Menachot 2: Addendum to the Last 8 Pesukim
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Stolen Talmud
History of Jewish Publishing, Week 3: Modern Forgeries R' Mordechai Torczyner – [email protected] Pseudepigraphy 1. Avot 6:6 One who makes a statement in the name of its original source brings redemption to the world, as Esther 2:22 says, "And Esther told the king, in the name of Mordechai." 2. Jerusalem Talmud, Shabbat 6:1 Rabbi Avahu cited Rabbi Yochanan: One may teach his daughter Greek; this is ornamental for her. Shimon bar Abba heard this and said, "Because Rabbi Avahu wants to teach his daughter Greek, he hung this upon Rabbi Yochanan." Rabbi Avahu heard this and said, "May terrible things happen to me, if I did not hear this from Rabbi Yochanan!" 3. Talmud, Pesachim 112a If you wish to be strangled, hang yourself by a tall tree. Besamim Rosh 4. Responsa of Rabbeinu Asher ("Rosh") 55:9 The wisdom of philosophy and the wisdom of Torah and its laws do not follow the same path. The wisdom of Torah is a tradition received by Moses from Sinai, and the scholar will analyze it via the methods assigned for its analysis, comparing one matter and another. Even where this does not match natural wisdom, we follow the tradition. Philosophical wisdom is natural, with great scholars who established natural arguments, and in their great wisdom they dug deeper and corrupted (Hosea 9:9) and needed to deny the Torah of Moses, for the Torah is entirely unnatural and revelatory. Regarding this it is stated, 'You shall be pure with HaShem your Gd,' meaning that even if something is outside of natural logic, you should not doubt the received tradition, but walk before Him in purity. -
1 Beginning the Conversation
NOTES 1 Beginning the Conversation 1. Jacob Katz, Exclusiveness and Tolerance: Jewish-Gentile Relations in Medieval and Modern Times (New York: Schocken, 1969). 2. John Micklethwait, “In God’s Name: A Special Report on Religion and Public Life,” The Economist, London November 3–9, 2007. 3. Mark Lila, “Earthly Powers,” NYT, April 2, 2006. 4. When we mention the clash of civilizations, we think of either the Spengler battle, or a more benign interplay between cultures in individual lives. For the Spengler battle, see Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996). For a more benign interplay in individual lives, see Thomas L. Friedman, The Lexus and the Olive Tree (New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1999). 5. Micklethwait, “In God’s Name.” 6. Robert Wuthnow, America and the Challenges of Religious Diversity (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2005). “Interview with Robert Wuthnow” Religion and Ethics Newsweekly April 26, 2002. Episode no. 534 http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week534/ rwuthnow.html 7. Wuthnow, America and the Challenges of Religious Diversity, 291. 8. Eric Sharpe, “Dialogue,” in Mircea Eliade and Charles J. Adams, The Encyclopedia of Religion, first edition, volume 4 (New York: Macmillan, 1987), 345–8. 9. Archbishop Michael L. Fitzgerald and John Borelli, Interfaith Dialogue: A Catholic View (London: SPCK, 2006). 10. Lily Edelman, Face to Face: A Primer in Dialogue (Washington, DC: B’nai B’rith, Adult Jewish Education, 1967). 11. Ben Zion Bokser, Judaism and the Christian Predicament (New York: Knopf, 1967), 5, 11. 12. Ibid., 375. -
Why Did Moses Break the Tablets (Ekev)
Thu 6 Aug 2020 / 16 Av 5780 B”H Dr Maurice M. Mizrahi Congregation Adat Reyim Torah discussion on Ekev Why Did Moses Break the Tablets? Introduction In this week's portion, Ekev, Moses recounts to the Israelites how he broke the first set of tablets of the Law once he saw that they had engaged in idolatry by building and worshiping a golden calf: And I saw, and behold, you had sinned against the Lord, your God. You had made yourselves a molten calf. You had deviated quickly from the way which the Lord had commanded you. So I gripped the two tablets, flung them away with both my hands, and smashed them before your eyes. [Deut. 9:16-17] This parallels the account in Exodus: As soon as Moses came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, he became enraged; and he hurled the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain. [Exodus 32:19] Why did he do that? What purpose did it accomplish? -Wasn’t it an affront to God, since the tablets were holy? -Didn't it shatter the authority of the very commandments that told the Israelites not to worship idols? -Was it just a spontaneous reaction, a public display of anger, a temper tantrum? Did Moses just forget himself? -Why didn’t he just return them to God, or at least get God’s approval before smashing them? Yet he was not admonished! Six explanations in the Sources 1-Because God told him to do it 1 The Talmud reports that four prominent rabbis said that God told Moses to break the tablets. -
Sukkot Potpourri
Sukkot Potpourri [note: This document was created from a selection of uncited study handouts and academic texts that were freely quoted and organized only for discussion purposes.] Byron Kolitz 30 September 2020; 12 Tishrei 5781 Midrash Tehillim 17, Part 5 - Why is Sukkot so soon after Yom Kippur? (Also referred to as Midrash Shocher Tov; its beginning words are from Proverbs 11:27. The work is known since the 11th century; it covers only Psalms 1-118.) In your right hand there are pleasures (Tehillim 16:11). What is meant by the word pleasures? Rabbi Abin taught, it refers to the myrtle, the palm-branch, and the willow which give pleasure. These are held in the right hand, for according to the rabbis, the festive wreath (lulav) should be held in the right hand, and the citron in the left. What kind of victory is meant in the phrase? As it appears in the Aramaic Bible: ‘the sweetness of the victory of your right hand’. That kind of victory is one in which the victor receives a wreath. For according to the custom of the world, when two charioteers race in the hippodrome, which of them receives a wreath? The victor. On Rosh Hashanah all the people of the world come forth like contestants on parade and pass before G-d; the children of Israel among all the people of the world also pass before Him. Then, the guardian angels of the nations of the world declare: ‘We were victorious, and in the judgment will be found righteous.’ But actually no one knows who was victorious, whether the children of Israel or the nations of the world were victorious. -
Humor in Talmud and Midrash
Tue 14, 21, 28 Apr 2015 B”H Dr Maurice M. Mizrahi Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia Adult Learning Institute Jewish Humor Through the Sages Contents Introduction Warning Humor in Tanach Humor in Talmud and Midrash Desire for accuracy Humor in the phrasing The A-Fortiori argument Stories of the rabbis Not for ladies The Jewish Sherlock Holmes Checks and balances Trying to fault the Torah Fervor Dreams Lying How many infractions? Conclusion Introduction -Not general presentation on Jewish humor: Just humor in Tanach, Talmud, Midrash, and other ancient Jewish sources. -Far from exhaustive. -Tanach mentions “laughter” 50 times (root: tz-cho-q) [excluding Yitzhaq] -Talmud: Records teachings of more than 1,000 rabbis spanning 7 centuries (2nd BCE to 5th CE). Basis of all Jewish law. -Savoraim improved style in 6th-7th centuries CE. -Rabbis dream up hypothetical situations that are strange, farfetched, improbable, or even impossible. -To illustrate legal issues, entertain to make study less boring, and sharpen the mind with brainteasers. 1 -Going to extremes helps to understand difficult concepts. (E.g., Einstein's “thought experiments”.) -Some commentators say humor is not intentional: -Maybe sometimes, but one cannot avoid the feeling it is. -Reason for humor not always clear. -Rabbah (4th century CE) always began his lectures with a joke: Before he began his lecture to the scholars, [Rabbah] used to say something funny, and the scholars were cheered. After that, he sat in awe and began the lecture. [Shabbat 30b] -Laughing and entertaining are important. Talmud: -Rabbi Beroka Hoza'ah often went to the marketplace at Be Lapat, where [the prophet] Elijah often appeared to him. -
High Holy Days Q&A Full Sheet.Indd
The High Holy Days Questions and Answers to help you more fully experience and enjoy these Holy Days What do the words Rosh Hashanah mean? Rosh Hashanah is Hebrew for “head of the year” (literally) or “beginning of the year” (figuratively). In the Torah, we read, “In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, there shall be a sacred assembly, a cessation from work, a day of commemoration proclaimed by the sound of the Shofar.” Therefore, we celebrate Rosh Hashanah on the first and second days of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Jewish calendar. Why is the New Year in the Fall? Why do we start the New Year in the seventh month? Our ancestors had several dates in the calendar marking the beginning of important seasons of the year. The first month of the Hebrew calendar was Nisan, in the spring. The fifteenth day of the month of Shevat was considered the New Year of the Trees. But the first of Tishrei was the beginning of the economic year, when the old harvest year ended and the new one began. Around the month of Tishrei, the first rains came in the Land of Israel, and the soil was plowed for the winter grain. Eventually, the first of Tishrei became not only the beginning of the economic year, but the beginning of the spiritual year as well. What are the “Days of Awe?” Rosh Hashanah is the first of the “High Holy Days,” and begins the most spiritually intense part of the Jewish year – the yamin nora’im, the Days of Awe. -
Of the Mishnah, Bavli & Yerushalmi
0 Learning at SVARA SVARA’s learning happens in the bet midrash, a space for study partners (chevrutas) to build a relationship with the Talmud text, with one another, and with the tradition—all in community and a queer-normative, loving culture. The learning is rigorous, yet the bet midrash environment is warm and supportive. Learning at SVARA focuses on skill-building (learning how to learn), foregrounding the radical roots of the Jewish tradition, empowering learners to become “players” in it, cultivating Talmud study as a spiritual practice, and with the ultimate goal of nurturing human beings shaped by one of the central spiritual, moral, and intellectual technologies of our tradition: Talmud Torah (the study of Torah). The SVARA method is a simple, step-by-step process in which the teacher is always an authentic co-learner with their students, teaching the Talmud not so much as a normative document prescribing specific behaviors, but as a formative document, shaping us into a certain kind of human being. We believe the Talmud itself is a handbook for how to, sometimes even radically, upgrade our tradition when it no longer functions to create the most liberatory world possible. All SVARA learning begins with the CRASH Talk. Here we lay out our philosophy of the Talmud and the rabbinic revolution that gave rise to it—along with important vocabulary and concepts for anyone learning Jewish texts. This talk is both an overview of the ultimate goals of the Jewish enterprise, as well as a crash course in halachic (Jewish legal) jurisprudence. Beyond its application to Judaism, CRASH Theory is a simple but elegant model of how all change happens—whether societal, religious, organizational, or personal. -
Hebcal 5779H Portland.Pdf
September 2018 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Erev Rosh Hashana Rosh Hashana 5779 Rosh Hashana II 5:15a Fast begins Menachot 34 Menachot 35 Shabbat Shuva Menachot 30 Menachot 31 Menachot 32 Tzom Gedaliah 7:05p Candle lighting Parashat Vayeilech 7:15p Candle lighting 8:21p Candle lighting 8:19p Havdalah (50 min) 8:03p Fast ends Menachot 36 Menachot 33 8:12p Havdalah (50 min) 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Menachot 37 Menachot 38 Erev Yom Kippur Yom Kippur Menachot 41 Menachot 42 Parashat Ha'Azinu Menachot 39 Menachot 40 6:51p Candle lighting Menachot 43 6:57p Candle lighting 8:04p Havdalah (50 min) 7:58p Havdalah (50 min) 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Erev Sukkot Sukkot I Sukkot II Sukkot III (CH''M) Sukkot IV (CH''M) Sukkot V (CH''M) Sukkot VI (CH''M) Menachot 44 Menachot 45 Menachot 46 Menachot 47 Menachot 48 Menachot 49 Menachot 50 6:48p Candle lighting 7:54p Candle lighting 7:52p Havdalah (50 min) 6:38p Candle lighting 7:45p Havdalah (50 min) 30 Sukkot VII (Hoshana Raba) Menachot 51 6:34p Candle lighting Candle lighting times for Portland, Oregon, USA Provided by Hebcal.com with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License October 2018 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 3 4 5 6 Shmini Atzeret Simchat Torah Menachot 54 Menachot 55 Menachot 56 Mevarchim Chodesh Cheshvan Menachot 52 Menachot 53 6:25p Candle lighting Parashat Bereshit 7:41p Candle lighting 7:39p Havdalah (50 min) Menachot 57 7:31p Havdalah (50 min) 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Menachot 58 Menachot 59 -
SYNOPSIS the Mishnah and Tosefta Are Two Related Works of Legal
SYNOPSIS The Mishnah and Tosefta are two related works of legal discourse produced by Jewish sages in Late Roman Palestine. In these works, sages also appear as primary shapers of Jewish law. They are portrayed not only as individuals but also as “the SAGES,” a literary construct that is fleshed out in the context of numerous face-to-face legal disputes with individual sages. Although the historical accuracy of this portrait cannot be verified, it reveals the perceptions or wishes of the Mishnah’s and Tosefta’s redactors about the functioning of authority in the circles. An initial analysis of fourteen parallel Mishnah/Tosefta passages reveals that the authority of the Mishnah’s SAGES is unquestioned while the Tosefta’s SAGES are willing at times to engage in rational argumentation. In one passage, the Tosefta’s SAGES are shown to have ruled hastily and incorrectly on certain legal issues. A broader survey reveals that the Mishnah also contains a modest number of disputes in which the apparently sui generis authority of the SAGES is compromised by their participation in rational argumentation or by literary devices that reveal an occasional weakness of judgment. Since the SAGES are occasionally in error, they are not portrayed in entirely ideal terms. The Tosefta’s literary construct of the SAGES differs in one important respect from the Mishnah’s. In twenty-one passages, the Tosefta describes a later sage reviewing early disputes. Ten of these reviews involve the SAGES. In each of these, the later sage subjects the dispute to further analysis that accords the SAGES’ opinion no more a priori weight than the opinion of individual sages. -
Daf Ditty Yoma 55: Sprinkling One Up, Seven Down
Daf Ditty Yoma 55: Sprinkling One Up, Seven Down 1 § The mishna taught that the High Priest took the blood of the bull from the one who was stirring it so it would not coagulate, and he entered and sprinkled it like one who whips. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of: Like one who whips? Rav Yehuda demonstrated the action with his hand, 2 like one who lashes with a whip on the back of another and who occasionally strikes lower down. A Sage taught in the Tosefta: When the High Priest sprinkles the blood, he does not sprinkle on the top of the Ark cover; rather, he does so against the thickness of the Ark cover. When he sprinkles once upward, he turns his hand so that the back of his hand faces downward, and he then sprinkles upward. And when he sprinkles seven times downward, he turns his hand so its back is upward. However, he does not sprinkle on the Ark cover or below it, so that the blood does not actually come into contact with it. § The Sages taught: ,Then shall he kill the goat of the sin-offering 15 וט ְו ַָשׁחטֶאת - ִיהרְשׂﬠ רֲא,אַתשׁטַּח ָ ֶ ָ רֲא,אַתשׁטַּח ִיהרְשׂﬠ that is for the people, and bring his blood within ,תםהָלאﬠו ְָב ֵאֶ ִי - ,וֹמֶלא ָדּ - תבּ ֵיִמ תבּ the veil, and do with his blood as he did with the ה;ֹתֶשׂﬠכָתוראַלפּ ְ ֶָָ - ראכּשׁ ,וֹמֲֶַ ָדּ ,וֹמֲֶַ ראכּשׁ blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the דהָﬠהלשׂ פּםְָ ָ,ורַַ וֹהתִַﬠלזּאְה ָֹ - .ark-cover, and before the ark-cover ַה ,ֹתרַכּפּ ְנִפְלֶו ֵי ֶ.תֹרַפַּהכּ Lev 16:15 “And sprinkle it upon the Ark cover and before the Ark cover”. -
Beginners Guide for the Major Jewish Texts: Torah, Mishnah, Talmud
August 2001, Av 5761 The World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS) 9 Alkalai St., POB 4498 Jerusalem, 91045, Israel Tel: +972 2 561 0133 Fax: +972 2 561 0741 E-mail: [email protected] Web-site: www.wujs.org.il Originally produced by AJ6 (UK) ©1998 This edition ©2001 WUJS – All Rights Reserved The Guide To Texts Published and produced by WUJS, the World Union of Jewish Students. From the Chairperson Dear Reader Welcome to the Guide to Texts. This introductory guide to Jewish texts is written for students who want to know the difference between the Midrash and Mishna, Shulchan Aruch and Kitzur Shulchan Aruch. By taking a systematic approach to the obvious questions that students might ask, the Guide to Texts hopes to quickly and clearly give students the information they are after. Unfortunately, many Jewish students feel alienated from traditional texts due to unfamiliarity and a feeling that Jewish sources don’t ‘belong’ to them. We feel that Jewish texts ought to be accessible to all of us. We ought to be able to talk about them, to grapple with them, and to engage with them. Jewish texts are our heritage, and we can’t afford to give it up. Jewish leaders ought to have certain skills, and ethical values, but they also need a certain commitment to obtaining the knowledge necessary to ensure that they aren’t just leaders, but Jewish leaders. This Guide will ensure that this is the case. Learning, and then leading, are the keys to Jewish student leadership. Lead on! Peleg Reshef WUJS Chairperson How to Use The Guide to Jewish Texts Many Jewish students, and even Jewish student leaders, don’t know the basics of Judaism and Jewish texts. -
Torah She-Ba'al
SHALOM HARTMAN INSTITUTE Elu v'Elu: Two Schools of Halakha Face Off On Issues of Human Autonomy, Majority Rule And Divine Voice of Authority By Noam Zion Contents Copyright © 2008 Shalom Hartman Institute, Jerusalem, Israel 1 hartman.org.il | [email protected] Elu v'Elu: Two Schools of Halakha Face Off On Issues of Human Autonomy, Majority Rule And Divine Voice of Authority1 By: Noam Zion Table of Contents Introduction – the Rabbinic Revolution – the Rule of the Interpreters 3 A. Two Great Debates of the Schools of Hillel / Shammai and the Bat Kol: Comparing TB Eruvin 13b and TB Baba Metzia 59a-b 7 B. Can Later Rabbinic Creativity Transcend Its Origins? Moshe Struggles to Understand his Spiritual Heir, Akiva (TB Menachot 29b) 16 C. The Power to Exclude from the Debate: Why Do the Rabbis Excommunicate Eliezer? 20 D. What is the Divine Perspective on the Eliezer / Yehoshua Debate? 21 E. Bat Kol: What is the Relationship between God’s Revelation and Halachic Decision-making? (TB Baba Metzia 59 and Eruvin 13b) 24 F. What is the Significance of Hillel’s Moral Virtues? Granting Priority to Hillel’s School over Shammai’s (TB Eruvin 13a) 26 G. Pluralism versus Monism in the Search for Truth and the Relationship to the Other’s View 29 H. Eliezer’s Crisis of Conscience: How Can We Be Obligated to Follow a “Wrong” Decision Made by the Rabbis because They Constitute the Majority? 40 I. Living with Disagreement: The Culture of Controversy – What are the Limits of Unity and of Diversity within a Common Community? Three Theories of Tolerance 43 1 Summarized based on Moshe Halbertal lectures to TICHON on Interpretation, Avi Sagi’s Elu vElu, and on Aviezer Ravitsky, “The Question of Toleration in Jewish Tradition: Between Pluralism and Paternalism” in Bein Samchut l’Autonomia, edited by Avi Sagi, Zeev Safrai p.