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What caused the first major crack in the unified mesorah, starting with the dispute over smicha on Yom Tov? The Sadducees misunderstood Antignus of Socho's teaching about serving God without expectation of reward, leading them to view themselves as independent contractors rather than submissive servants. This philosophical split between self-assertion and total submission to divine will explains their divergent halachic positions and foreshadowed later vulnerabilities to Greek influence.
This shiur examines the historical and philosophical roots of the first major dispute in Jewish tradition - the argument over whether smicha (laying hands on sacrifices) may be performed on Yom Tov. Rabbi Zweig traces this disagreement through four generations of scholars, from Yosef ben Yoezer through Shammai and Hillel, demonstrating how this seemingly technical halachic question actually represents the first crack in the previously unified mesorah (oral tradition). The lecture establishes that the Sadducees' deviation from mainstream Judaism cannot be simply explained as adherence to written law versus oral law, since observance of any mitzvah (מצוה) requires oral tradition. Through analysis of specific Sadducean positions - particularly regarding the Yom Kippur incense service and the counting of the Omer - Rabbi Zweig shows that Sadducees were willing to abandon literal interpretations when it served their philosophical agenda.
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Mishnah regarding smicha disputes, Yom Kippur service protocols
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