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What do we do when the values between two of our commitments conflict?

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 15 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

In today’s episode we ask how can a person fulfill two obligations at the same time?

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 14 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

What is the obligation to fulfill a Nazir’s vow, if it was made in a moment of bargaining for the life or health of a child?”

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 13 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

A meditation on the limits of language and knowledge when we depend on others.

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 12 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

When someone makes a vow in order to prevent others from forcing them into an action, does that vow have validity? In other words if I make a vow to avoid peer pressure do I remain accountable for that vow after the fact?

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 11 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

What are the limits of frustration as an explanation for extreme statements? If a person makes a Nazarite vow under the stress of frustration does that vow have validity?

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 10 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Can an individual modify the Nazarite vow to fit their personal preferences? We will look at the limits for individuals altering religious ritual described in the Torah.

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 9 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Yesterday’s daf focused on the implications of the person’s vow on the length of his or her n’zirut if the vow mentioned duration. Today’s daf focuses on the implications of the person’s vow if it specifies the n’zirut not in terms of time, but in terms of other measures. For example, what happens if a person vows to be a nazir like the sand at the sea or like the capacity of a basket? Does such a vow refer to the number of days of n’zirut or the number of terms of n’zirut? After completing the discussion of the text on today’s daf, we discuss briefly the question of what it would mean for us to consecrate ourselves to God in a way that the nazir apparently did in ancient times. This completes Chapter 1 of Tractate Nazir and so we close with an appropriate celebration.

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 8 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Although Chapter 1 of Tractate Nazir has led us in many interesting directions, we have to remember that the internal theme of the chapter is on the implications of the specific language of the vow on the person’s n’zirut. Today’s daf focuses on the implications of the person’s vow on the length of his or her n’zirut if the vow mentions duration. For example, the vow to be a nazir for 31 days is different from the vow to be a nazir for 30 days and 1 day. What happens if a person takes a vow to be a nazir for as long as it takes to walk from A to B? In this episode, the question of whether the tradition approves or disapproves of the nazir is also discussed.

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 7 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

The ceremony at the end of the nazir’s term is called “hitgalachat” because that is when his or her hair is cut (galach). Daf 6 focuses on the question of when hitgalachat takes place. If the term of the nazir is 30 days, then you would expect hitgalachat to take place on the 31^st day. But the principle that “part of a day is equivalent to a whole day” applies here, as well as to sitting shiva. Just as the mourner may end the shiva after the morning service on the seventh day, the nazir may complete n’zirut on the morning of the 30^th day and have the hitgalachat later on the same day. Much of today’s daf is devoted to the ramifications of this principle.

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 6 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Today’s daf is focused on a Mishnah that states that if a person vows to be a nazir without setting a specific time limit, then the term of his or her n’zirut is 30 days. This term is not mentioned in the description of the nazir in Bamidbar (Numbers), where it is assumed that each nazir specifies in advance his or her own length of n’zirut. We speculate on both the reason and the effects of providing a 30-day term for the nazir. We also present simple rationales (published originally by Rabbi Eliezer Diamond) for the three prohibitions of the nazir and for a person’s becoming a nazir – what could be considered the “p’shat” of the text in Bamidbar. (Numbers)

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 5 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Today’s daf focuses on a vow to be a nazir like Samson and a vow to be a nazir for life; neither of these corresponds to the nazir described in Bamidbar (Numbers) since that nazir has a fixed term. The daf includes a discussion of the differences between a nazir like Samson and a nazir for life, and this leads to a discussion of the details of Samson’s life and the life of another Biblical figure who is considered to be a nazir – Absalom, the son of King David. Embedded in this discussion is a Narcissus-like story about a young nazir with long curly hair who becomes enamored of his image in a well.

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 4 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Following up on a question in the previous daf, this episode discusses the question of why the nazir might be considered a sinner? This leads us to discuss the ceremony at the end of a period of n’zirut – which involves two sheep and a ram, and the shorn hair of the nazir – and the question of whether an ordinary person could afford to be a nazir. The main point of the Mishnah on the second side of the page is that you can’t be a partial nazir. If you even vow not to eat grape pits, then you automatically become a nazir. So we digress to a discussion of what is the fruit-of-the-vine prohibition of a nazir, and what are yayin and sheichar. The daf ends with a question. Isn’t the wine of Kiddush and Havdalah obligatory? How then could a person become a nazir?

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 3 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

The first chapter of Tractate Nazir focuses on the implications of the actual statement made by a person on whether and for how long he or she becomes a nazir. We begin today’s episode, dealing with the first page of Tractate Nazir, with a description of the three prohibitions of the nazir in Bamidbar (Numbers). A nazir is a person who vows not to partake of the fruit of the vine, not to be in contact with a corpse, and not to cut his or her hair. The episode continues with a discussion of the various perceptions of the nazir, and a set of questions that will be discussed in the first seven episodes of Tractate Nazir, including, Is there any link between the three prohibitions? Why would a person choose to be a nazir? What role did the nazir have in society? Was the nazir regarded favorably or unfavorable in Jewish history? The first Mishnah of the tractate includes a number of euphemisms and abbreviations that would make a person a nazir, including one that provokes the question in the gemara of whether a nazir is a sinner (!)

To view the text of Nazir, Daf 2 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Hadran Alach Masechet Nedarim! We will return to you, Tractate Nedarim! We give thanks to God for the Talmud kopp, the Talmudic mind, that we cultivate through this study.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 91 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To a modern eye, the rabbis seem to have some blind spots when it comes to women and to marriage. But in other areas, as when they deal with real communities and their propensity for gossip, the rabbis show remarkable clarity and vision.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 90 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

The rabbis understood that the vows we make that damage our most intimate relationships actually threaten our own happiness as well. Thankfully, they put some protections into place to prevent us from wreaking havoc on ourselves and those we love!

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 89 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Today we focus on the categories of vows that a husband may annul.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 79 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This daf shares some reflections on what God does on God’s own and what people contribute to holy calendar.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 78 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Today we ask what the grounds are for a sage to nullify vows? Are vows serious business? Or a mere formality?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 77 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast episode focuses on the intersection of laws about vows and the restrictions of Shabbat.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 76 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

A husband may annul his wife’s religious vows when he hears of them. Can he annul them before she makes them?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 75 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

In this episode, Rabbis Daniel and Hillary Chorny delve into the complex mishnah that began on the previous amud. This mishnah features several scenarios over which the chachamim of the mishnah and Rabbi Eliezer Yaakov disagree.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 46 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In this episode, Rabbis Daniel and Hillary Chorny conclude the fourth chapter of Nedarim and begin the fifth chapter, which is concerned with the implications of mutual vows on two partners who share property.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 45 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In this episode, Rabbi Daniel Chorny delves into the fundamental disagreement between Rabbi Yosi and the chachamim in answering the question: when does a renunciation of ownership (hefker) go into effect?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 44 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In this episode, Rabbi Daniel Chorny explores the limits, challenges, and relationship between one who vows that his fellow may not enjoy any of his property, and the one who is subject to the restrictions of that vow.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 43 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In this episode, Rabbis Daniel and Hillary Chorny explore the effectiveness of vows made before and during the sh’mita year. The daf begins with the fifth mishnah of chapter four of Nedarim.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 42 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

On this page, continuing the theme of the mitzvah of bikkur holim, we focus on three statements today. One regarding the relationship between forgiveness and healing. One regarding how illness can impact our intellectual capacity. And one regarding the extraordinary, though every-day, miracle of people moving from illness to health.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 41 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In this episode we take a break from some nitty-gritty material regarding vows and promises, and learn about the great mitzvah of visiting the sick, reminding us that when we choose to make ourselves vulnerable to others’ pain and discomfort, we can contribute to enormous healing.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 40 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Some notes on variations in Talmudic manuscripts and how they relate to our daf — where we see a strange phrase that doesn’t seem to fit and indeed isn’t found in other manuscripts.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 11 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Are all nazirim sinners? And why seem some of the rabbis convinced that anyone who does take the oath of nazirut is indeed a sinner? What is Judaisms relationship to self-imposed stringencies?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 10 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We look at the difference between nedavot and nedarim, we learn about the “oath of the wicked” and the “oath of righteous” and why the first one is valid and the latter is not.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 9 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Can you swear an oath to fulfill a mitzah? And what happens if you fail to fulfill it — would you have to bring a sin offering? How can you even swear to fulfill something for which you are obligated in the first place?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 8 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Certain transgressions bring the punishment of “nidui” — excommunication. What does this mean? And can a person revoke a “nidui” that he placed on himself or herself?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 7 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Certain transgressions bring the punishment of “nidui” — excommunication. What does this mean? And can a person revoke a “nidui” that he placed on himself or herself?

Is a partial declaration, a “yad” valid in the case of kiddushin? There are all kinds of misunderstandings that can happen as some of the sages will point out. And what are some other examples where a “yad” might have more than one meaning — and are these declarations valid?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 6 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What becomes forbidden and what remains permitted in a vow? What effect has a vow that is in some sort “shortened” in the way it was articulated — a “yad b’nedarim”. Is such a “yad” valid or not?

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 5 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

By letting us know how certain vows can be understood, specifically or generally, distinct or related to something else, the Talmud reminds us that we should have intent behind our words. Not only do the words we speak carry weight in that they can change our status- whatever that may be- in an instant, but they also must be carefully thought out in order to create the desired result.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 4 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

On this page we address the differences between “equivalent terms” and “partial declarations.” Both hold weight within the concept of vows, but have different methods of enactment.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 3 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Nedarim kicks off a discussion about different types of vows and their consequences. Here we introduce four different types of vows with overarching similarities. Words have a great deal of weight our tradition. They can obligate us, and prohibit us. Tractate nedarim takes our words serious and asks us to consider why they are so important.

To view the text of Nedarim, Daf 2 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We follow a sage who feels impelled to come to live inIsrael. But is he doing the right thing? What does it mean to love Israel? Does it mean extolling its uniqueness only? Or can it mean also trying to fix its shortcomings?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 112 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We are supposed to yearn for life in the land of Israel. Yet some would argue that the possibility of a more vibrant Jewish life in the Diaspora would justify staying away from Israel. Are those who nonetheless devote themselves to living in the land guaranteed true happiness?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 111 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

How shrewd does one have to be in order to protect one’s rights, in order to get justice done? Can we take shortcuts if we can get a fair outcome without going through all the steps of the legal process?

We begin exploring the complex issue of the place of the Land of Israel in our values and priorities.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 110 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We explore a number of situations in which people find themselves in difficulty. How much do we assume that it is their own fault and how much is just bad luck or the fault of others. Even if it is not their fault, how much do others have to bear the burden of their inability to meet their obligations? And how much can we trust the Talmud when it tells us that the halakhah follows a certain opinion?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 109 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

When is a favor not a favor? How do we measure a benefit that one derives from the unbidden generosity of others? Can we put a monetary value on the prevention of embarrassment?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 108 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What assumptions can we make about a person who does not tell us what in on their mind? How does our concept of the “standard” marital relationship color our assumptions about what each partner cares about? How much can we assume that a person who leaves his wife for a trip still thinks about her welfare? Can we choose to trust one partner over the other?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 107 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We continue to examine the issue of bribery. We learn of the many problems caused by a seemingly innocuous gift of a basket of fish. Then we return to considering the proper use of public funds, originally donated for a sacred purpose. How broadly may we define that purpose so as to use those funds for other worthy causes?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 106 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We learn of early arrangements of judiciary authorities from Temple times, arrangements that may reflect the changing of the guard from priestly leadership to leadership by lay scholars. Within the overall topic of judicial integrity we explore the issue of bribery and the proper bounds of judicial empathy.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 105 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We examine a heart-wrenching story about the death of Rabbi Judah the Patriarch. This one also involves a roof. And it raises hard problems: How shall we cope with difficult issues raised at the end of life? Who are the real experts we should consult?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 104 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What was the real sin of the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah? What are the benefits of living together under one roof? Can these benefits be compelled? And speaking of roves, we ponder an emotionally challenging story about a person who falls of a roof and is invited to the Coming World.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 103 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The new chapter raises questions about undertaking and meeting one’s obligations. When can a verbal commitment be taken as binding and when is it to be dismissed? Another question raised regards custody arrangements for children after parents divorce or after the father dies.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 102 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The discussion examines various scenarios of terminated marriages. In what ways do the rabbis intervene to preserve the rights of the parties and when is one or the other party penalized for entering or ending the marriage? What is the nature of their property rights?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 101 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Real estate is often considered to be the best investment, and it certainly functions that way in a usufruct arrangement where a husband manages his wife’s property and benefits from the income. Thus it makes sense that our Mishnayot decree that if a man’s wife inherits moveable property—money, or slaves, or trees—that he can sell them in favor of real estate. Yet these rulings are contested when it comes to slaves and also old trees that the woman may treasure for their connection to her father’s house. While we are referring here to the horrific institution of slavery we nevertheless see some humane values in an acknowledgement that slaves and also trees are not simply property, but bear value, if only as reminders of another. This selection is alien from contemporary law and culture, but we do recognize in them a form of sensitivity to the identity of a partner and its connection to his or her inherited property.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 79 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we begin Chapter 8 of Ketubot, HaIsha Shenafla, which addresses cases in which a woman inherits property around the time of her engagement or marriage. Rabbinic law gives husbands ownership of their wife’s property acquired during the marriage, but property that she brings into the marriage belongs to her, though the man may manage it and use its income. Rabban Gamliel is embarrassed by the established law that a married woman may not sell her own property and limits the application of the law. At the end of the Daf, we hear a story of a woman who hides property from her second husband by deeding it to her daughter prior to marriage. Once she is divorced from the second husband, the mother wants her property back from the daughter. Rav Nahman recognizes her original deed as conditional and rips apart the contract. The exilarch supports Rav Nahman and in this way protects the woman who found a way to keep control of her own property.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 78 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Settle in for an expanded presentation of a very rich daf. Enough about the blemishes of women–what about the guys? Our daf has two mishnayot that address men’s blemishes–were they present before marriage, in which case perhaps she accepted them, or only later? Were they minor, in which case she thought she could live with them, or great? And then–what kinds of blemishes are we talking about? On side B, we take a fascinating aside to hear the stories of two sainted rabbis who outmaneuver the angel of death on their way to heaven, and with this lovely image, end the seventh chapter.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 77 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The feminist critique of kiddushin is that it is ultimately about treating women as chattel—the sages are anxious to know whether the kinyan or purchase was valid, or whether it was a false sale. Daf 76 gives an example of just this, comparing the purchase of a deformed bride to a property exchange between the owner of a cow and the owner of a donkey. On page B it is partially redeemed by the adage that kiddushin were not designed to be invalidated, and it is only in cases of doubt that verification procedures are required. Still, this entire discussion reminds us of the problematics of the kiddushin model for contemporary marriage, making more urgent the need to develop partnership models of shutafut for straight couples such as those developed for same sex marriage.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 76 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Who is more eager to be married—a man or a woman? In the world of the sages, the answer is obvious. A woman wants to be married, even to a flawed man, since he provides food and fatherhood for her children. What flaws in a woman could invalidate her marriage? Sweat? Bad breath? Big breasts? And who must prove at what point awareness of these flaws became apparent? This and more in our diverse daf gemara.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 75 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Who has more power, a lawyer or a doctor? How do men feel about sending their wives to court? Whose character is more in question—the wife who makes vows, or the husband who can’t abide them?

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 74 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Our chapter deals with unpleasant surprises after the wedding. First with things the husband discovers about his wife, and then with things the wife discovers about her husband. But let us not thing that this is an egalitarian dynamic. The Sages can think of many reasons why a man would drive away a new wife, but few reasons indeed that a wife would not tolerate her husband.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 73 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Do we bury the dead for them or for us? While we often teach that taking care of the dead is a chesed shel emet, a kindness that cannot be repaid, our daf suggests otherwise. Instead, caring for the dead is an investment in the kind of communities the Talmud was aiming to build.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 72 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In the middle of the discussion on vows made between husband and wife, and all the potential problems that might arise in any marriage, the Talmud brings verses that remind us of the relationship between God and the people Israel. In the midst of the legal discussion, the rabbis push us to strive for holiness, even– or especially– in our most intimate relationships.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 71 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

A husband may vow not to support his wife for 30 days, but only if he gets a steward to do what he is forbidden to do. In this case as in others, the legal loophole is essential to the rabbinic process, as mystifying as it may sometimes seem!

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 70 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

When is it okay to refer to someone as “chaver?” Certainly not when the “buddy” is someone greater than you in knowledge or status!

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 69 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Of course, the Gemara recognizes, it’s not ideal to give Tzedakah to a swindler who is only pretending to need it. But it is far worse to harden our hearts and miss giving to those who actually do need it. Our daf offers a rabbinic argument for offering the needy the benefit of the doubt.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 68 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

When it comes to Tzedakah, some of the needy may be used to a more comfortable style of living than others. Is it our responsibility to fill each person’s different level of need? Today’s daf brings a series of stories which highlight the complexity of the question.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 67 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What happens when an argument can’t be resolved in the Talmud? “Teiku”– a beautiful word with many different meanings– suggests that one day, perhaps, all will be resolved.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 66 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Is wine good for women? Today the Sages discuss whether wine might sexually arouse women too much. We’ll also learn the story of a famous siren named Homa, who buried three husbands, but is still so sexy that even the sight of her arm turns on all the rabbis.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 65 on Sefaria, please click here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

This episode focuses on the story of Rabbi Akiva, the married monk, and the Talmudic law – sadly fallen out of practice – that women could initiate divorce with the claim that “he is repulsive to me.”

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 63 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today’s episode focuses on the required regular sex in marriage, and subtle stories about “married monks” who abandon their wives in order to study for years on end.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 62 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In this episode we ask about the economic arrangements surrounding nursing, and sharing banquets with the waiters who work there.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 61 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we ask the question “How long should nursing continue? Is breast milk kosher for people older than babies?”

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 60 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we focus on the economic contributions women made to ancient households.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 59 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Chapter One of a complicated issue: the financial responsibilities and rights of a married couple toward each other. What are they? Can they be overridden?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 58 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

How much time does a couple get to plan a wedding? What’s involved? What happens if it gets postponed? And, the art of biblical derivation.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 57 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

How does the Talmud handle an apparent contradiction between statements of the same sage? How does our Gemara understand an extreme statement of our Mishnah?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 56 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

How does the Talmud go about determining what view a specific sage holds in a dispute between two sages in which it is not stated which sage holds which view?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 55 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

As we begin a new chapter, we will clarify the stages of getting married, whether the amounts in the marriage contract are fixed or not, whether deals can be made to reduce the amount, and whether collection can vary from stage to stage of getting married.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 54 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Women have certain business rights regarding their ketubbah. Let’s look at a couple of those rights and learn whether her exercise of those rights impacts upon the benin dikhrin requirement we learned about yesterday.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 53 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we will look at one more court-mandated stipulation for a marriage contract, and understand both it and what motivated its promulgation.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 52 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 51 discusses a deep-seated tension over whether rape should lead to dissolution of marriages.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 51 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 50 discusses educational expectations – when should children start to be educated in Torah, and what happens if you push too hard too soon?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 50 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 49 discusses the economic obligations of parents towards children, and how to balance personal responsibility, moral persuasion, and legal obligation in the face of limited resources.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 49 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 48 discusses the obligation of a husband to pay for his wife’s burial, involving throny issues of relative social class, expectations for funerals, and ultimately how to deal with rich people who try to defraud society.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 48 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 47 discusses support obligations of husbands toward wives, sets up the economic framework of rabbinic marriage, and grounds those obligations in the text of the Torah.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 47 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 46 features a fascinating debate about reading the Torah “literally” or “metaphorically” and, I argue, tries to break down the distinction between those reading strategies.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 46 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 45 continues the discussion of motzi shem ra, opening up the possibility of false pre-coital accusations, and asking whether the Torah’s punishments should apply to a case not discussed explicitly in the Torah itself. Featuring more reflections on the nature of fines and deterrents as well.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 45 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 44 discusses whether orphaned young women receive the same treatment as other young women, and what that might tell us about the web of family relationships.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 44 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 43 examines the emotional relationship to orphaned daughters and widows and the legal implications of those relationships.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 43 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 42 further discusses the nature of fines, whether they are about deterrent or punishment, and whether the court’s imposition of the fine changes that nature.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 42 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 41 discusses whether someone who confesses to a crime has to pay a fine, revealing the underlying logic of what fines are really about.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 41 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 40 discusses when positive commandments override negative commandments and when they don’t.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 40 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 39 discusses rape and how to punish it legally.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 39 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 38 discusses exegetical consistency and maintaining two conflicting versions of a Sage’s opinion.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 38 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 37 provides an opportunity to discuss the Talmud’s principle of Scriptural omnisignificance – the idea that every verse in the Torah must teach something unique.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 37 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Ketubot 36 contains a fascinating and troubling discussion of whether kidnapped women are assumed to have been raped. We see that two sages, Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Dosa, fight back against this presumption in order to prevent such women from being further victimized. This is a stunning example of the Talmud explicitly grappling with the social consequences of its laws.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 36 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

This daf discusses whether serious crimes committed accidentally, that result in property damage, are subject to repayment. We discover in the course of the Talmud’s consideration the relative importance of compensation for damages and maintenance of important social norms.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 35 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today’s episode continues with the topic of the collision of different punishments, monetary and corporal. In one particularly revealing sugya, we discover something unique about the nature of fines.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 34 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today’s episode tries to figure out the Biblical basis for why monetary compensation for victims in cases of assault is preferred to lashing the assailant. Along the way, we see some interesting psychological claims about the preference for a quick death over torture and a very stringent take on the applicability of the death penalty.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 33 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

This daf discusses, among other things, how we know whether to choose monetary fines or lashes to punish crimeshis that could receive either. In the course of discussing this question, we once again encounter a tension between analogical reasoning and Scriptural derivation, and I offer a possibility for how the latter can be seen as reinforcing, rather than replacing, the former.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 32 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

This daf discusses, among other things, how to think about whether two violations of different severities should both be punished. We unpack this debate and try to think about what the consequences of each side are.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 31 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Conclusion of discussion about the difference of opinion between a woman who can become a wife and a woman who can remain a wife. Distinguishing the Mishnah, which requires a q’nas for sleeping with one’s sister, from the opinion of R. Nehunyah ben Ha-Qanneh who does not, with a focus on understanding the basis of R. Nehunyah’s opinion.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 30 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Beginning of Chapter 3. The monetary penalty for sleeping with na’arot, women between the ages of 12 and 12 ½ against their will, in particular, those groups of women who are either not full members of the Jewish community and therefore invalid for marriage, or whose connection is incestuous. Derivation of the reason for the monetary penalty based on scriptural exegesis.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 29 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

End of Chapter 2. Restrictions on where a man may live after divorcing his wife. Restrictions on business dealings between a divorced man and woman to guard against sin. Mishnah and Talmud on what a person may testify about that he saw when he was young.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 28 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Exploration of when a captive woman or captive women may be returned to their husbands. What happens to the wives of kohanim when a city is conquered by siege. Who may testify about captive women.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 27 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Conclusion of the long sugya on indirect testimony. Consideration of when eating t’rumah is a presumption for being a Kohen and when it is not. When a captive woman can return to her husband.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 26 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Continuation of sugya on when we can presume a Kohen is a Kohen based on his participation in priestly behavior. Cases in which a Kohen and Levi were elevated on the basis of being called to the Torah for Kohen and levi Aliyah. Case when a Kohen is elevated on the basis of his father’s testimony and a Levi on the basis of his brother’s testimony.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 25 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The principle of שהפה שאסר הוא הפהשהתיר, the mouth that forbids is the one that permits, and the rationale for mentioning so many specific cases. The disagreement between R. Yehudah and the Sages regarding chazaqah, presumption.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 24 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Two women return from captivity. What are the legal consequences when one of them testifies about what happened to each of them in captivity?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 23 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Another example of “the mouth that confined is the mouth that permits.” Also, why would a woman, even (or especially?) a prominent woman, lie about her marital status?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 22 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Sometimes, you can learn important lessons when people say the most obvious things. Also, why would a judge act with greater care and precision than the law demands?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 21 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The dangers of refreshing a witness’s recollection. Also, when a witness confirms his signature on a document, what is he really doing? Is he testifying that the contents of the document are true and/or that it was validly witnessed?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 20 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The principle of “the mouth that confines is the mouth that releases.” Also, three kinds of promissory notes that it is best not to keep in your home.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 19 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

In order to make use of a ketubah or other note to recover funds, it must first be authenticated. In this episode, we discuss one challenge that can arise when witnesses come forward to authenticate their signatures on such a note. Can witnesses validate and invalidate their signatures simultaneously?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 18 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

How honest should we be when asked to describe a bride at her wedding? How indeed should we sing the praises of the bride? And what do we have to play at a wedding, anyway, if we’re neither friends of the couple nor members of the family?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 17 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Is a marriage an expression of love between two people, or is it a business transaction? There’s nothing like the dissolution of a marriage to make it seem more like the latter. On this page, we begin chapter two of tractate Ketubbot and reflect on the assumptions underlying some rabbinic perspectives on marriage.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 16 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

If we are not sure what happened in a given case, should we legally assume that what most likely happened is what actually happened? In other words, do we follow the majority? The rabbis do not provide a simple answer to this question (do they ever), but we will try to explore some of the rules related to this question.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 15 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The second part of this chapter is largely about how does a legal system deal with cases of doubt, in which we cannot know which party is telling the truth. Here I discuss a few principles that different rabbis use to determine the law in these situations.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 14 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The mishnah says that the woman was seen “talking” with a certain man and yet it clearly describes suspicions that she had sex with him. I discuss the use of sexual euphemisms in Ketubot and even in the Bible.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 13 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The mishnah seems to allude that in Judea husbands may have had sex with their betrothed wives before marriage. I compare this mishnah with other tannaitic sources and conclude that in Judea far from being lax about premarital sex, as some scholars have claimed, they were actually quite stringent about the issue.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 12 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

This daf discusses the conversion of a minor. In Second Temple and in tannaitic times conversion was not a process that required a court. This was an innovation of the amoraim, and it may have first occurred with the conversion of a minor, who could not make the decision on his own to convert.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 11 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

There are six stories on this daf about men who come in front of rabbis with a virginity claim against their wives. In each case the man seems to lose his claim. I discuss the function of these stories as a close to the longer halakhic unit.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 10 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

R. Elazar says that a man who claims to have found his virgin wife’s “opening, open” is believed and she is prohibited to him. I discuss the background of this law in the development of the laws of virginity claims.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 9 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

On this daf the “blessing of the mourners” is discussed. These were blessings recited either in the town square on the return from the burial or during Birkat Hamazon. I will discuss what these blessings were and talk about when they ceased to be recited.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 8 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Betrothal and then marriage: When were the two conflated into one ceremony? We will also discuss the formula of the “birkat erusin” the blessing recited upon betrothal.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 7 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Sex with/for a female virgin on Shabbat: Permitted or not?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 6 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Why is it is so important that the first sex occurs right before the court sits? Why the urgency for the husband to come to the court should he have a virginity claim?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 5 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

This daf is about mourning that occurs during the week of marriage. Specifically we will address the topic–over whom does one mourn?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 4 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Among the topics we will cover today is the folklore concerning the so-called “Right of the First Night”–the right of the ruling governor to have sexual relations with a woman on the night of her marriage.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 3 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we will introduce the topic of Virginity Claims and especially the difference between the biblical version and the rabbinic version.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

To view the text of Ketubot, Daf 2 on Sefaria, please click here.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We can trace, in the positions of Rabbi Akiva, the evolution and expansion of types of testimony which are accepted to show that a husband has died to allow the wife’s remarriage. Are non-Jews a bridge too far, or is there a way to accept testimony as long as we don’t claim that we are doing it? Maybe sages do increase peace in the world after all!

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

If someone falls into the water, under what you assume that they drowned? Even some of the most rigid rabbis bend with changing realities in coming up with the answer. Also, how is getting through Daf Yomi like a shipwreck?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

I was suprised to find out that CSI- Crime Scene Investigation, is still on. Our sages wrestled with a lot of the same questions of how to identify a body, what physical evidence is considered sufficient, and what conditions make it easy or harder to do so.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

When do you use circumstantial evidence to decide that an unlikely possibility is actually worth worrying about? Why should the chances of a co-wife having a baby matter more than those of a mother-in-law?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

It’s Schrodinger’s husband- one wife says he’s alive, the other says he’s dead. Why would someone lie about such a thing to harm another person, even though they are harming themselves at the same time? What do we do when we know that we have harmed someone, but don’t know who?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

How suspicious should we be of someone’s motivations based on the questions they ask, or the concerns that they express? Do you have to be Sherlock holmes to conclude that someone whose first concern is for the insurance payout might have an ulterior motive?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What kind of argument would a husband and wife have that would make a woman’s testimony suspicious? The rabbis consider every possible scenario!

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

When is a woman’s testimony to be believed? Our daf today questions the specific kinds of testimony that a woman may bring about her husband’s death, but the fact that she may act as a witness in the first place is not up for debate on our daf.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Must we prevent a Jewish child from eating treif? Where is the line between not holding them liable for adult commandments and our own desire to pass on the tradition? Our daf today explores this question.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The rabbis offer different approaches for different categories of individuals, doing their best to protect the most vulnerable in society. If we combine their approach with the actual perspective and voices of those very people, we may arrive at the very kind of society they were trying to create.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The Talmud offers a record of society’s attitudes in the ancient world. In today’s Mishnah, we see the rabbinic approach to the deaf and/or the deaf-mute. It’s good to know that Jewish law has changed in the years hence.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

If a woman vowed not to receive any benefit from her brother-in-law, would this vow prohibit him from performing Yibum? It’s good to see a case where a woman’s word was taken seriously, even when her vow was invalid.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The ancient world of the rabbis sounds like it was a dangerous place for women. Perhaps, then, the rabbinic treatment of women in this Masechet was their best attempt to protect women from the hazards of the ancient world. Is this apologetics or an accurate reading of the text? Decide for yourself.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The G’mara is about rambly on this page, ending up with a bunch of recommended practices and norms for individuals and community, from halitsah to loan guarantors, from restrictions on vowing to questioning whether should Jews warmly welcome converts into the fold.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Having explored yesterday the questions when – and under what circumstances – a minor girl can reject, or object to a marriage or betrothal that have been arranged for her, we turn today to the question: what does one say in order for it to be a proper מיאון?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

With דף ק”ז , 107, we begin a new chapter of the Mishna and G’mara; Yevamot chapter 13. The first topic covered in this chapter is an offshoot of the allowance of betrothal of minors.

(קידושי קטנה): This offshoot is an institution created in order to limit the power of anyone but the father from marrying off the minor girl. It is called מיאון or: refusal.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What if the court feels they must resort to extreme measures to procure a halitsah for a case where there is, in there eyes, a clear incompatibility between the yabam and y’vama?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we will discuss the ability of a minor girl to perform Halitsah, and who has interests in her being able to do so, or not.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The Halitsah ceremony involves three main components:
The removal of the man’s shoe, her spitting, and her recitation of her line “thus shall be done to the man who will not build up a line/ house for his brother!”.
The Mishna on daf 104 checks if all of these three are necessary conditions for the halitsah to be valid and binding; the g’mara draws further practical implications from here.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we’ll learn a barraita and the g’mara’s discussion of it, in which we are testing how far one can stretch what we understand to be the reality the torah was describing, regarding a certain commandment and the way it should be fulfilled – and still be fulfilling that same mitsvah?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Although in most cases Jewish law demands two witnesses, with respect to marital law, one witness is enough. Why? To prevent women from being “agunot” or chained to absent husbands.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Can you buy and sell something that doesn’t exist? Or do you have to hold it to sell it?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What happens when the court makes a mistake? Must the parties to the case suffer if the judges err? Or is it the judges own fault?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The Mishna and early post-Mishnaic authorities ruled somewhat leniently, permitting some mistakenly re-married women to return to their first husbands. But post-Talmudic authorities took a stricter stance, requiring double divorces in every case. Today’s page documents the shift from the lenient ruling to the strict one.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We continue our discussion of whether the Sages have the power to “uproot a law from the Torah.”

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The Talmud’s sad story of a woman who remarries, mistakenly believing her husband is dead will become a modern Hebrew classic in Agnon’s novella “The Crooked Will be Made Straight.” In our page we begin discussing whether the Sages have the power to “uproot a law from the Torah.”

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

A plug for people to buy and read The Story Of My Wife, by Milan Fust. Also, what happens if a woman, whose husband is overseas and presumed dead, remarries, only to discover that her first husband is actually alive? The Gemara veers into Days Of Our Lives territory.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

A woman who returns to her Priestly family can once again eat Teruma. This is a great example of the Gemara’s concern for and the Jewish tradition’s ability to mark transitions, and to offer support for those in need.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

We’ve inherited a Prophetic tradition that asks us to be better and to make the world a better place. The Gemara talks about this chain of transmission and the interpretation of Biblical verses in the context of what Priests can and cannot eat.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Who can priests marry? Who can anyone marry, for that matter? The Gemara weighs in on communal anxieties around marriage.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Is it possible for the Mishnah or the Gemara to ever be completely comprehensive? Any act of inclusion is also an act of exclusion. A discussion about the editing of the Gemara.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Everything belongs to God. Agriculture laws, duties towards neighbors, and accepting God’s sovereignty.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Is Torah still relevant? Terumah, Seder Olam, and problematic mixtures.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Is a fetus enough of a person to own something? Or enough of a person to impart a right to another person?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Husbands have two different kinds of property obligations regarding their wives pre-marital property: “iron sheep” are debts he must pay to her no matter what happens to the property, and “pluckings, ” property rights the wife retains throughout their marriage.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Are women obligated to “be fruitful and multiply?”

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

What happens if a couple cannot have children? Should they stick it out, even if they will never have kids, or divorce so they can have children with others?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today the Sages expound the idea that full human life requires marriage, not celibacy, and claim that failing to have children is like shrinking God’s presence on earth.

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we study the commandment to procreate. Can you ever have enough children? Or should you always try for more?

The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

This podcast is a collaboration with The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

Today we learn one of the Talmud’s ugliest teachings: are only Jews really human? What about gentiles?