Daf Yomi is a daily program of Talmud study initiated by Rabbi Meir Shapiro of Lublin, Poland on Sept. 11, 1923 (the first day of Rosh HaShanah). The goal was to have people all over the world study the same page of Talmud each day. At this rate, given the 2,711 pages in the Babylonian Talmud, a complete cycle requires about 7-and-a-half years of study. Currently, the world is in the 14th cycle of the Daf Yomi and hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life participate.
Our offering, currently over Zoom, is a weekly Daf Yomi class that features whatever page of the Talmud intersects with the particular day on which we are getting together. The class is open to all and no prior experience learning Talmud or knowing Hebrew is required.
During the Zoom shiur (class), the Talmud material is shared on-screen so we are all on the “same page.”
In this format, we “tune in” to whatever the subject of the particular page happens to be as the Talmudic material can often swerve from topic to topic within a tractate (book) of the Talmud. While we don’t always cover the entire text of the “page of the day,” we do move at a balanced pace that leaves time for some reflection and discussion.
We are using the text of the Talmud as presented on the Sefaria website.
Questions and comments are always welcome.
About the teacher:
Dr. Jesse Hefter has been teaching the weekly Daf Yomi class for over 15 years. A nearly 40-year resident of Brookline, Jesse is the president of the Greater Boston Eruv Corporation, one of the largest Eruvin in the U.S. and about to celebrate its 30th anniversary in January 2023. Jesse attends the Maimonides Kehillah synagogue in Brookline and has been the Baal Tefillah for the Yamim Noraim for Congregation Kadimah-Toras Moshe in Brighton since 1989. He currently serves as a town meeting member in Brookline. Jesse has formerly been president of the Synagogue Council of Massachusetts, Board Member of Torah Academy of Brighton, vice-president of the Young Israel of Brookline, and a member of the Board of Jewish Education.
Jesse is married to Brenda, director of student support services at Bais Yaakov High School for Girls in Brighton; together, they have three children and 12 grandchildren. Jesse retired from Verizon Communications in 2019 after a 36-year career in materials science, telecommunications, software design, mobility solutions, and quality management. He is the holder of six U.S. patents. He enjoys sailing, woodworking, radio-control modelling, music, tennis, and skiing.