Beitzah 17: Loopholes

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We learned that when a Holiday (Yom Tov) falls out on a Friday, one is allowed to cook for the needs of the Yom Tov, but not for the Shabbat right after it. However, if one leaves a little food over from Thursday (called eruvei tavshilin) then cooking for Shabbat becomes permitted.

The Ra’avad explains that the idea of the eruv tavshilin – literally “a combination of foods” – is to prepare a meal for Shabbat at a time when it is permissible, and then food that is made on Yom Tov can be combined with that food in preparation for Shabbat.

We examine the halachot of ET and discuss loopholes in rabbinic Judaism.

Beitzah 16: Neshama Yeseirah

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The concept of some form of expanded soul being afforded the Jew during the weekly Shabbat already appears in our daf (Beitza 16a), where Resh Lakish states:

The Holy One, Blessed be He, gives man an additional soul on the eve of Shabbat, and at the end of Shabbat He takes it back, as it says (Shemot 31:17): “shavat va-yinafash” — once Shabbat ends, woe (vai) to the spirit (nefesh) which is lost.

Resh Lakish derives from the phrase “shavat va-yinafash” that after Shabbat ends, one loses a little part of one's soul, referring to the additional soul that accompanies the Jew on Shabbat. Nefesh literally means spirit, but here it is a verb. It refer to some internal form of refreshment and even restoration that affects the inner part of one's personality.

The Chasam Sofer points out that there is a fundamental difference between Shabbos and the other Yomim Tovim. On Shabbos, the Ribono shel Olam and kedusha [holiness] arrives, whether we are ready or not, and whether we are prepared or not. The mere fact that it is Shabbos invests us and imbues us with a certain kedusha.

We further explore the nature of the unique gift of the Shabbat.

Beitzah 15: Reb Eliezer's Teaching Method

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We are told a fascinating story about Rabbi Eliezer the Great, who watched groups of students leave as he lectured on the halachot of Festivals. As each group left, he became more angry and called to the departing group that they must have a pittas, a barrel, a jug, a jar, a cup waiting for them - they must be hungry and are compelled to leave. When the sixth group left, he told them that only a curse was waiting for them as they did not value learning Torah over the call of sustenance. Finally, the remaining students were afraid of Rabbi Eliezer. He reassured them, giving them a blessing (including giving food to the poor) going forward to enjoy their meals.

The Gemara questions why Rabbi Eliezer was critical of the students who left if they were leaving to provide for their physical needs which is a mitzvah of being joyous on Yom Tov. The Gemara answers that Rabbi Eliezer maintains that rejoicing on Yom Tov is merely optional.

This story is difficult to understand and many points require clarification.

Beitzah 14: Mortar and Pestle

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The Mishnah on our daf discusses the preparation of spices and salt. We find that Bet Shammai insist that some change be made in the way spices are ground up (grinding is one of the activities ordinarily forbidden on Shabbat), while Bet Hillel allow grinding to be done normally.

Both agree, however, that salt should be ground in an out-of-the-ordinary way – by using a wooden pestle rather than the standard stone pestle.

In the Gemara, Rav Huna and Rav Chisda argue about the distinction made between spices and salt. One says that salt is a basic need – all cooking requires salt – so it should have been prepared before the holiday began; spices, on the other hand, are not necessarily required for cooking, so they can be prepared as needed. The other explains that salt retains its flavor, so it could have been prepared before the holiday began. Spices, which lose their strength once they are ground, can be prepared as they are needed, even on the holiday.

We examine the grinding of spices and the history of the mortar and the pestle. (and the Slavic tale of the baba Yaga!)

Beitzah 13: Wheat from the Chaff

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Our Daf discusses the difference between stalks of grain and legumes regarding at which point of their processing the obligation for ma’aser begins.

The Gemora raises the possibility of taking terumah on Yom Tov, if one may peel kernels, and answers that it depends on the dispute between Rebbi and Rabbi Yossi beRabbi Yehuda about the obligation to take terumah from grain brought in to eat individually.

One who has bundles of fenugreek, a type of legume that is used for seasoning, and they were tevel, (produce that one is required to separate terumah and he has not yet separated the terumah) he should crush them, calculate how many seeds they have, and then he separates terumah for the seeds.

He is not required to separate terumah for the stalks, because it is only a rabbinical requirement to separate terumah from legumes, so the Chachamim only required that one separate terumah from the seeds and not from the stalks.

We explore the halachot of borer, and the difference between wheat and barley according to food science.

Beitzah 12: Mitokh She-Hutra Le-Tzorekh

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Mishnah (Beitzah 1:5) records that Beit Shamai do not permit carrying a child, lulav, or Sefer Torah in a public domain on Yom Tov, while Beit Hillel do permit such carrying. Our Daf(Beitzah 12a) explains that Beit Hillel believes that “mitoch shehutrah hotza’ah letzorech. hutrah nami shelo letzorech”, “Given that the Torah permits carrying for the sake of food preparation, it permits carrying for any Yom Tov need,” while Beit Shamai rejects this expansion. 

This concept is commonly referred to as “mitoch” and applies to all melachot that are permitted on Yom Tov. The Halachah follows the opinion of Beit Hillel (Shulchan Aruch O.C. 518:1).

Even Bet Hillel would agree that there needs to be some purpose in carrying in order for it to be permitted on Yom Tov; lugging around rocks is forbidden even according to Bet Hillel. The purpose can be the needs of a mitzvah – like carrying a lulav to the synagogue or a sefer Torah to study from, or the needs of simchat Yom Tov, enhancing the joyousness of the holiday. 

The Torah states No work is to be done on those days, except to prepare food for everyone to eat - that is all you may do (Shemot 12:16), explicitly permitting work that is done for the preparation of food. We question the scope of this leniency: Which labors are permitted for the sake of okhel nefesh? Mi-Tokh She-Hutra Le-Tzorekh 

Beitzah 11: Circumventions or Deceptions?

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Rambam writes that "a permitted strategem is called a ha'arama (circumvention), whereas one that is forbidden is called mirma (deception)"

The Rashba on our daf writes that "regarding ha'aramot, we do not say that one is similar to the other." Later in the same passage, he formulates principles to distinguish between legitimate circumventions and those which are forbidden to be used.

Thinking about the last year on this last day of the Hebrew Annual cycle and the way COVID has forced me to choose between rational scientific thinking and magical/mystical thinking in ways I never would have imagined (like not stepping foot inside my beloved unmasked shteibl) I the present the following article….that examines the evolving use of the homily. This popular literary form allows for a more associative combination of halakhah, textual exegesis, and theology, including some of the same sources used by Rema and Maharshal, within a rhetorical discourse comprised of parables, symbolism, and wordplay, addressing itself to the practical question of whether "fleeing plague" is effective. The fluidity of the homily and the fact that it is unambiguously outside the legal realm are not coincidental.

I also present an article I wrote in 2010 about that same plagued city of Prague and the curious crucifix with the hebrew letters of the kedusha hanging from it on the Charles River bridge.

Beitzah 10: Black and White Doves

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Generally speaking, animals are considered muktzah on Shabbat and Yom Tov. That is to say, farm animals whose normal activities are associated with melachot – activities forbidden on those days – cannot be used. Thus, in the event that an animal is to be slaughtered for food on Yom Tov, it must be prepared or set aside for such use prior to the beginning of the holiday.

Our Daf discusses one who selects birds before Yom Tov in order to slaughter them on Yom Tov. The Gemara cites the Mishnah later (on 10a) in which Beis Shamai says that one who selects the birds must pick them up and shake them; it does not suffice merely to name them verbally. Beis Hillel permits one to designate the birds for use on Yom Tov merely by naming them verbally.

If one designated black doves before Yom Tov and on Yom Tov he only found white doves, or if he designated white doves and found black doves on Yom Tov, or if he designated two doves and on Yom Tov he found three doves, all the doves that he found are muktzeh.

We explore the use of the dove as a metaphor in ancient religion, mythology and even as logo for the OU!

Thinking about the back dove vs the whote dove I was reminded of "Little Gidding" a poem by TS Eliot who used the dove as a dark image for the German bombers that rained death on England during WW2 "After the dark dove with the flickering tongue"...

Beitzah 9: Ladders

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Beit Shammai prohibit moving a ladder from one dovecote to another, even though his intention is to fetch some doves for slaughter and consumption, which by itself is permissible on a Holiday (Yom Tov). Beit Hillel disagree and allow moving the ladder.

They must be talking about a ladder specifically designated for dovecotes, and yet Beit Shammai do not allow moving it. Why? - Because an onlooker might still think that he is going to plaster his roof. And Beit Hillel, what do they say? - That his ladder and his dovecote are proof enough of his intention.

We examine the metaphor of ladders...from Jacob's ladder to the kabbalistic references to the connection between heaven and earth, and the literal geographic (and strategic) "ladder of Tyre" in the conquest of Beirut.

Beitzah 8: Kissui haDam

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Are we allowed to slaughter an animal on the Festival?[ If so, are we permitted to cover the blood? What if we prepare the pile of earth in advance, with this purpose in mind? What are the differences if we are in a home (with dirt floors, of course) or on a field? Is an act of destruction, digging a hole, always prohibited on Shabbat and Festivals? What if that act of destruction is done to allow the performance of a positive mitzvah of covering (blood)?

Again we are faced with the difficult task of measuring intention against action. We explore the halachot of this ritual and end with a story from the Shoah of a Torah buried in the ground except for four panels and the strange journey they took through the hell of Auschwitz…

Beitzah 7: The Chicken And The Egg

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In our daf we learn any species that cohabitates by day will bear offspring by day. Any species that cohabitates at night will bear offspring by night. Any specie that cohabitates by day or by night will bear offspring either by day or by night. This determines the halachic status of the egg that is found delivered.

We explore the biology of fertilized vs non fertilized eggs followed by an examination of the horrors of the poultry farm industry, for its workers and for the animals. We end with attempts by the new eco-kosher system that holds kashrus hechsher to higher ethical and environmental standards.

Beitzah 6: Yom Tov Burial

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Rava teaches that if someone dies on Yom Tov and needs to be buried, non-Jews are brought to make the preparations and do the burial if it is the first day of Yom Tov; on the second day of Yom Tov, we allow Jews to do whatever is necessary. This is true not only on Pesach, Shavu’ot and Sukkot, but also on Rosh ha-Shana, when, as we learned yesterday, the second day is considered an extension of the first.

The Gemara concludes that, nowadays, since the Jews are under the dominion of a foreign authority that forces them to work on the weekdays, a Jew may not take care of the Mes on Yom Tov, lest the foreign authorities think that Jews do work on Yom Tov and force the Jews to work for them on Yom Tov. This logic should prohibit a Jew from taking care of the Mes on Yom Tov Sheni.

The Rishonim differ on the details of these statements, and their application nowadays. We explore the halachot of burial and differing opinions regarding burial practices including the new (secret?) underground canyon beneath har Menuchot.

Beitzah 5: Council of Nicea and Our Calendar

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The discussion on yesterday’s daf was whether a beitzah she-noldah be-Yom Tov (an egg that was laid on the holiday) was considered muktzah on the second day of the holiday in the Diaspora. Our discussion focused on why we still keep a second day even at a time when we work with a set calendar and no longer need to communicate the establishment of the new month to far-flung communities.

In a prescient warning The Gemara asks: And now that we know the determination of the first day of the new month, what is the reason that we observe two Festival days in the Diaspora? Because they sent a warning from there, from Eretz Yisrael: Although now there is a fixed calendar and there is no uncertainty, be careful to observe the custom of your fathers that you received, because at times the monarchy will issue decrees of persecution restricting Torah study and the fixed calendar may be forgotten. And the people will come to have their proper observance of the Festivals be disrupted again. In fact a decree that attempted to quash the Jewish calendar was actually issued by Emperor Constantine in 325 CE:

We explore the edict of the Council of Nicea and Hillel II's response, from a christian perspective and Prof. Sacha Stern, the foremost authority of the ancient calendrical systems.

Beitzah 4: Yom Tov Sheni

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How about the situation, common in the Diaspora, where we celebrate two days of Yom Tov, one after another? Can an egg laid on the first day of Yom Tov be used on the second day?

The Gemara teaches that this is the subject of a disagreement between Rav, who permits its use on the second day, and Rav Assi, who forbids it.

Rav Assi was uncertain whether the two days of Yom Tov in the Diaspora are deemed to be one continuous day of holiness or not, so he recited havdalah in case the two days of Yom Tov were not deemed to be one continuous day of holiness, and Rav Assi also ruled that an egg that is laid on the first day of Yom Tov is prohibited on the second day of Yom Tov.

Although we now know when Rosh Chodesh is established, the reason we still observe two days of Yom Tov is because a message was sent from Eretz Yisroel to Babylonia, “be careful to follow the custom of your fathers who observed two days of Yom Tov, because the gentile government may issue a decree that it is prohibited to study Torah,” and this will cause the Torah scholars to err in calculating the lunar cycle and this can lead to people eating chametz on Pesach.

We explore the concept of Yom Tov Sheni across the demninational spectrum especially those shuttling between Israel and the diaspora these days with such ease.

Beitzah 3: Eggs, Solid or Liquid?

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There exists a degree of uncertainty how to define a food and how to define a liquid. For example, are yogurt, jello and pudding considered liquids or foods? What about ice cream or ices?

This issue is critical in determining when a brachah achronah should be recited on the earlier mentioned foods. If they are considered food, the volume of an olive must be consumed to require a brachah achronah but as a liquid the quantity that necessitates a brachah achronah would be the volume of a revi’is.

According to the above guidelines, it would seem that a raw egg should certainly be considered a liquid since it is neither chewed nor sucked. Nonetheless, there are a number of Poskim who maintain that a raw egg is considered a food rather than a liquid.

One proof is our Gemara, which equates a raw egg and a fruit as a food rather than a liquid.

We explore the science behind the change from liquid to solid eggs.

Beitzah 2: Introductions

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This week, we begin Tractate Beitzah, which is not the name of a holiday but, oddly enough, the Hebrew word for “egg.” What sort of holiday is Egg? In fact, the alternative title for this tractate is simply “Yom Tov,” the generic term for holidays or festivals, and it covers features of Jewish law that are in force for all the holidays.

One of the Rabbinic ordinances developed by the Sages to protect the sanctity of Shabbat and holidays is the rule forbidding moving objects that are considered muktzah – that is, things that a person puts out of his mind and does not intend on using during Shabbat or Yom Tov. This can be done either by a conscious act or decision on the part of the person, or alternatively if the object is not usable for any activities that are permitted on Shabbat.

Some categories of muktzah include things that a person actively sets aside so that they are not used on Shabbat, and nolad – something that could not have been prepared for use before Shabbat because it was “born” or came into existence only on Shabbat.

It is a case of nolad that Masechet Beitzah opens with – beitzah she-noldah be-Yom Tov – an egg that was laid on the holiday and did not exist when Yom Tov began. Is it considered ready for use on the holiday, or will it be considered muktzeh since it did not exist beforehand?

Sukkah 56: Lukus Lukus

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The Mishnah ends on a sad note, describing the punishment given to the mishmar of Bilgah, for “Miriam, the daughter of Bilgah, apostatized and married an officer of the Greek kings.

When the Greeks entered the Sanctuary, she stamped with her sandal upon the altar, crying out, ‘Lukos! Lukos! (the Greek name for wolf—Rashi ), how long will you consume Israel's money? And yet, you do not stand by them in the time of oppression!’

Most commentators use this as a lesson in raising children and warn of preaching vs living by example...

However the Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that Miriam Bat Bilgah teaches a lesson that if even a Jew who has converted out of Judaism and married an enemy of our People fundamentally remains committed to Torah, then every Jew has the potential to be reached by a committed Jew who is deeply committed to Torah.

Sukkah 55: Seventy Bulls, Tribalism vs Universalism

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During Sukkos, a total of seventy bulls were brought up on behalf of the nations of the world. But on Shemini Atzeres, a single bull brought as an offering was meant to symbolize the unique nation, the Jewish people, that exists in a unique relationship with Hashem.

The Gemara cites a parable about a king of flesh and blood who said to his servants: Prepare me a great feast that will last for several days. When the feast concluded, on the last day, he said to his beloved servant: Prepare me a small feast so that I can derive pleasure from you alone.

We explore the paradoxical nature of the universalistic vs the particularistic/national/tribal aspects of this last day of Sh'mini Atzeret culminating in Rav Kook's (and Rav Shagar's) resolution.

Sukkah 54: Counting Tekiyot

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The Mishna enumerated the 48 blasts blown on a Friday during sukkos. The Gemora notes that the list does not include the 3 blasts on the tenth step, which the earlier Mishna had listed. The Gemora explains that this Mishna follows Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov, who says they didn't blow on the tenth step.

The Gemora cites a braisa which says that they blew on the tenth step, and then cites Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov saying that they only blew on the altar. The Gemora explains that only three blasts were blown, and the dispute is where they occurred. Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov says that once they blew for the opening of the gates on the way to draw the water, there was no need to blow on the steps, and therefore it is preferable to blow on the altar. The Sages say that once they blew when they drew the water, there was no need to blow on the altar, when the water was libated, and therefore it is preferable to blow on the steps.

We explore the use of the shofar in the bible and some interesting commentary on current events...

Sukkah 53: Sealing the Abyss/Chaos

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When David dug the Pits (שיתין), under the altar, he accidentally hit the point at which the Deep (תהומא) was connected to the earth. These subterranean primordial waters threaten to surface and flood the world, (as they did in the days of Noah). David composed the fifteen psalms, (Shir Hama'alos) which caused the waters to subside. The world was preserved.

David dug the Pits, but then saw that he had opened up a conduit whereby the waters of the Deep might destroy the world. Somehow he knew that writing God’s name on a sherd and throwing it into the Pits would cause the water to subside. What he didn’t know was whether this is permitted.

Ahitophel, Saul’s son’s adviser after Saul’s death, a figure portrayed as a wise man in both the Bible and in rabbinic tradition, notes that in the Sotah ritual God’s name is written on a scroll and then the writing is rubbed off into water. This ritual is meant to bring peace between a man and woman by eliminating his suspicion that she was an adulteress. If for such a purpose, God’s name may be erased, all the more so it may be erased to save the world.

We explore the myth of "sealing the abyss" from scholars such as Rav Daniel Sperber (a linguist) to Prof Jon Levenson (a theologian).