Defining and explaining the "shtar amanah" - and why a document of "trust" is not to be believed in terms of monetary transactions. How does one prove payment, however? The documentation for loans ends up being key. It's a commitment to good faith, though it's not binding. Also, a case of witnesses who signed and died before the document was needed. People came and attested to the signatures - that they were the handwriting of the witnesses who had died. But the claim is that they signed under d...
Jul 25, 2022•18 min•Season 15Ep. 19
What happens when two parties have a monetary claim? What level of responsibility is expected for one to be able to stake a legitimate claim? Why does the Gemara talk about a katan, a minor, bit who is clearly past the age of majority? Also, on witnesses - where they claim the signed under duress, then? What does it mean to be compelled to sign sworn testimony? When does testimony line up with this, or does ? || Talmudic Principles: Modeh ba-miktzat. No self-incrimination.
Jul 24, 2022•15 min•Season 15Ep. 18
A famous Beit Hillel/Beit Shammai dispute, on how one dances before a bride - what is one to say? From praise for the bride, the Gemara moves to praise for the sages. Also, interrupting daily life not only for weddings, but also for funerals, though the king's entourage still takes precedence. And when to interrupt Torah study.
Jul 23, 2022•19 min•Season 15Ep. 17
The second chapter of Ketubot! A woman who is widowed or divorced testifies that she was a virgin when they married - and the husband testifies that she was a widow then. Which needs witnesses as to how she was dressed when she left her father's house. Plus, other indications of the time. But what if there are no witnesses? Then he is credible (not Rabban Gamliel's approach, it seems at first blush). Also, a discussion of how the majority of brides are virgins. And that majority should negate th...
Jul 22, 2022•16 min•Season 15Ep. 16
More on "the majority" - from its classic case of kosher butchers and one non-kosher butcher. The implications and value of the principle for Halakhah at large. Also, the case of the abandoned baby - how do you determine who the baby is, whether Jewish or non-Jewish? What about the baby's lineage? That is considered a different category, as compared to saving the baby's life. What are the practical implications of assuming the baby is Jewish or not Jewish? The role "rov" plays in these kinds of ...
Jul 21, 2022•17 min•Season 15Ep. 15
Returning to the mamzer and the hallal. Specifically, a widow who had been married to a man from a kohen family, but of questionable lineage, for all that. That questionable lineage is the potential problematic lineages that can get "mixed in" with those whose lineage is not problematic. Also, the mishnah at the end of the daf: the case of a young girl to fill up jugs with water - and is raped there, but the identity of the rapist is unknown. Depending on the status of the majority of the people...
Jul 20, 2022•18 min•Season 15Ep. 14
A case of mukat eitz, and whether she is believed (and what the value of her ketubah would be). Also, the case of a woman speaking to a man - which gives rise to suspicion as to seclusion... What is the nature of their relationship?! And what complications kick in if the woman is pregnant, if she claims the (unknown) father is a kohen, if she herself is the daughter of a kohen, etc.? What about this woman's claim with regard to her daughter's eligibility to marry a kohen? Plus, the reliability o...
Jul 19, 2022•25 min•Season 15Ep. 13
3 mishnayot! The case of a man who eats in his father-in-law's home in Yehudah, specifically, after betrothal, and with no witnesses that the betrothed couple was not along together... the husband-to-be can no longer make a claim against the wife's virginity. With the location being key. Also, how the kehunah has impact on the ketubah value. Also, when a husband brings a complaint against his wife's virginity, and she maintains that she was raped after the betrothal - which he doesn't accept. Th...
Jul 18, 2022•19 min•Season 15Ep. 12
Different categories of women, including converts, captives who were freed, and maidservants - who were expected to have has sexual intercourse, given the circumstances of their lives - unless they completed those statuses prior to being 3 years and one day old. Then they are considered virgins. Plus, recanting one's childhood conversion (for example). Also, a cases where the unions do not result in a virgin's ruptured hymen. And the status of "mukat eitz," where the hymen has been ruptured, but...
Jul 17, 2022•17 min•Season 15Ep. 11
Why was the ketubah instituted to begin with? What about the groom who claims she wasn't a virgin? Is he automatically believed, so he can get out of paying the ketubah? The ketubah protects her in the event of divorce, and this claim isn't likely to be made lightly. Also, 6 practical cases of how this claim of a new bride not being a virgin is rejected, in protecting the woman. Plus, a mishnah on betrothals that are not consummated, where the ketubah is 200 dinars. Note the word play/derivation...
Jul 16, 2022•22 min•Season 15Ep. 10
What happens when a bridegroom claims that his new virginal bride seemed not to be a virgin after all? Particularly when there's already strife between the couple. And the complicated situation is reminiscent of the story of David Batsheva, where what seems an act of adultery isn't used to keep them apart. Also, further discussion of what happens if the new bride is not a virgin, and the implications for the ketubah. And how the same halakhah may have been applied in different ways in different ...
Jul 15, 2022•17 min•Season 15Ep. 9
The 7 Berakhot in full. Plus, a practical account of weddings where sages said 5 or 6, and not 7. What is their disagreement? It would seem about the nature of the creation of humanity. Also, for the 30 days following the wedding, the couple has the status of newlyweds, which has bearing on the groom's ability to make the wedding blessing - that happiness is his portion. And in some ways, for a year. But when does that joy begin? Betrothal? Wedding preparations? Part of the concern is whether a ...
Jul 14, 2022•19 min•Season 15Ep. 8
The prohibition against the wedding night for a virgin to be on Shabbat, and permitted on a festival. But why is it permitted then? How does it apply across the board to everyone? Plus, a specific case about a historical case. [Who's Who: Helene the Queen] Also, Sheva Berachot - the blessings of a wedding that require a minyan for recitation. But how do we know that there's a requirement to have 10? It's learned from a biblical verse. But it's a machloket which verse that is. Plus, the time of t...
Jul 13, 2022•25 min•Season 15Ep. 7
Still fighting with the tech. So many apologies!! || A disturbing daf - where we begin our discussion with the Gemara's case of prepubescent marriage (on Shabbat). The case is fairly straightforward - in terms of injury to the virgin on Shabbat, and Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai dispute how long the couple can rely on her prepubescent state to prevent concerns of the impurity of Niddah. Similarly, the case of a girl who is the right age/stage for puberty, but hasn't yet menstruated. Also, a discu...
Jul 12, 2022•14 min•Season 15Ep. 6
Anne here: Apologies for the late release, and in a new masekhet, no less! My phone seems to be the culprit. Obviously, I'm working to rectify. || A challenging daf... Strange in terms of Hilkhot Shabbat and unintended consequences - and the virgin bride. Specifically, breaking the hymen would be a epind on Shabbat, but why can't their first night be Saturday night? Why do "calculations" or planning get in the way? Some kinds of thinking and planning, even on teaching, are indeed acceptable on S...
Jul 11, 2022•20 min•Season 15Ep. 5
When the time of severe mourning or a "chuppat niddah" changes the wedding night. Similarly, how her standing as a virgin can make a difference. Also, a focus on mourning and the leniencies (if there are any) for the bride or groom in mourning.
Jul 10, 2022•18 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Talking about... divorce. In the context of unavoidable circumstances. For example, when a husband gives his wife a conditional divorce, to prevent her from being on limbo, or needing yibum. Also, some historical context. The sages stipulations regarding day of marriage was from the time of Ezra - because before then, the court met every day, and any woman could marry on any day. The sages or elders themselves delved into every detail pertaining to the wedding. Plus, an answer to why the virgin ...
Jul 09, 2022•22 min•Season 15Ep. 3
Introducing the tractate of Ketubot, including the question of defining virginity. And diving right in to the first mishnah - what day of the week is reserved for virgins to marry, as compared to widows? What if there are interferences to this schedule? From the bride's niddah status to the groom's illness to the bride's illness - at what point does his obligation to support her (as per the terms of the wedding) kick in? When an unavoidable circumstance takes place, maybe he is obligated - but a...
Jul 08, 2022•16 min•Season 15Ep. 2
Another daf of mishnayot (3 of them), and then closing Masekhet Yevamot. First: Testimony as to a person's death can be seen in candlelight or moonlight, or hearsay from a "bat kol," a "heavenly" voice (in this case, where the voice is heard without finding the speaker later, in contrast to other bat kol stories from the heavens). Also, a story from Neharda'a because of intercalating the year... When the question of testimony from one witness was raised for discussion - and R. Yehudah ben Bava's...
Jul 07, 2022•20 min•Season 14Ep. 122
Opening with another mishnah on the identification of bodies - specifically, if one fell into water. Depending on the conditions, one may well be presumed to have survived such a fall. What's the difference between bodies of water that clearly have boundaries and those that do not? Also, the story of the daughter of Nechuniyah the digger of cisterns, who fell into the Great Cistern, and how R. Hanina ben Dosa knew she was fine, though it took her some hours to get out. His reasoning doesn't quit...
Jul 06, 2022•20 min•Season 14Ep. 121
The CSI episode: How those testifying to the death of a person were able to identify the given body as dead. Even seeing that wild animals were eating the person is not enough to be sure he didn't make it. Likewise, more than 3 days after a death, depending on circumstances, risks decomposition impeding identification. Plus, the story of how one changed his appearance with wax - to the point of not being recognizable. Also, even though severe wounds will presumably lead to death, the person who ...
Jul 05, 2022•16 min•Season 14Ep. 120
Starting the last chapter of Yevamot... A woman travels with both her husband and a co-wife, and when she returns, the claim is made that her husband died. Can she marry, or does she have to do yibum? But what about the impact of the co-wife? What if the co-wife is pregnant (and then there would be no need for yibum)? Similar questions arise with regard to other comparable demographics. At the end of the day, the likelihood of pregnancy implies that there is no yibum. Thus, defining "majority," ...
Jul 04, 2022•17 min•Season 14Ep. 119
More mishnayot! Two women who are married to the same man and one claims he has died, and the other says he has not - the status of the women is largely dependent on their respective claims. What if the disagree only in the manner of his death? What if there are third-party witnesses who contradict? Also, a couple that travels and the wife comes back and says the husband died - her testimony will change her status, but not her co-wives. What if she claims that her father-in-law died too (but the...
Jul 03, 2022•23 min•Season 14Ep. 118
Mishnayot! A women who testifies that her husband has died can remarry, but does she get the ketubah money? It's a machloket between Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai, and one that Beit Shammai wins. Also, the 5 women whose testimony is not believed regarding a man's death because they are too likely to have it in for his potential widow. Plus, the difference between a bill of divorce and the testimony to a man's death. Also, a woman remarries on the basis of a witness's testimony and another witness...
Jul 02, 2022•15 min•Season 14Ep. 117
When a husband and wife have quarreled, it calls into question her testimony in the event if his death. But the Gemara acknowledges that bickering can be part of marriage, and that too-extreme statements promising divorce, for example, can be said in the heat of the moment, without it meaning anything of significance about the marriage itself. Including the narrative of how people chose the right course of action, with an awareness of the court's bias, as it happens in the given case. Also, a ne...
Jul 01, 2022•16 min•Season 14Ep. 116
Cases that make the mishnah of the previous daf tangible and practical, including the case of immolation (apparently) of a man on his wedding day, where his wife scres out to bring everyone's attention to him.... But then he's unrecognizable. Is she believed? Could the husband have escaped alive? Another case makes it clear that the real topic is not marriage, but testimony: the division and claiming of sesame plants. How can each plant be correctly assigned to each true owner? Plus, a mnemonic ...
Jun 30, 2022•16 min•Season 14Ep. 115
How does the Gemara approach families with different levels of observance. We also start a new perek today which explores the parameters of single witness testimonies regarding another person’s death.
Jun 29, 2022•13 min
A deaf-mute woman is not entitled to a ketubah. Why not? What is the rationale? It seems to be left to the husband to decide. Illustrated by a story of R. Malkiyu, who established a ketubah for a deaf-mute woman, even though it wasn't mandated. Also, exploring the deaf-mute man who cannot divorce his wife, but the deaf-mute woman can be divorced - which is the the obvious case here? Note, not only is marriage considered different when it comes to men and women, but that is also the case for divo...
Jun 28, 2022•22 min•Season 14Ep. 113
Apologies for the late release - technical difficulties that never happened before and are unlikely to happen again. Thank you for understanding. || The end of chapter 13: when one swears off various things - specifically with implications for marriage, including one who swears off having any kind of relationship with Jews. What are the baseline assumptions in taking a vow? Had she thought it through? Does anyone think it through to that extent? Also, a mammoth mishnah, tracing all the possible ...
Jun 27, 2022•32 min•Season 14Ep. 112
1/3 of the way through the Talmud!! Another daf with 2 mishnayot, one long with little Gemara, one shorter, with a lot of Gemara. First, another case of 2 orphan minor girl's who are married to one man - what happens when the yavam sleeps with both of these potential Yevamot? And other comparable cases (deaf-mutes again, etc.). Also, a mishnah on divorce with these minor wives - which must wait until they are older. Likewise, what about an unconsummated yibum? Before or after 30 days? Which open...
Jun 26, 2022•17 min•Season 14Ep. 111
