Eine Stringenz der Terumah: In Yehudah wird an allen Tagen des Jahres an die Sauberkeit von Wein und Öl geglaubt. ["In Yehudah" (speziell), weil ein Streifen des Landes der Cuthi'im das Galil von Yehudah trennte. Und Jerusalem ist im Land Jehuda. Damit es unmöglich war, Kodesch aus dem Land Galil nach Jehuda zu bringen, da Unreinheit über das Land der Nationen verordnet worden war. Und selbst (der Kodesh) der Chaverim im Galil konnte nicht als Trankopfer gebracht werden. ("man glaubt ihnen usw." :) Wenn ein am ha'aretz sagte: "Dieser Wein ist sauber und es ist für Trankopfer; dieses Öl ist sauber und es ist für Speisopfer", wurde ihm immer geglaubt; denn wegen der Stringenz von Kodesh würde er achtsam sein und nicht lügen. Aber wenn er sagte: "Dieser Wein und dieses Öl sind sauber und für Terumah", wird er nicht geglaubt. Denn das Verbot gegen die Unreinheit von Terumah ist in den Augen eines am ha'aretz nicht so streng, und wir befürchten, dass er lügt.] Und bei der Weinpresse und der Olivenpresse (sie sind es auch) geglaubt) in Bezug auf Terumah. [Zur Zeit der Weinlese und des Auspressens der Oliven in der Olivenpresse werden sie auch für Terumah geglaubt; denn alle Menschen reinigen ihre Gefäße, wenn sie Wein und Öl herstellen, um Terumah in Sauberkeit zu trennen.] Wenn die Zeiten der Weinpresse und der Olivenpresse vergangen sind und er [ein am ha'aretz] bringt er [ein Cohein Chaver] ein Krug Terumah-Wein [oder Terumah-Öl, der sagt, es sei sauber], er sollte es nicht von ihm akzeptieren [als sauber. Denn nach der (Zeit der) Weinpresse und der Olivenpresse wird ihm nicht geglaubt.] Aber er verlässt es für die nächste Weinpresse. [Der am ha'aretz, der weiß, dass er nach der (Zeit der) Weinpresse und der Olivenpresse diesen Krug nicht für die nächste Weinpresse verlässt, zu welcher Zeit er ihn dem Cohein gibt; denn zu dieser Zeit wird er in Bezug darauf geglaubt.] Und wenn er (der am ha'aretz) zu ihm sagt: "Ich habe einen revi'ith [eines Weinstocks] kodesh [dh für Trankopfer darin getrennt ] wird er geglaubt [in Bezug auf den gesamten Krug. Denn da er in Bezug auf Kodesh geglaubt wird, wird er auch in Bezug auf Terumah geglaubt.] Krüge Wein und Krüge Öl, die medumaoth sind (vermischt)—man glaubt an sie zur Zeit der Weinpresse und der Olivenpresse und vor der Olivenpresse siebzig Tage. [Wenn einer (ein am ha'aretz) seinen Tevel (nicht den Zehnten) für Trankopfer reinigt und jetzt (vermischt) Chullin, Terumah und Kodesh, und er kommt, um auch über die Krüge zu sagen, dass sie sauber sind, Obwohl ein am ha'aretz selbst zur Zeit der Weinpresse nicht an Krüge geglaubt wird, wird er jetzt sogar siebzig Tage vor der Zeit der Weinpresse an die Krüge geglaubt. Denn da er in Bezug auf Kodesh geglaubt wird, wird er auch in Bezug auf Terumah und Krüge geglaubt. Denn es ist erniedrigend für Kodesh, dass die Krüge, aus denen es gegossen wird, einen Status der Unreinheit haben, wenn es (das Kodesh) (auf dem Altar) angeboten wird. "Siebzig Tage"— Es ist Brauch, die Gefäße siebzig Tage vor der (Zeit der) Weinpresse zu bestellen und zu reinigen.]
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
שביהודה נאמנים וכו' – for this reason, the Mishnah took [the words} “in Judea” because a strip of the land of the Cutheans interrupted between the Galilee and Judea but Jerusalem was part of the land of Judea and it was not possible to bring sanctified things from the Galilee to Judea, because they (i.e., the Rabbis) decreed ritual defilement on the land of idolaters, and even on that of Haverim/those who observed the Levitical laws of purity in the Galilee, they could not bring it for libations.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Chagigah
Introduction
This mishnah begins to teach ways in which terumah is treated with greater stringency than sacrifices. The central issue in this mishnah is how much to trust an am haaretz, an unlearned person, when he tells you that he preserved the purity of a food item. As we shall see, if he says that he preserved its purity so that it would be used for a sacred thing (wine for a libation or oil for a minhah offering) than he is believed because the am haaretz respects the purity of sacred things. He would not allow an impure thing to be offered on the altar of the Temple. However, if he says he preserved its purity because it is terumah then the am haaretz is not believed.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
נאמנים על טהרת יין ושמן – all the days of the year, ignoramuses who said that this wine is ritually pure and is for libations; that this oil is ritually pure as it is for meal-offerings are always believed/deemed faithful because of the stringency of sanctified things, they take care and do not lie, but if he said that this wine and oil were pure and it was for Terumah/priest’s due, he is not believed, for the prohibition of ritual impurity of Terumah is not severe in the eyes of the ignoramuses and we suspect that perhaps they are lying.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Chagigah
Greater stringency applies to terumah [than to sacred things], for in Judah [the people of the land (amei] are trusted in regard to the purity of [sacred] wine and oil throughout the year; and at the season of the wine-presses and olive-presses even in regard to terumah. The farmers in Judah would have known that some of their produce, namely wine and oil would need to be pure so it could be used as libations and to accompany the minhah sacrifice. They respected this and would not have allowed it to become impure. Since sacrifices are needed all year round, they are believed all year if they say that they preserved its purity for it to be used as sacrifices. However, they are not believed if they say that they preserved the produce because of the terumah that would have to be separated from it. However, during the main time of the year when everyone presses their grapes and olives they are believed because everyone purifies their vessels at that time of the year, in anticipation of having to take terumah out of the wine and oil. One could think of this as sort of the “high holiday season” of purity, at least for farmers. Although they may not be particularly meticulous in their observance during the rest of the year, they are during these two periods.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
ובשעת הגיתות והבדים – at the time of the harvesting /vintage and at the time that when the olives are stored away in the vat for pressing, they are believed even about Terumah/priest’s due, because everyone purifies their utensils at the time of the making of wine and oil in order to separate the Terumah in [a state of] ritual purity.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Chagigah
If [the season of] the wine-presses and olive-presses passed, and they brought to him a jar of wine of terumah, he [the priest] should not accept it from him, but [the am ha-aretz] may leave it for the coming [season] of the wine-press. If the time of wine and olive pressing has passed, a priest who is meticulous about his observance should not accept wine or olive oil from an am haaretz. However, the am haaretz can leave over that wine until the next wine pressing and then the priest can accept it from him, even if the priest knows that this was not made during the current pressing. It’s as if we are willing to believe the am haaretz because he was willing to hold onto his wine for so long.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
עברו הגיתות וכו' – after the time of the vintage, or the time of the storing of the olives in the building containing the tank and the implements for the pressing of the olives and an ignoramus brings a jug of wine or of oil, it is for a Kohen who observes the laws of Levitical purity and he states that they are ritually pure. לא יקבלנה ממנו – that they are considered ritually pure, for after the vats for wine-pressing and the presses for olives, he is not believed.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Chagigah
But if he said to him, “I have set apart a quarter log [of wine] as a sacred thing,” he is believed [in regard to the purity of the whole jug]. If the am haaretz says that he set apart some of the wine to be used in the sacrificial service, then he is believed to say that the whole jug is pure, even for the terumah in the jug. Since he is believed when it comes to the sacred part of the wine, he is believed for the terumah as well.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
אבל מניחה לגת אחרת – the ignoramus who knows that after the vats for wine-pressing and the presses for olives that he is not believed, he leaves this jug for another vat for wine-pressing and then gives it to a Kohen who at that time is believed concerning it.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
English Explanation of Mishnah Chagigah
[When it comes to] jugs of wine and jugs of oil that are meant for terumah, they are believed during the season of the wine-presses and the olive-vats and prior to [the season of] the wine-presses seventy days. The am haaretz is trusted when he says he preserved the purity of the empty wine and oil jugs both in the time of the pressing and before the pressing for seventy days. Evidently, they would begin preparing the jugs to hold the wine and oil for seventy days before the pressing. However, for the terumah itself they are only believed to have preserved its purity during the time of the pressing.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
רביעית – one-quarter of a log (i.e., a log equals the volume of six eggs) for libations is believed for his entire jug, for if he had intended to tell a lie, he would have invented one more advantageous to his case, for since he is believed for sanctified things, he is believed also for priest’s due/Terumah.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy
Bartenura on Mishnah Chagigah
כדי יין וכדי שמן המדומעות – He who ritually purifies his otherwise improvised meal that had been made without separating priestly or Levitical shares for libations, and now, there is non-holy produce with priest’s due and sanctified foods mixed in where the priestly and Levitical shares had not been separated out, and he comes to say all on the pitchers that they are ritually pure, even though an ignoramus is not believed at the time regarding the pitchers the season for wine pressing. Today, we believe him regarding the pitchers even seventy days prior to the season for wine pressing, for since if he had intended to tell a lie, he would have invented one more advantageous to his case, so just as we believe him regarding sanctified things, we believe him also regarding Terumah/priest’s due and the pitchers, for it is a disgrace for the sanctified things that the pitchers that were intertwined were considered as ritually impure it was offered. And [the Rabbis] took seventy days prior because it was the way of the world to designate the utensils for use and ritually purify them seventy days prior to the wine-pressing.
