Today’s daf (which has a great moment where a rabbi questions if a person purposefully injured and animal so that they could eat it on the festival – a no no) has a fabulous line in it that deserves to be the gem of the day:
Rav Yosef said: Come and hear, as this matter hangs on great trees.
How beautiful! These “great trees” are the various great rabbinic sages. Who determined this law? Only the finest minds. It reminds us to check our sources and if someone much more informed than us gives a differing opinion or ruling than what we thought correct – we should pause and learn more.
You may now be curious about which “trees” evoked this statement, the Gemara continues:
As Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi said that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said that Rabbi Yosei ben Shaul said that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi said in the name of the holy community in Jerusalem: Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya and his colleagues said that the halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Meir.
That is quite an extensive list of experts! Great trees indeed. If you don’t agree, you are likely wrong . . .
I can’t help but apply this to now – I think of those who deny climate change for one – check your trees! (In every way of reading that.) Every expert disagrees with you? Who is right? Surely, it’s them.
2,711 pages of Talmud. A gem a day. 