The Mekor Mayim Hayim podcast מקור מים חיים - ההסכת

In this episode we return to examine the sources of the Oral Torah, this time focusing on the Yerushalmi (as well as Talmud more generally), the great product of the Teverya Yeshiva. We consider its historical context, what makes it distinct from the Bavli, and why (and why not) it should be taken more into account in halacha.

Scholars mentioned in this episode:

* Christine Hayes

* Alyssa Grey

* Moulie Vidas

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Academic approaches to the Torah shebe’al peh, originalism, and applying Judaism more consistently.

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This festival season, the first days of Rosh Hashanah and Sukkot will fall on Shabbat, as will Shemini Atzeret. This occurrence throws up some important questions: Why don’t we blow the shofar on Shabbat? Should we take the lulav on the first day of Sukkot irrespective of the day of the week, as was the ancient custom in Eretz Yisrael? Did our ancestors ever conceive that Jews would be celebrating Simchat Torah on Shabbat, which cannot happen in chutz l’Aretz?

Gavriel, Jochanan and Joshua discuss whether the danger of carrying a shofar or arba’a minim in a public domain, the Bavli’s rationale for banning their use on Shabbat, is a plausible historical explanation. They address the Yerushalmi’s alternative approach, which forces a rethink of the nature of the mitzvah of shofar and of the prohibition of shevut. Finally, Gavriel charts the history of Simchat Torah and its connections to kabbala, and argues there is no basis for dancing on the first day of Yom Tov, let alone on Shabbat.

Some things we reference in the podcast:

* Professor David Henshke’s article on sounding the shofar on Shabbat

* Rav Yehoshua Buch’s commentary on Yerushalmi Rosh Hashanah 4:1

* Rav Shaul Lieberman’s explanation of the prohibition of clapping, tapping and dancing on Shabbat

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Jochanan, Gavriel and R. Noam Kaplan discuss the history of different wordings of the prayer texts, the the value of liturgical diversity, and the senselessness of the notion that there is an obligation to follow an ‘ancestral’ nusach. R. Noam also says a few words about his siddurim.

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On Zoharism.

This is the midrash Gavriel mentioned: https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma.69b.9

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Friend of the blog Meir (Faithless Flight) joins Jochanan to discuss some of the topics recently covered on his substack, Willful Creation, specifically here, here, and here. Topics include the questionable obligation to follow ancestral minhag, the leadership problem within Judaism, and reasoning from first principles.

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Last episode, we interviewed prof. Yair Lorberbaum concerning major hiddushim he introduces in two recent articles of his on the Hakdamah (introduction) and Hilchot Mamrim in the Rambam’s Mishneh Torah. In this episode we summarise his arguments in English and discuss their significance and implications:

* What parts of the Talmud Bavli did the Rambam really say are binding and what is the role of national acceptance?

* How this limits the extent of the problem of the authority of the Babylonian courts

* Why did the Rambam write the Hakdamah in this way?

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אנו משוחחים עם יאיר לורברבוים, פרופסור מן המניין בפקולטה למשפטים באוניברסיטת בר-אילן. נושא הדיון שלנו הוא שני מאמרים שפרסם לאחרונה ועניינו אותנו מאוד:

* האומנם, לפי הרמב”ם, התלמוד הבבלי הוא ספר החוק (והאם) מפני שהסכימו עליו כל ישראל?

* “פשט הדבר בכל ישראל”: הרמב”ם על אודות הסכמה על גזרות, מנהגות ותקנות

במחקרו עוסק פרופ’ לורברבוים בתחום המשפט העברי, תורת המשפט, הפילוסופיה של ההלכה, ומחשבת ישראל. במוקד מחקריו עומדים התיאוריה המשפטית של ההלכה והקשר בין משפט עברי והלכה לבין פילוסופיה ותאולוגיה בתקופות השונות, במיוחד בתקופות חז”ל והראשונים.

ראשי פרקים

0:57 הקטגוריות ההלכתיות של הרמב”ם

9:19 תפקיד ההסכמה לחקיקת חכמים וההבדל בין הסכמת רוב העם להסכמת כל העם

27:45 האם התלמוד הבבלי הוא ספר החוקים של ההלכה?

42:50 באיזה בית דין מדובר? מהי סמכות חלקי התלמוד שלא מהווים חקיקה?

52:10 האם ההקדמה תואמת את ההיסטוריה?

1:01:08 למה ההקדמה כה עמומה? למה טעו רבים כל כך בפירושה?

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Issues discussed here include:

The real factions in medieval Judaism (not just rationalist vs. mystical)

How Kabbalah became legitimised (Ramban/Nachmanides had a lot to do with it)

How the Zohar was a rebellion against Ramban’s elitist legacy

The Spaniard that Gavriel couldn’t remember the name of was Yitzhak ben Moshe haLevi, also known as Profiat Duran, an interesting character in himself.

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When was the Tosefta composed, and where did it come from? Did Rabbi Yohanan know the Tosefta? Did the Geonim? And, of course, why learn it?Not what I (Johanan) thought. Gavriel explains.

Some things we reference in the podcast:

* Article by ‘YU person’ whose name escaped us (Yaakov Elman)

* The project proposed by Gavriel as a way to better texts of the Oral Torah (aka the ‘Mishna Project’)

* More about thebirkat kohanimexample we discuss

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This episode was intended to deal with the doctrinal and practical influence of kabbalah up until its culmination in Sabbateanism, including major updates from the current state of the literature. Unfortunately, our new microphones ran out of battery half way through, so only the first part survives. We hope to cover the rest (which really deserves an episode of its own, anyway) in another episode soon.

Issues discussed here include:

* Evolving views on the authorship and composition of the Zohar

* Explaining the mystery of how one man wrote the Zohar (he didn’t).

* How the Zohar came to be considered authoritative among poskim

* How hearsay influenced halachic practice

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We are joined by Rav Noam Kaplan, שליט”א for a wide-ranging conversation about halachot commonly asserted today which Hazal… seem to have forgotten to tell us about. Topics include eiruvim, the kashrut of steam from food, bitter herbs, and the necessity of maintaining two sets of cutlery.Rav Noam received his ordination from R. Zalman Nechemia Goldberg. He has served as rabbi of the Auckland Hebrew Congregation in New Zealand, is the author/compiler of סידור נועם השם alongside several other siddurim, and an early adopter of tekhelet.

מקור מים חיים is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

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בפרק זה אנו משוחחים עם הרב ד"ר זאב ספראי, שחיבר יחד עם אביו ואחותו את משנת ארץ ישראל, משאב יחיד במינו על המשנה הכולל חומר רב מהירושלמי, תוספתא, ומגוון מקורות אקדמיים יחד עם מקורות חז”ל המוכרים יותר. הפירוש פורץ-דרך בהבאתו את פירות החקר המודרני במתכונת נגישה לקהל הדתי. שיחתנו מתמקדת בדרך הפירוש ובהיסטוריית המשנה והתנאים.

For our English-speaking listeners: while this episode is fully in Hebrew, iy”h there will be many more English-language episodes in future

0:00 דרך משנת א"י: משמעות מקורית ופשט המשנה

18:44 איך נראית תורה שבעל פה לפני המשנה?

26:47 עריכת המשנה ומטרתה

31:34 טקסט בכתב וטקסט בעל פה

41:20 מה היה ביבנה

57:07 בית הלל ובית שמאי

1:10:40 סיפורי עליות הגג

1:18:05 סמכות, מחלוקת והכרעה אצל חז"ל

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* Karpas

Reactionary note 3 - Karpas

* Kitniyot

Rumour has it that the popular Kitniyot Liberation Front is being outflanked by a radical, new group called RISIS…

* OatsA good article by Rabbi Broyde

* K’zayit

R. Slifkin’s Evolution of the Olive

* Revi’it

Steadying the storm in the kiddush cup

* Wine

A link in case you were puzzled by Johanan’s little inside joke

* Soft matzah

We forgot to mention, but of course (with due care), you can make your own

*

Error correction: I (Gavriel) misattributed the citation of a phantom Tosefta regarding drinking the cups of wine without a break. It is actually the Rokeah. The Beit Yosef is as follows:

כתב הרוקח בסימן רפ"ג בתוספתא שתאן בפוסין לא יצא פי' ששהה שעה גדולה ביניהם

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In this episode, we start what will be IYH an extended discussion of the issue of kabbalistic influence on the development of halacha. Gavriel has been studying the history in some detail recently, and found that it re-radicalised him against kabbalah, whereas Johanan felt the discussion nuanced things somewhat. Chime in with your thoughts! Some of the topics we address:

* The history of the reception of the Zohar

* The effect of the expulsion from Spain

* The conservative nature of pre-Tzfat kabbalah

* The reinvention of Kabbalah in Tzfat

* The role of the Beit Yosef

* Misinterpretations of the Zohar in halachic works

* The duality of kabbalah as an elite-mystical and popular movement

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In this episode, we speak with Rabbi Dr. Leonard Levy, perhaps the world’s foremost expert on Rabbi Yitzhaq Alfasi, the Rif. In his writings, R. Levy presents findings crucial to understanding the development of halacha in the Middle Ages.

1:50 Background to R. Levy’s dissertation; a theory of halachic evolution

14:40 Rif’s model of deriving the halacha from the Talmud

23:37 Sugya and the Talmud as a code

34:14 Talmud study in the Babylonian yeshivot

39:55 Resolving disputes (divrei rivot bisha’arecha)

51:47 How the Geonim approached pesak halacha

106:50 The connection between Rif and Rambam

1:17:12 How the Rif set the agenda for the next thousand years

There is much more we would like to discuss with Rabbi Levy at a later date, but we hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did.

Additional resources

R. Levy’s dissertation

The Decisive Shift - 2010 article by R. Levy, mentioned in the interview

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Sourcesheet.

Funny meme:

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Our takes on a topic explored by prof. Shaye J.D. Cohen and colleagues here and here. Was the Mishnah born of catastrophe or of flourishing? When was it last edited? And is it an elitist or popular text?

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A Succos shiur with both current and general relevance.

Sources:

משנה סוכה ג:ט

ירושלמי סוכה שם (קיט בדפוס אור לישרים)

בבלי סוכה לז:ב

רבינו חננאל ותוספות שם (ד"ה כדי לעצור)

רי"ף שם (יח:ב בדפי הרי"ף)

ספר הערוך - נע - ב

הלכות גדולות - הלכות לולב (רח דפוס מכון ירושלים)

סדר רב אמרם גאון - סדר של סוכות (קעג בדפוס גולדשמיט)

משנה תורה - הלכות שופר וסוכה ולולב ז:י

השגות הרמב"ן להלכות לולב להראב"ד (חידושי הרמב"ן למסכת סוכה) - "ענין הנענעים" (בסוף הספר)

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We kick off our podcast with a wide-ranging discussion, touching on such topics as Rashi’s knowledge of Greek, lethal seder humras, and why there there are no quick fixes for halakha.

Some sources mentioned in the podcast:

Gavriel’s hagaddotand related research on the Seder

Johanan’s article critiquing common mekoryist approaches

R. Natan Slifkin on the kezayis(olive-bulk) and related topics

Profs. Safrai’s Mishnat Eretz Yisrael, Preface (in Hebrew)

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