In this week’s parsha we read of the terrible destruction that will be brought on the People of Israel if they fail to keep God’s word. Among the consequences is this: ויקרא 26:22 וְהִשְׁלַחְתִּי בָכֶם אֶת־חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה וְשִׁכְּלָה אֶתְכֶם וְהִכְרִיתָה אֶת־בְּהֶמְתְּכֶם וְהִמְעִיטָה אֶתְכֶם וְנָשַׁמּוּ דַּרְכֵיכֶם׃ I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your highways shall be desolate In Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) societies, most of us live far from dangero ..read more

בבא מציעא פה, ב  שמואל ירחינאה אסייה דרבי הוה חלש רבי בעיניה א"ל אימלי לך סמא א"ל לא יכילנא אשטר לך משטר [א"ל] לא יכילנא הוה מותיב ליה בגובתא דסמני תותי בי סדיה ואיתסי Shmuel Harchina'ah was Rebbi's physician. One day Rebbi was suffering from an eye ailment. Shmuel said to him, "I will insert this medication into your eyes." Rebbi told him "I cannot endure that treatment." Shmuel said to him "I will gently put a salve on the surface of your eyes." Rebbi replied "I cannot endure that either." So Shmuel put a tube of medicine under Rebbi's pillow, and he was cured." [Bava Metzia 85b] RABB ..read more

ויקרא 25:1-5 וַיְדַבֵּר יְהֹוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה בְּהַר סִינַי לֵאמֹר׃ דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם כִּי תָבֹאוּ אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי נֹתֵן לָכֶם וְשָׁבְתָה הָאָרֶץ שַׁבָּת לַיהֹוָה׃ שֵׁשׁ שָׁנִים תִּזְרַע שָׂדֶךָ וְשֵׁשׁ שָׁנִים תִּזְמֹר כַּרְמֶךָ וְאָסַפְתָּ אֶת־תְּבוּאָתָהּ׃ וּבַשָּׁנָה הַשְּׁבִיעִת שַׁבַּת שַׁבָּתוֹן יִהְיֶה לָאָרֶץ שַׁבָּת לַיהֹוָה שָׂדְךָ לֹא תִזְרָע וְכַרְמְךָ לֹא תִזְמֹר׃ אֵת סְפִיחַ קְצִירְךָ לֹא תִקְצוֹר וְאֶת־עִנְּבֵי נְזִירֶךָ לֹא תִבְצֹר שְׁנַת שַׁבָּתוֹן יִהְיֶה לָאָרֶץ׃ And the Lord spoke to Moses at mount Sinai, saying: Speak to the childre ..read more

In this week’s parsha we read one of the Torah’s most quotable quotes. 19:18 ויקרא לֹֽא־תִקֹּ֤ם וְלֹֽא־תִטֹּר֙ אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י עַמֶּ֔ךָ וְאָֽהַבְתָּ֥ לְרֵעֲךָ֖ כָּמ֑וֹךָ אֲנִ֖י יְהֹוָֽה׃ You shall not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but you should love your neighbour as yourself: I am the Lord. According to the great Rabbi Akiva “זֶה כְּלָל גָּדוֹל בַּתּוֹרָה- this is a fundamental principle of the Torah,” and if Rabbi Akiva said that, it must be a principal of incredible importance. So this week we will focus on this great principle, and specifically on how it was ..read more

ויקרא 16:3 …בְּזֹ֛את יָבֹ֥א אַהֲרֹ֖ן אֶל־הַקֹּ֑דֶשׁ This is how Aharon will come into the Holy Place… In this week’s parsha we read about the Yom Kippur service. There is much that the Rabbis added to the ceremony that is described, and in a discussion of the service on the holiest day of the Jewish Year, the Talmud notes that the voice of the Cohen Gadol, the High Priest, could be heard from a distance of ten parsangs. A parsang is an old Persian measure, and is about 3 miles or almost 5km. This means that the voice of the High Priest could be heard over 30 miles away! The Talmud notes tha ..read more

Pesach (Passover) begins tomorrow, Monday evening, April 22, 2024. For your delight we present The 2024Talmudology Passover Reader. It may be downloaded at the links below. This edition includes an essay on the Ten Plagues in Science and History, and material for discussion at the Seder. Read, share, and enjoy, and work diligently for the release of our hostages 2024 Talmudology Passover Reader (PDF - US- Letter size ) CLICK HERE 2024 Talmudology Passover Reader (PDF - Israel & Europe- A4 size) CLICK HERE And a Happy Passover from Talmudology     ..read more

This post is for the page of Talmud to be studied tomorrow, Shabbat. Print it up now and enjoy בבא מציעא נב, ב לא יעשנה משקל בין משקלותיו ולא יזרקנה בין גרוטותיו ולא יקבנה ויתלנה בצואר בנו ובצואר בתו אלא או ישחוק או יתוך או יקוץ או יוליך לים המלח  It was taught in a Baraisa: A person should not make [an eroded coin that does not contain enough metal] into a wight among his weights, not should he throw it among his pile of silver utensils, nor should he hang it as a necklace on the neck of his son or daughter. Instead, he should either grind it up, or melt it down, or cut it into pie ..read more

ויקרא 15:2-3 וַיְדַבֵּ֣ר יְהֹוָ֔ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה וְאֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֖ן לֵאמֹֽר׃ דַּבְּרוּ֙ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם אֲלֵהֶ֑ם אִ֣ישׁ אִ֗ישׁ כִּ֤י יִהְיֶה֙ זָ֣ב מִבְּשָׂר֔וֹ זוֹב֖וֹ טָמֵ֥א הֽוּא׃ וְזֹ֛את תִּהְיֶ֥ה טֻמְאָת֖וֹ בְּזוֹב֑וֹ רָ֣ר בְּשָׂר֞וֹ אֶת־זוֹב֗וֹ אֽוֹ־הֶחְתִּ֤ים בְּשָׂרוֹ֙ מִזּוֹב֔וֹ טֻמְאָת֖וֹ הִֽוא׃ And the Lord spoke to Moshe and to Aharon, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, When any man has a running issue out of his flesh, because of his issue he is unclean. In this week’s parsha, the laws of the זב – Zov - a man who experiences a discharge fr ..read more

ויקרא 12:1 וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃ דַּבֵּ֞ר אֶל־בְּנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר אִשָּׁה֙ כִּ֣י תַזְרִ֔יעַ וְיָלְדָ֖ה זָכָ֑ר וְטָֽמְאָה֙ שִׁבְעַ֣ת יָמִ֔ים כִּימֵ֛י נִדַּ֥ת דְּותָ֖הּ תִּטְמָֽא׃ And the Lord spoke to Moses saying: Speak to the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her menstrual sickness shall she be unclean… This week’s parsha focusses on various elements of ritual purity and impurity, and opens with the rules as they apply to a mother who has just given birth. An ..read more

Once again, it is coming. Tomorrow, on Monday April 8th there will be a solar eclipse visible to millions of people across north America.  It will be the first total eclipse to cross the continental United States since 2017, which I was lucky enough to witness with my family from Charleston, South Carolina. This time, some 31 million people in the US will be in the path of the witness the spectacle of the totality, when the day turns to night. From GreatAmericanEclipse.com I will be traveling to Indianapolis to witness the totality. Some time ago I considered a Talmudology Eclipse weeke ..read more