📚 Daf Yomi Summary – Menachot  93: Semicha Continued: Timing, Integrity, and Meaning (Tuesday 27th Nissan)

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  1. When Semicha Must Be Performed

The Gemara discusses whether Semicha must occur:

  • Immediately before slaughter
  • Or whether delay invalidates it

Conclusion:

  • Semicha should ideally be done right before shechitah
  • But if done earlier, the korban is still valid

This reinforces that Semicha is important but not indispensable.

 

  1. Peace Offerings vs. Burnt Offerings

The daf distinguishes between two major korban types:

Burnt offerings (olah)

  • Entirely consumed by the altar
  • Semicha is symbolic identification

Peace offerings (shelamim)

  • Shared between altar and owner
  • Semicha reflects a personal stake in the korban

Thus Semicha plays a more central experiential role for shelamim.

 

  1. Does Omission Invalidate the Korban?

The Gemara clarifies:

  • If Semicha was forgotten:
    • The korban is still kosher
    • No need to repeat the sacrifice

This aligns with Menachot 92:

Some mitzvah‑acts enhance holiness without being validity‑blocking.

About The Author

Rabbi Yaakov Goldstein is a 6th generation descendent of the famous Chief Rabbi of Izhmir, Rav Yehoshua Avraham Krispin, who authored a number of Sefarim, and was a colleague of Rav Chaim Falagi, and father in-law of the Pesach Hadvir. He currently lives with his wife Shayna, and twelve children K”H, in Tzfas, Israel. Rabbi Goldstein received Semicha from Rabbi Schneur Zalman Labkowski of the Tomchei Temimim headquarters in 2005 and served as a chaplain in the Lotar/Kalatz and K9 unit of the IDF from years 2005-2008. He is also a certified Shochet, and has performed Hashgacha work in slaughterhouses. Rabbi Goldstein is the director of Shulchanaruchharav.com, the world’s leading web-based Halacha database, and is the director of the Home Study Semicha Program, a self-study web-based Semicha program. He is a prolific author of over 50 Sefarim studied by a wide range of readers throughout the world, which is used regularly in Semicha programs around the globe. He is a world renowned Posek, answering questions to a web-based market, and serves as a local Posek, Rav, and Lecturer, in the Tzemach Tzedek community Shul in Tzefas, Israel. His many classes can be heard both from his website, Vimeo and YouTube channel. Students can join live to classes given in the Tzemach Tzedek Shul, through the “בית חבד צפת Chabad Tsfat” YouTube channel.