Menachot 28 and 29 - Defining "is"

Take One Daf Yomi

Tablet Magazine

Judaism, Religion & Spirituality

4.8 • 565 Ratings

🗓️ 9 February 2026

⏱️ 5 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On today’s pages, Menachot 28 and 29, the Talmud insists that every single letter in a Torah scroll is essential to its holiness and validity. Historian Dr. Tevi Troy, our guest today, joins us to discuss how certain leaders have mastered the art of "wiggle words" to navigate challenging political situations. While the Gemara demands absolute precision, the world of politics often relies on the ambiguity of a single word to shift meaning. Can we remain honest in our dealings if we are always searching for a linguistic loophole? Listen and find out.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hey there and welcome back to Take One the podcast.
0:16.2	That brings you just one detail-oriented page of Talmud each day.
0:20.8	And on today's pages, Melachau 28 and 29,
0:25.0	come across this almost seemingly incomprehensible note.
0:29.9	It says, even one letter is essential to the validity of what is written.
0:35.4	A filo, khtav, Echad Mechwan. Really?
0:38.0	One small alteration
0:39.9	of one letter
0:40.9	could change an entire
0:42.8	tone.
0:43.4	This seems to me
0:44.4	like a very rich
0:47.4	statement that is
0:48.8	rife for examination.
0:51.3	And naturally,
0:52.0	when I think
0:52.7	about the intersections
0:54.1	of text and Talmud and history,
0:57.2	also there's something kind of like suggesting of history and politics in this statement,
1:02.8	I think of one man and one man alone, our own president to share of. Dr. Tevi-Troy,
1:08.5	welcome back to the show, my friend. Thanks for having me, Leal. I'm always
1:12.0	excited to talk about my two favorite subjects, history and Gamara. Now, when we read this
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Tablet Magazine, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Tablet Magazine and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.