The Talmud is a central text of Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history.
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6answers
467 views
does one have to take a Midrash/Aggadah literally?
Does one have to take a Midrash/Aggadah literally?
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vote
1answer
99 views
Famous People across time [closed]
Who was יוסף גר צדק and who was his famous son and even more infamous Ancestor?
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2answers
93 views
Riddle: Honor-Dishonor [closed]
When is doing an action to honor something considered a dishonor and therefore okay?
8
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5answers
286 views
Riddle: Where does a Non Jew have more Halachic power than a Jew? [closed]
When a Non Jew does something it would work according to Halacha, however when a Jew does the same thing it is useless.
5
votes
1answer
81 views
If the “ten martyrs” didn't happen together, did the punishment-for-Joseph story happen? When?
It's commonly believed that the "ten martyrs" didn't all live in the same time period, and the description of them as a group is conceptual, not historical.
Now the story opens with a Roman ruler ...
4
votes
1answer
214 views
Which Raban Shimon ben Gamliel was it who was martyred?
The Ten Martyrs liturgy describes Rabbi Yishmael the High Priest and Raban [=nasi or "chief rabbi"] Shimon ben Gamliel as killed by the Romans at the same time. Rabbi Yishmael served as cohen gadol ...
7
votes
0answers
96 views
Identifying Ba'alei Tosafos [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Who is the voice of Tosafoth?
How much do we know about which specific people wrote which comments of Tosafos?
7
votes
2answers
447 views
what is the longest masechta?
I heard that Bava Basra is the longest masechta in blatt but Brochos is the longest mesechta in words. Did anyone else hear anything about that?
6
votes
4answers
438 views
Kashrut in the Talmud
I've been speaking with someone about Judaism - what, how, why, etc. We came to the issue of kashrut, and she had a hard time understanding how we got these random laws from the Torah. I explained ...
2
votes
3answers
95 views
What is the connection between giving tz'daka and tripping on steps?
"Paso'ach Tiftach Es Yadecha Lo", open up your hand to the poor (Re'eh 15:8).
The Gemara in Bava Basra (10a) tells the story how Rav Papa was walking up the stairs and his foot slipped and he was ...
2
votes
2answers
126 views
Did the Jews in the Midbar know the entire Torah?
The G'mara in Y'vamos (ד) and B'rachos (כא) records a dispute over whether laws can be deduced from the fact of two p'sukim appearing adjacent to one another in the Torah.
The Mahara"tz Chayos ...
5
votes
3answers
157 views
8
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4answers
228 views
Teiku VS. Kashya
When a Gemara does not have a solution to a question why does it sometimes it end off with "Teiku" and sometimes with "Kashya"?
5
votes
4answers
616 views
Significance of the gemara statment תיקו Teku?
Why do we say תיקו Teiku when there is no answer in the Gemara?
7
votes
4answers
872 views
Hard Yeshivish phrases to translate
Does anyone ever have trouble finding good English translations of certain yeshivish phrases, especially when in conversation with someone who would not understand the original?
Post your favorite ...
5
votes
4answers
271 views
Talmudic Terminology
There are a number of English language works which to one degree or another discuss Talmudic terminology, i.e. the wider implication of certain phrases commonly used in the Gemara. Can anybody suggest ...
5
votes
3answers
232 views
Why masechet “Beitza”?
Why do we call it masechet Beitza now, and not masechet Yom Tov, as was apparently once common? Unlike the parshiot, which are named after their first words, masechtot are all named after topics, ...
1
vote
1answer
65 views
Why dosn't he get Kasher Zamam
Why in the case of Lo Matzti Libitcha Bisolen in Makkot does a husband only get Makkot and pay shouldn't he get Kasher Zamam and be killed just like what would have happened to his wife.
4
votes
1answer
188 views
What's in the new bit of Jerusalem Talmud?
I just read a news story about a newly discovered sentence-long fragment of the Jerusalem Talmud that apparently resolves a previously unintelligible section of Tractate Bikkurim.
Does anyone know ...
11
votes
8answers
960 views
Talmud Study, Where to start
I would like to start to study Talmud, BUT do not know how, where to start.
My Jewish training is basicall non-existant. I learnt how to read the Hebrew words in the Siddur, Machzor, and Chumash - - - ...
3
votes
1answer
171 views
Origin of a Jewish quote about fools
There is a quote about fools that I have heard, which is attributed to the Talmud. It goes as follows, "Never tell a fool he is a fool. All you'll have is an angry fool."
I know that there are a ...
