Pea (mixed natractate)

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Pea / פאה ( Eng . Field corner) is a treatise of the Mishnah in the order Sera'im / זרעים (Eng. "Saaten"). In its eight chapters, it deals with five types of levies to the poor in the context of the harvest, of which the pea / field corner is only one, but the eponymous for the treatise.

Biblical origin

The Mishnic provisions on the poor have their origins in biblical instructions. That's what it says

“When you harvest your land, you shouldn't cut everything down to the corners of your field, nor should you glean. You are not supposed to look back in your vineyard or pick up the berries that have fallen off, but leave it to the poor and stranger; I am the Lord, your God."

- Leviticus 19.9.10

The provisions for the field corner (Pea / פאה), the gleanings (Leqet / לקט) as well as the fallen (Perat / פרט) and the gleanings of grapes (Olelet / עוללת) are derived from this section. The instructions for the first two levies can be found similarly in Leviticus 23.

“But when you harvest your land, you shouldn't cut everything off to the corners of the field, nor should you glean, but should leave it to the poor and strangers. I am the Lord, your God."

- Leviticus 23:22

To this end, reference should be made to the inclusion of these provisions in Deuteronomy, where the category of the forgotten (Schich e cha / שכחה) is also introduced.

“If you have harvested in your field and forgot a sheaf in the field, you shall not turn back to fetch it, but it shall fall to the stranger, the orphan and the widow, that the LORD your God may bless you all the works of your hands. ... When you have read your vineyard, you should not read it; it should go to the stranger, the orphan and the widow. "

- Deuteronomy 24:19, 21

Individual determinations

The treatise begins with the provisions on the field corner (1.2-4.9). It is clarified how a field must be constructed (minimum size, type of seed, etc.) so that it can levy the levy of the field corner. There are also questions about the time of submission, the procedure for property certificates, and the right of access for the poor. The second section (4.10-5.6) is devoted to gleanings . After it has been clarified what counts as gleanings, u. a. Compensation is provided in the event that the field owner has withheld their share from the poor. The forgotten is discussed in section 5.7-7.2 . In contrast to the biblical regulations, which only refer to grain that has already been harvested, according to the rabbis , grain that has not yet been harvested can also be considered forgotten, as can other types of field and tree fruits, e.g. B. Olives. From 7.3 onwards, the provisions for waste and harvest grapes are finally negotiated. Here, too, it must first be clarified what falls into the categories mentioned and under what conditions. The final eighth chapter first brings a few provisions on the tithing of the poor before it closes the treatise with an aggadic piece: the main theme is justice, understood as protection for the poor.

Tosefta and Talmud

The treatise has a parallel in the Tosefta but only a Gemara in Talmud Yeruschalmi. In the Babylonian Talmud, however, there is no Gemara on Pea, as in all treatises from the Sera'im order, with the exception of Berachot. The reason is probably that the agricultural regulations were only valid in the land of Israel and were therefore of little interest to the Babylonian diaspora.

See also

literature

  • Walter Bauer: Pea (Vom Ackerwinkel). Giessen 1914.
  • Gregor Buß: The Mishnah: Pea (corner of the field). Jerusalem 2008. ISBN 965-7221-48-X

Web links