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What exactly must a woman testify to be permitted to marry a kohen after questionable relations? The shiur develops a fundamental distinction: only when there's re'u she-nivlah or re'u muberes must she provide testimony with two supporting factors. For mere re'u nistera, she owes no explanation at all—even silence permits her to marry a kohen.
The shiur begins by examining the Vilna Gaon's question on the Rambam (רמב"ם)'s formulation regarding a woman's believability (ne'emanus) in cases of questionable intimate relations. The Rambam rules according to Rav Asi's reading of the Mishna, discussing re'u she-nivlah and re'u muberes, yet we pasken like Ze'iri. The Gaon asks why the Rambam follows Rav Asi when halachically we rule like Ze'iri, and why he doesn't address the case of re'u nistera. Rabbi Zweig distinguishes between two fundamental questions: what a woman is believed to say versus why she is believed. Today's focus is on the scope of her believability—what testimony she must provide. The shiur analyzes the core dispute between Rashi (רש"י) and Tosafos (תוספות) regarding the basis of a woman's believability according to the Chachamim versus Rabbi Yehoshua.
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Why does halacha forbid entering dangerous places if everything happens by Divine decree? The shiur examines the debate between Rashi and Tosfos on traveling at night, developing a fundamental distinction: Rashi holds one must avoid even deserved punishments that Hashem delays through mercy, while Tosfos holds the prohibition addresses self-inflicted harm through free will. This framework reveals how people rationalize self-destructive behavior as "hashgacha."
Why does the Gemara praise hospitality to scholars as a unique mitzvah rather than ordinary hachnasas orchim? The shiur distinguishes two mitzvahs: hachnasas orchim (providing for those in need) and connecting to talmidei chachamim (cleaving to God through scholars). Yisro's meal for the Jewish leaders wasn't charity—it was his way of bonding with those transformed by Torah, teaching that learning must fundamentally change who we are.
Kesubos 13b
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