BET MIDRASH VIRTUALI
of the Rabbinical Assembly in Israel
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RABIN MISHNAH STUDY GROUP

Mishnah Study in the climate of Masorti (Conservative) Judaism

Rabbi Simchah Roth (of the Rabbinical Assembly in Israel)

January 16th 2002 / Shevat 3rd 5762 [Pesachim 40]
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TRACTATE PESACHIM, CHAPTER FOUR, MISHNAH ONE:

Where it is customary to work until noon on the day before Passover people
may work; where it is not customary to do so people may not. When someone
goes from a place where they do work to a place where they do not (or from
a place where they do not to a place where they do) we apply the more
severe restrictions of both the place where he comes from and the place he
is going to. However, a person should act differently [from others]
because of arguments.

EXPLANATIONS:

1:
When we started our study of this tractate I mentioned that it seems to
modern scholarship that the Written Torah refers to two festivals: the
festival of the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread - the
festival of the Passover being on the day that the paschal lamb was
slaughtered, Nisan 14th, and the festival of Unleavened bread was
celebrated during the seven days that start on Nisan 15th. I also
mentioned that this had echoes in Jewish tradition which persisted until
the destruction of the Bet Mikdash (and possibly even after that). This
is the subject of our present mishnah.

2:
I also mentioned at the very start of our study that Tractate Pesachim
seems to be arranged chronologically: firstly we learned about the search
for chametz which takes place on the night which follows Nisan 13th; then
we learned about the elimination of chametz which takes place before noon
on Nisan 14th. The next item on the agenda should obviously be the
slaughter of the paschal lambs which took place from noon onwards during
the afternoon of Nisan 14th. However, chapter four interpolates here a
discussion about the halakhic standing of Nisan 14th, before continuing
its chronological treatment of its subject.

3:
Obviously, there were different customs in different places concerning the
way to observe Nisan 14th. In some places it was still observed as a
semi-sacred day on which secular work was not done. In other places
secular work was the custom for part of the day. The purpose of our
mishnah is to prevent squabbling. Where it is the custom not to perform
mundane tasks on Nisan 14th the individual may not exercise personal
judgement: fir example, if all shops are closed on the morning of Nisan
14th you may not decide to open yours. But the same also applies in
reverse: you may not refrain from opening your shop in a place where
everyone else is doing so.

4:
The Seifa of our mishnah alters the judgement of the Reisha slightly.
When a person goes from one place of residence to another he must observe
the more stringent of the customs. But if this observance will be the
cause of squabbling and discord he must observe the customs of his present
place of residence.

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