Rabbi Drew Kaplan’s Textual Insights
Having began working as a chaplain two years ago in a senior living facility, one thing I kept coming across…
White Days[1] There is a curious beraita that appears about menstrual impurity (Shabbat 12b-13a): תני דבי אליהו מעשה בתלמיד אחד…
Leading off the fourth chapter of Avot is the following (Avot 4.1): בן זומא אומר: איזה הוא חכם? הלמד מכל…
Originally researched and worked on in the summer of 2017,[1] I have finally tweaked this piece and am publishing it.…
Rav Yehudah was a leading rabbinic figure in Persia in the third century (220-299) who often directly quoted his teachers,…
The appreciation a guest has for one’s host at a meal is to reciprocate in some way. While in contemporary…
Introduction Rabbi Yehoshua, son of Levi, the mid-third century rabbinic leader,1 made two significant changes to the reading of the…
With Purim upon us this week and the attendant drinking that occurs, it’s fitting to wonder about the appropriateness of…
Recently, someone pointed out to me a curious drinking text related to Purim (Megillah 12a): והשתיה כדת – מאי כדת…
A rather curious text occurs featuring Abba Shaul discussing his experiences as someone who buried corpses (Niddah 24b): תניא אבא…