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Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 19. Today we ask “is intention necessary for immersion in the miqvah to be effective for the eating of hullin?” Then we look at the principles of gud achait and gud asaiq as they pertain to the requirements […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 18. This episodes contains the conclusion of discussion of the derivation of compensation sacrifices for Shavuot. Ma’aseh in which Jews were not permitted to eulogize on the Day of Slaughterhing which seems to contradict the mishnah on the […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 17. Today we focus on a mishnah with disagreement between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai regarding the propriety of offering sh’lamim sacrifices and olot r’iyah on the Holiday and whether one may do s’micha, the laying on of […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 16. Today we’ll learn a little bit about Angels and Demons (with apologies to Dan Brown). Then we will return to law, as we pick up on what may well have been the very first dispute in rabbinic […]

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 ABC mockumentary series Abbott Elementary does more than fill […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 15. Rabbi Elisha Ben Abuya is one of the tragic figures of rabbinic literature- he entered the realm of esoteric knowledge and was drawn into heresy, becoming “Acher”- “the other.” More recently, there has been new interest in […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 14. Four entered the Pardes, the orchard of enlightenment, and only one emerged whole. How did Rabbi Akiva do it? What’s the real danger of mystical exploration? The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 13. The sages forbad study of Ma’aseh Merkavah- Ezekiel’s vision of the divine chariot. Why did he picture God surrounded by strange, 4-faced beasts? We’ll find answers from ancient archeology and later mysticism. But be careful, one person […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 12. Don’t listen to today’s podcast. It’s forbidden by Jewish law. If you must, make sure you do it alone, and not with another person, and you’ll learn about some of the basics of Jewish mysticism, what would […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 11. You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth! There are areas of knowledge that are too dangerous to be taught in public? I can understand why esoteric mystical knowledge might fall into that category, but why […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Joshua Heller looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 10. Some laws are floating in the breeze, some are hanging by a thread! Are all Jewish observances based in Biblical law, or are some the product of rabbinic creativity? How do we feel about the answer to […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 9. Qohelet says that “the crooked cannot become straight,” which the Sages understand to mean that some mistakes cannot be repaired. For example, missing out on an entire holiday. And worse, an act of incest or adultery, or […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Danny Nevins looks at Masechet Chagigah Daf 8. Vegetarians be warned! The Sages say you can “be happy on your holiday” only when eating red meat, since that was the type of festive offering. Rav Ashi says this is obvious–only red meat satisfies. This leads […]

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 […]