Hi friends, and welcome to the 1840 podcast where each month we explore different topic balancing modern sensibilities with traditional sensitivities to give you new approaches to timeless Jewish ideas.

I'm your host, David Bischofkin,

and this month we're continuing our exploration of loss.

This podcast is part of a larger exploration

of those big, juicy, Jewish ideas.

So be sure to check out 1840.org.

That's 1-8-F-O-R-T-Y.org,

where you can also find videos, articles, recommended readings, and weekly emails.

One of the greatest rabbis in Jewish history was somebody named Rabbi David Ben Shlomo Ibn Zimra, who is known by the acronym, the Radvaz, lived at the end of the 15th century from 1479 to 1573, had a really fascinating life, and had thousands of responsea.

Response were questions that were sent to him from throughout the world. And he answered them.

He amassed thousands, and we have so many fascinating questions that were sent to him about

different issues that came up in that time.

Most famously, I don't know, most famously, he was very famous, he was involved in the lost

tribes, and there's a really interesting response to that emerge.

And there's one, I think,

serves as the perfect introduction for our conversation today. And that is, he has a question

that appears in the third volume. It is response number 985, really wrote thousands of responses. I think I got that right. I think it's

985 and was asked the following question. She'ela, it's a question. Al-Echad Megadoli

Hador, one of the great leaders of the generation, of the Jewish community. So one of the great

leaders of this time does not specify who.

Shemais Loban lost a child.

Velo horrid al-Dimma.

...