bond: Torah Guidelines for Married Children's Relationships with Their ParentsHaRav Yirmiyohu Abramov & Tehilla Abramov
- Honoring Parents in HalachahRav Tzuriel Ta'aseh
Note: the kavanah lines on each day are original phrasing built to summarize that day's sourced halacha, not quotations from any source.