Julian Ungar-Sargon

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Daf Ditty

A wide-ranging commentary on the daily page of Talmud.

Nedarim 31: חֲתַן־דָּמִ֛ים

jyungar November 25, 2022

For the source text click/tap here: Nedarim 31

To download, click/tap here: PDF

A new Mishna tells us that if a person vows not to benefit from one who is uncircumcised, they are referring only to Gentiles and not to those Jews who were uncircumcised for heath or other serious reasons. The Mishna goes on to provide us with numerous proof texts on the significance of circumcision. Some of those include the notion that circumcision is more important that Shabbat, as we override the halachot of Shabbat to perform circumcision (Rambam, Sefer Ahava).

The Gemara picks up on this conversation and looks to Moses and the role that circumcision might have played in his life. Why was his punished by G-d and not allowed to see the promised land? Was it because he neglected the mitzvah of circumcision? Was it because he waited to circumcise his child while leaving for Egypt (on the third day, we have learned that people are incapacitated due to the pain of circumcision - was he protecting the child from the journey ahead?)? Was it because he was concerned about lodging first, ignoring his delay of the mitzvah of circumcision?

We explore aspects of this enigmatic pericope (Ex 4:24pp) and the role of Tzipporah.

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Julian Ungar-Sargon

This is Julian Ungar-Sargon's personal website. It contains poems, essays, and podcasts for the spiritual seeker and interdisciplinary aficionado.​