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Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 7. In tractate Peah we learn that some mitzvot have no fixed measure–any amount is good, and no amount is ever too much. One of those is the appearance offering, yet our Mishnah sets an amount. Rabbi Yohanan […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 6. Back in the Mishnah we heard of a debate between the schools of Shammai and Hillel on which class of festival sacrifice deserved priority–the burnt offering or the whole offering. In the Gemara we learn arguments to […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 5. Continuing the theme of weeping sages, we learn of Rabbi Yohanan’s sorrow that God holds Israel responsible even for minor mistakes, and not only for intentional crimes. For example, gross behavior like smashing a bug or spitting […]

This week, Brad and Steven are back to talk about the unrest at the Canadian border and the hypocrisy of Republican politicians when it comes to protests. They also wonder out loud if Merrick Garland has died and not bothered to tell anyone as the erosion of our democratic foundation continues apace. Happy listening. You can listen to […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 4. Gender identity and roles are contentious topics in contemporary society, but we assume that the ancients had a simpler sense of male and female. Actually, it seems that they knew about various intersex genders, and debated the […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 3. How is a Talmudic page organized? Sometimes the editor explains the Mishnah systematically, but sometimes it is more like a string of associations, recording numerous sayings of a single sage, or examining similar expressions from different angles. […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 2. We open our study of Tractate Hagigah, the 12th and final volume of Seder Mo’ed, with a discussion of the two sacrifices brought by individuals on the festival–the “face time” burnt offering, and the “happy meal” whole […]

Rabbis Michael Knopf and Jesse Olitzky are lifelong friends, pop culture fanboys, and lovers of all things Jewish. Join them every other week for a conversation about what’s going on in pop culture from a Jewish perspective and about Judaism through the lens of pop culture. The new Disney animated feature ‘Encanto’, now streaming on […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 29. This short daf completes Tractate Moed Katan. We learn what a person should say when departing from a dead person and what he should say when departing from a live person. Learn this daf carefully and […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 28. Is death meaningful? That’s one of the questions this daf asks. What I mean by this is can one observe how a person died, quickly or slowly, at an old age or at a young age, […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 27. Burials and funeral can be expensive procedures. They can also be a moment where members of the community use the opportunity to show off their wealth. This happened during Talmudic times and it still happens today. […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 26. Everybody knows that if a Torah falls to the ground people have to fast. Correct? But there is no source for this custom in the Talmud. Today we shall see the source in the Talmud that […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 25. Today’s rather long daf contains a series of stories of rabbis’ funerals, how the burial processions were conducted, what eulogies were recited and other various tidbits. In the podcast we’ll tell the fascinating story of the […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 24. There are several passages in the tractate about mourning on Shabbat and opinions vary. Some sages hold that on Shabbat all mourning customs are suspended, whereas other sages hold that only some mourning is suspended, but […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 23. One issue addressed on this daf is remarriage after the death of close relative. Here we see an interesting difference between the death of most relatives, even father or mother, and the death of a spouse. […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 22. When a parent dies, the mourning practices are more stringent than when another person dies. This daf lists such differences. Specifically we will examine the issue of attending a celebratory feast–how long must one refrain from […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 21. A mourner is not allowed to study Torah. In today’s Daily Daf we look at some rabbis who despite this prohibition continued to teach Torah even when their own children dies. What does this teach us […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 20. In today’s daf we will explore the history of the halakhah that if one observes only one hour of shiva before the festival begins, there is no more shiva after the festival. This is one of […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 19. Today we will look at a mishnah which finally gets into the laws of mourning, which are the main topic of the rest of the tractate. The Mishnah begins with the intersection of mourning and a […]

In this week’s episode, Brad and Steven talk about the controversy between Joe Rogan, Neil Young and Spotify. The guys debate what deleting Spotify means and also talk about some alternatives. They also talk about Loudon County, Virginia, book banning and the general collapse of the American empire. All in all, there’s a lot to […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 18. In this daf we explore the fascinating topic of determinism. Is what happens to us determined by our actions and our initiatives? Do we create our own destiny? Or is what happens to us dictated by […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 17. Today we look at a fascinating aggadah concerning a rabbi who seems to have engaged in some misconduct, perhaps even sexual misconduct. Does his leadership role in the rabbinic community gain him a pass for his […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 16. It is often difficult to use the Bavli to see how Jews/rabbis actually lived their lives during the Talmudic period. Today’s daf gives us the opportunity to see how the sages used the power to excommunicate […]

Rabbis Michael Knopf and Jesse Olitzky are lifelong friends, pop culture fanboys, and lovers of all things Jewish. Join them every other week for a conversation about what’s going on in pop culture from a Jewish perspective and about Judaism through the lens of pop culture. The new Netflix film ‘Don’t Look Up,’ starring a […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Dr. Joshua Kulp looks at Masechet Moed Katan Daf 15. This daf lists fourteen practices of mourning, and compares them with laws related a person who has been excommunicated or a person with skin disease (tzaraat). Most of these mourning practices either deprive the person of […]