Pe'ah
Encyclopedia
Pe'ah is the second tractate of Seder Zeraim
("Order of Seeds") of the Mishnah
and of the Talmud
. The tractate is a fitting continuation of Seder Zeraim. Following the initial subject of blessings and benedictions, instilling an attitude of reverence and gratitude, this tractate begins the discussion of the main topic of the Seder, agriculture, with the laws of "gifts" to the poor. It is concerned with six categories of obligations: (1) Pe'ah: the corner - the portion of the crop that must be left standing for the poor in accordance with and ; (2) "leket": gleanings - ears of grain that fell from the reaper's hand or the sickle while the grain is being gathered during the harvest (see, and ); (3) "shich'chah": forgotten sheaves - sheaves left and forgotten in the field while the harvest is being brought to the threshing floor, as well as attached produce overlooked by the harvesters; (4) "oleilot" - immature clusters of grapes ,; (5) "peret" - grapes that fall from their clusters while being plucked from the vine ; and (6) "ma'asar ani" - the poor man's tithe - the tithe designated for the poor every third and sixth year of the tithing cycle , . It consists of eight chapters and has a Gemara
("Completion") from only the Jerusalem Talmud
. Chapter Eight discusses the laws of eligibility and entitlement to public charity, including tithes and agricultural gifts. It relates that Jewish communities maintained two kinds of charitable organizations: tamchuy and kuppah. One was for travelers, who were to be provided food and lodgings, includings extra meals for the Sabbath. The other was the charity fund for the local poor. Both institutions were required to provided minimum quantities to the poor from funds collected by the local community. Of general interest are the first and last mishnayot in the tractate. Pe'ah begins with a declaration that there is no maximum limit to pe'ah (one can give as much of the produce in his field to the poor as he desires once the harvest has begun), bikkurim (the first-fruits), the pilgrimage, acts of lovingkindness, and Torah study. After exhorting one to give his all to God and man, the mishnah states that a person receives reward in this world and the next by honoring his father and mother, doing acts of lovingkindness, making peace between people, and that the study of Torah is equivalent to them all. Likewise, the concluding mishnah is a compilation of ethical homilies warning people against feigning poverty, improperly taking from charity and perverting justice. On the other hand, it lauds the poor person, who is eligible to be supported by charity, yet refuses public funds, working hard and living frugally. To such a person, the verse from Jeremiah 17:7 is applied: "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord; and the Lord will be his trust."
Zeraim
Seder Zeraim is the first and shortest Seder of the Mishnah, the first major work of Jewish law. The section of mishnah was written by the rabbis to inform all Jews what must be done to fulfill their biblical obligations of prayer and commandments about food.Observers of Jewish law are bound with...
("Order of Seeds") of the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
and of the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
. The tractate is a fitting continuation of Seder Zeraim. Following the initial subject of blessings and benedictions, instilling an attitude of reverence and gratitude, this tractate begins the discussion of the main topic of the Seder, agriculture, with the laws of "gifts" to the poor. It is concerned with six categories of obligations: (1) Pe'ah: the corner - the portion of the crop that must be left standing for the poor in accordance with and ; (2) "leket": gleanings - ears of grain that fell from the reaper's hand or the sickle while the grain is being gathered during the harvest (see, and ); (3) "shich'chah": forgotten sheaves - sheaves left and forgotten in the field while the harvest is being brought to the threshing floor, as well as attached produce overlooked by the harvesters; (4) "oleilot" - immature clusters of grapes ,; (5) "peret" - grapes that fall from their clusters while being plucked from the vine ; and (6) "ma'asar ani" - the poor man's tithe - the tithe designated for the poor every third and sixth year of the tithing cycle , . It consists of eight chapters and has a Gemara
Gemara
The Gemara is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah. After the Mishnah was published by Rabbi Judah the Prince The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora or, less commonly, Gemorra; from Aramaic גמרא gamar; literally, "[to] study" or "learning by...
("Completion") from only the Jerusalem Talmud
Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
. Chapter Eight discusses the laws of eligibility and entitlement to public charity, including tithes and agricultural gifts. It relates that Jewish communities maintained two kinds of charitable organizations: tamchuy and kuppah. One was for travelers, who were to be provided food and lodgings, includings extra meals for the Sabbath. The other was the charity fund for the local poor. Both institutions were required to provided minimum quantities to the poor from funds collected by the local community. Of general interest are the first and last mishnayot in the tractate. Pe'ah begins with a declaration that there is no maximum limit to pe'ah (one can give as much of the produce in his field to the poor as he desires once the harvest has begun), bikkurim (the first-fruits), the pilgrimage, acts of lovingkindness, and Torah study. After exhorting one to give his all to God and man, the mishnah states that a person receives reward in this world and the next by honoring his father and mother, doing acts of lovingkindness, making peace between people, and that the study of Torah is equivalent to them all. Likewise, the concluding mishnah is a compilation of ethical homilies warning people against feigning poverty, improperly taking from charity and perverting justice. On the other hand, it lauds the poor person, who is eligible to be supported by charity, yet refuses public funds, working hard and living frugally. To such a person, the verse from Jeremiah 17:7 is applied: "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord; and the Lord will be his trust."
External links
- Partial text of mishnah Pe'ah at WikisourceWikisourceWikisource is an online digital library of free content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Its aims are to host all forms of free text, in many languages, and translations. Originally conceived as an archive to store useful or important historical texts, it has...
- Partial text (Hebrew) of mishnah Pe'ah at Hebrew Wikisource
- Full text (Hebrew) of mishnah Pe'ah