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Talking Talmud
Learning the daf? We have something for you to think about. Not learning the daf? We have something for you to think about! (Along with a taste of the daf...) Join the conversation with us!
Episodes
- Talking Talmud
Shekalim 5: Shepherding the Shekalim to the Temple Treasury
What happened to the shekalim of those who lived outside of Jerusalem? How did they get all the coins to the Temple? Worse, what would happen if those coins…
- Talking Talmud
Shekalim 4: Who Counts?
On the mitzvah of machatzit ha-shekel... women and slaves and minors are not obligated to provide it, but they can donate if they want to - while non-Jews'…
- Talking Talmud
Shekalim 3: Throwing Off the Shackles of Winter
The 15th of Adar ushers in the springtime, and all of the repairs that winter made necessary. So too, the courts open up. And also th administration of some…
- Talking Talmud
Shekalim 2: It's Time for the Appeal: Funding the Temple (Introduction to Masekhet Shekalim)
What makes Shekalim different? Note that the Gemara on these mishnayot is Talmud Yerushalmi, the so-called Palestinian Talmud. Why is it here? Also, the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 121: Redemption
The final daf of Pesachim! [At some point, the app acted up and overlapped our talking again; we hope that this is the last time this happens! (We've been on…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 120: Falling Asleep at the Table
More on the afikoman... And actual desserts. Also, the status of matzah in an era without a Korban Pesach. And what counts as an interruption of the meal?…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 119: Will the Real Afikoman Please Stand Up?
A verse about that which was concealed is understood to mean either that secrets of Torah were hidden away - as in details of Creation, or Ma'aseh Merkavah, or…
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Pesachim 118: What Gratitude Does Israel Owe Egypt?
A series of juxtaposed verses.... How difficult is it for people to acquire food?! "Etzev" and "itzavon" about Adam and Eve suggests the comparison. Similarly…
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Pesachim 117: Praising God Out of Time
On the authorship of the book of Psalms - ascribed here to King David, though that is not a given by any means. Especially given that some of the events…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 116: The Engaging Seder
Processing on the events of Seder night: cup #2. The mishnah interpolates the child asking Mah Nishtanah with the manner of asking found among the 4 sons. To…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 115: Hillel's Sandwich
Figuring out the practices of the seder - Hillel's combination of matzah, maror, and Korban Pesach. Matzah and maror together ends up being a d'Orayta and…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 114: Getting Everything in Order (It's the Seder!)
It's the seder! First, the first cup, for kiddush. What should the order of the blessings be? [What's What: Tadir ve-she'aino tadir] Note that the dispute here…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 113: The Harlots' Cobblers
More sage advice. Rav's points include using animals barks and neighs as indicators of protection in the given locale (reminiscent of the animals at the…
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Pesachim 112: Polonius Moments
Advice from the sages. We begin with some statements by R. Akiva. He demonstrates concern for the well-being of a poor person over the need to glorify Shabbat…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 111: Saved by Verses
Don't walk between two of the following: dogs, palm trees, women (nor should these go between 2 people). The concern is witchcraft, and the protection against…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 110: Must We Believe in Demons?
Demons and pairs, or even numbers. Yes, this daf is esoteric for us. Why demons prefer pairs is unclear, though adding any second one to the Oneness of God may…
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Pesachim 109: So That the Children Should Ask
Everyone is obligated in the mitzvah of the 4 cups, at the seder. But how will that work for children? It's wine! And they don't yet have an obligation in…
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Pesachim 108: Of Course Women Were Part of the Pesach Miracle!
R. Sheshet would fast on Erev Pesach, to make sure he has an appetite later: "istenis." Also, even the poorest of Jews recline at the seder. What does the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 107: Wine, Wine, Wine, Wine, Beer
A review of how long one can say kiddush and havdalah, if one missed the ideal initial time. Ameimar repeats (and limits) Rava's statement. Ameimar in the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 106: Keeping Your Wits about You
Remember the day of the Sabbath - that teaches kiddush of the day, but how do we know to make kiddush at night too? In fact, we should really be asking about…
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Pesachim 105: Shabbat Arrives When It Does, Like It or Not
A story of a meal where the diners need to determine whether Shabbat has begun. Which leads to a discussion about the fact that Shabbat establishes itself, and…
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Pesachim 104: Drawing Distinctions
The content of Havdalah - making distinctions. But the point could be made so much more succinctly! Note the goal of having the essential theme of a blessing…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 103: The Alphabet Soup of Havdalah
What's the order of the different components of Havdalah? What ARE the different components of Havdalah? A lot of ordering and reordering, depending on which…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 102: When Meals End (or Don't)
R. Yochanan's opinion that one doesn't need to make a new bracha over food in a new locale. That is, no after-blessing nor prior to eating, even for the foods…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 101: Eat Where You Kiddush
Kiddush! Why we make kiddush at home, after hearing it in shul, and why we make kiddush in shul, despite the fact that we're going to make kiddush at home too…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 100: If You Close Your Eyes, Tomorrow Never Comes
In not wrecking your appetite before the first yom tov meal, if you do start a meal on Erev Shabbat or Erev Yom Tov, how would it work? Do you interrupt the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 99: How Hard It Is to Keep Quiet
A neat solution for the lost Korban Pesach. Plus: the value of a science, for both the fool and the wise, including context! Also: Chapter 10! Coming to the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 98: Tying Up Loose Ends
3 interesting mishnayot: 1. Designating an animal that never should have been consecrated for a Korban Pesach - what can be done with the animal? What if…
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Pesachim 97: Taking Refuge in a Cemetery
On Shmuel's discussion of a Korban Chatat, and the 5 cases when an animal that was designated for the korban can't be used, and it's put to death instead of…
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Pesachim 96: The Original Pesach
The differences between the Korban Pesach brought as part of the Exodus from Egypt and the Korban Pesach that was offered every year.... Contrasting the…
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Pesachim 95: Sing the Korban Home
More on Pesach Sheni - this time, how it differs from Pesach Rishon. And how they're the same, too. Plus, how the requirement of Hallel adds a new dimension to…
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Pesachim 94: When the Stars Weren't Fixed in the Sky
A journey into the heavens: the astronomy of the Talmud and that of today, post-Copernicus. Including a dispute between the Jewish sages and the non-Jewish…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 93: The Make-Up Exam (Maybe)
When is one obligated to bring a Korban Pesach on Pesach Sheni? Whether you'd get karet or not for missing Pesach Rishon... When does karet kick in? What about…
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Pesachim 92: Impractical Cases
More on the mourner in the immediacy of mourning, as another distinction between the Korban Pesach and other kodshim. In contrast to one who hears of a close…
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Pesachim 91: Social Cohesion of the Pesach, Excepting Women (R. Shimon)
The case of one in immediate mourning (onen) and others who becomes unable to eat from the Korban Pesach, but are eligible at the time of schitah, they are…
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Pesachim 90: The Korban Pesach and the Prostitute
The money for a Korban Pesach and a prostitute's (zonah) earnings/fees - can these be one and the same, or rather, how to relate to these cases. Why is this…
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Pesachim 89: No Semikhah for Women
What if the Korban Pesachs were jumbled, and one of them was rendered problematic. Now what? A "residual korban" might be a good solution, though how that…
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Pesachim 88: Who Tells the Story
The dates in Babylonia - a matter of perspective on how they influenced the Jews' study of Torah there. Also, more on the discussion of who can bring a Korban…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 87: Taking Comfort in Babylonia
When a married woman eats from her husband's Korban Pesach, and when from her father's Korban Pesach. Likewise, how an orphan eats from a guardian's Korban…
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Pesachim 86: Upstairs Downstairs
We're the rooftops in Jerusalem, or even the Beit HaMikdash, considered holy? With implications for where one can eat the Korban Pesach. The discussion raises…
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Pesachim 85: The 'Lepers' at the Gateways of Jerusalem
A new factor in the permissibility of th Korban Pesach: What happens if the meat is taken out of the boundaries where it's supposed to be? Is that rendered…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 84: The Whole-Animal Approach
Even those parts of a young ox that are edible because of its immaturity, which are not edible in an adult ox, are not permitted. The question is whether you…
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Pesachim 83: Burning Down the Bones
What do you do with the bones of the Korban Pesach? The mishnah says to burn them on the day after the day of eating the Korban Pesach, with any "notar"…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 82: Gleaning Halakhah from Narrative: Nadav and Avihu and Their Father's Korban
If the Korban Pesach is rendered impure, on part of all, how is it than burned? And how different personalities or economic standings have impact on who brings…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 81: Do You Know Where the Bodies Are Buried?
More on Tumat ha-Tehom. First, the Gemara establishes a kal va-chomer (a fortiori) regarding the unknown impurity as derived from known purity. And then the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 80: Retroactively Impure - Now What?
What happens if different elements of Bnei Yisrael are impure, and in different kinds of impurity? Those divisions might even be as per the biblical tribes…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 79: Was the Korban Pesach Optional for Women?!
What happens if/when most or all of the population is impure? What happens if/when a minority of the community is impure? (Think Pesach Sheni). What if the…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 78: Ritual Sprinkling
Does the mishnah line up with R. Yosi? What is the role of the tzitiz? Also, what is part of your korban becomes impure? Specifically, the meat that you would…
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Pesachim 77: The Holy Frontplate and Its Influence
5 different offerings from the mishnah on daf 76 that can be offered by those who are impure, though it's not eaten by those who are impure. As compared to…
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Pesachim 76: When the Gravy Splashes the Meat
What happens if the Korban Pesach comes in contact with something that might cook any amount of the sacrifice through direct contact? The question brings us to…
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Pesachim 75: When Fire Isn't Just Fire
The need for fire in roasting, and the Gemara's reread of the mishnah with an emended text (chisurei mechsera) that turns the mishnah's discussion of a grill…
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Pesachim 74: What's So Special about Pomegranate Wood?
Chapter 7! Cooking the Korban Pesach... The mishnah says to roast the animal on a skewer of pomegranate wood, and of course the question is why pomegranate…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 73: Constructing and Uprooting
Who's Who: Rabbi Tarfon, and his unusual take on terumah. Also, one who violates Shabbat without that action including some constructive aspect, that violation…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 72: To Err Is Human (But Sometimes, There's No Good Excuse)
The Gemara raises one model of a case, following on the positions of the mishnah,that then is applied to several different halakhic cases. Our case study of…
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Pesachim 71: How We Rejoice
Does a korban brought in rejoicing (shlamei simcha) have to be at the time of the holiday? Of course, it's a machloket, with a key implication with regard to…
- Talking Talmud
Pesachim 70: When the Entire Nation Was Impure (or Could Have Been)
More on the Korban Pesach and the korban chagigah that is offered with it - Ben Teima's opinion whether the chagigah has to be roasted becomes essential…
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Pesachim 69: The Student Akiva
More on R. Eliezer, R. Yehoshua, and R. Akiva, and their dispute from the mishnah - in terms of what, if anything, can be done on Shabbat, if it could have…
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Pesachim 68: Whence Resurrection of the Dead?
A departure from the regularly scheduled topics. First, some intricacy in explicating biblical verses, specifically to make a comment on the righteous and the…
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Pesachim 67: 3 Camps of Impurity: The Tip of the Iceberg
An introduction to the challenges of this daf. A comment on the "isolation" of the metzora. And on the combination of a positive and negative commandment…
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Pesachim 66: When Israel's Sages Needed Hillel the Babylonian to Explain the Sacrifices
Chapter 6! We open with a long mishnah on the conflict between what needs to be done on Erev Pesach and what is prohibited on Shabbat. Also: Hillel on this…