Bekhorot 27a (כז.) — the Talmud in English

The tanna taught:

And in all of them there is

benefit of discretion for the owners.

And the tanna explains what this benefit of discretion is:

How so? An Israelite who separated teruma from his produce,

but had not yet given it to a kohen,

and encountered another Israelite. He said to him: “Here is a sela; give it

— the teruma —

to my daughter’s son,”

who is a

kohen —

it is permitted

to do so.

But if he was a kohen

who said to an Israelite: “Here is a sela, and give

to a kohen

who is my relative the teruma that you separated” —

it is prohibited.

Because the teruma is suitable for that kohen himself, and the matter appears like a kohen who assists in the threshing floor.

And we challenge this:

And the tanna

of the beraita, who said that in all of them there is benefit of discretion for the owners, and then went on to explain, “How so? An Israelite who separated teruma,”

why did he not also say

that this applies to

priestly gifts,

such as a slaughterer who separated his gifts, or a shepherd to whom firstborn animals were born?

And we answer:

He can say to you: Teruma —

the reason that the benefit of discretion in it is permitted is

because it has sanctity of the body.

Since its sanctity cannot be removed,

as it always remains in its sanctity,

people will not come

to

err concerning it

and think that the money given for it removed the sanctity of the teruma.

But

these

priestly gifts

have monetary sanctity,

since if the kohen wishes to sell the foreleg, cheeks, and stomach to an Israelite, he may do so. Since they do not have sanctity of the body [as they are permitted to be eaten by a non-kohen],

people may come to err concerning them.

It is possible that the one who gave the money to the kohen

thought:

“The sanctity of these gifts

will be transferred to the four zuz

that he gave the kohen in exchange for them,”

and he will come to treat them as ordinary,

by not eating them in an elevated and respectful manner, roasted and with mustard. Therefore, the owners have no benefit of discretion concerning them.

By Torah law, the obligation to separate terumot and tithes applies only in the Land of Israel. The Prophets who lived during the destruction of the First Temple instituted that terumot and tithes should also be separated in Babylonia, because it is adjacent to the Land of Israel.

And the Sages who lived after the generation of Ezra instituted that they should also apply in the Land of Egypt and in the lands of Ammon and Moab, because they surround the Land of Israel.

Below, the sugya presents several laws in which they were lenient concerning teruma from outside the Land of Israel, as compared with teruma from the Land of Israel.

Rava said: Teruma from outside the Land of Israel,

whose obligation is rabbinic —

there is no prohibition of a kohen who assists in the threshing floor.

For it is not so stringent.

Rav Hama would give it to his attendant.

He would give teruma to his attendant, who was a kohen, as his wages.

Shmuel said: Teruma from outside the Land of Israel is nullified in a majority

of ordinary produce, unlike teruma mandated by Torah law, which is nullified in one hundred parts. And this teruma, once nullified in a majority, is permitted to a non-kohen.

Rabba,

who was a kohen, would

nullify

teruma from outside the Land of Israel

in a majority. And he would eat it during his days of ritual impurity.

Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua, when he happened upon teruma wine,

when he had wine from teruma from outside the Land of Israel,

would place

into one vessel

two cups

of ordinary wine

and one cup

of wine

of teruma.

That is, he would mix two parts ordinary wine with one part teruma wine.

And thereafter, he would place in one cup and remove one cup.

He would take one cup of wine from that mixture and place it in another vessel containing a cup of teruma wine. In this manner he would nullify all the teruma.

And Shmuel said: Teruma from outside the Land of Israel —

one may eat and continue eating, and afterward separate.

He leaves aside an amount corresponding to teruma from what he eats, and separates it after eating.

And Shmuel said: Teruma from outside the Land of Israel is prohibited only to one whose impurity issues from his body.

These are a man who experienced a seminal emission, men and women afflicted with ziva, menstruating women, and women after childbirth. But one impure through contact with a corpse or an impure creeping creature may eat it.

And this statement applies

with regard to its being prohibited when the impurity issues from the body —

to eating. But with regard to touching it, we have no concern.

Although he renders it impure, it does not matter, since he is not warned to guard it so that he not render it impure.

Ravina said: Therefore,

since we have learned that touching it is permitted, a woman who is impure as a

menstruant

may separate hallah!

She may separate hallah from the dough.

And a minor kohen may eat it,

one who has not yet experienced a seminal emission and has not become impure through an impurity issuing from his body.

And if there is no minor kohen —

she should take it

the hallah that became impure through her

with the coal shovel

[the utensil used to take up coals]

and cast it into the oven.

She should throw it into the oven using the utensil with which she normally takes up coals, in order to avoid, as far as possible, touching the impurity.

And afterward —

she separates another hallah!

The Sages instituted that she separate an additional hallah,

so that the laws of hallah not be forgotten. And

the other hallah may be eaten by her

even by a High kohen

who has reached majority. For the other hallah has no sanctity, and the entire obligation to separate it derives from the ordinance enacted so that the laws of hallah would not be forgotten.

Rav Naḥman, Rav Amram, and Rami bar Ḥama were traveling on a boat,

they were sailing on a ship.

Rav Amram went up to relieve himself

of his bodily needs.

A certain woman came and stood before them. She said to them: “One impure through contact with a corpse

— may he immerse and eat teruma from outside the Land of Israel

immediately after his immersion, before sunset?”

Rav Naḥman said to Rami bar Ḥama: