2,711 pages of Talmud. A gem a day.

On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, clergy say a confession before we lead the service. The origins are on our daf…

The Gemara answers: Two confessions are necessary, one for the High Priest himself, and one for his household, i.e., the priests, as the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: The High Priest must first confess his own transgressions and only afterward those of the priests, because that is how the attribute of justice functions: It is better that the innocent come and atone for the guilty, than that the guilty come and atone for the guilty. When the High Priest confesses the transgressions of those in his house, it is better that he already be considered innocent, having confessed and been absolved of his own transgressions.

No leader is perfect. But a good leader should at least have the humility to know they’re not and admit their faults.

Did you know that man have reversed their circumcision?

As it is taught in a baraita: Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says: For all transgressions that are stated in the Torah, whether one repented, or whether one did not repent, Yom Kippur atones, except for one who divests himself of the yoke of Heaven, by denying God’s existence, and one who reveals facets of the Torah that differ from its true meaning, and one who nullifies the covenant of circumcision of the flesh.

How does one nullify the covenant of the flesh? Chat GBT just gave these results:

Methods of Foreskin Restoration: 

• Non-Surgical Techniques:
  • Tissue Expansion: This involves gently stretching the skin on the penile shaft forward over the glans, either manually or with the aid of devices. The tension can be maintained for extended periods to encourage tissue growth and expansion. 
  • Taping with an Extension: A restoration device can be placed in front of the glans, and the skin is taped onto it to promote further stretching. 
• Surgical Procedures:
  • Foreskin Advancement Flap: This involves creating a flap of skin from the remaining penile skin and advancing it forward to cover the glans. 
  • Other Flap Methods: Other surgical techniques may involve transferring tissue from other areas of the body or using skin grafts. 

During the Roman period, many Jewish men wanted to wrestle naked like their Roman neighbors and were reversing their circumcisions! Ouch. And Yuck. And apparently Yom Kippur will not absolve them of this sin . . .

Does God have a sweet-tooth?

Today we continue to learn about left over offerings The Gemara asks a good question: why would there be left overs for the daily offerings? Why were they bringing extra?

The Gemara notes: This is also taught in a baraita: What type of offerings would they bring from the surplus lambs that were consecrated for the daily offerings? 

So, why did they bring the extra lambs?

For dessert! Adding they are like white figs, for the altar. The Gemara asks: Are white figs ever offered on the altar? But isn’t it written: “For any leavening or fruit honey you shall not cause to go up in smoke as a fire-offering to the Lord” (Leviticus 2:11)? The term “fruit honey” includes all tree fruits. The Gemara answers: Rav Ḥanina teaches:The supplementary offerings are to the altar like white figs for a person.

So, just as a person might have a sweet desert after the meal, these lambs are like desert after the main course for God.

Now, they never felt God was really eating, so this is left open for us to interpret. What can be desert for God?

I think about what God asks of us and about what we do for others. We can do what is asked of us and still disappoint. When someone goes above and beyond – then we feel really special. Maybe that’s what God wants from us too – to go above and beyond.

Let’s try to do a little extra.

You can be perfect and still not be chosen. No, I am not talking about dating. I am talking about the daf.

On our daf today, the rabbis discuss what to do if an animal has been designated as a sacrifice for the Temple, but at the end of the day, it’s not needed.

Rav Idi bar Avin says that Rav Amram says that Rabbi Yoḥanan says: Concerning lambs consecrated for the daily offerings that were not needed by the public, according to the statement of Rabbi Shimon they are not redeemed if they are unblemished; according to the statement of the Rabbis they are redeemed, even if they are unblemished.

I just love this idea – that this animal is perfect and did nothing wrong, but it just wasn’t chosen. If only we all could hear that when we are not picked for something!

A daf that makes you reference another daf today! First, we see that God (yes God) has to brings. Sin offering for diminishing the size of the moon:

The Gemara objects: But this phrase is necessary in order to expound it in accordance with the statement of Reish Lakish, as Reish Lakish says: What is different about the goat brought as a sin-offering of the New Moon that it is stated with regard to it: “To the Lord,” a term not written with regard to other sin-offerings? The Holy One, Blessed be He, says, as it were: This goat shall be an atonement for the fact that I diminished the size of the moon.

Now the backstory come from Chullin 60:

Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi notes [a seeming contradiction in the text]: It is written, “And God made the two great lights” (Bereishit1:16), but it is also written [in the same verse] “The greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night’” [implying that one was greater than the other]. 

(The explanation that follows presumes that originally, the sun and the moon were equally bright.)

The moon said before the Holy One, blessed be He: “Master of the Universe, is it possible for two kings to share the same crown?”

God therefore said to [the moon], “Go and diminish yourself.”

She said before Him: “Master of the Universe, just because I made a correct observation before You, I should diminish myself?”

God said to her: “Go and rule during both the day and the night.”

She said to Him: “Of what use is a candle at midday?”

God said to her: “Go; let the Jewish Peoplecount the days and years by you.”

She said to Him: “But they will count by the sun as well, for it is impossible that they will not count seasons that way, as it is written: ‘And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years’ (Bereishit 1:14).” 

God said to her: “Go; let righteous men be named after you [as the light that is ‘katan’ – smaller/lesser]: there will be Yaakov Ha-katan, i.e., Yaakov [our forefather; see Amos7:2]; Shmuel Ha-katan [the Tanna, Shmuel); and David Ha-katan, [King David; see I Shmuel 17:14).”

God saw that the moon was not appeased. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: “Bring atonement for Me, since I diminished the moon.”

And this is as R. Shimon ben Lakish says: “What is distinct about the goat offering of Rosh Chodesh, concerning which we are told, ‘For the Lord’ (Bamidbar 28:15)? The Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘This goat shall be an atonement for Me for having diminished the moon.’” 

There are two goats that are sacrificed on Yom Kippur. Our daf is trying to determine who the goat offering atones for. In so doing we get to hear about tzara’at, translated as leperacy, but a skin disease that seems to happen for spiritual reasons.

The Gemara asks: Why not say that the goat offering atones for a leper, as the Torah differentiates him from other people who must bring a fixed offering following a period of impurity in that he brings a sliding-scale offering? Rav Hoshaya said: The verse states: “For all their sins” and not: For all their impurities. Accordingly, since the offering brought by a leper is not to atone for a sin, the goat offering will not atone for him. The Gemara asks: But if so, according to Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani, who says: Leprous marks come upon a person for seven matters, i.e., seven different sins, what is there to say? The Gemara answers: There, it is his leprous mark that atones for his sin, and the offering is brought in order to permit him to reenter the congregation, after having been ostracized while he was a leper.

So, what are the 7 reasons one gets this strange disease? We see in Maseket Aruchin: Rav Shemuel bar Nachmani said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: Tzara’at comes on account of seven things: 1) lashon ha-ra (gossip); 2) murder; 3) false oaths; 4) immorality; 5) arrogance; 6) theft; 7) stinginess.

What’s the gem? Our bodies sometimes manifest rashes and other things in reaction to our mind set. I am super stressed right now so I am worried about getting a cold sore – because that’s part of how my body reacts to stress.

Wouldn’t it be nice if people had enough shame to get hives when they gossiped, murdered, lied, were immoral, stole or were stingy?

A short gem today. Just one rabbi complimenting another.

Rava read the following verse about Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi: “One who draws water from deep wells” (see Proverbs 20:5); this verse describes Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, because by delving deeply into the Bible he found a source that they were looking for.

What a beautiful compliment. In a time when I think our knowledge tends to be so shllow, may we all take the time to draw from deep wells now and then.

If you have ever gone wedding dress shopping, or wanted to whiten your teeth (or needed bonding from a chipped tooth), you may have learned that there are SO many shades of white.

The mishna teaches: With regard to different shades of leprous marks, there are two types that are actually four. We learned in a mishna there (Nega’im 1:1): With regard to different shades of leprous marks, there are two types that are actually four: The baheret, mentioned in the Torah (see Leviticus 13:2), is considered a primary mark; it is an intense white, like snow. Secondary to it, i.e., a sub-category of it, is a mark that is white like the lime plaster of the Sanctuary walls. That mishna continues: The se’et mentioned in the Torah is considered a primary mark; it is like white wool. Secondary to it is a mark that is white like the membrane of an egg. The ordering of different shades is relevant in determining which shades can be combined together. In order for a leprous mark to be halakhically significant, it must at least be the size of a split Cilician bean [geris]. If a mark is that size, but it is composed of different shades of white, none of which is alone the size of a geris, then if the different shades are compatible they can combine together and will thereby render the person ritually impure.

What’s the gem? Perhaps those ancient priests, and later rabbis, who would identify tzara’at, that strange skin disease, were tetrachromats! The ability to see more colors, potentially 100 million or more, is called tetrachromacy. Tetrachromats can perceive colors that are not visible to most people with standard vision.  This condition arises from having four types of cone cells in the retina, instead of the usual three. 

I am putting two tests to see how well you see, but I will admit that researching I learned that no men are tetrachromats, so there goes that theory. It also explains why guys sometimes have issues matching . . .