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Why does Rav Amram Gaon intentionally interrupt between geulah and tefillah at Maariv with Kaddish? The shiur works through Tosfos's complex analysis that evening prayer's status as reshus creates an exception to semichas geulah letefillah. This raises deeper questions about what reshus truly means and whether it eliminates the connection requirement even when one chooses to pray.
This shiur delves into a fundamental sugya on daf beis aleph of Masechta Berachos regarding semichas geulah letefillah (connecting the blessing of redemption directly to the Shemoneh Esreh prayer) specifically at Maariv. The Gemara (גמרא) presents a dispute between Rabbi Eliezer and Rav Shimon ben Levi about whether one must maintain this connection at night. The core issue begins with what appears to be an internal contradiction. Both Rabbi Eliezer and Rav Shimon ben Levi seem to agree that the main redemption (geulah me'sula) occurred in the morning, yet they reach different conclusions about the evening prayer. Rabbi Zweig questions why Rav Shimon ben Levi phrases his position as 'since the main redemption was in the morning, therefore at night it wasn't geulah me'sula' when this merely repeats Rabbi Eliezer's point rather than arguing against it.
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Berachos 2a
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Should one learn Torah full-time trusting in Divine providence, or combine learning with work? The shiur distinguishes between Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai's approach of complete separation from worldly concerns versus Rabbi Shmuel's view that proper work itself becomes part of Torah. The key insight: true emunah means learning without demanding sustenance from either Hashem or community, unlike having a 'contract' expecting payment for learning.
