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One who is on a mitzvah errand is exempt from reciting the Shema as it states “when you’re at home” this excludes someone who is out on a mitzvah errand.

Summary

Challenge: Is this the source that one who is occupied with a mitzvah is exempt from other mitzvos? We learned it from somewhere else, as in the beraisa:

“There were people who were tamei [and couldn’t bring the korban pesach]” Who were they?

Rabbi Yosi Haglili: They were the bearers of Yosef’s coffin. Rabbi Akiva: Mishael and Eltzafan who had assisted with the bodies of Nadav and Avihu.

Rabbi Yitzchok: The bearers of Yosef’s coffin had ample time to purify themselves (they were camped in one place for a while), Mishael and Eltzafan also had plenty of time (there were 8 days between Nadav and Avihu’s death and the korban Pesach, they could have purified themselves in just 7), rather these were people who had busied themselves with a meis mitzvah seven days earlier, as it states “They couldn’t make the Pesach on that day” but on the next day they would have been allowed to do so.”

So we see that one who is involved with the mitzvah of burying the dead is exempt from the mitzvah of Pesach!

Resolution: Had this law been taught only regarding Pesach, one might think that caring for the dead trumped the mitzvah of Pesach simply because it was not yet Pesach when the opportunity came up but one cannot do a mitzvah when he should be reciting the Shema.

Had this law been taught only regarding Shema, one might think it’s because there’s no kareis penalty for failing to recite the Shema, but since there’s kareis for skipping the Pesach, it is never allowed; This is why we need both sources.

We learned (21.2): Rabbi Abba bar Zavda quoting Rav: “A mourner is not absolved of any mitzvos with the exception of Tefillin which are called ‘glory’.

As the Merciful One said to Yechezkel: ‘Don your glory’ [it means] only you – the prophet – should don your glory at this time but other mourners do not wear tefillin. This is only on the first day of aveilus as it states ‘a day of bitterness’ [but a mourner on subsequent days must keep everything]. (Until the corpse is buried the mourner is absolved of all Torah obligations. After the burial, for the remainder of the first day he is exempt only from tefillin. For the remainder of the week he is obligated in everything).

Rabbi Abba bar Zavda quoting Rav: A mourner is obligated in the mitzvah of sukkah.

Challenge: Isn’t that obvious?

Resolution: One might think that since Rabbi Abba bar Zavda quoted a law from Rav: “One who is in distress is absolved from sitting in the sukkah” so a mourner should be absolved as well; that’s why he teaches that a mourner is obligated. One who is distressed means that he is distressed by circumstances beyond his control (he is nauseated by the odor of the schach or he is ill. His pain doesn’t have to result from the sukkah – as it seems from Rashi – rather any type of pain would absolve someone from the sukkah), but a mourner is distressing himself, he should pull himself together [because a man is in control of his mind]. This podcast has been graciously sponsored by JewishPodcasts.fm. There is much overhead to maintain this service so please help us continue our goal of helping Jewish lecturers become podcasters and support us with a donation: https://thechesedfund.com/jewishpodcasts/donate