Monday, September 19, 2016

When Does The Beis Din End Their Daily Session?

לזכות ר' אברהם יצחק בן אסתר וכל בני ביתו לברכה והצלחה בכל מעשי ידיהם!
לזכות ר' חיים יהושע בן אפרים הכהן לברכה והצלחה בכל מעשי ידיו יחד עם כל בני ביתו!

The gemara in Rosh Hashana [30a] talks about when we blow the Shofar on Rosh Hashana that falls out on Shabbos [like this year ... isn't]. It says [at the beginning of the sugya] that we may blow in Yerushalayim both at the time when Beis Din is in session and at the time when Beis Din is no longer in session. Rashi explains [ד"ה בין שלא בזמן בית דין] that Beis Din is no longer in session when they go home.

Sounds good. They went home - court is over. Judge Judy is sitting at home saying tehillim. 

But at the end of the sugya the gemara itself asks if the Beis Din is considered in session when they are getting ready to stand [ננערו לעמוד]. Maybe since they are actually sitting they are still considered in session or maybe at that point since they are already on their way out, they are considered finished for the day. The sugya concludes with a תיקו. The gemara doesn't even consider that they only end when they go home. Did Rashi not get to the end of the gemara??? How could he contradict what the gemara says a few lines later. Rashi is sure that they are only done when they are walking home while the gemara considers that maybe they are done the moment they start bestirring to leave their seats. But when they merely stand up they are CERTAINLY done. 

Not only that but in ד"ה בין בזמן בית דין Rashi says עד שש שעות שהיו בית דין יושבין implying clearly that the determining factor is the time frame of six hours and not the movement of the Dayanim.

הלא דבר הוא!!