Rambam In-Depth: Invalid Maaser Beheima Can Become Holy

Rabbi Heschel Greenberg has begun a new class series on the Rambam's Mishneh Torah, responding to the Rebbe's directive to study at least one halacha in depth.

The Rebbe established an initiative to unite Jews through study of the Mishneh Torah, offering multiple learning schedules: three chapters daily to complete the work in under a year, one chapter daily to finish in roughly three years, or study of the companion work Sefer Hamitzvos. The Rebbe also requested that learners focus on studying one halacha deeply.

The recent start of the 46th cycle of Mishneh Torah prompted Rabbi Greenberg to record brief classes on selected passages. Rabbi Greenberg, a shliach of the Rebbe in Buffalo, NY, and director of the Jewish Discovery Center, has taught thousands of classes on Jewish subjects over more than 50 years and authored dozens of works, including several volumes of commentary on the Mishneh Torah. His classes are available at rabbigreenberg.com.

On the question of whether an invalid tithe can still confer holiness, the Rambam rules affirmatively regarding Maaser Beheima. The Rambam establishes that animals born in one year cannot be tithed to cover an obligation from another year - parallel to the rule that old produce cannot cover new obligations, or new cover old. This ruling derives from a hekesh, a Torah comparison between the tithing of animals and the tithing of produce, each required to be performed year by year independently.