Take One Daf Yomi

Today’s Talmud page, Makkot 2, kicks off a brand new tractate. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us with a rollicking preview of what lies in store. Why are the conspiring witnesses punished with the same fate they schemed to afflict on another? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 113, brings us to the end of our magical tractate. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to recap what we've learned, and share Judaism's unique and inspired view of the law. Why keep the commandments when we're already guaranteed a place in the World to Come? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 112, continues the discussion of an idolatrous city and whether or not it should be destroyed. Jordan Gorfinkel returns to help us parse what part, if any, do the residents of this evil town play in determining their fate. Why is Kevin Smith's Clerks a masterful Talmudic meditation? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 110 and 111, kick off a discussion of an idolatrous city and whether or not it should be destroyed. Jordan Gorfinkel has thought about this question a lot, particularly as one of the leading creative forces behind Batman, whose native Gotham is an idolatrous city if there ever was one. Should Gotham be destroyed? Were there innocent people on the Death Star? And what can this Talmudic conversation teach us about, say, Gaza? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 108 and 109, tell the great tale of Nahum Gam Zo, a man whose motto in life was "This, too, is for the best." How did this outlook save him from certain death? And what can it teach us on handling life's thorniest challenges? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 107, tells the heartbreaking story of how Jesus came to leave Judaism's fold. What was his great and wise teacher's sin? And what can it teach us about the need to always do much more to draw people near than we do to drive them away? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 106, dive deep into the story of Balaam, the wicked prophet who set out to curse the Jews and ended up blessing them instead. Courtney Hazlett, Rabbi Diana Fersko, and Josh Kross, the hosts of Tablet's How to Be a Jew podcast, are joined by Jordan Rosenblum, the author of the award-winning book Forbidden: A 3000-Year History of Jews and the Pig, to discuss about how this animal became such a strong and problematic part of Jewish identity. Why is it that sometimes it's the things that are least like us that define us? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 105, instructs us that God is angry with the world each morning, mainly because so many of us get their morning routines all wrong. What should we do as we get out of bed to make sure the rest of our day goes right? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 103 and 104, argue that slanderers, flatterers, liars, and cynics are the only four groups who will not receive the Divine Presence. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain why these four, and they alone, were singled out. What was their particular sin, and why we moderns must still watch out for it today? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 101 and 102, kick things off with a strange warning: whoever reads a verse from the Song of Songs and renders it in the form of a secular song introduces evil into the world. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain this quizzical yet profoundly important statement. What precious advice about love and marriage were the rabbis giving us with this prohibition? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 100, brings us a fiery story involving laser eyes, an arrogant student, and a strange and sudden death. What can it each us about the scientific method? And what warning does it carry for those who think they've got the world all figured out? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 99, makes a startling claim: When the Messiah comes, very little about life as we know it would change. What is this anti-climactic bit of theology teach us about personal responsibility? Listen and find out

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 98, tells us a striking story about the coming of the Messiah. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain what the Messiah meant when he assured a wise rabbi he was coming that very day. How may we each work to bring about the Messiah's speedy arrival? Listen and find out

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 96 and 97, ask the question of who among us may truly be called wise and privy to the Divine order. Tevi Troy, our very own Presidentischer Rav, joins us to explain why thinking that you alone have all the answers has rarely served our political leaders well. How did Richard Nixon conceive of his political frenemies? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 94 and 95, the rabbis advise us that meeting truly means prayer. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to unpack this gorgeous idea and explain what it has to teach us about building community. Why do we only really meet someone when we become deeply invested in their wellbeing? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 93, insists that our worse enemies are actually secretly our most valuable life partners. How can that be true? And what surprisingly timely lesson can we learn from the incense burnt by the ancient priests? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 92, commands us never to demean ourselves, even when in great and mortal danger. How did Mordechai, whose bravery we just celebrated this Purim, embody this ideal? And what does it have to teach us about leadership? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 91, recounts the adventures of a master debater named Geviha ben Pesisa. Tevi Troy, our very own Presidentischer Rav, joins us to explain what this ancient sage can teach modern day politicians. Why is debate prep so important? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 89 and 90, give us a startling dialogue between Isaac and Ishmael about the nature of faith, pain, and sacrifice. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain why this conversation is still relevant today, when the enemies of the Jewish people bring up the same ancient allegations to justify their hatred. What does true sacrifice look like? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 87 and 88, return to the notion of Ben Sorer u'Moreh, the rebellious son who the Torah instructs must be put to death. But on today's pages, the rabbis add a twist: His parents may save him simply by forgiving him. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain this legal exception, and what it has to tell us about the resilience of the Jewish people. Why must we all believe in hope at first sight? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 86, asks what precisely do we mean when we call someone a "brother." Does a brother have to be related to us by blood? Or are there other, loftier things that bind us to each other? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 85, has the rabbis locking horns trying to explain a complicated phrase, before alighting on a very surprising, and very relevant, conclusion. Why is keeping things simple sometimes the wisest option? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 84, discusses the severe punishment due to those who strike their parents. Hadas Yaron, star of the new show Kugel, a prequel to the smash-hit Shtisel, joins us to discuss why the shows are so successful. What is it about a troubled father-daughter relationship we find so captivating? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 82 and 83, remind us of our personal responsibility to act when, God forbid, God's very name is being desecrated. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to talk about the lessons we can learn from the Biblical hero Pinhas, and why we must never wait for someone else to do what we know we must do ourselves. What profoundly Talmudic insight inspired Teddy Roosevelt? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 80 and 81, bring up a form of punishment that has been previously all but missing from the discussion: prison. Why do the rabbis rarely mention incarceration as a form of punishment? And what can we learn from them to reform our own profoundly broken criminal justice system? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 79, focuses on the relations between actions and intentions. Is a person who intended to kill one person and killed another instead guilty of murder? And why did the rabbis disagree on this puzzling question? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 78, informs us that if ten people beat an eleventh to death together they are exempt from punishment. What's the moral logic of this controversial statement? And what does it teach us about waging war on Hamas and its many willing executioners? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 77, dives deep into the matter of taking responsibility. At what point are we liable for another person's suffering or death? And why does the distinction matter so much, morally as well as legally? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 75 and 76, deliver a terrific introduction to the Stam, the Talmud's anonymous voice. What is it, and how does one moving story of a lovesick man unlock the Talmud's literary mysteries? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 73 and 74, warn us that we should choose to risk our lives rather than transgress under the duress of our enemies. How does the heroism of the Israelis held captive in Gaza illustrate this principle and its ongoing resonance? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 72, delivers an uncomfortable but essential reminder of the true nature of morality and compassion. Why are we allowed to kill someone who we have every reason to believe will soon rise up to kill us? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 71, warns us against indulging in meat and wine. Which is curious, because, elsewhere, the Talmud teaches us that true joy is possible only if enjoying... meat and wine. Which is it? And what can this apparent discrepancy teach us about how we ought to approach life? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 70, is one protracted discussion of drinking, its perils, and its many, many pleasures. Producer Josh Kross joins us to discuss the link between alcohol and spirituality and the surprising benefits of getting moderately drunk. How do you make the perfect martini? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 68 and 69, deal with one of the most difficult questions in all of Talmud, the problem of the wayward son. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain this thorny issue, and why we continue to debate it even though the rabbis insist no such example ever occurred in real life. What can the wayward son teach us about our own family life? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 66 and 67, contemplates the meaning of the word "God." Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to unpack this complicated question, and what it has to teach us about justice and virtue. Why does the Talmud frequently refer to judges as Elohim, or God? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 65, tells a story of an epic argument between Rabbi Akiva and the evil Turnus Rufus, one of the Talmud's greatest villains. Our very own Presidentischer Rav, Tevi Troy, returns to explain why even our most illustrious political leaders sometimes had daddy issues. What did JFK say when embroiled in a quarrel with Martin Luther King Jr.'s father? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 64, tells us a very bawdy and hilarious story of a man who tried to demean an idol and ended up praised by the pagans for his efforts. Our very own Presidentischer Rav, Tevi Troy, joins us to unpack the story and the lessons it can teach us about American politics. Which politico messed things up for trying to fight dirty? And which great president was celebrated for refusing to do just that? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 63, continues to address the subject of idolatry, and how it impacts our relationships with non-Jews. Rabbi Irving "Yitz" Greenberg joins us to discuss his observations about God, faith, and the Holocaust. How might our people's greatest tragedy impact our capacity to continue and believe? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 61 and 62, deal with the sensitive subject of idolatry. What precisely is idolatry? And can we figure out if we're guilty of it merely by looking at our smart phones? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 59 and 60, ask a thorny question: Can non-Jews learn Torah? It's a question that has much to teach us about interfaith relations, respect, and other weighty issues. What surprisingly modern lesson might we learn from Rabbi Meir's ancient wisdom? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 58, argues that even merely contemplating violence is a sin. What did the rabbis understand about human nature that psychologists took millennia to confirm? And are people who threaten violence more likely to actually commit violent acts? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 57, dives into the intricacies of self-defense. What, exactly are we allowed to do when a pursuer wishes to harm us? And how has the rabbis' logic influenced and inspired the Israel Defense Forces? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 56, is all about blaspheming. But what precisely is blasphemy? And why should its very complicated Talmudic definition drive us to watch our tongue lest we use our words to destroy rather than create? And what does Taylor Swift have to do with any of it? Listen and find out

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 54 and 55, raise a complicated question: Is punishment logical? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to tackle this thorny subject. How did the rabbis, then, think about punishment? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 51, asks a question many of us have been pondering: Why spend all this time learning about laws and events that are simply no longer relevant to our lives today? And what's the reward of being diligent students of Torah? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 52 and 53, ponder what life was like in a world in which God's presence was truly and viscerally felt. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to discuss this inspired, and inspiring, passage. Why did the sages of the Talmud choose to illustrate this principle by describing a horrific execution? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 50, delves into the four methods of execution prescribed by Jewish law—stoning, fire, sword, and strangulation—and the rabbinic debate over which is the most severe. But beyond the technicalities, the discussion is infused with a deep concern for human life. What can this teach us about justice, nuance, and the way we engage with difficult issues today? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 49, kicks things off with a wise bit of teaching: It's better to be cursed than to curse. Socrates himself would have agreed, but the rabbis had a very different understanding of why cursing corrodes society. Who was Rabbi Haim, and what terrible truth did he learn when he was allowed to visit Heaven and Hell? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud pages, Sanhedrin 47 and 48, remind us that grief is a singular burden. A story from one of the Talmud's wisest rabbis gives us new insights into grief, and helps us navigate even the most unbearable of feelings. How, then, should we grieve? Listen and find out.

Today’s Talmud page, Sanhedrin 45 and 46, cover various different aspects of the execution process, and even shares a specific process for the blasphemer and the atheist. Producer Josh Kross joins us to discuss how he squares his fervent love of being a Jew with his atheism. Can someone find a basis for morality without Hashem? Listen, and find out.