Daily Daf Differently

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 31. More on mitzvot of and sins, and what thieves owe to those from whom they steal. The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 30. Can you pursue a sacred end with sinful means? Today we discuss the concept of Mitzvah ha’baah ba’aveira, a commandment achieved through a sin. The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 29. Should Jewish norms treat every individual equally, demanding the same behavior of each person or should Jewish norms expect different things from different folks? The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 28. Is rabbinic teaching primarily conservative, a project about maintaining the tradition we’ve received? Or is it about creativity, tapping as yet unexpected sources of meaning? The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 27. How is Sukkot like Passover? And how many Sukkot should there be? Should we each have our own, or should all Israel share one gigantic Sukkah? The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 26. What exempts us from sitting in the Sukkah? A little rain? An illness? An — in a tangential topic — why should a man not sleep in Tefillin? A hint: one answer is a little gross and […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 25. Today we explore the Rabbinic principle that “one who is busy with one mitzvah is exempt from other mitzvot.” The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 24. This episode includes further exploration of the opinions of R. Meir and R. Yehudah regarding the use of an animal for a wall. Exploration of conflicting opinions on whether a divorce document can be written on an […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 23. A general principle in the mishnah is that if the tree is removed and the sukkah can stand, then the sukkah is considered valid. The mishnah about building a sukkah about a boat is R. Aqiva’s. The […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 22. This episode includes a clarification of the mishnaic term sukkah mduvlelet and application of the principle of havot rami, lower and cast, by which a roof composed of beams at different levels is said to collapse into […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 21. Is an ohel any structure or must it be a man-made structure. Exploration of this issue, in particular the ramifications of R. Yehudah’s opinion, and its limitations with reference to a practice related to the red heifer […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 20. This episode begins with the conclusion of a sugya about large and small reed mats being used for s’khakh; as well as a sugya about mats of different materials and whether or not they constitute vessels for […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 19. This episode includes the conclusion of a sugya about the columns of a covered porch being used a wall for sukkah; explanation of a baraita which notes that a sukkah whose kosher s’khakh extends beyond the sukkah […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Barry Chesler looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 18. Does lavud, the legal fiction by which empty space of a small enough area is said to be filled in, exist on the side adjacent to the wall, or also in the middle; 2 drashot of R. […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Abby Sosland looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 17. The Talmud continues its creative understanding of the walls of the sukkah, with the imaginary “dofen akumah,” the crooked wall. Once again, we learn that a life of emunah–a life of faith and religious meaning– must be […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Abby Sosland looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 16. Is Sukkot the holiday of illusion? Two principles which are applied in our mishnah suggest that what matters is not the actual structure of the Sukkah, but the halachic imagination which underlies it. The opening and closing […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Abby Sosland looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 15. Why are the pieces of a wooden bed not permitted to be used as schach for a Sukkah? Perhaps this is the Talmud’s way of teaching us a lesson in Bal Taschit: do not waste! The opening […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Abby Sosland looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 14. “The prayers of the righteous are like pitchforks.” Or are they? The opening and closing music for this podcast is Ufros from The Epichorus album One Bead.

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Abby Sosland looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 13. In the rabbinic mind, some of the plants and species that we see around us were named before the giving of the Torah. It is amazing to think that the natural world and the language we use […]

Welcome to the Daily Daf Differently. In this episode, Rabbi Abby Sosland looks at Masechet Sukkah Daf 12. The principle of Taaseh v’lo Min He’Asui (Make It! And don’t use something that is already made) extends beyond the rules of Schach throughout Jewish law. As in so many cases, it is the action itself, which […]