Down The Rabbi Hole

Apr 26 2024 39 ep. 41 mins 71
Down The Rabbi Hole Podcast artwork

Deep dives into forgotten corners of Jewish culture and social, material, and intellectual history.

  Religion & Spirituality
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Picking up the Pieces: On the Oven of Akhnai

Apr 26 2024 58 mins  
Some thoughts and ideas on the famous story of the Oven of Akhnai, which appears in tomorrow's Daf (Bava Metzia 59)

Some Thoughts on the Purim Story and Senator Lieberman zt"l

Apr 02 2024 38 mins  
An idea developed by the Ketav Sofer on Megillat Esther resonates with something that appeared in Daf Yomi a few days ago and with the life and legacy of Senator Joe Lieberman. The idea of the Ketav Sofer appears here: https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=14083&pgnum=337 The idea that emerges on Bava Metzia 32b is here: Rashi s.v. אי אמרת https://shas.alhatorah.o

Radbaz vol. 1, no. 40 - Ransoming Captives

Dec 20 2023 57 mins  
Radbaz, R. David Ibn Abu Zimra, addresses the question of what constitutes 'overpaying' to ransom a Jewish captive. This episode gets into the economic and political realities of the 16th century in the Mediterranean basin, including the burgeoning slave trade, and the resulting attention to the great mitzvah of pidyon shevuyim, ransoming captives. Here's a link to the responsum:

Krakenfruit (the Buddha's Hand Etrog)

Sep 28 2023 49 mins  
Two of the greatest rabbis of the Bavli Jewish community in recent centuries address the status of a new type of fruit that arrived from the Far East. Is it a kosher etrog? The question is addressed in two responsa, one by R. Abdullah Somekh and one by his student, R. Yosef Hayyim, both of Baghdad. Link to the responsum: https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=32212&st=&

Public and Private Penance (Responsa Maharam Lublin)

Sep 24 2023 45 mins  
We generally think of confession and penance as either a private matter between a person and God, or as a matter between the perpetrator and victim of a wrong. But not that long ago there were forms of penance that were very public. What's the idea behind them, and what can they teach us about social healing today? We will be studying and discussing a series of responsa by Maha

Book Journeys, Some Updates, and the Hoshanot Mosh Pit

Jun 28 2023 58 mins  
The episode begins with some updates. First, an introduction to the "Book Journey" that I will begin next week. Sign up link: https://18forty.org/bookjourney/ This is an outgrowth of the 18forty podcast episode in which R. David Bashevkin and I discussed the vision and reality of a Jewish polity governed by Halakhah. Here's a link to the episode: https://18forty.org/podcast/elli-f

Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, Part III: The Debate

May 05 2023 22 mins  
On the conversation about Rome between Rashi, R. Yehuda, and R. Yosi

Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai, Part II: The Return to Yavneh

May 02 2023 33 mins  
In this episode we look at several other passages from the Babylonian Talmud that oddly, anachronistically, and in contrast to sources from Eretz Yisrael, are set in Yavneh. We propose that the Bavli wanted to "bundle" these passages together so that we read them in light of one another. And what does that yield? That the Bavli envisioned the rabbinic leaders of that generation dea

Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai and his Generation, Part I: The Debacle and the Challenge

May 01 2023 44 mins  
Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai (Rashbi) is one of the most evocative figures in Jewish history. Not only is he one of the greatest tanna'im and a primary disciple of Rabbi Akiva, but he is credited with composing the Zohar during the thirteen years that he lived in a cave, hiding from the Romans. In this series, we will look not only at the famous aggadot about Rabbi Shimon Bar Yohai from

Chacham Tzvi vs. Chasam Sofer on Marror

Apr 03 2023 36 mins  
Some people use lettuce, and some use horseradish. But which is the "real" marror? Both? One or the other? In this episode we look at how two different sages, living a century apart, addressed this issue. It also gives us some insight into the personalities of these two great sages. The texts that we will study can be found here: Chacham Tzvi #120: https://www.sefaria.o